Music Trade Review
Issue: 1920 Vol. 71 N. 17 - Page 3
mm
Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE
VOL. LXXI. No. 17
Published Every Saturday by Edward Lyman Bill, Inc., at 373 4th Ave., New York.
Oct. 23, 1920
Single Copies 10 Cents
$8.00 Per Year
Technical Training
S
O much has been said and written in reference to vocational training in the music industry of the United
States as well as in regard to ways and means for bringing new men into the industry, putting them on
a production basis, and increasing the abilities of those already in the trade, that the successful work
being carried on by the Music Trades' School in England is most interesting. Perhaps the idea could
not be carried out in its entirety in this country, but it might act as a guide for some general plan of vocational
training here.
The work of the school is divided into several departments. There is, for instance, the- Senior Day
School, which provides special courses in piano construction for those in training for responsible positions.
The course includes lectures on acoustics, design, tuning and repairing, factory management, etc., and there is
provided practical work in the selection of materials, the adjustment of parts, use of various tools, etc.
For the apprentice there is also a day school which provides a practical course in the designing, con-
struction and repair of musical instruments of all types, including pianos and organs and string, brass and
wood instruments.
There are evening classes in the technology of pianoforte construction where are taken up acoustics and
mathematics as applied to the pianoforte; detailed experiments on strings and their measurements; bridging,
soundboard designing, etc. Stresses and strains on the plate, back, strings, pins and other metal and wood
parts of the piano are studied in detail. Students are also taught to test the woods, metals, glues, felts, var-
nishes, etc., which go into the making of pianos, and finally end up with a course in scale drafting. For the
ambitious there is provided a second-year course in the technology of pianoforte construction, where the in-
struction is chiefly of a scientific nature, and has to do with the testing of metals and timber, and with the
further understanding of acoustics.
For those who desire to possess a thorough knowledge of the player-piano and its construction, there
is provided a two-year ccurse with sessions three evenings each week cluring the season. This course covers
pneumatics, player principles, details of mechanism and construction, and drawing and designing of various
parts. The second year is devoted to the making of actual repairs, and all types of players are made available
for study and experimental work.
Qf particular interest is the class in machine work, both practical and theoretical. This class is given
thorough instruction in the setting up and use of power-driven machines of the latest type as used in musical
instrument factories, including cutters, grinders, moulding machines, etc. A completely equipped shop is pro-
vided for the purpose.
In addition to all these practical courses, there are also classes in tuning and regulating and in technical
drawing, as.well as in general and applied acoustics. Practical and theoretical courses are likewise provided
for those engaged in, or about to engage, in, the construction and repair of violins and bows, and of brass and
wind instruments. For disabled soldiers and sailors there has been provided a well-equipped training factory
to enable these unfortunates to become skilled in certain kinds of work connected with the trade.
Even the retail salesman has not been overlooked, for there are special lectures offered on the piano, the
player, the violin, talking machine and other musical instruments with reference to their sale.
Carrying on educational work of the sort arranged for by the British trade is a task of no small pro-
portion and requires earnest co-operation and real financial backing, even though all students, with the excep-
tion of apprentices and ex-service men, pay moderate fees. Perhaps the manufacturing trade in the United
States is too spread out to permit of the carrying on of such an intensive educational campaign here, but even
in local educational work, such as that carried out in a limited way in New York and Chicago, the British trade
has offered a model that might well be studied and copied so far as possible.
Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE
VOL. LXXI. No. 17
Published Every Saturday by Edward Lyman Bill, Inc., at 373 4th Ave., New York.
Oct. 23, 1920
Single Copies 10 Cents
$8.00 Per Year
Technical Training
S
O much has been said and written in reference to vocational training in the music industry of the United
States as well as in regard to ways and means for bringing new men into the industry, putting them on
a production basis, and increasing the abilities of those already in the trade, that the successful work
being carried on by the Music Trades' School in England is most interesting. Perhaps the idea could
not be carried out in its entirety in this country, but it might act as a guide for some general plan of vocational
training here.
The work of the school is divided into several departments. There is, for instance, the- Senior Day
School, which provides special courses in piano construction for those in training for responsible positions.
The course includes lectures on acoustics, design, tuning and repairing, factory management, etc., and there is
provided practical work in the selection of materials, the adjustment of parts, use of various tools, etc.
For the apprentice there is also a day school which provides a practical course in the designing, con-
struction and repair of musical instruments of all types, including pianos and organs and string, brass and
wood instruments.
There are evening classes in the technology of pianoforte construction where are taken up acoustics and
mathematics as applied to the pianoforte; detailed experiments on strings and their measurements; bridging,
soundboard designing, etc. Stresses and strains on the plate, back, strings, pins and other metal and wood
parts of the piano are studied in detail. Students are also taught to test the woods, metals, glues, felts, var-
nishes, etc., which go into the making of pianos, and finally end up with a course in scale drafting. For the
ambitious there is provided a second-year course in the technology of pianoforte construction, where the in-
struction is chiefly of a scientific nature, and has to do with the testing of metals and timber, and with the
further understanding of acoustics.
For those who desire to possess a thorough knowledge of the player-piano and its construction, there
is provided a two-year ccurse with sessions three evenings each week cluring the season. This course covers
pneumatics, player principles, details of mechanism and construction, and drawing and designing of various
parts. The second year is devoted to the making of actual repairs, and all types of players are made available
for study and experimental work.
Qf particular interest is the class in machine work, both practical and theoretical. This class is given
thorough instruction in the setting up and use of power-driven machines of the latest type as used in musical
instrument factories, including cutters, grinders, moulding machines, etc. A completely equipped shop is pro-
vided for the purpose.
In addition to all these practical courses, there are also classes in tuning and regulating and in technical
drawing, as.well as in general and applied acoustics. Practical and theoretical courses are likewise provided
for those engaged in, or about to engage, in, the construction and repair of violins and bows, and of brass and
wind instruments. For disabled soldiers and sailors there has been provided a well-equipped training factory
to enable these unfortunates to become skilled in certain kinds of work connected with the trade.
Even the retail salesman has not been overlooked, for there are special lectures offered on the piano, the
player, the violin, talking machine and other musical instruments with reference to their sale.
Carrying on educational work of the sort arranged for by the British trade is a task of no small pro-
portion and requires earnest co-operation and real financial backing, even though all students, with the excep-
tion of apprentices and ex-service men, pay moderate fees. Perhaps the manufacturing trade in the United
States is too spread out to permit of the carrying on of such an intensive educational campaign here, but even
in local educational work, such as that carried out in a limited way in New York and Chicago, the British trade
has offered a model that might well be studied and copied so far as possible.
Future scanning projects are planned by the International Arcade Museum Library (IAML).