Music Trade Review

Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
JULY 10, 1926
The Music Trade Review
Steinway Advertising Campaign One of
Featured Exhibits at Advertising Meet
N. W. Ayer & Son Show Piano Publicity for Visiting Advertising Men to Philadelphia—Sesqui-
Centennial Exposition Brings Livelier Interest in Musical Instruments
PHILADELPHIA, PA., July 3—With many
musical divisions accompanying the Sesqui-
Centennial Exposition there has been a livelier
interest in the various types of musical mer-
chandise.
Wholesale dealers and jobbers report a broad-
ening of demand for the complete assortment
of string instruments and small goods and
those representatives of manufacturers of pianos
who feature wholesale distribution are very op-
timistic over the outlook for the industry as a
result of the growing orders from sections
taken care of through the Philadelphia branches.
Exhibit of Steinway Advertising
Steinway advertising copy and the campaigns
conducted through the N. W. Ayer & Son ad-
vertising agency came into prominence last
week when they were viewed by thousands of
visiting ad men attending the Advertising Clubs
convention at the Ayer headquarters, 308 Chest-
nut street. The exhibit showed the printed
copy featured by Steinway & Sons and an en-
tire wall of original oil paintings from the
Steinway Hall art gallery loaned to Ayer & Son
for the exhibit. These original paintings were
used in production of advertising matter by
Ayers for the Steinway pianos. They consisted
of a life-size portrait of Paderewski by Zuolago,
a bust of Percy Grainger and another of Levitzki
by Adolph Borie and of Josef Hofmann by John
Carroll, accompanied by a portrait sitting of
Rachmaninoff by Charles Chambers.
Gets Good Orders for Starr Line
Following a very gratifying tour of the Penn-
sylvania trade with a well-filled order book of
advance business for the Starr piano made by
the Starr Piano Go., of Richmond, Ind., Presi-
dent Ben Witlin, of the Witlin Musical Instru-
ment Co., 904 Walnut Street, local manufac-
turer's representative, is now making the rounds
of the dealers in Baltimore and Washington,
D. C. He will remain in the Southern field for
the next week.
President Florence J. Heppe, of the C. J.
Heppe & Son, 1115 Chestnut street, left this
week for his Summer home in Poland Springs,
Me. He will remain in the northern resort un-
til after Labor Day.
The L. P. Morsbach stores have been featur-
ing a special drive on player-pianos and baby
grand styles, making these display features at the
Broad street and Snyder avenue headquarters
as part of the Sesqui-Centennial merchandising
plans. The Morsbach store is in line of direct
communication and close proximity to the
Sesqui grounds and has excellent advantages
of a large corner window display. Other musi-
cal goods than the Morsbach pianos are the
Sesqui-Centennial harmonicas for souvenirs
with imprints of the various historical buildings
and the Sesqui Seal and the famed Albert Hoxie
Harmonica Band of 1,000, which is known as
the Sesqui Band. William Morsbach, a nephew
of L. P. Morsbach, is now managing the Rroad
street store, taking over the duties of William
Elton, who has been vacationing for his health
in Virginia.
Conn Display for Sesqui-Centennial
An interesting display of the Conn instru-
ments especially made for the celebration of the
Sesqui-Centennial Exposition is being featured
by the Henton-Knecht Co. in the handsome
headquarters of that firm at 24 South Eighteenth
street. A complete assortment of the Conn line
with chimes, French horns, and other brass in-
struments have been manufactured with his-
torical building imprints and inscribed with tlie
Sesqui Seal and wording appropriate for the
exposition commemoration. The display is on
the main floor of the building and with it a
Sesqui feature of the Leedy drums in fancy fin-
ishes. Benne Henton, of the firm, was among
the prominent soloists in the Conway Band
while it played an engagement here at the
Sesqui-Centennial, completing its concerts last
week. As solo saxophonist he was among the
broadcasting artists at the exposition. Mr.
Henton is also assistant to Director Pat Con-
way and has a national reputation as a saxo-
phone player.
Larger Quarters for Publishers
Philadelphia patrons of Waterson, Berlin &
Snyder, of New York, music publishers, now are
being served through a central city distribution
center, the firm having taken over the store
and second floor of the building at 907 Market
street, in the heart of the busy shopping section.
The enlarged quarters enable better service to
the patrons of the firm and facilitate a cen-
tralized exploitation of the sheet music and pub-
lications of that metropolitan publisher of pop-
ular sellers.
