Presto
Issue: 1924 1982 - Page 24
PRESTO
24
CHINESE CHIN DESCRIBED
Old Seven Stringed Instrument Played by
Confucius 500 B. C. Topic of Letter
from Bliss M. Wiant.
In a recent letter to the Weaver Piano Co., Inc.,
York, Pa., Bliss M. Wiant, head of the music depart-
ment of the Peking Union University and representa-
tive in that part of China for the Weaver instruments,
described the old Chinese instrument, the Chin, and
the manner of playing it. The possibilities of the
instrument for church work are considerable and
Mr. Wiant has taken up its study and promises
President Bond of the Weaver Piano Co., Inc., a
demonstration when he returns home on a visit. This
is a quotation from Mr, Wiant's letter:
A few days ago we had the privilege of spending
an afternoon with a Chinese musician of the old
school. Through the courtesy of r two of the Chinese
professors in the University I w as invited to go to
visit with this man. William Hung went along and
acted as interpreter, although his knowledge of musi-
cal terms was at times rather inadequate.
This man is an old gentleman who has devoted his
life to the study of his own country's music. He is
the master of the ancient Chinese instrument, the
seven stringed chin, which was the favorite of the
sage Confucius. In his home he has 60 of these old
instruments, several of which are over one thousand
years old. After talking for a while and drinking
tea he took down his favorite chin and began tuning
up on.it and for an hour or so he entertained us with
the old classical music of this old race. It was truly
fascinating to see him play on it and to hear him hum
along as he played the tunes. This old chin is played
somewhat like a Hiwaiian guitar, for a string is
plucked and then the finger slides up and down the
vibrating string, thus making a sliding melody.
The test of every instrument of this kind is in its
ability to sustain the various tones made by slipping
over the vibrating string. It has a very low and soft
tone. On the side of the instrument are white dots
which indicate the places where harmonies may be
found—that is, the places where the string is divided
into vibrating segments to produce the octave and
other intervals which vibrate on the fundamental.
This man is a master of the chin—one of a very
few in China. He has written a great deal of music
for it and showed it to us. He has also studied
harmony and has discovered lost books on the sub-
ject. No one had ever talked to him about the
theoretical side of it before and he was intensely in-
terested in it. He wants to learn although he is an
old man so we have agreed that we will mutually
teach each other.
The chin only plays well the fine-toned scale which
is the classical scale of Chinese music. All the other
tones can be played but do not sound pleasing to the
Chinese ear. To develop an interest in this ancient
instrument will be a pleasant undertaking and to
adapt it for use in the Chinese Church. He also had
the pipes of pan and the ocarina and other instru-
ments the like of which do not exist in western coun-
tries. You will have to wait until we get home to
have a demonstration.
SUMMER HITS, MONEY MAKERS
Two Specials for Electric Pianos Prove Profitable to
Electric Piano Owners.
Rolls No. 1849 and No. 1852 are summer hits
which are proving great money earners for electric
piano users, is the report of the Columbia Music
Roll Co., 721 Kedzie Ave., Chicago.
No. 1849, Special Review (Selected) contains
Spain—Fox Trot; Adoration—Waltz; Blue Evening
Blues—Fox Trot; What'll I Do—Fox Trot; Never
Again—Fox Trot; It Had to Be You—Fox Trot;
Shine—Fox Trots It Ain't a Gonna Rain No Mo'—
Fox Trot; There's "Yes-Yes" in Your Eyes—Fox
Trot; Bringing Home the Bacon.
No. 1852, Very Latest Popular Dance Hits (Mid-
Summer Special), contains "Sally"—Waltz; Manda-
lay—Fox Trot; In the Evening—Fox Trot; May-
time—Fox Trot; I Hate to Think What Would Hap-
pen to Me—Waltz; Jitnminy Gee—Fox Trot; I Need
Some Pettin'—Fox Trot; Echoes from My Old Plan-
tation Home—Fox Trot; Back o' the Yards—Waltz;
Oh! Eva—One Step.
MAHOGANY EXPORTS.
Mahogany in the log imported into the United
States amounted to 2,973,000 feet in May, 1924, as
compared with 1,348,000 feet in May, 1923. The
principal countries supplying these logs were Central
America, 1,337,000 feet; Mexico, 1,043,000; Africa,
378,000; and the United Kingdom, 154,000. Philip-
pine mahogany lumber to the amount of 2,432,000
feet, 1,731,000 feet of cedar logs, and 5,228,000 feet of
hardwood lumber were imported during the month.
July 19, 1924.1
SITUATION IN SUPPLIES
Facts in Various Lines of Commodities Which Et
Into Musical Instrument Manufacture.
The British leather industry is experiencing sea-l
sonal dullness, but American business is more active]
The American Gut String Mfg. Co., Chicago]
has purchased the business of the Hart Bros. Mfgj
Co., manufacturer of gut strings and drum heads, tenj
nis strings and surgical gut.
