Presto
Issue: 1924 1979 - Page 25
SHEET MUSIC TRADE
SCOPE OF A BUREAU
Possibilities of Forming System of Many
Helpful Features Discussed by Trade
at Various Times.
A system of credit rating and collecting was pro-
posed at various times for the sheet music dealers.
Something considered effective was adopted at dif-
ferent times, but abandoned for various reasons, chief
of these being lack of support from the retail dealers
and the publishers. So the question of a retail credit
rating and collection bureau is not a new one in the
trade. From the papers read and the resulting dis-
cussions at the recent convention there is no trade
where the credit system has been for many years in
such an unsatisfactory condition as in the sheet music
trade.
'
But that the situation is changing for the better was
also disclosed by the proceedings at the convention.
It was made evident that generally-speaking music
buyers are very reliable, but at the same time it was
made clear that dealers should use better judgment/
in handling their credit business.
The formation of an official credit rating and col-
lection bureau involved the important question of its
maintenance, and it was made clear that its success
depended upon sincere support from dealers and pub-
lishers. In a clear review of the situation Harry B.
Crosby, of the Arthur P. Schmidt Co., said that un-
less the project was assured such support it would
be useless to propose it.
In outlining a plan Mr. Crosby said he did not be-
lieve such a bureau would be self-supporting in itself,
but could be combined with other helpful features,
propaganda, a general trade catalog, and miscel-
laneous information, and could thus be placed on a
profitable basis, requiring only small financial sup-
port from the beneficiaries. Closing he said: "It
seems to me that it would be a good idea to have this
department managed by the secretary of the Retail
Sheet Music Dealers' Association under the super-
vision of the directors. In that case it might per-
haps be advisable to change your by-laws, so that the
secretary might be elected for a term of not less
than five years, since it would obviously not be fair
to the secretary nor to the trade to continually
change the management."
SHEET MUSIC IN CHINA
Consul Leroy Webber, Hongkong, Says Chief De-
mand Is for Songs and Band Music.
There is a good demand for sheet music in Hong-
kong, China, and dealers report a marked improve-
ment in this line during the past few years. The
1923 sales were valued at approximately $2,500, of
which amount it is estimated that 30 per cent repre-
sented dance music and popular songs and the re-
REMICK SONG HITS
Where the Lazy Daisies Grow
I Wonder Who's Dancing with You
Tonight
There's Yes Yes in Your Eyes
Hula Hula Dream Girl
It Had to Be You
Mandalay
Bring Back the Old Fashioned Waltz
Until Tomorrow
Twilight Rose
Watchin' the Moonrise
Counting the Days
Not Yet Susette
Arizona Stars
If You'll Come Back
Land of Broken Dreams
J. H. REMICK & CO.
New York
25
PRESTO
June 28, 1924.
Chicago
Detroit
mainder classical, semi-classical, and band music.
Practically all of the sales are confined to the for-
eign residents of the colony and the more prosperous
class of Chinese. Jazz music is increasing in popu-
larity, a condition attributed to the return of large
numbers of Chinese who have been educated in the
United States and Europe.
Hongkong being a British colony, with a large
number of British residents, the chief demand has
been for songs and semiclassical and band music
popular in the United Kingdom; and the bulk of this
class of trade has been supplied by English firms.
Imports from the United States have consisted chiefly
of dance music and popular songs, while most of
the classical music was secured from continental
Europe. However, local dealers report that they
have lately been able to secure a very good selection
of classical and semiclassical music in portfolio and
album bindings from the United States and that
American sales of such music are on the increase.
Prices which have remained firm during the past
twelve months are quoted by the large retailers as
follows: Popular songs and dance music, $0.30 to
$0.40; semi-classical, classical, and band, $0.25 to
$0.50; albums and portfolios, $0.25 to $2.50.
