Music Trade Review

Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
27
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
THE "SMALL GOODS" TRADE
Great "Small Goods" Year.
PROSPERITY AND DEVELOPMENT THE REPORT
OF ONE AND ALL.
The year just coming to a close has been
a prosperous one for dealers in musical
instruments, musical supplies and mer-
chandise. With hardly an exception, trade
has been lively since the beginning of the
fall. In a number of instances the usually
disturbing elements of political campaign-
ing failed to make any material differ-
ence in the demand for products in these
branches of the musical industries.
# # * * •
Regina music boxes have been selling at
a rapid rate during the past few weeks.
The warerooms at Twenty-second street
and Broadway, have been filled with vis-
itors, the majority of whom have made
purchases, not a few being of the most
elaborate and expensive styles. The Re-
gina Corona naturally attracted most at-
tention. The ingenious automatic disc-
moving device drew crowds of admiring
listeners. The Corona, now being made
in three sizes, is gaining continuously in
favor for home use.
* * * * *
Hamilton S. Gordon has had several
capable travelers on the road this season
in behalf of the Gordon specialties. They
have covered on their several routes nearly,
if not all, important territory, have made a
number of valuable new conections and
sent in big batches of good orders. Mr.
Gordon has won for himself an enviable
reputation in every department of the
Gordon business. This is especially true
of musical merchandise departments. Sev-
eral new features are to be introduced in
1901.
*
*
*
*
*
W. Paris Chambers, who has opened
Conn instrument warerooms immediately
above those occupied until recently by Mr.
Conn himself, is now busily engaged in
fitting up the space for an adequate ex-
hibit of the Conn products, which will in-
clude a brand-new stock of Wonder cor-
nets, horns, trombones, clarionets and
other catalogued Conn specialties. Mr.
Chambers is wellknown and highly re-
spected by the leaders and members of all
prominent local organizations. His head-
quarters and warerooms are sure to be-
PAY STATE
GUITARS, MANDOLINS,
BANJOS, ZITHERS and
FLUTES .\ .\ .\ .\
Easy to Sell
Profitable to Sell
Satisfy the most discriminating musicians.
Send for complete catalogue.
Every Instrument that's Musical,
JOHN C HAYNES & CO.,
BOSTON, MASS.
come a favorite rendezvous for instrumen-
talists.
At the Tonk warerooms most of the
Tonk specialties have sold well. The
Beau Ideal strings, for example, have
been called for in such quantities that con-
stant renewals have been necessary. Tonk
stools, scarfs and cabinets have also had a
record year.
A Wire That Talks.
THE NEW KIND OF PHONOGRAPH IS JUST A
PIECE OF PIANO WIRE.
Think of a phonograph without a cylin-
der or diaphram, a phonograph that sim-
ply strings its records on a piano wire, as
you might file so many written sheets of
paper. That is exactly what a New Or-
leans electrician says he has invented.
Its description is not difficult. When
you talk over a telephone the vibrations of
your voice send out a series of delicate
electric waves. In the new machine a
telephone is connected with an electric
magnet, which is excited by the little
waves as they travel through it in infinitely
rapid succession, and at the same time a
long piece of piano wire is drawn past its
two poles, very near, but not touching.
This magnetizes the wire, but as the mag-
net itself is continually varying in power,
owing to the vibrations, there is a corre-
sponding variation in the effect it produces.
That is, the wire is magnetized in different
degrees all along its length, as if it were
divided into millions of very thin disks,
each of a separate magnetic power. These
disks are your record.
For reproduction a mild electric current
is sent through the magnet, and the same
wire is again passed in front of the poles.
The irregularly magnetized wire breaks the
current into exactly the same kind of
waves that were originally sent out from
the telephone, and when an ordinary re-
ceiver is connected with it you hear a re-
production of the voice, just as you now
hear it over the telephone.
they evidently meet eyery present require-
ment. They are selling well in all sizes
and styles and the indications are favorable
for a continuance. That being the case,
we shall concentrate our endeavors in the
prompt supply of our customers.
"We have secured some valuable patents
on a specialty which will be introduced in
due course, but ample time will be taken
to develop and complete our plans before
any detailed statement will be given out.
Our plan of advertising the Columbia
zither extensively in magazines and per-
iodicals is meeting with gratifying success.
Calls are being made continually by retail
purchasers on dealers, and they in turn
order from the jobbers. The prospect for
the new year is very good indeed?"
Electrical Musical
Instrument.
The sweet music produced by the bell-
ringers is thoroughly enjoyed by all who
have been fortunate enough to listen to
it, and its only drawback seems to be
that it requires so many players so per-
form the work that the entertainments
are few and far between. It also re-
quires considerable practice to manipu-
late the bells with anything like ac-
curacy of time. It is for the above reasons
that bell-ringing is not common among
our entertainments. However, an invent-
or has at last applied the electric cur-
rent to the work, allowing a much larger
set of bells to be rung with the great-
est ease by one musician, the operator
taking his position in front of the key-
board and touching the keys corre-
sponding to the desired notes. These
keys are simply spring-controlled electric
switches, which when depressed close the
circuit with the corresponding bell and
set in motion the hammers. The invent-
or is Hermann Kruschwitz of Germany.
A single-stroke device is also provided, by
which a single tone of short length can be
obtained as well as a damper to check vi-
brations.
The Columbia Zither.
THE
PHONOHARP CO. CLOSING
" EXPANSION."
A YEAR OF
J. R. Greene, of the Phonoharp Co.,
was in town this week attending to special
business connected with the development
of the firm's business. The Review had
the pleasure of greeting him at the Phono-
harp Co.'s offices on Wednesday.
J. Leverett Pierce, of the firm, who was
present, reported an exceptionally good
holiday demand in Eastern territory.
Similar healthy trade conditions exist in
the West. At the factory all resources
have been strained to the utmost for sev-
eral weeks past to keep pace with orders.
In reply to a question as to the program
for 1901, Mr. Greene said: "We shall con-
tinue the present Columbia zither styles, as
HOWARD
mandolins and Guitars excel
all others
T h e y are made on scientific prin-
ciples, and for volume, purity and
sweetness of tone t have never been
equaled. Write for catalogue and
Che Rudolph Ulurlitzcr go.
manufacturer*
12JE.4thSt. t o,%
Cincinnati