"Fiddlestrings" is the name of a house journal pub-1
lished by Muller & Kaplan, manufacturers of strings]
154 East Eighty-fifth street, New York, Louis
Fisenne, sales manager, is editor. Among the features
of the second number just issued are an excellent
article on the care of contra-bass strings and an ar-l
tide by Otto J. Muller, member of the firm, on cov-
ered strings and how to use them.
One hundred and twenty-five mills reporting to
West Coast Lumbermen's Association for the week
ending June 21 manufactured 90,565,184 feet of lum-
ber, sold 97,393,932 feet, and shipped 95,696,008 feet.
New business was 8 per cent above production. Ship-
ments were 2 per cent below new business.
WISE VOCALSTYLE DEALER.
The Vocalstyle Music Company, Cincinnati, Ohio,
in a message to dealers, asks: "Wouldn't you like
to enjoy increased sales in playerpiano rolls this sum-
mer? One of our Ohio dealers doubled his song
and dance roll sales last summer by hitting on an
interesting plan. This Vocalstyle dealer used window
displays to call particular attention to special sum-
mer numbers. He advertised "Summer Hits" in his
local newspapers. His sales people used the 'phone
aggressively. He "talked" them to his customers.
'There are a lot of functions during the summer at
which the playerpiano is used. There's porch parties,
week end gatherings, garden fetes, out-door dances,
etc' he told them. By calling attention to the many
uses of playerpiano music in the summer he sold more
rolls than during some of the supposedly busy sea-
Plans are being developed for the' second annual
radio exposition of the Wisconsin Radio Association
which will be held in the Milwaukee Auditorium be-
ginning November 11.
T
HE commonest challenge by many advertisers concerns
the paper's circulation.
It is with them a question
altogether of quantity. But the best things about piano
advertising, from the manufacturer's point of view, have other
arguments besides quantity.
In a trade paper quality circulation is more important than
quantity circulation, for bulk of circulation is not what sells pianos
at wholesale. Nevertheless, Presto is certain that in quantity, as
well as quality circulation, it will compare favorably with any of
the piano trade papers.
Presto produces results for its advertisers. It does not ask the advertisers to
pay for waste paper or mere bulk. It covers the field, and its advertising rates are
as low as any trade paper, with anything like the same circulation, can accept.
PRESTO
The American Music Trade Weekly
417 So. Dearborn St.
CHICAGO
Carries Advertising For More Live Piano Manufacturers Than Any Other Trade Paper
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/
24
CHINESE CHIN DESCRIBED
Old Seven Stringed Instrument Played by
Confucius 500 B. C. Topic of Letter
from Bliss M. Wiant.
In a recent letter to the Weaver Piano Co., Inc.,
York, Pa., Bliss M. Wiant, head of the music depart-
ment of the Peking Union University and representa-
tive in that part of China for the Weaver instruments,
described the old Chinese instrument, the Chin, and
the manner of playing it. The possibilities of the
instrument for church work are considerable and
Mr. Wiant has taken up its study and promises
President Bond of the Weaver Piano Co., Inc., a
demonstration when he returns home on a visit. This
is a quotation from Mr, Wiant's letter:
A few days ago we had the privilege of spending
an afternoon with a Chinese musician of the old
school. Through the courtesy of r two of the Chinese
professors in the University I w as invited to go to
visit with this man. William Hung went along and
acted as interpreter, although his knowledge of musi-
cal terms was at times rather inadequate.
This man is an old gentleman who has devoted his
life to the study of his own country's music. He is
the master of the ancient Chinese instrument, the
seven stringed chin, which was the favorite of the
sage Confucius. In his home he has 60 of these old
instruments, several of which are over one thousand
years old. After talking for a while and drinking
tea he took down his favorite chin and began tuning
up on.it and for an hour or so he entertained us with
the old classical music of this old race. It was truly
fascinating to see him play on it and to hear him hum
along as he played the tunes. This old chin is played
somewhat like a Hiwaiian guitar, for a string is
plucked and then the finger slides up and down the
vibrating string, thus making a sliding melody.
The test of every instrument of this kind is in its
ability to sustain the various tones made by slipping
over the vibrating string. It has a very low and soft
tone. On the side of the instrument are white dots
which indicate the places where harmonies may be
found—that is, the places where the string is divided
into vibrating segments to produce the octave and
other intervals which vibrate on the fundamental.
This man is a master of the chin—one of a very
few in China. He has written a great deal of music
for it and showed it to us. He has also studied
harmony and has discovered lost books on the sub-
ject. No one had ever talked to him about the
theoretical side of it before and he was intensely in-
terested in it. He wants to learn although he is an
old man so we have agreed that we will mutually
teach each other.
