Presto

MUSICAL
TIMES
PRESTO
Established
1881
Established
1884
THE AMERICAN MUSIC TRADE WEEKLY
10 Cents a Copy
$2 The Year
CHICAGO, SATURDAY, AUGUST 18, 1928
CHICAGO TRADE
SCORES VICTORY
The Greatest Advancement in Culture and
Education in the Last Quarter Century
Is Claimed by the Chicago Piano
and Organ Association.
The Chicago Piano and Organ Association, realiz-
ing- the vast importance of the piano in the American
home, and to make it more popular and usable, has
emphasized that every effort and endeavor be spent
along the lines of promoting and adapting the use
of group piano instruction.
Many months ago a sjecial committee was ap-
pointed by President Roger O'Connor, working out
plans in this direction, and whose main duty it was to
present the piano from a cultural and educational
standpoit to the Chicago School Board.
Here we have the latest development along these
lines appearing in all the Chicago daily newspapers,
having a combined circulation in excess of two mil-
lion copies.
For Every Child in Chicago.
"A system of classroom instruction designed to
give every pupil in the Chicago public schools an
opportunity to learn to play the piano will be initiated
at the beginning of the fall term," it was announced
yesterday by William J. Bogan, superintendent. The
announcement followed the appointment Wednesday
of an entire new staff of music instructors, headed by
Dr. J. Lewis Brown, Chicago music director and com-
poser of note. The appointments were part of a gen-
eral reorganization of the educational department.
"Music permeates every phase of life and is needed
abundantly in every home," Mr. Bogan said in dis-
cussing the plan. "I feel that it is of far more im-
portance to a child to learn something of music than
to learn arithmetic. Through this new method, re-
cently tested out in the Roger Sullivan junior high
school, it is our hope to provide instruction in piano
to every school child.
"During the next school year the piano classes will
be held after school hours, and a small fee will be
charged for instruction. Later when the board is
able to provide for it in the school budget the system
will be made a part of the regular curriculum," Mr.
Bogan said.
Class-Room Method.
"Children show little spontaneity in the individual
method of teaching piano," the superintendent said.
"There is something compulsory about it. In the
class-room method the children are able to play to-
gether, and that is invaluable in catching their in-
terest.
"The class rooms devoted to piano instruction will
be equipped with two pianos and a set of dummy key
boards," Mr. Bogan said. "While two children are
playing the pianos a class of 20 or 25 will follow the
movements of the same exercises on the individual
keyboards. In an hour," he said, "each pupil will
have gone through the exercise several times and will
have played the piano once.
Chicago a Great Music Center.
"With its great orchestras, opera companies and
choral societies, Chicago is truly a music center," Mr.
Bogan continued. "The public schools should feel
some responsibility in supporting these groups. Out
of our 500,000 school children we should produce
some great artists who will add to this city's fame."
" T H E PIANO."
By Dr. Frank Crane, from the Chicago Evening
American of August 9, 1928.
If you were limited to one book you might want
the Dictionary. Some people would want the Bible.
If you were limited to one piece of furniture in the
house your choice should be the piano. The piano
is easily the most important instrument in the world.
It is the greatest common denominator of all music
instruments.
Most music that is written for an orchestra or a
banjo, a saxophone or the human voice is reducible
to a piano score, and usually is first composed on
the piano.
There is no doubt about music being the most
cultural of studies. It connotes rhythm and har-
mony, two things that are essential in all departments
of human activity. Rhythm is necessary even in the
motion pictures, and you must have a sense of har-
mony if you are going to be an orator, a painter
or a sculptor.
The piano is the life of every social gathering. If
anyone can play the piano, even manage so-so with
accompaniments, a group gathers around him and the
house is enlivened by the voices of the young, or
partners are chosen for dancing.
Almost every child can learn music if he is taught
young enough. Modern methods of instruction are
so simple that even the dullest can understand.
It is a deprivation for any child not to know the
piano. It is the best form of self-expression. As
Thomas Moore's Anacreontic runs:
"Music! Oh, how faint, how weak,
Language fades before they spell!
Oh, why should passion ever speak
When thou canst breathe her soul so well?"
Our moments of greatest delight, perhaps, are our
moments of self-expression. Nothing is better suited
to fully set forth our phases of emotion than the
piano. No substitute will do. It is not enough to
play the harp or the violin without a basic acquaint-
ance with the piano.
Of course, there is pleasure in attending concerts,
or listening to band music, or singing-, but no pleas-
ure is so full and so profitable, withal, as the joy
we get in making our own music. Again, I say that
if you are to buy only one piece of furniture for your
home, let it be a piano."
C. L. BEACH VISITS CHICAGO
C. L. Beach, president of the Bush & Lane Piano
Company, Holland, Mich., w y as in Chicago on Thurs-
day of this week visiting the educational department
of the company, which is under the direction of W. L.
Bush at Room 500 Fine Arts Building, 410 South
Michigan avenue. Mr. Bush as head of the Bush
Conservatory is an authority on methods of teaching
piano and he is chief promotor in getting the work
in the public schools of Chicago so far as to use the
piano in group instruction.