Orders are placed from catalogues submitted and
are generally made direct. Prices are usually quoted
f.o.b. and payments made by draft within ninety
days. Some dealers have made arrangements with
representatives of American firms located on the
Pacific coast to have regular supplies of dance and
song music sent them; the local importer in turn sells
to other large retailers on a thirty-day basis, with
discounts varying from twenty to forty per cent.
Shipments are as a rule effected by parcel post.
PUBLISHERS SUE THEATERS.
Ezra Rhodes, a theater owner of Elkhart, Ind.,
has been sued in the Federal Court of Indianapolis
by M. Witmark & Sons, New York, for alleged vio-
lation of the copyright law. A similar action has
been filed against the Blackstone Theater, South
Bend, Ind., by Irving Berlin, Inc. Both complain-
ants allege that the defendants permitted copyrighted
music to be played in their theaters without consent
of the music publishing houses and injunctions to pre-
vent infringements of these rights have been asked.
HOTEL MAN COMPOSER.
A great many travelers for music houses and trav-
elers generally are well acquainted with Frank R.
Florentine, the genial general manager of the Con-
gress Hotel, Chicago, but not all of his friends and
acquaintances know Mr. Florentine as a successful
song composer with several hits to his credit. His
latest is "The Kiss of Desire," published by the
Forster Music Publisher, Inc. The influence of his
musical taste has done much to make the radio pro-
grams broadcasted from the Congress Hotel by Sta-
tion KYW of a high musical kind.
MUSIC FOR IOWA SCHOOLS.
Miss May E. Francis, state superintendent of
schools in Iowa, has suggested a bulletin to county
superintendents that a good musical instrument be
placed in each school in the state. According to the
Iowa law the teaching of music is required in every
school. According to Miss Francis a phonograph is
possessed by nearly every school and is a great aid
to teaching music and is helpful in other studies.
UNIVERSITY BAND BARS JAZZ.
"Jazz music has no more place in a university
musical organization than would 'yellow back' litera-
ture have in the reading of the department of Eng-
lish," recently declared George Venable, director of
the University of Missouri Band, in announcing that
jazz had been barred in programs by the university
band.
MAKING CUSTOMERS BUY
It Is the Important Requirement That Makes
the Sheet Music Department Both Inter-
esting and Profitable.
Many a regular music dealer who complains of the
poor business in his sheet music department could
profitably go to the syndicate stores and witness the
way to put zip in his business. It is true there are
a number of music dealers who think they have per-
formed their utmost when they install a stock of sheet
music and engage somebody to sell it.
The syndicate stores as a rule do not give much
floor space to sheet music, but it must be admitted
they make the most of the opportunities. The sales
people are efficient and in a courteous way eager to
increase the purchases of the customer. It is a fixed
tenet with them that the customer selecting one piece
of music will buy two or more if properly handled.
They have the knack of suggesting something else
and an enthusiasm in doing so that makes the cus-
tomer add others to the first numbers asked for.
In the syndicate stores it will also be noted, the
sales force has the efficient co-operation of the
demonstrator. The good sheet music demonstrator
does more than make the listeners hear. He or she
makes them feel. It is conceded by experienced sheet
music men that the good demonstrator is the most
powerful factor in creating the buying desire in the
sheet music department. It is a fact seemingly
ignored by the regular music dealer who complains
of the failure of his sheet music department.
The sheet music department is full of interest to
the dealer with the sense to realize the possibilities
and acquire the requirements. Sheet music will not
sell itself, but properly aided the sheet music stock
may be made a source of considerable profit in both
money, publicity and prestige. The store where the
sheet musffc stock is a freely selling and profitable
commodity is one where the value of advertising is
realized. If the indifferent dealer perks up and does
his part he will find that the publishers are creating
a demand for their numbers through the orchestras,
theaters and the concert stage not to speak of pub-
licity of a printed kind. The dealer who gets the
maximum results from his sheet music department is
the one who notes every opportunity and anticipates
every occasion of a demand for something or other.
WATCHING REMICK SONG HITS
Dealers in Several Places Report Remarkable Favor
for Certain Late Productions.