The chin only plays well the fine-toned scale which
is the classical scale of Chinese music. All the other
tones can be played but do not sound pleasing to the
Chinese ear. To develop an interest in this ancient
instrument will be a pleasant undertaking and to
adapt it for use in the Chinese Church. He also had
the pipes of pan and the ocarina and other instru-
ments the like of which do not exist in western coun-
tries. You will have to wait until we get home to
have a demonstration.
SUMMER HITS, MONEY MAKERS
Two Specials for Electric Pianos Prove Profitable to
Electric Piano Owners.
Rolls No. 1849 and No. 1852 are summer hits
which are proving great money earners for electric
piano users, is the report of the Columbia Music
Roll Co., 721 Kedzie Ave., Chicago.
No. 1849, Special Review (Selected) contains
Spain—Fox Trot; Adoration—Waltz; Blue Evening
Blues—Fox Trot; What'll I Do—Fox Trot; Never
Again—Fox Trot; It Had to Be You—Fox Trot;
Shine—Fox Trots It Ain't a Gonna Rain No Mo'—
Fox Trot; There's "Yes-Yes" in Your Eyes—Fox
Trot; Bringing Home the Bacon.
No. 1852, Very Latest Popular Dance Hits (Mid-
Summer Special), contains "Sally"—Waltz; Manda-
lay—Fox Trot; In the Evening—Fox Trot; May-
time—Fox Trot; I Hate to Think What Would Hap-
pen to Me—Waltz; Jitnminy Gee—Fox Trot; I Need
Some Pettin'—Fox Trot; Echoes from My Old Plan-
tation Home—Fox Trot; Back o' the Yards—Waltz;
Oh! Eva—One Step.
MAHOGANY EXPORTS.
Mahogany in the log imported into the United
States amounted to 2,973,000 feet in May, 1924, as
compared with 1,348,000 feet in May, 1923. The
principal countries supplying these logs were Central
America, 1,337,000 feet; Mexico, 1,043,000; Africa,
378,000; and the United Kingdom, 154,000. Philip-
pine mahogany lumber to the amount of 2,432,000
feet, 1,731,000 feet of cedar logs, and 5,228,000 feet of
hardwood lumber were imported during the month.
July 19, 1924.1
SITUATION IN SUPPLIES
Facts in Various Lines of Commodities Which Et
Into Musical Instrument Manufacture.
The British leather industry is experiencing sea-l
sonal dullness, but American business is more active]
The American Gut String Mfg. Co., Chicago]
has purchased the business of the Hart Bros. Mfgj
Co., manufacturer of gut strings and drum heads, tenj
nis strings and surgical gut.
"Fiddlestrings" is the name of a house journal pub-1
lished by Muller & Kaplan, manufacturers of strings]
154 East Eighty-fifth street, New York, Louis
Fisenne, sales manager, is editor. Among the features
of the second number just issued are an excellent
article on the care of contra-bass strings and an ar-l
tide by Otto J. Muller, member of the firm, on cov-
ered strings and how to use them.
One hundred and twenty-five mills reporting to
West Coast Lumbermen's Association for the week
ending June 21 manufactured 90,565,184 feet of lum-
ber, sold 97,393,932 feet, and shipped 95,696,008 feet.
New business was 8 per cent above production. Ship-
ments were 2 per cent below new business.
WISE VOCALSTYLE DEALER.
The Vocalstyle Music Company, Cincinnati, Ohio,
in a message to dealers, asks: "Wouldn't you like
to enjoy increased sales in playerpiano rolls this sum-
mer? One of our Ohio dealers doubled his song
and dance roll sales last summer by hitting on an
interesting plan. This Vocalstyle dealer used window
displays to call particular attention to special sum-
mer numbers. He advertised "Summer Hits" in his
local newspapers. His sales people used the 'phone
aggressively. He "talked" them to his customers.
'There are a lot of functions during the summer at
which the playerpiano is used. There's porch parties,
week end gatherings, garden fetes, out-door dances,
etc' he told them. By calling attention to the many
uses of playerpiano music in the summer he sold more
rolls than during some of the supposedly busy sea-
Plans are being developed for the' second annual
radio exposition of the Wisconsin Radio Association
which will be held in the Milwaukee Auditorium be-
ginning November 11.
T
HE commonest challenge by many advertisers concerns
the paper's circulation.
It is with them a question
altogether of quantity. But the best things about piano
advertising, from the manufacturer's point of view, have other
arguments besides quantity.
In a trade paper quality circulation is more important than
quantity circulation, for bulk of circulation is not what sells pianos
at wholesale. Nevertheless, Presto is certain that in quantity, as
well as quality circulation, it will compare favorably with any of
the piano trade papers.
Presto produces results for its advertisers. It does not ask the advertisers to
pay for waste paper or mere bulk. It covers the field, and its advertising rates are
as low as any trade paper, with anything like the same circulation, can accept.
PRESTO
The American Music Trade Weekly
417 So. Dearborn St.
CHICAGO
Carries Advertising For More Live Piano Manufacturers Than Any Other Trade Paper
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).