Music Trade Review

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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
Detroit Music Trades Ass'n Promotes
State-Wide Contest for Child Pianists
Committee Appointed to Investigate Feasibility of Promoting Such an Event—Fowler Smith, As-
sistant Director of Detroit Public School Music, Promises Co-operation
p \ E T R O I T , MICH., February 8.—The De-
^-^ troit Music Trades Association is display-
ing great energy and its members are showing
themselves highly enthusiastic over the pro-
gram proposed for the benefit of the industry
here. At the meeting held last Monday in Book-
Cadillac Hotel, it was recommended that the or-
ganization start a State-wide contest for children
of twelve years and under to determine the best
juvenile piano player in the State.
A committee, consisting of Jay Grinnell, W.
R. Lewis, district sales manager of the Victor
Co., Walter Jenkins of Cable Piano Co., Mr.
Kessler of J. L. Hudson Co., George Sundberg
of the Q R S Music Co., Phil Sadowski, Mr.
King of the Convention Bureau, and Paul Cagle
of Story & Clark, was appointed to investigate
the feasibility of putting on this contest and to
prepare rules and regulations for a later meeting
of the organization.
It was pointed out that such a contest would
be excellent propaganda for increasing the pop-
ularity of the straight piano, that music teachers
and conservatories would be glad to co-operate,
necessary newspaper co-operation could.be se-
cured, and valuable inducements for entrants
would be forthcoming in the form of worth-while
prizes and State-wide publicity. It was sug-
gested that it would be advantageous to have
the final or elimination State championship
event during the State convention in August,
with Ossip Gabrilovitch as judge.
Fowler Smith, assistant director of music in
the public schools, assured the Association of
the co-operation of the Detroit Board of Educa-
tion in its endeavors. Mr. Smith, in his address
to the Association, set forth the wonderful work
in his department. He stated that each public
school owned from one to eight pianos, valued
in toto at $197,000; also $20,000 worth of phono-
graphs. Four thousand new pupils are being
enrolled yearly in the study of small instru-
ments, who purchase on an average a $20
instrument. It is contemplated to expand the
teaching of the piano in the schools next Fall
and great popularity for this work is anticipated
from the school's experience with small instru-
ments.
W. R. Lewis, of the Victor Talking Machine
Co., and John Sullivan, manager of the Henry
F. Miller Co., were admitted to membership.
The efficiency of the new secretary, Herbert
Cameron, sales manager of Starr Piano Co., was
highly complimented. The next meeting will be
held in the Book-Cadillac Hotel, Monday eve-
ning, March 1, to which all visiting members of
the trade are invited to attend and participate
in the meeting.
Relations of Dealers and Salesmen — (Gont. from page 3)
"He is after more sales, the same as you.
Working under a black-and-white contract
which can be terminated upon five or ten days'
notice makes it possible for you to look each
other squarely in the face every day of the
week, and in case of a gross violation there is
recourse to the courts with something to back
you up. If a firm refuses you a contract, there
is reason to believe they do not intend to do
right. That is a good firm not to work for.
"Regarding higher-ups selling to people who
are questionable as to reliability, make your
sale and let the sales manager bear the responsi-
bility of acceptance where that is the custom.
That is part of the duties merchants expect of
him.
"Try this recipe, adding any garnishment nec-
essary to fill your own demands, and step into
a sales manager's shoes later on.
"Yours truly,
"E. P. AMBLER."
Here, again, it is seen in Mr. Ambler's letter
that most of the difficulties that arise in the re-
lations of a salesman to his house are due,
fundamentally, to a lack of a clear understand-
ing in the agreement under which the salesman
is employed. As a matter of fact, the relation
of a piano salesman to a piano merchant goes
far beyond the ordinary agreement of employ-
ment due to the complicated nature of outside
selling in the piano trade.
Protection on Prospects
For instance, take the question of the length
of time in which a salesman will receive pro-
tection upon the prospects which he works. In-
stances have been known where a piano house
has carried a prospect on its books for as long
as nine years before closing the sale. This length
of time, of course, is rare, but, nevertheless, it
happens. As a matter of equity, no salesman
could ask for protection on such a prospect
over this entire period. Yet the existence of
such sales shows the complexity of the question.
A reasonable time should be set in the agree-
ment of employment. What that time is de-
pends largely upon the type of clientele sold,
the lines of instruments handled and, in general,
local conditions. But it should be long enough
to afford a reasonable degree of time in which
the salesman can work without cluttering up
the prospect list of the house with dead names.