"There's Yes, Yes, in Your Eyes" is a hit of
Jerome H. Remick & Co., which is scoring big suc-
cesses in many places. According to Oscar Kern,
general manager of the United Music Stores, Phila-
delphia, the Remick song is selling away ahead of
anything else in the sheet music list. "Where the
Lazy Daisies Grow" is another Remick song that is
showing remarkable results in sales on the counters
of the United Music Stores.
The music counters in Buffalo are finding "Where
the Lazy Daisies Grow" a very lively seller, and the
sales continue to grow in volume as the weeks pass
by. It is one of the happy instances where the favor
of the song buyers is accumulative. In Portland,
Ore., the demand for "Where the Lazy Daisies Grow"
is one of the pronounced features of the sheet music
business reported by Monty Austin, who sings
songs at Council Crest Park, in that city. "It Had
to Be You," is another Remick hit sung by Mr.
Austin, which always receives an insistent encore.
PUBLISHING FIRM INCORPORATED.
Walker Studio Music Co., White Plains, N. Y.
is a new firm of music publishers recently incorpo-
rated with a capital of $5,000. A. and W. B. Walker
are given as incorporators.
"Take the C Out of Cal and That Leaves Al," is
the title of a campaign song composed by Represen-
tative Sol Bloom of New York, occasionally alluded
to as "the music man of Congress."
9est
ANY PUBLISHER x
OUR REFERENCE
BAYNER DALMIM S Co
^
WORK DONE BY
ALL PROCESSES
2054-2060 W.Lake St.OhicaaoJll.
Enhanced content © 2008-2009 and presented by MBSI - The Musical Box Society International (www.mbsi.org) and the International Arcade Museum (www.arcade-museum.com).
All Rights Reserved. Digitized from the archives of the MBSI with support from NAMM - The International Music Products Association (www.namm.org).
Additional enhancement, optimization, and distribution by the International Arcade Museum. An extensive collection of Presto can be found online at http://www.arcade-museum.com/library/
SCOPE OF A BUREAU
Possibilities of Forming System of Many
Helpful Features Discussed by Trade
at Various Times.
A system of credit rating and collecting was pro-
posed at various times for the sheet music dealers.
Something considered effective was adopted at dif-
ferent times, but abandoned for various reasons, chief
of these being lack of support from the retail dealers
and the publishers. So the question of a retail credit
rating and collection bureau is not a new one in the
trade. From the papers read and the resulting dis-
cussions at the recent convention there is no trade
where the credit system has been for many years in
such an unsatisfactory condition as in the sheet music
trade.
'
But that the situation is changing for the better was
also disclosed by the proceedings at the convention.
It was made evident that generally-speaking music
buyers are very reliable, but at the same time it was
made clear that dealers should use better judgment/
in handling their credit business.
The formation of an official credit rating and col-
lection bureau involved the important question of its
maintenance, and it was made clear that its success
depended upon sincere support from dealers and pub-
lishers. In a clear review of the situation Harry B.
Crosby, of the Arthur P. Schmidt Co., said that un-
less the project was assured such support it would
be useless to propose it.
In outlining a plan Mr. Crosby said he did not be-
lieve such a bureau would be self-supporting in itself,
but could be combined with other helpful features,
propaganda, a general trade catalog, and miscel-
laneous information, and could thus be placed on a
profitable basis, requiring only small financial sup-
port from the beneficiaries. Closing he said: "It
seems to me that it would be a good idea to have this
department managed by the secretary of the Retail
Sheet Music Dealers' Association under the super-
vision of the directors. In that case it might per-
haps be advisable to change your by-laws, so that the
secretary might be elected for a term of not less
than five years, since it would obviously not be fair
to the secretary nor to the trade to continually
change the management."
SHEET MUSIC IN CHINA
Consul Leroy Webber, Hongkong, Says Chief De-
mand Is for Songs and Band Music.
