Music Trade Review
Issue: 1931 Vol. 90 N. 3 - Page 35
Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE
MUSIC
TRADE
REVIEW,
such as, in a clumsy form, was for long used
in square pianos. In this case I should be
inclined to study the properties of light
metals, and of composition materials such as
macarta and bakelite, the use of which might
eliminates the always troublesome difficulties
introduced by variations in moisture-content
of the atmosphere, in temperature and in
domestic conditions generally, which play
such havoc with the regulation and durabil-
ity of wooden mechanisms.
I am quite sure indeed that the particular
section of the public from which would be
drawn the sales of pianos of the kind under
consideration would make not the slightest
objection to an action greatly simplified.
There is really little need for the exquisite
refinement of repetition which is so character-
istic of the orthodox grand piano action, The
masses play the piano, so far as they play it
at all, clumsily and noisily. They demand
noise and thump, not elasticity and discrimi-
nation. The square piano action brought up-
to-date would cost probably at least a third
less than the Erard-Herz model which is
commonly used.
Observations of tenor not unlike this might
also be made concerning the keyboard. I
shall nevertheless try not to lay myself open
to the charge of unprofitable speculation.
What has been said above about the action
is on the other hand practical and, in my
opinion, worth following up.
M a r c h , 1931
abling work otherwise done by means of hand
tools to be done more quickly. There has
never been an attempt to get rid of the
fundamental difficulty, which has always been
that of the cost of cutting and fitting one to
another the parts of each separate instru-
ment. Economy in the sense we are discuss-
ing will never be possible so long as the
piano assembly rests upon cut-and-fit meth-
ods. That much is absolutely certain.
Now I have often said in the past, and
am willing to say again, that the scale of a
piano can be designed so accurately that the
plate and soundboard may be fitted into the
case with very little cutting, in fact with
hardly any at all. But such an achievement
will involve engineering methods. At pres-
ent, as every one knows, pianos are not built
from accurate drawings, mainly because ac-
curate drawings would be useless without
men able to use and apply them. What we
need more than anything else in order to
effect economies in production is the ap-
plication of engineering methods to scal-
ing, construction of the board and 'building
35
of the rims. Given this, the whole assembly
may be worked out bit by bit until it has
become almost entirely continuous and
mechanical. I say that all this can be done.
But it cannot be done until (1) engineers
have reconstructed the entire process of as-
sembly and (2) the present practice of leav-
ing the technical control in the hands of
fifty-dollar-a-week workmen has been entirely
abolished. As things are, a competent de-
signing engineer in the piano industry would
be likely to starve to death. That is a very
strong statement; but I think I am entitled,
on experience, to make it.
The kind of piano envisaged in this dis-
cussion is, indeed, not the kind of piano
which would satisfy my personal feelings,
either tonally or mechanically. Nevertheless,
if there be a legitimate place for it, as
perhaps there is, I have no right to stand in
its way. .What, however, I do want to make
clear is that, if economies in production are
to be had, they must be based upon clean
engineering study, and on willingness to take
the advice of competent designing engineers.
WALTER L BOND, OF WEAVER PIANO CO.,
VOICES CONFIDENCE IN PLAYER-PIANO
T
HAT there are still piano manufacturers
who have faith in the player piano and
its possibilities when properly presented
"MASS" PRODUCTION
to the public and have tangible reasons for
It is, of course, obvious that the kind of
piano we are discussing, if it can be pro- that faith is indicated by the following let-
duced at all, will have to be produced in ter from Walter L. Bond, secretary and
large quantities. I am assuming, as my read- treasurer of the Weaver Piano Co., Inc.,
ers know, that there is a probable market for York, Pa., to Dr. William Braid White,
a great many pianos, small in size, horizon- technical editor of THE REVIEW.
tal in plane, of full compass and with pass-
York, Pa., February 9, 1931.
able tone and action, which may be produced Wm. Braid White, Technical Editor,
to sell at prices markedly lower than have Music Trade Review.
as yet prevailed. I have discussed above
• Dear Mr. White:
certain possibilities in the way of external
May we congratulate you upon your bold-
simplification. I have likewise shown that ness in expressing your conviction regarding
there remain in the realm of the action some the player piano in the February Music
possibilities of cost reduction. When, how- TRADE REVIEW?
ever, I turn to strings, plate, soundboard,
If you are a "nut" on the player-piano
and the case which holds these together in subject, you have a little group of the same
mechanical relation, it is at once necessary "breed" down here at York, Pa.
to take a very practical objective attitude.
