14
P R E S T 0-T I M E S
CAUTIOUS ANSWERS TO
RADIO QUESTIONNAIRE
Several Writers Request That Their Letters
Be Not Published Because Their
Criticisms Are Sharp.
Presto-Times has been receiving answers to its
letter recently sent out asking, "What has radio done
to your business?" The answers to this questionnaire
were sought in order to learn the contacts or friction,
if any, between the radio and the piano trade. The
idea implied an effort to secure statistics from which
a deduction might be drawn, and to get a basis for
comparing resemblances of the two lines of business
and to draw a parallel based upon the comments that
might be sent in, rather than to publish the letters
verbatim.
The letters are all interesting—very much so—and
have been stringing along, no two alike or even hav-
ing much resemblance to the others. A good many
of the writers requested that not more than the sub-
stance of what they had written be published, and
that substance be carefully edited.
The reason for this was the sharpness of the criti-
cism of the radio manufacturers for going at the
establishment of retail agencies on such a cheapening
basis. Every garage, drag store, barber shop or
junk shop became a prospective place for a radio
agency, and every hole in the wall a place out of
which to spout over the sidewalks through nerve-
racking loud speakers the raucous voices of uncul-
tured announcers, making a clattering noise, compared
to which the yawpiest barker at Coney Island would
seem a soft-spoken angel.
This yawping at the passing public by means of
these cheap loud speakers, the writers declare, has
done more injury to the cause of good radio than
the manufacturers will be able to recover from for
a long time. The public is innocent; it doesn't want
to meet a hold-up man who pokes a revolver against
its ribs and goes through its pockets. Nor does it
want to have a jazzy swashbuckling loud speaker
attacking its ears at every street intersection and also
in the middle of the block. Like the cheap and dirty
theatricals, the nasty triangles that the movies are
always thrusting at an already much disgusted pub-
lic, these sidewalk "Squawkies" are multiplying like
the plague of flies in Egypt.
l'resto-Times stands for the best in radio just as
it has always stood for the best in piano music, and
only the good instruments can produce that. The
radio and the movies are among the most wonderful
inventions of the age, and this paper is willing to put
up a fight to keep them on the high plane where they
belong; with the piano.
Some of the letters follow:
From J. P. Simmons.
Lexington, Ky.
The radio business has been very much over-done
here. The factory distributors have used no judg-
ment in placing their agencies. "Every Tom, Dick
and Harry," seems to be their slogan, and every
corner store can sell them as well as the larger
stores in the main business section, including—gro-
cery, dry goods, department stores, furniture, hard-
ware, electric, and every other line, even to include
the poor music and piano men.
"It won't be long now" till the bottom drops out,
is my opinion.
J. P. SIMMONS,
Veteran Piano Man.
From E. H. Droop.
Directly, the radio has not helped the piano busi-
ness—but it is helping to lead the masses into greater
appreciation of good music, and thus, indirectly, it w T ill
surely prove of considerable value when the desire for
creative and individual effort again turns the thoughts
of our people toward the piano\
E. H. DROOP.
Philpitt Forsees Improvement.
The radio has unquestionably affected the general
music business and especially musical instruments of
all descriptions during the past several years. How-
ever, I believe we shall shortly see the further im-
provement of the radio, likewise elimination of many
radio manufacturers, which should stimulate radio
business among the remaining manufacturers and
dealers handling same.
During the past six months we are firmly convinced
that the demand for pianos, mainly grands, is on the
upward trend, and no doubt before the close of 1930
all legitimate piano dealers will have experienced a
material increase in the sale of pianos, the funda-
mental instrument of all musical instruments.
S. ERNEST PHILPITT.
Radio Benefits Piano Business.
The radio in my opinion has been a benefit rather
than a detriment to the piano business this past year.
Several reasons account for this conclusion, all of
which are no doubt apparent to the majority. I per-
sonally see a revival of interest in the piano business—
it's already in evidence—while the radio business is
on the decline.
W. P. HARE.
NEW INCORPORATIONS.
Spratt Music Co. has been incorporated in Toledo,
O., with 250 shares, no par value.
Edward B. Dublin & Son Music Co., 3245 West
Madison street, Chicago, will manufacture and deal
in radio sets, talking machines and musical instru-
ments. Incorporators: Edward and Elizabeth Dublin,
A. W. Anderson. Capital: 100 shares, no par value.
Fort Wayne Amplified Music Co., Inc., Fort Wayne,
Ind.; capital stock, 1,000 shares having no par value;
objects, buy, sell, lease and rent out automatic talking
machines, radios and other musical instruments. In-
corporators, Eben Lesh, George P. Shaffer and
Marion J. Smith.