There is a good demand for sheet music in Hong-
kong, China, and dealers report a marked improve-
ment in this line during the past few years. The
1923 sales were valued at approximately $2,500, of
which amount it is estimated that 30 per cent repre-
sented dance music and popular songs and the re-
REMICK SONG HITS
Where the Lazy Daisies Grow
I Wonder Who's Dancing with You
Tonight
There's Yes Yes in Your Eyes
Hula Hula Dream Girl
It Had to Be You
Mandalay
Bring Back the Old Fashioned Waltz
Until Tomorrow
Twilight Rose
Watchin' the Moonrise
Counting the Days
Not Yet Susette
Arizona Stars
If You'll Come Back
Land of Broken Dreams
J. H. REMICK & CO.
New York
25
PRESTO
June 28, 1924.
Chicago
Detroit
mainder classical, semi-classical, and band music.
Practically all of the sales are confined to the for-
eign residents of the colony and the more prosperous
class of Chinese. Jazz music is increasing in popu-
larity, a condition attributed to the return of large
numbers of Chinese who have been educated in the
United States and Europe.
Hongkong being a British colony, with a large
number of British residents, the chief demand has
been for songs and semiclassical and band music
popular in the United Kingdom; and the bulk of this
class of trade has been supplied by English firms.
Imports from the United States have consisted chiefly
of dance music and popular songs, while most of
the classical music was secured from continental
Europe. However, local dealers report that they
have lately been able to secure a very good selection
of classical and semiclassical music in portfolio and
album bindings from the United States and that
American sales of such music are on the increase.
Prices which have remained firm during the past
twelve months are quoted by the large retailers as
follows: Popular songs and dance music, $0.30 to
$0.40; semi-classical, classical, and band, $0.25 to
$0.50; albums and portfolios, $0.25 to $2.50.
Orders are placed from catalogues submitted and
are generally made direct. Prices are usually quoted
f.o.b. and payments made by draft within ninety
days. Some dealers have made arrangements with
representatives of American firms located on the
Pacific coast to have regular supplies of dance and
song music sent them; the local importer in turn sells
to other large retailers on a thirty-day basis, with
discounts varying from twenty to forty per cent.
Shipments are as a rule effected by parcel post.
PUBLISHERS SUE THEATERS.
Ezra Rhodes, a theater owner of Elkhart, Ind.,
has been sued in the Federal Court of Indianapolis
by M. Witmark & Sons, New York, for alleged vio-
lation of the copyright law. A similar action has
been filed against the Blackstone Theater, South
Bend, Ind., by Irving Berlin, Inc. Both complain-
ants allege that the defendants permitted copyrighted
music to be played in their theaters without consent
of the music publishing houses and injunctions to pre-
vent infringements of these rights have been asked.
HOTEL MAN COMPOSER.
A great many travelers for music houses and trav-
elers generally are well acquainted with Frank R.
Florentine, the genial general manager of the Con-
gress Hotel, Chicago, but not all of his friends and
acquaintances know Mr. Florentine as a successful
song composer with several hits to his credit. His
latest is "The Kiss of Desire," published by the
Forster Music Publisher, Inc. The influence of his
musical taste has done much to make the radio pro-
grams broadcasted from the Congress Hotel by Sta-
tion KYW of a high musical kind.
MUSIC FOR IOWA SCHOOLS.
Miss May E. Francis, state superintendent of
schools in Iowa, has suggested a bulletin to county
superintendents that a good musical instrument be
placed in each school in the state. According to the
Iowa law the teaching of music is required in every
school. According to Miss Francis a phonograph is
possessed by nearly every school and is a great aid
to teaching music and is helpful in other studies.
UNIVERSITY BAND BARS JAZZ.
"Jazz music has no more place in a university
musical organization than would 'yellow back' litera-
ture have in the reading of the department of Eng-
lish," recently declared George Venable, director of
the University of Missouri Band, in announcing that
jazz had been barred in programs by the university
band.