Our organization sold at wholesale to deal-
For plainly one cannot play around with ers and at retail through our very limited
these essentials to any great extent, unless retail facilities a total of 235 players in 1930.
one is prepared to upset all the principles on If the player piano is dead, this would indi-
which the tone of the piano rests.
cate that it is a rather lively "corpse" even
Now, when one talks about large-scale though these figures are very small in com-
production, one has to realize immediately parison with the peak years of the player-
that the basis of all such operations is exact pianos.
design, leading to exact pattern work. What
It is our opinion that many more player
is rather clumsily called "mass" production
pianos have been repossessed in the past two
is impossible unless the quantities envisaged years than straight pianos. Many of these
are extremely large. In my opinion the sort repossessions were not due to the player but
of mass production which is meant when due to unwise sales which were made of these
one speaks, far example, of the automobile players to customers who were in no position to
industry is utterly impossible in the piano carry their payments, particularly with the
industry. The number of the units will changed industrial conditions that came on
never be sufficiently great. On the other a little over a year ago.
hand, there is no reason not to expect econo-
If the player-piano were credited with all
mies from what may be called machine of the resales of these repossessions by deal-
methods, that is to say from accurate pat- ers all over the country, the story would be
terns based upon accurate designs. It is entirely different from the manufacturers'
precisely this which the piano industry has standpoint. Too much of the opinion as to
always lacked. Hitherto all attempts which the demise of the player-piano is based upon
have been made to produce pianos in large the factory production figures which Teflect
quantities at low unit cost have resolved
only a small part of the total sales of player
themselves simplv into the utilization of
pianos in 1929 and 1930.
machines for the sole purpose of en-
We are, therefore, very happy ot go on
record to you that we endorse your views
and feel that the music merchant who dis-
regards the player-piano or "buries" it is
going to miss an opportunity not only to add
to his own sales and profits but to greatly
contribute to the musical satisfaction of peo-
ple who have a right to expect a music mer-
chant to guide them into full enjoyment of
piano music, via the player-piano.
With congratulations upon your boldness
and with most kind regards, we are,
Yours very truly,
WEAVER PIANO CO., INC.,
Walter L. Bond, Secretary and Treasurer.
DR. W M . BRAID WHITE
GIVES MANY LECTURES
Dr. William Braid White, technical editor
of THE REVIEW, and acoustic engineer of the
American Steel & Wire Co., has delivered
a number of lectures before various organiza-
tions on the broad subject of acoustics, and on
the analysis of noises in general. On Feb-
ruary 18 he appeared before the Brooklyn
Institute of Arts & Sciences, and the following
week gav.e two lectures before the Depart-
ment of Physics at Princeton University.
Estate/
of
d^
MANU1ACT0RER
BOCKSKIN.
1049—3rd St.
NORTH BERGEN. N. J.
Tel.: 7—4367
THE
MUSIC
TRADE
REVIEW,
such as, in a clumsy form, was for long used
in square pianos. In this case I should be
inclined to study the properties of light
metals, and of composition materials such as
macarta and bakelite, the use of which might
eliminates the always troublesome difficulties
introduced by variations in moisture-content
of the atmosphere, in temperature and in
domestic conditions generally, which play
such havoc with the regulation and durabil-
ity of wooden mechanisms.
I am quite sure indeed that the particular
section of the public from which would be
drawn the sales of pianos of the kind under
consideration would make not the slightest
objection to an action greatly simplified.
There is really little need for the exquisite
refinement of repetition which is so character-
istic of the orthodox grand piano action, The
masses play the piano, so far as they play it
at all, clumsily and noisily. They demand
noise and thump, not elasticity and discrimi-
nation. The square piano action brought up-
to-date would cost probably at least a third
less than the Erard-Herz model which is
commonly used.
Observations of tenor not unlike this might
also be made concerning the keyboard. I
shall nevertheless try not to lay myself open
to the charge of unprofitable speculation.
What has been said above about the action
is on the other hand practical and, in my
opinion, worth following up.
M a r c h , 1931
abling work otherwise done by means of hand
tools to be done more quickly. There has
never been an attempt to get rid of the
fundamental difficulty, which has always been
that of the cost of cutting and fitting one to
another the parts of each separate instru-
ment. Economy in the sense we are discuss-
ing will never be possible so long as the
piano assembly rests upon cut-and-fit meth-
ods. That much is absolutely certain.
Now I have often said in the past, and
am willing to say again, that the scale of a
piano can be designed so accurately that the
plate and soundboard may be fitted into the
case with very little cutting, in fact with
hardly any at all. But such an achievement
will involve engineering methods. At pres-
ent, as every one knows, pianos are not built
from accurate drawings, mainly because ac-
curate drawings would be useless without
men able to use and apply them. What we
need more than anything else in order to
effect economies in production is the ap-
plication of engineering methods to scal-
ing, construction of the board and 'building
35
of the rims. Given this, the whole assembly
may be worked out bit by bit until it has
become almost entirely continuous and
mechanical. I say that all this can be done.
But it cannot be done until (1) engineers
have reconstructed the entire process of as-
sembly and (2) the present practice of leav-
ing the technical control in the hands of
fifty-dollar-a-week workmen has been entirely
abolished. As things are, a competent de-
signing engineer in the piano industry would
be likely to starve to death. That is a very
strong statement; but I think I am entitled,
on experience, to make it.