Good Season for College Store
With the closing of the college year at the
University of Pennsylvania the Houston Hall
store finds that the past term was a very profit-
able one for the campus musical headquarters.
Manager Hartenstein has been disposing of
numerous string instruments to the students and
had an excellent season on the University of
Pennsylvania anthems, both in talking machine
recordings and sheet music.
Joseph Heim, Inc., Expands Line
With the completion of the alterations to the
display windows and the lowering of these to
more convenient levels, the store recently sold
by Joseph Heim to John G. Means, and known
as Joseph Heim, Inc., 3800 North Broad street,
is now featuring a wide assortment of the
Buescher band instruments, the Martin line and
the Weymann string instruments. Interior
decorations and enlargements have enabled the
more attractive displays of the various lines. In
addition to the musical merchandise the firm
will continue to carry the Victor and has added
the Radiola and the Atwater Kent types of
radio. William Means, brother of the proprietor,
has become associated with the organization as
outside sales representative.
Oscar Blasius Returns
Trade associates have been welcoming an old-
time member of the industry whose family long
was identified with piano manufacturing in this
city. He is Oscar Blasius, of Blasius Bros., just
back from Florida and stopping at the St. James
Hotel, in this city. He is giving his attention
to the winding up of the affairs of the Blasius
Co. now liquidating its accounts preparatory to
retirement from business in the Fall. With the
passing of the business Philadelphia will lose
one of its pioneer firms and in former years a
leading manufacturing concern of the nation.
The present offices of the firm are on Sixteenth
street near Market.
Heaton to Visit Coast
William C. Heaton, president of the Auto
Pneumatic Action Co., New York, will shortly
make an extensive trip to the Far West. His
chief purpose in making a visit to the Coast this
Summer will be that of attending the Western
Music Trades Convention in Seattle, Wash.,
July 27-30. Wallace Reynolds, secretary of the
Auto Pneumatic Action Co., is making an inde-
pendent trip through the Middle West and will
return to New York during the first week in
July. Henry DeVerner, newly appointed sales
promotion manager for the De Luxe Reproduc-
ing Roll Corp., New York, is making a trip
through Philadelphia, Maryland, as far as Wash-
ington, D. C, and will return about July 10.
Prominent Pianist Records
for Rose Valley Rolls
Julius Leefson Among Those Engaged to Make
Masters for the New Rose Valley Recording
Rolls—Stands High in Profession
Much interest has been evinced by the trade
in the recent announcement of the placing on
the market by the Rose Valley Co., Philadelphia,
the new Rose Valley rscording rolls, designed
particularly for use on the leading makes of ex-
pression instruments. The company has been
busy building up its initial catalog, and numer-
ous dealers have requested trial shipments of
the rolls in order that they might test them out.
Julius Leefson
In a great number of cases these trial shipments
have produced enthusiastic comment, and, what
is more important, real orders.
As was announced in The Review recently,
the Rose Valley Co. has engaged the services
of a number of pianists of standing and ability
to make the master rolls, and the plan is to add
to this list of artists as time goes on in order to
make available through the Rose Valley record-
ing rolls various interpretations of standard and
classical selections.
Among the first to enter into a contract to
record for the Rose Valley Co. is Julius Leefson,
a member of the faculty of the Leefson-Hille
Conservatory of Music, and well known as a
teacher and concert artist, a number of his
pupils having been selected as soloists for large
orchestral organizations in the East.
Mr. Leefson was born in Amsterdam, Holland,
and received his first musical instruction from
his father. Later, he studied at the Amsterdam
School of Music under Henri Tibbe and Coenen,
the latter a pupil of Franz Von Liszt. Subse-
quently Mr. Leefson took the . examination at
the Cologne Conservatory and was accepted.
After studying there under Dr. Isadore Seiss
and securing his diploma, he went to Brussels,
where he studied under the great Belgian pianist,
Arthur de Grecf. Following an extended career
as soloist during which he appeared in the lead-
ing European cities, Mr. Leefson came to the
United States at the solicitation of his brother,
Maurits Leefson, to join the faculty of the Leef-
son-Hille Conservatory.
Makes Assignment
George S. Uniss, Inc., dealing in radio and
music goods at 121 Court street, Brooklyn, N.
Y., has made an assignment to Richard H. Mor-
ris, 356 Livingston street, and Fielding Robin-
son, 353 Atlantic avenue, Brooklyn.
Consult the Universal Want Directory of
The Review,