Music Trade Review
Issue: 1928 Vol. 86 N. 24 - Page 3
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THE
MUJIC TRADE
VOL. 86. No. 24 Published Weekly. Federated Business Publications, Inc., 420 Lexington Aye., New York, N. Y., June 16, 1928
81n8
^. 0 c 0 o C
Sheet Music Dealers Hold
Annual Convention
Fifteenth Annual Gathering of the National Association of
Sheet Music Dealers Convenes at the Hotel McAlpin,
. , New York — Varied Program Is Discussed
HE fifteenth annual convention of the National Association of Sheet Music Dealers opened
its first session on Monday morning, June 11, in the Colonial Room of the Hotel Mc-
Alpin, at about 10 o'clock. About fifty regular members were on hand for the meeting,
which opened with the singing of "When Good Fellows Get Together" by the entire gath-
ering. J. Elmer Harvey, of Detroit, president of the Association, called the meeting to order
and delivered an address in which he summed up general conditions in the industry.
President Harvey's Address
announced a ten-cent edition of numbers that
"It gives me great pleasure to welcome you to were popular some time ago. If this* price is
this, our fifteenth annual convention, and to confined to old publications only, possibly no
predict, that from all available information this
will be one of our best meetings. Before the
business session, we will pause to pay tribute to
the founder and first secretary of this Associa-
tion, the late Raymond W. Heffelfinger, to whom
the retail sheet music industry is greatly in-
debted.
"Our program is an ambitious one, and every
subject is very important. Several are entirely
new to us and will require a great deal of
careful consideration. The outstanding evils
that are causing the general unsatisfactory con-
ditions that exist in our business are the prac-
tices of some publishers competing with us in
our own territory in selling teachers, schools
and colleges at discounts and terms that no re-
tailer can possibly meet, and in supplying at
dealer's discounts, music schools, stores having
no regular sheet music department, and book
stores not carrying sheet music or music books.
School music, such as class methods, operettas,
cantatas and chorus music, is often supplied at
wholesale discounts to piano houses or small
instrument dealers not having music depart-
ments, and these stores sell this music to the
public at practically the same p'rice" that they
pay for it, using it for bait to get customers
into their stores. •
J. Elmer Harvey
"Dealer's discounts should be given only to
legitimate sheet music dealers, and no dealer great harm will be done, but we should em-
who orders only a few outstanding items should phatically oppose any attempts to re-establish
be considered a sheet music house.
ten-cent popular music!
"Nondescript five- and ten-cent editions of re-
"The present high wholesale cost of popular
prints are now flooding the country. These music and the impossibility, under existing con-
publications are detrimental to the music busi- ditions, of raising the retail price, has made this
ness, and no dealer should sell them or encour- part of the business an unprofitable one for
age the publishers of them. Rumors of the re- many dealers. Publishers of popular music
turn of ten-cent popular music have long been should, for their own best interests, endeavor
prevalent, and recently a popular publisher has to remedy this condition.
T
"While the general custom of giving orches-
trations to leaders is no doubt necessary in
some cases, I believe this is being overdone
and could be greatly reduced without losing
any of its advantages. Some professional de-
partments, in their desire to be good fellows,
find it difficult to turn anyone down, and this
hurts both publisher and dealer.
"Music supervisors and purchasing agents for
schools and other institutions supported by
taxation, should be loyal enough to their com-
munity to purchase all merchandise possible
locally. A little effort on our part, through the
Board of Commerce or Board of Education,
might be very beneficial in prompting them to
try their local dealer first.
'Mail-order business is generally considered
to be rapidly declining, and ample proof of
this is shown in the fact that the two leading
mail-order houses in the country are building
and operating many large local stores while
their gross business is showing only a moderate
increase.
"Co-operation is the keynote of this conven-
tion. We are anxious to co-operate with the
publishers in anything that will advance the
music business and we ask them to co-operate
with us to help us solve our mutual problems.
"Everyone worthy of being called a sheet
music dealer should be a member of this Asso-
ciation. We are working fo*r the good of tlie
entire industry and should have the support of
it. The dues are nominal, the benefits many.
"To the publishers who are co-operating with
us and the trade papers who have been so
crcnerous, 1 extend my sincere appreciation. I
also wish to thank Mr. Donlan for the enthu-
siasm and untiring energy he has shown in
carrying out the preliminary work of the con-
vention."
Following his address Mr. Harvey called on
J. M. 1'riaulx to deliver a short tribute to the
late Raymond Heffelfinger, who was largely
responsible for the formation of the Association
Emphasis was laid on the fact ttjat Mr. Heffel-
finger had always stood for closer co-operation
between publisher and retailer as the keynote
of the organization. Upon the conclusion of
Mr. Priaulx's tribute it was moved that a tran-
script of the memorial speech be sent to Mrs
HefTelfinger.