A clear understanding upon this important
point will go far to preventing future misun-
derstandings and friction.
Protection on Closings
The second important basis of most misun-
derstandings between salesman and sales man-
ager exists in sales of the former which are
closed by the latter or by the inside salesmen
upon the warerooms floors. Here the outside
man is entitled to absolute protection, for un-
less he receives it and can count on it abso-
lutely he is not going to sell so many pianos.
Take the salesman who works without the
surety of such protection. Much of his work-
ing time is going to be wasted in the ware-
rooms waiting for his prospects to keep ap-
pointments (and piano prospects are notoriously
lax in that respect)—thus wasted in idling. If
he knows he will be protected, no matter who
closes the sale, he is going to work on the out-
side, and it is on the outside where most piano
sales are made.
The only sales which should go absolutely to
the credit of the sales manager or the floor
men are purely "drop-in" sales, those closed
with people who come into the warerooms with-
out previous work by the outside force, and
every # one of us in the retail piano trade knows
how few these are.
The compensation of the sales manager and
of the floor salesman should be based, not upon
their individual sales, but that of the for-
mer on the gross business done by the entire
force and that of the latter on the gross busi-
ness closed by them individually. In other
words, a floor man, when he is paid in this
fashion, knows that every sale he closes, no
PIANO
SCARFS
1926
matter what its origin may be, is to his credit
and thus he has no motive to claim a sale or
invade the work of the outside man.
No-Profit Sales
The third question, that of remitting com-
missions because there was no profit in a sale,
while not as widespread as the other two, is,
nevertheless, of some importance. Business ac-
cepted by a sales manager from a salesman
should be credited in the commissions of the
latter. If a sales manager is willing to accept
business without profit there is no reason why
the salesman should suffer. He is an agent in
good faith. The question of whether to accept
such business or not is not germane to the
question being discussed here. But it un-
questionably should not be done at the sales-
men's expense.
New Booklet Describes Auto
De Luxe Expression Action
Details Explained Clearly and Interestingly for
the Benefit of Prospects—To Be Distributed
by the Dealers
A new booklet, describing the Auto De Luxe
expression action, has been prepared by the
Auto Pneumatic Action Co., New York, and is
being mailed to dealers for distribution to pros-
pects in their warerooms. Space in the booklet
is apportioned equally to the Auto De Luxe
grand action and upright action with elaborate
full-page cuts to show the workings of each.
The grand player action including everything,
excepting the pump and electric motor, is con-
tained in the drawer structure suspended un-
derneath the key-bed of the piano and can be
removed in a few minutes, according to the
pamphlet's description.
Another feature of the Auto De Luxe expres-
sion action for grands is that the contact be-
tween player action and the piano action is
maintained by special duralumin hollow rods,
very light in weight but very strong. The pneu-
matic action stack is of new design—vertical
valve type—very accessible and easily removed
from the drawer. The pneumatic pitman wires
are installed-separately on a frame and can be
removed without disturbing any other part of
the player action. Each valve in the action has
a separate muffler on its top seat which deadens
the air noise which is present in most other
types of pneumatic actions. The expression de-
vice is what is known as the "choke" system,
patterned after the famous Welte-Mignon
basic patent governor, thereby giving the best
possible rendition obtainable with the Recordo
roll.
The upright Auto De Luxe Expression stack
is the same stack that has been made by the
company for a number of years. The complete
upright player action comes in two units—top
action—and pump on which is fastened the ex-
pression device, motor governor, reroll and re-
play boxes. The regulation for both actions is
described fully in the booklet.
Opens Branch in Anderson
ANDERSON, S. C, February 8.—A branch of the
P. J. Durden Music House, of Athens, Ga., has
been opened here, featuring a full line of pianos
headed by the Gulbransen and Fischer makes.
A. M. Hughey, formerly of the Burson-Eberhart
Music Store, of this city, has been selected as
manager. Phonographs, small goods and radio
will be carried in addition to the piano stock.
PIANO
COVERS and BENCH-CUSHIONS
0. SIMMS MFG. CO.. 103-5 Wart 14th St.
FEBRUARY 13,
New quarters have been taken recently by the
Wehrley Music Co., at 581 Main street, where
larger display facilities are available than in the
old location in the Stroud Theatre Building.
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