The kind of piano envisaged in this dis-
cussion is, indeed, not the kind of piano
which would satisfy my personal feelings,
either tonally or mechanically. Nevertheless,
if there be a legitimate place for it, as
perhaps there is, I have no right to stand in
its way. .What, however, I do want to make
clear is that, if economies in production are
to be had, they must be based upon clean
engineering study, and on willingness to take
the advice of competent designing engineers.
WALTER L BOND, OF WEAVER PIANO CO.,
VOICES CONFIDENCE IN PLAYER-PIANO
T
HAT there are still piano manufacturers
who have faith in the player piano and
its possibilities when properly presented
"MASS" PRODUCTION
to the public and have tangible reasons for
It is, of course, obvious that the kind of
piano we are discussing, if it can be pro- that faith is indicated by the following let-
duced at all, will have to be produced in ter from Walter L. Bond, secretary and
large quantities. I am assuming, as my read- treasurer of the Weaver Piano Co., Inc.,
ers know, that there is a probable market for York, Pa., to Dr. William Braid White,
a great many pianos, small in size, horizon- technical editor of THE REVIEW.
tal in plane, of full compass and with pass-
York, Pa., February 9, 1931.
able tone and action, which may be produced Wm. Braid White, Technical Editor,
to sell at prices markedly lower than have Music Trade Review.
as yet prevailed. I have discussed above
• Dear Mr. White:
certain possibilities in the way of external
May we congratulate you upon your bold-
simplification. I have likewise shown that ness in expressing your conviction regarding
there remain in the realm of the action some the player piano in the February Music
possibilities of cost reduction. When, how- TRADE REVIEW?
ever, I turn to strings, plate, soundboard,
If you are a "nut" on the player-piano
and the case which holds these together in subject, you have a little group of the same
mechanical relation, it is at once necessary "breed" down here at York, Pa.
to take a very practical objective attitude.
Our organization sold at wholesale to deal-
For plainly one cannot play around with ers and at retail through our very limited
these essentials to any great extent, unless retail facilities a total of 235 players in 1930.
one is prepared to upset all the principles on If the player piano is dead, this would indi-
which the tone of the piano rests.
cate that it is a rather lively "corpse" even
Now, when one talks about large-scale though these figures are very small in com-
production, one has to realize immediately parison with the peak years of the player-
that the basis of all such operations is exact pianos.
design, leading to exact pattern work. What
It is our opinion that many more player
is rather clumsily called "mass" production
pianos have been repossessed in the past two
is impossible unless the quantities envisaged years than straight pianos. Many of these
are extremely large. In my opinion the sort repossessions were not due to the player but
of mass production which is meant when due to unwise sales which were made of these
one speaks, far example, of the automobile players to customers who were in no position to
industry is utterly impossible in the piano carry their payments, particularly with the
industry. The number of the units will changed industrial conditions that came on
never be sufficiently great. On the other a little over a year ago.
hand, there is no reason not to expect econo-
If the player-piano were credited with all
mies from what may be called machine of the resales of these repossessions by deal-
methods, that is to say from accurate pat- ers all over the country, the story would be
terns based upon accurate designs. It is entirely different from the manufacturers'
precisely this which the piano industry has standpoint. Too much of the opinion as to
always lacked. Hitherto all attempts which the demise of the player-piano is based upon
have been made to produce pianos in large the factory production figures which Teflect
quantities at low unit cost have resolved
only a small part of the total sales of player
themselves simplv into the utilization of
pianos in 1929 and 1930.
machines for the sole purpose of en-
We are, therefore, very happy ot go on
record to you that we endorse your views
and feel that the music merchant who dis-
regards the player-piano or "buries" it is
going to miss an opportunity not only to add
to his own sales and profits but to greatly
contribute to the musical satisfaction of peo-
ple who have a right to expect a music mer-
chant to guide them into full enjoyment of
piano music, via the player-piano.
With congratulations upon your boldness
and with most kind regards, we are,
Yours very truly,
WEAVER PIANO CO., INC.,
Walter L. Bond, Secretary and Treasurer.
DR. W M . BRAID WHITE
GIVES MANY LECTURES
Dr. William Braid White, technical editor
of THE REVIEW, and acoustic engineer of the
American Steel & Wire Co., has delivered
a number of lectures before various organiza-
tions on the broad subject of acoustics, and on
the analysis of noises in general. On Feb-
ruary 18 he appeared before the Brooklyn
Institute of Arts & Sciences, and the following
week gav.e two lectures before the Depart-
ment of Physics at Princeton University.
Estate/
of
d^
MANU1ACT0RER
BOCKSKIN.
1049—3rd St.
NORTH BERGEN. N. J.
Tel.: 7—4367
Future scanning projects are planned by the International Arcade Museum Library (IAML).