Music Trade Review
Issue: 1923 Vol. 76 N. 21 - Page 138
Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
128
MAY
26, 1923
CONDUCTED BY V. D. WALSH
THE NATIONAL MUSIC PUBLISHERS ANNUAL CONVENTION
George Fischer, President of That Organization, States Publishing Industry Was Never Con-
fronted With Such Momentous Problems—Meetings to Be in New York on June 12 and June 13
Notwithstanding the fact that a wish was re-
peatedly expressed that the twenty-ninth An-
nual Convention of the Music Publishers Asso-
ciation of the United States this year be held in
Chicago during the same week selected by the
Music Industries Chamber of Commerce and
the National Association of Sheet Music Deal-
ers, the long established custom of meeting in
New York at the Hotel Astor will be followed.
The date decided upon is Tuesday, June 12, with
June 13 held open should the discussions prove
of sufficient importance to warrant a contin-
uance of proceedings on the following day.
Heretofore the one-day session seemed in-
adequate. Thanks, however, to the whole-
hearted co-operation that is being received from
Alfred L. Smith, general manager of the Music
Industries Chamber of Commerce and who dur-
ing the present year acted as executive secre-
tary of the Music Publishers Association, many
vital and important questions, which ordi-
narily would have taken up much valuable time
at the Annual Convention, have either already
been disposed of in board meetings, or have
carefully been prepared in advance for presen-
tation, final discussions and disposition.
Perhaps never before in the history of our in-
dustry have the music publishers been con-
fronted with a question of more vital impor-
tance to them than proves to be the one of
"Radio," coming to us figuratively speaking
"out of the clear sky."
The public press has given liberal space to the
fight now being waged between the American
Society of Authors, Composers and Publishers
on the one side and certain broadcasting com-
panies on the other, over the public performance
right question, which, according to the Copy-
right Statute of 1909 is vested solely in the
owner of the copyright. During the early
stages of discussion the validity of the owner of
the copyright's claim never seemed to have been
( SONGS THAT SELL |
f^RNING SANDS]
ibr oui complete catalog
(Popular & Standard)
doubted. More recently, however, a change in
front has been noticed, and unless things have
been greatly exaggerated in the press an at-
tempt will perhaps be made on the part of the
united radio companies to overthrow the pub-
lishers' present rights.
Unfortunately there exists in publishers'
circles some wide difference of opinion as to the
fitness in exacting from radio companies a per-
formance fee for the broadcasting of certain
compositions.
While all know of the decided stand taken by
the American Society of Authors, Composers
SONGS THAT SELL
You Know You Belong
to Somebody Else
(So Why Don't You Leave Me Alone ?)
Down Among the Sleepy
Hills of Tennessee (new)
— Dearest
(You're the Nearest to My Heart)
You Tell Her—I Stutter
Homesick
Open Yovr Arms, My Alabamy
Ivy (Cling to Me)
Choo Choo Blues
Some Day Yon Ml Cry Over Someone
Some Little Someone
Every Wednesday Night
Come on Home
Don't Bring Me Posies
(It's Shoesles I Need)
Some Sunny Day
Truly
Just a Little Love Song
Yankee Doodle Blues
Early in the Morning (Bines)
Night
New Hampshire
Venetian Blues
Constantly
Kissing Time (Waltz)
—
—
George Fischer
and Publishers, counting among its members
nearly all of the houses publishing the popular
class of vocal and instrumental compositions,
there existed until quite recently some anxiety
as to the action that would be taken by the Na-
tional Association of Music Publishers. The
atmosphere has now been cleared, of some of
this uncertainty which prevailed. A committee
report which recommended to the individual
members of these latter publishers to grant
temporary licenses, without compensation for a
limited period, to the broadcasting companies,
was accepted by a majority vote taken from
among those present at the meeting held on the
night of May 10. It does not prove very
likely that so soon after coming to this decision
anything contrary to the wishes of the members
will be undertaken. The radio question, never-
theless, continues one which calls for the most
careful vigilance combined with intelligent
action in order to avoid a repetition of the
rather unpleasant experiences with which the
publishers were confronted during the early
days of the talking machine.