The
BOWEN
PIANO
LOADER
is highly prized by piano
salesmen because it equips
them with the most advan-
tageous aids to sales.
PROMINENT DEAL-
ERS everywhere acknowl-
edge the efficacy of the
B O W E N ONE-MAN
LOADER AND CAR-
RIER in increasing their
sales ability.
T h e N e w e s t T y p e of
Bowen Piano Loader for
the new Ford Roadster
combines all the good
points of the former mod-
el with greater simplicity,
strength and ease of at-
tachment.
Write for particulars to the
BOWEN PIANO
LOADER CO.
Winston-Salem, N. C.
January, 1930
AROUSING INTEREST IN
PIANO CLASS PLAYING
Piano Club of Chicago Purchases Grand Piano for
Use of School Class.
The Piano Club of Chicago has again given con-
crete evidence of its interest in the promotion of
music generally and the piano in particular. Their
latest is the purchase of a grand piano to be loaned
to one of Chicago's continuation schools.
At a recent meeting of the club's piano promotion
committee, of which Henry E. Weisert is chairman,
their attention was called to the fact that the Wash-
burne Continuation School of Chicago had a number
of students desirous of learning to play the piano but
who were deprived of the opportunity by the absence
of any piano in the school. Immediately the com-
mittee set to work, with the result that the Piano Club
of Chicago purchased a grand piano which it has
loaned to the school in question.
This beautiful piano bears a name-plate which, with-
out giving trie name of the manufacturer, reads:
LOANED BY T H E PIANO CLUB OF CHICAGO.
On the inside of the piano are the words:
P R O P E R T Y OF T H E PIANO CLUB O F
CHICAGO.
These continuation schools are junior high schools
and are part of the Chicago educational system.
Dr. J. Lewis Browne, director of music in the public
schools of Chicago, is taking an interest in the method
of class instruction in piano playing and the children
are responding to the efforts in their behalf. Many
of them are now ready to take up lessons with private
teachers and continue to advance as players of the
piano.
One of the active members of the Piano Club is
Adam Schneider, who when he puts his heart into
any effort of this kind becomes a power. His services
to the children and incidentally to the piano trade
have been given gratis, but are none the less appre-
ciated.
MID=YEAR MEETINGS
The annual mid-year meetings of the board of con-
trol of the National Association of Music Merchants
will take place at the Hotel Commodore, New York,
Monday, January 20. In sending notices to the mem-
bers, President Werlein is stressing the importance
of a large attendance at this meeting for the purpose
of discussing subjects vital to the interests of the
association. In addition to transacting association
business, members of the board will conduct what
may be called a miniature open forum for the free
discussion of merchandising ideas and problems. It
will be remembered that at the final meeting of the
board of control at the last convention in Chicago,
the open forum idea which was such a successful
feature of the convention sessions on Wednesday and
Thursday, was continued at the board meeting. One
of the members of the board very kindly agreed to
bring with him for the January meeting his business
statement for the year for the purpose of discussing
it with members of the board in a manner similar to
the discussion of an annual statement by the board
of directors of a corporation. This will be the first
time any feature of this kind has been a part of the
annual board meeting.
Luncheon will be served to the members of the
board in one of the private dining rooms at the
Commodore.
As it is planned by the directors of the Music In-
dustries Chamber of Commerce to hold their mid-year
meeting on Tuesday, January 21, it is probable that
some of the members of the merchants' board will
remain over and a joint meeting may be held on Tues-
day.
CLARK ORCHESTRA ROLL CO.
EXTENDS ITS SERVICE
All Seeburg Styles of Automatic Pianos to Be Ser-
viced with Clark Rolls.
An announcement by the Clark Orchestra Roll Co.,
DeKalb, 111., reads as follows:
"We are pleased to announce that under a recent
agreement, the servicing of all music-rolls for the
several Seeburg styles of automatic pianos formerly
handled by the Automatic Music-Roll Co. of Chicago,
111., will be taken care of by The Clark Orchestra
Roll Co. This new policy becomes effective Feb. 1,
1930.
"It is indeed a pleasure to greet our new patrons
and we sincerely welcome the opportunity to serve
them with the same highest quality of automatic
music plus the well-known service which we have
always featured."
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