Music Trade Review

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More Opinions from Dealers
Show Preference for 40 Spinet
So many letters from dealers were received after T H E
REVIEW went to press last month regarding the discussion
about the practical height of postwar Spinet pianos, that
they are being printed herewith:
A. E. DeMarko, Sec.-Treas., Reynolds Music House,
Pensacola, Fla.
"We nincur with the manufacturers that say that vertical
pianos should never be made lower than 40 inches, however,
38 inches would be a happy medium.
"With this size piano a manufacturer could give us a piano
that really sounds good and would say in tune longer. You
OVER 40 INCHES HIGH
just simply cannot get this in a 34 inch piano."
H. J. Baker, Baker Piano Co., Seattle, Wash.
Charles H. Meredith, Vice Pres., Shackleton Piano Co.,
"I have been in the piano and pipe organ business, both as
Louisville, Ky.
a dealer and technician since 1903. As a technician, I have
"We are pleased to give you our thoughts regarding- the
studied piano construction religiously, have rebuilt many
height of new pianos to be manufactured in the postwar
instruments for most critical musicians.
"From my experience I say that it is impossible to build an war period.
"Frankly, we—at Shackleton's—have long thought that the
upright piano under 40 inches high that can have a tone or
scale that is in any way practical as a piano. And even looking Spinet or console piano should not be lower than 31) inches or
at it, from the standpoint of proportion in design, any piano 40 inches. If all piano manufacturers could agree on either
under 40 inches high, is not, at all in keeping with the neces- of there minimum requirements we would be delighted; how-
ever, if smaller Spinets are made we would be forced to carry
sary length for a standard keyboard.
some of them.
"I am strictly opposed to anything under 40 inches."
"Perhaps the following- suggestion is absurd, but we firmly
Hugh W. Randall, Pres. Bradford', Milwaukee, Wis.
believe that if all makers of small size pianos could agree
"In our estimation this depends almost entirely on the make on 39 inch or 40 inch minimum—even though they made a
of the piano. We have had some Spinets 30 and 37 inches high piano lower than 39 inches—and then have a universal manu-
that had a very good tone and have proven durable. Chicker- facturers stamp of approval on these instruments, that we
ing, Mason & Hamlin and Steinway never built a low, vertical would sell a majority of the larger pianos, give our customers
piano and probably will not now."
better value, especially in tone quality.
"In considering- this problem—from our angle—we think it a
J. J. Collins, Collins & Erwin Piano Co., Portland, Ore.
"Some time ago we expressed our opinion that when piano highly desirable program to make Spinets and consoles no
manufacturing- is resumed that a good number of instruments lower than 39 inches."
should be built from 40 to 45 inches high and that we also J. C. Sanders, Sanders Piano and Electric Co., St. Louis, Mo.
thought that even a four-foot upright piano would meet with
"We believe the manufacturer is right. Judging from our
ready sale.
exeperience we believe a good scale cannot be made too small
"There is no discounting the fact, however, that there will without the loss of tone and volume.
still be a big demand for pianos from 34 to 37 inches in 7Vfi
"The manufacturer knows this and wants to please the
octave scales. In the event that pianos of this size were dis- dealer, and the dealer's customer. We believe a piano at
continued, then we firmly believe that it would be necessary about 40 inches can be styled very beautifully, and still use
for factories to again adopt the 4>/ 2 and 5 octave scales in a standard keyboard and action."
Tom Thumb pianos."
Frederick Philip Slieff, Vice Pres., Chas. M. Stieff, Inc.,
George F. Cressey, Cressey & Allen, Portland, Me.
Baltimore, Md.
"We here certainly agree with the contention that verticals
"Both my brother, (Jeorge W. Stieff, and the writer are not
should never be made lower than 40 inches.
in favor of the manufacture of upright or console pianos, or
"After all, we are selling musical instruments, and we do the incorrectly so-called pianos less than 40 inches. To build
not believe it's possible to get even a fairly good tone on a pianos smaller is simply appealing to eye value and not to
smaller piano. We say set the size at a minimum of 40 inches the ear. It is impossible to obtain a satisfactory tone out of
and then let the manufacturers get busy and make the cases the base strings and there is not sufficient area in the sound-
as attractive as possible."
ing board to give the proper tone.
A. Davidson, Davidson-Boutell Co., Minneapolis, Minn.
"We were about two years late coming out with our A T era-
"We recommend the vertical console piano be made no Tone and in that time we studied what had been done and in
listening to the small pianos we decided we did not want
lower than forty inches in height."
any
piano with the name Stieff on to sound as the instruments
W. Curtis Busher, Emerson Piano House, Decatur, 111.
did which were built under 40 inches. The height of our
"We believe that it would be much better for the manufac- Stieff VeraTone was 44 inches."
turer and retailer if pianos were made not lower than 40
W. S. Worsley, Win. Worsley Piano Co., Memphis, Tenn.
inches from a standpoint of holding a tuning- better, tone
"The writer has been in the piano business about thirty
quality and direct-blow action which can only be used in a
years. Spending about eight years with the old Melville Clark
40 inch or more piano.
Piano factory at DeKalb, Illinois, and has spent the balance
"However, this will probably be impossible because so many of
in Memphis and the surrounding territory as a tuner
people seem to be mainly interested in very small styles. We and time
a technician.
do believe that it will be to the advantage of the piano
"We have had a great deal of experience with small Spinet
merchant to push the 40 inch Spinet more strenuously in the
pianos. The most satisfactory piano we have sold and the
future."
piano that has given us» less trouble in the verical piano is
C. W. Gould, Gould Music Store, Minneapolis, Minn.
the 40 inch piano with the direct blow action. This piano
"It is my personal opinion gathered from views of many seems to have a better tone, better action, better touch, easier
musicians and also mothers and fathers of the students at our to regulate and easier to tune. This has been our experience."
school that the piano should fit more into the decorative
Edward A. Schmidt, Schmidt Music Co., Davenport, la.
scheme of household furniture, and th.eir general opinion is
is such an important thing', because of what some of
that the piano should be much lower in height and I really the "This
manufacturers have in the past endeavored to do in order
think that the height of 40 inches should be standardized to reduce
the piano in height. They have developed some very
for all pianos in homes."
unnatural and even crude methods of structure which made
Herbert J. Konen, Vice Pres., Noll Piano Co., Milwaukee, Wis. the piano neither musical or mechanically correct. They re-
"We prefer a 40-inch height piano. In our opinion they duced the size of the piano so very much that some of these
should not be lower than 38 ipches, but our choice would be pianos placed in homes where all four casters rest on the
the 40 inch piano, in which size the tone is better and it is carpet so muffled the tone that it made them difficult, hard
possible to get in a direct blow action for better service and tiresome to play. Then too, when a person of more than
5 ft. 6 in, in heiRht sat before one of these pianos they were
accessibility."
12
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW, APRIL, 1945