The season just ended has on the whole
proven a most satisfactory one to all the stan-
dard publishers. There has been a noticeable
decrease in the list, of new works brought out
during the past twelve months with undoubt-
edly more thought given to the merits, service-
ability and practicability of the compositions se-
lected for publication. The works of American
composers are steadily finding their way on pro-
grams of importance and are incidentally also
receiving a fairer share of attention on the part
of vocal teachers, both of which salutary features
will certainly prove an incentive to the Amer-
ican publisher to increase his annual appro-
priations for this particular class of publica-
tion, in preference to indulging in the more or
less unsatisfactory, if not risky, reprinting of
non-copyrighted foreign works,
—
Universal Dance Folio for 1923
IRVING BERLIN'S NEW
Music Box Revue
Crinoline Days *•••
Lady of the Evening
Porcelain Maid ' : ..:
Pack Up Your Sins
—
and Go To The Devil
Will She Come From the East?
The Little Red Lacquer Cage
Bring On the Pepper
—
IRVING BERLIN, Inc.
1607 Broadway, New York
As the result of the splendid constructive
work indulged in during the past several years
by the National Association of Sheet Music
Dealers, much pood has also resulted to the
publisher. On a previous occasion I expressed
my views in a manner not to be misunderstood,
as to the undesirability of a publishing house
continuing forever assuming the dual role of
publisher-retailer. Naturally the thing cannot
just yet be avoided entirely; however, with
better organizations everywhere the advantage
of putting it up to the retail dealer to supply the
local wants ought not be lost sight of. Our
many other perplexing questions can, and, I am
sure, will receive better attention after once we
are relieved of the many petty annoyances that
have always been considered as part and parcel
of the retail branch of any and "every industry.,
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
128
MAY
26, 1923
CONDUCTED BY V. D. WALSH
THE NATIONAL MUSIC PUBLISHERS ANNUAL CONVENTION
George Fischer, President of That Organization, States Publishing Industry Was Never Con-
fronted With Such Momentous Problems—Meetings to Be in New York on June 12 and June 13
Notwithstanding the fact that a wish was re-
peatedly expressed that the twenty-ninth An-
nual Convention of the Music Publishers Asso-
ciation of the United States this year be held in
Chicago during the same week selected by the
Music Industries Chamber of Commerce and
the National Association of Sheet Music Deal-
ers, the long established custom of meeting in
New York at the Hotel Astor will be followed.
The date decided upon is Tuesday, June 12, with
June 13 held open should the discussions prove
of sufficient importance to warrant a contin-
uance of proceedings on the following day.
Heretofore the one-day session seemed in-
adequate. Thanks, however, to the whole-
hearted co-operation that is being received from
Alfred L. Smith, general manager of the Music
Industries Chamber of Commerce and who dur-
ing the present year acted as executive secre-
tary of the Music Publishers Association, many
vital and important questions, which ordi-
narily would have taken up much valuable time
at the Annual Convention, have either already
been disposed of in board meetings, or have
carefully been prepared in advance for presen-
tation, final discussions and disposition.
Perhaps never before in the history of our in-
dustry have the music publishers been con-
fronted with a question of more vital impor-
tance to them than proves to be the one of
"Radio," coming to us figuratively speaking
"out of the clear sky."
The public press has given liberal space to the
fight now being waged between the American
Society of Authors, Composers and Publishers
on the one side and certain broadcasting com-
panies on the other, over the public performance
right question, which, according to the Copy-
right Statute of 1909 is vested solely in the
owner of the copyright. During the early
stages of discussion the validity of the owner of
the copyright's claim never seemed to have been
( SONGS THAT SELL |
f^RNING SANDS]
ibr oui complete catalog
(Popular & Standard)
doubted. More recently, however, a change in
front has been noticed, and unless things have
been greatly exaggerated in the press an at-
tempt will perhaps be made on the part of the
united radio companies to overthrow the pub-
lishers' present rights.
