Music Trade Review

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A Steinway Upright Display, the Main
Salon Showing Steinway Louis XVI Grand,
and the Main Duo-Art Salon
New Cincinnati Home of Steinway
Has Its Formal Opening
Over Two Hundred Guests, Including Prominent Local Musicians, President Frederick T. Steinway, of Stein-
way & Sons, and Other Executives of the House, Present—Elaborate Musical Program Fea-
tures Event—New Hall a Handsome Setting for the Steinway Piano
INCINNATI, O., October 16.—The beau-
tiful new Steinway Hall, Cincinnati home
of Steinway & Sons, at 28 East Fourth
street, was officially opened yesterday after-
noon. ' It is one of the smartest instrument
salons in this part of the country, its marble
halls handsomely decorated with tapestry and
paintings of celebrated artists and its arrange-
ments of an elegance and beauty seldom seen
but singularfy appropriate for a home of the
artistic creation of Steinway & Sons.
R. E. Wells, manager of the Cincinnati house,
with Mrs. Wells, were the hosts and hundreds
of musicians and music-loving patrons attended
the reception. Magnificent floral offerings, not
only from friends and associates in Cincinnati,
but also from Europe, were on display. Among
the European representations of floral offerings
were tributes from London, Berlin, Paris,
Rome, Copenhagen, Hamburg, Dresden and
Vienna. New York, Chicago, Detroit, Buffalo,
Philadelphia and other important centers repre-
sented the American establishments.
On the walls of the new Steinway Hall are
pictures of the famous artists who have used
and are using the Steinway piano. There are
Paderewski and Rachmaninoff, Josef Hofmann,
Percy Grainger, Rudolf Ganz, D'Albert and
many others of similar celebrity, and their pres-
ence in portraits recalls the host of notables
who went before them as Steinway pianists—
Liszt, Rubenstein, Mikisch, Busoni, MacDowell,
Joseffy, Leschetizky and the late Theodore
Thomas.
Frederick T. Steinway, president of Steinway
& Sons, with Mrs. Steinway, Mr. and Mrs. Paul
H. Schmidt, Mr. and Mrs. Herman Irion, all
from the Steinway headquarters in New York,
were present for the ceremony, and some 200
guests, including prominent local musicians,
critics, and other friends of the Steinway House
attended the formal opening and the banquet
which followed at the Hotel Gibson immediately
adjoining the new Steinway Hall. Among these
guests were Frank V. van der Stucken, con-
ductor of the Cincinnati May Music Festival;
Fritz Reiner, conductor of the Cincinnati Sym-
phony Orchestra; W. F. Wiley, general man-
ager of The Enquirer; Moses Strauss, managing
editor of the Times Star, and others of note.
The feature of the evening was the musical
program by Cincinnati artists.
One of the principal addresses at the banquet
C
Exterior of Steinway Hall
was made by Frederick T. Steinway, who paid
a glowing tribute to Cincinnati's musical pres-
tige and expressed the gratification that officials
of his company felt in giving to the city a fine
modern music salon.
Another prominent speaker was J. H. Thu-
man, Cincinnati's impresario, who brought
Marion Talley to the city last Thursday night
and who remained over for the Steinway gath-
ering before returning to his duties in Kansas
City.
R. E. Wells, resident manager for Steinway
& Sons, made an address of welcome, and Rabbi
James G. Heller, himself an accomplished musi-
cian and author of the program notes for the
Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra concerts, also
spoke.
A feature of the evening was the musical pro-
gram by Cincinnati artists. Mme. Marguerite
Melville Liszniewska, pianist and member of
the faculty of the Conservatory of Music, played
three compositions by Debussy; Italo Picchi,
baritone, of the College of Music, gave two
songs, one a Verdi aria; Mme. Karin Dayas
offered a group of Ravel numbers; Louise Har-
rison Snodgrass, composer and pianist, played
one of her own works, "Star Wishes," which
was sung by Dan Beddoe, the noted tenor and
oratorio singer, who also contributed other
numbers to the program. An excellent quintet
also played Dohnanyi's composition, Quintet,
Opus 1.
Members of the trade who attended the open-
ing included Frank E. Edgar, of the Aeolian
Co.; Jacob Schiller, of the Lester Piano Co.,
and George E. Mansfield, of C. Kurtzmann
& Co.
The new Steinway Hall is particularly well
arranged, with the first floor devoted entirely
to the display of handsome Steinway instru-
ments, and a balcony providing room for the
offices. On the second floor is the Duo-Art
room, an excellent example of the best work
of the decorators, and additional showrooms
are on the third floor. The fourth floor is given
over to a storage and repair department. The
entire building was completely remodeled for
Steinway & Sons' use, and the beauty of the re-
sults surprise even those who have kept in more
or less close touch with the progress of the
work. The new Steinway Hall is close to the
corner of Fourth and Walnut streets.
In addition to the Steinway pianos and Stein-
way Duo-Art pianos there are handled in the
local store Kurtzmann, Lester and Kohler &
Campbell pianos and players, Autopianos,
Brunswick Panatropes and Orthophonic Vic-
trolas and records.