MAKING CUSTOMERS BUY
It Is the Important Requirement That Makes
the Sheet Music Department Both Inter-
esting and Profitable.
Many a regular music dealer who complains of the
poor business in his sheet music department could
profitably go to the syndicate stores and witness the
way to put zip in his business. It is true there are
a number of music dealers who think they have per-
formed their utmost when they install a stock of sheet
music and engage somebody to sell it.
The syndicate stores as a rule do not give much
floor space to sheet music, but it must be admitted
they make the most of the opportunities. The sales
people are efficient and in a courteous way eager to
increase the purchases of the customer. It is a fixed
tenet with them that the customer selecting one piece
of music will buy two or more if properly handled.
They have the knack of suggesting something else
and an enthusiasm in doing so that makes the cus-
tomer add others to the first numbers asked for.
In the syndicate stores it will also be noted, the
sales force has the efficient co-operation of the
demonstrator. The good sheet music demonstrator
does more than make the listeners hear. He or she
makes them feel. It is conceded by experienced sheet
music men that the good demonstrator is the most
powerful factor in creating the buying desire in the
sheet music department. It is a fact seemingly
ignored by the regular music dealer who complains
of the failure of his sheet music department.
The sheet music department is full of interest to
the dealer with the sense to realize the possibilities
and acquire the requirements. Sheet music will not
sell itself, but properly aided the sheet music stock
may be made a source of considerable profit in both
money, publicity and prestige. The store where the
sheet musffc stock is a freely selling and profitable
commodity is one where the value of advertising is
realized. If the indifferent dealer perks up and does
his part he will find that the publishers are creating
a demand for their numbers through the orchestras,
theaters and the concert stage not to speak of pub-
licity of a printed kind. The dealer who gets the
maximum results from his sheet music department is
the one who notes every opportunity and anticipates
every occasion of a demand for something or other.
WATCHING REMICK SONG HITS
Dealers in Several Places Report Remarkable Favor
for Certain Late Productions.
"There's Yes, Yes, in Your Eyes" is a hit of
Jerome H. Remick & Co., which is scoring big suc-
cesses in many places. According to Oscar Kern,
general manager of the United Music Stores, Phila-
delphia, the Remick song is selling away ahead of
anything else in the sheet music list. "Where the
Lazy Daisies Grow" is another Remick song that is
showing remarkable results in sales on the counters
of the United Music Stores.
The music counters in Buffalo are finding "Where
the Lazy Daisies Grow" a very lively seller, and the
sales continue to grow in volume as the weeks pass
by. It is one of the happy instances where the favor
of the song buyers is accumulative. In Portland,
Ore., the demand for "Where the Lazy Daisies Grow"
is one of the pronounced features of the sheet music
business reported by Monty Austin, who sings
songs at Council Crest Park, in that city. "It Had
to Be You," is another Remick hit sung by Mr.
Austin, which always receives an insistent encore.
PUBLISHING FIRM INCORPORATED.
Walker Studio Music Co., White Plains, N. Y.
is a new firm of music publishers recently incorpo-
rated with a capital of $5,000. A. and W. B. Walker
are given as incorporators.
"Take the C Out of Cal and That Leaves Al," is
the title of a campaign song composed by Represen-
tative Sol Bloom of New York, occasionally alluded
to as "the music man of Congress."
9est
ANY PUBLISHER x
OUR REFERENCE
BAYNER DALMIM S Co
^
WORK DONE BY
ALL PROCESSES
2054-2060 W.Lake St.OhicaaoJll.
Enhanced content © 2008-2009 and presented by MBSI - The Musical Box Society International (www.mbsi.org) and the International Arcade Museum (www.arcade-museum.com).
All Rights Reserved. Digitized from the archives of the MBSI with support from NAMM - The International Music Products Association (www.namm.org).
Additional enhancement, optimization, and distribution by the International Arcade Museum. An extensive collection of Presto can be found online at http://www.arcade-museum.com/library/
Future scanning projects are planned by the International Arcade Museum Library (IAML).