Unfortunately there exists in publishers'
circles some wide difference of opinion as to the
fitness in exacting from radio companies a per-
formance fee for the broadcasting of certain
compositions.
While all know of the decided stand taken by
the American Society of Authors, Composers
SONGS THAT SELL
You Know You Belong
to Somebody Else
(So Why Don't You Leave Me Alone ?)
Down Among the Sleepy
Hills of Tennessee (new)
— Dearest
(You're the Nearest to My Heart)
You Tell Her—I Stutter
Homesick
Open Yovr Arms, My Alabamy
Ivy (Cling to Me)
Choo Choo Blues
Some Day Yon Ml Cry Over Someone
Some Little Someone
Every Wednesday Night
Come on Home
Don't Bring Me Posies
(It's Shoesles I Need)
Some Sunny Day
Truly
Just a Little Love Song
Yankee Doodle Blues
Early in the Morning (Bines)
Night
New Hampshire
Venetian Blues
Constantly
Kissing Time (Waltz)
—
—
George Fischer
and Publishers, counting among its members
nearly all of the houses publishing the popular
class of vocal and instrumental compositions,
there existed until quite recently some anxiety
as to the action that would be taken by the Na-
tional Association of Music Publishers. The
atmosphere has now been cleared, of some of
this uncertainty which prevailed. A committee
report which recommended to the individual
members of these latter publishers to grant
temporary licenses, without compensation for a
limited period, to the broadcasting companies,
was accepted by a majority vote taken from
among those present at the meeting held on the
night of May 10. It does not prove very
likely that so soon after coming to this decision
anything contrary to the wishes of the members
will be undertaken. The radio question, never-
theless, continues one which calls for the most
careful vigilance combined with intelligent
action in order to avoid a repetition of the
rather unpleasant experiences with which the
publishers were confronted during the early
days of the talking machine.
The season just ended has on the whole
proven a most satisfactory one to all the stan-
dard publishers. There has been a noticeable
decrease in the list, of new works brought out
during the past twelve months with undoubt-
edly more thought given to the merits, service-
ability and practicability of the compositions se-
lected for publication. The works of American
composers are steadily finding their way on pro-
grams of importance and are incidentally also
receiving a fairer share of attention on the part
of vocal teachers, both of which salutary features
will certainly prove an incentive to the Amer-
ican publisher to increase his annual appro-
priations for this particular class of publica-
tion, in preference to indulging in the more or
less unsatisfactory, if not risky, reprinting of
non-copyrighted foreign works,
—
Universal Dance Folio for 1923
IRVING BERLIN'S NEW
Music Box Revue
Crinoline Days *•••
Lady of the Evening
Porcelain Maid ' : ..:
Pack Up Your Sins
—
and Go To The Devil
Will She Come From the East?
The Little Red Lacquer Cage
Bring On the Pepper
—
IRVING BERLIN, Inc.
1607 Broadway, New York
As the result of the splendid constructive
work indulged in during the past several years
by the National Association of Sheet Music
Dealers, much pood has also resulted to the
publisher. On a previous occasion I expressed
my views in a manner not to be misunderstood,
as to the undesirability of a publishing house
continuing forever assuming the dual role of
publisher-retailer. Naturally the thing cannot
just yet be avoided entirely; however, with
better organizations everywhere the advantage
of putting it up to the retail dealer to supply the
local wants ought not be lost sight of. Our
many other perplexing questions can, and, I am
sure, will receive better attention after once we
are relieved of the many petty annoyances that
have always been considered as part and parcel
of the retail branch of any and "every industry.,
Future scanning projects are planned by the International Arcade Museum Library (IAML).