Thomas J. Donlan, secretary and treasurer of
the organization, then read the treasurer's re-
port, which showed a balance of more than $500
with all bills paid. It was moved to dispense
with the reading of the minutes of the last
THE
MUJIC TRADE
VOL. 86. No. 24 Published Weekly. Federated Business Publications, Inc., 420 Lexington Aye., New York, N. Y., June 16, 1928
81n8
^. 0 c 0 o C
Sheet Music Dealers Hold
Annual Convention
Fifteenth Annual Gathering of the National Association of
Sheet Music Dealers Convenes at the Hotel McAlpin,
. , New York — Varied Program Is Discussed
HE fifteenth annual convention of the National Association of Sheet Music Dealers opened
its first session on Monday morning, June 11, in the Colonial Room of the Hotel Mc-
Alpin, at about 10 o'clock. About fifty regular members were on hand for the meeting,
which opened with the singing of "When Good Fellows Get Together" by the entire gath-
ering. J. Elmer Harvey, of Detroit, president of the Association, called the meeting to order
and delivered an address in which he summed up general conditions in the industry.
President Harvey's Address
announced a ten-cent edition of numbers that
"It gives me great pleasure to welcome you to were popular some time ago. If this* price is
this, our fifteenth annual convention, and to confined to old publications only, possibly no
predict, that from all available information this
will be one of our best meetings. Before the
business session, we will pause to pay tribute to
the founder and first secretary of this Associa-
tion, the late Raymond W. Heffelfinger, to whom
the retail sheet music industry is greatly in-
debted.
"Our program is an ambitious one, and every
subject is very important. Several are entirely
new to us and will require a great deal of
careful consideration. The outstanding evils
that are causing the general unsatisfactory con-
ditions that exist in our business are the prac-
tices of some publishers competing with us in
our own territory in selling teachers, schools
and colleges at discounts and terms that no re-
tailer can possibly meet, and in supplying at
dealer's discounts, music schools, stores having
no regular sheet music department, and book
stores not carrying sheet music or music books.
School music, such as class methods, operettas,
cantatas and chorus music, is often supplied at
wholesale discounts to piano houses or small
instrument dealers not having music depart-
ments, and these stores sell this music to the
public at practically the same p'rice" that they
pay for it, using it for bait to get customers
into their stores. •
J. Elmer Harvey
"Dealer's discounts should be given only to
legitimate sheet music dealers, and no dealer great harm will be done, but we should em-
who orders only a few outstanding items should phatically oppose any attempts to re-establish
be considered a sheet music house.
ten-cent popular music!
"Nondescript five- and ten-cent editions of re-
"The present high wholesale cost of popular
prints are now flooding the country. These music and the impossibility, under existing con-
publications are detrimental to the music busi- ditions, of raising the retail price, has made this
ness, and no dealer should sell them or encour- part of the business an unprofitable one for
age the publishers of them. Rumors of the re- many dealers. Publishers of popular music
turn of ten-cent popular music have long been should, for their own best interests, endeavor
prevalent, and recently a popular publisher has to remedy this condition.
T
"While the general custom of giving orches-
trations to leaders is no doubt necessary in
some cases, I believe this is being overdone
and could be greatly reduced without losing
any of its advantages. Some professional de-
partments, in their desire to be good fellows,
find it difficult to turn anyone down, and this
hurts both publisher and dealer.
"Music supervisors and purchasing agents for
schools and other institutions supported by
taxation, should be loyal enough to their com-
munity to purchase all merchandise possible
locally. A little effort on our part, through the
Board of Commerce or Board of Education,
might be very beneficial in prompting them to
try their local dealer first.
'Mail-order business is generally considered
to be rapidly declining, and ample proof of
this is shown in the fact that the two leading
mail-order houses in the country are building
and operating many large local stores while
their gross business is showing only a moderate
increase.
"Co-operation is the keynote of this conven-
tion. We are anxious to co-operate with the
publishers in anything that will advance the
music business and we ask them to co-operate
with us to help us solve our mutual problems.
"Everyone worthy of being called a sheet
music dealer should be a member of this Asso-
ciation. We are working fo*r the good of tlie
entire industry and should have the support of
it. The dues are nominal, the benefits many.
"To the publishers who are co-operating with
us and the trade papers who have been so
crcnerous, 1 extend my sincere appreciation. I
also wish to thank Mr. Donlan for the enthu-
siasm and untiring energy he has shown in
carrying out the preliminary work of the con-
vention."
Following his address Mr. Harvey called on
J. M. 1'riaulx to deliver a short tribute to the
late Raymond Heffelfinger, who was largely
responsible for the formation of the Association
Emphasis was laid on the fact ttjat Mr. Heffel-
finger had always stood for closer co-operation
between publisher and retailer as the keynote
of the organization. Upon the conclusion of
Mr. Priaulx's tribute it was moved that a tran-
script of the memorial speech be sent to Mrs
HefTelfinger.
Thomas J. Donlan, secretary and treasurer of
the organization, then read the treasurer's re-
port, which showed a balance of more than $500
with all bills paid. It was moved to dispense
with the reading of the minutes of the last
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