IMPORTANT RADIO EVENTS
Chicago and New York to Be the Scenes of
Many Radio Activities
This Fall.
Important radio events in Suptember and October:
1. Fifth Annual Radio World's Fair, Madison
Square Garden, New York city, Sept. 17-22, inclusive.
2. Radio Industries Banquet, Hotel Astor, New
York city, Sept. 18. Sponsored by Radio Manufac-
turers' Association, National Association of Broad-
casters and Federated Radio Trade Associasion. To
be broadcast over record-breaking number of stations.
3. Radio Week, sponsored by Federated Radio
Trade Association, Sept. 17-22, inclusive, with special
emphasis on
4. National Radio Festival, Sept. 18, whose high
light is the broadcast of the Radio Industries Banquet
from New York city.
5. Meeting of Federated Radio Trade Association
in New York city with Talking Machine & Radio
Men., Inc., Sept. 19.
6. Seventh Annual Chicago Radio Show, Coli-
seum, Oct. 8-14, inclusive.
TRAVELER REGABJ3SSGSHS PEP.
Mel R. Williams, popular traveling man for the
Wurlitzer factories in the Southwest, is spending a
month at Mayo Brothers' Hospital, Rochester, Minn.
"Mel," as he is affectionately known to Wurlitzer
dealers, is not seriously ill, but is taking a rest under
the doctor's orders. His latest letters to Chicago
headquarters say that he will be back on the job this
month in better health than ever.
CHANGES AFFECT SALESMEN.
Traveling salesmen will have to adjust themselves
to the tremendous changes that have occurred in
industry in the last 15 years, declared Aaron Sapiro,
lawyer, in addressing the National Council of Travel-
ing Salesmen's Association at the Hotel Pennsyl-
vania in New York last week.
W. B. Price of Chicago returned a few days ago
from a two weeks' vacation trip through the more
picturesque parts of Canada.
CHICAGO CHOSEN FOR
1929 TUNERS' CONVENTION
Association's New Officers Elected Include
Nels C. Boc of Chicago as President—
Interesting Sessions.
The annual convention of the National Association
of Piano Tuners held on Monday, Tuesday and
Wednesday of this week at the Hotel Statler, Cleve-
land, Ohio, was a harmonious meeting, punctuated
with some very instructive and illuminative addresses
and criticisms. In the constructive and informative
parts of the program William F. McClellan and
Charles Deutschmann of Chicago, and A. V. Minifie
of Pontiac, Mich., took a prominent part.
The election on Wednesday resulted as follows:
President—Nels C. Boc, Chicago.
Vice-President—A. V. Minifie, Pontiac, Mich.
Directors—C. O. Harrow, Findlay, Ohio; E. T.
Backus, Minneapolis, Minn.; E. Weise, Chicago, III.;
F. E. Lane, New York, N. Y.; R. Shero, Los An-
geles, Calif.
AVIATOR FOKKER BUYS
A KNABE AMPICO
Englewood, N. J., Dealer Who Sold It Has
an Airplane Ride Coming
to Him.
Furman & Mann of Englewood, N. J., report the
sale of a Knabe Ampico in antique mahogany, to Mr.
and Mrs. Anthony A. G. Fokker of Alpine, N. J.
Air. Fokker's reputation in the field of aviation is
too well established for any comment here, except
to say that he maintains three air homes—at Teter-
boro, Passaic and Wheeling, W. Va. Mr. Furman
advises in a semi-serious vein, that as part of the
deal he has an airplane ride coming to him, and he is
looking forward to this event with considerable
anticipation.
It is interesting to note that a "Perzina" grand
piano was taken in exchange for the Knabe Ampico.
The "Perzina" was manufactured in a German fac-
tory which is owned by Mr. Fokker. Only recently,
in this plant, making pianos was discontinued. The
plant was remantled by Mr. Fokker for making air-
plane wings.
ZENITH AND Q R S
BOOMING.
Several months ago as E. A. Kicselhorst, the St.
Louis piano dealer was leaving Presto-Times office
after a chat about investments and stocks, he said:
"Keep your eye on Q R S and Zenith Radio if you
want to take a flyer." At that time Zenith was
quoted at $70 a share and Q R S was at about the
same figure. One day this week Zenith sold at $102
a share and Q R S was held at a relative figure as
the companion climber to Zenith. Even as late as
two weeks ago Zenith could be bought for $80.
PROGRESSIVE
CONNECTICUT
FIRM
The Wendheiser Music store, 21-23 Main street,
Rockville, Conn., is a new double "daylight store" in
the heart of the city, handling pianos, phonographs,
radio, brass and band instruments and sheet music.
The firm operates an efficient repair department.
George Wendheiser is proprietor and manager.
NEW CANADIAN PIANO COMPANY
The British Columbia Piano Co., Ltd., has been
formed in Canada to make the Bell, Dominion and
Evans piano for the Canadian and export trade.
The city of Victoria, B. C, has granted a site and
a factory costing about $50,000 to employ from sixty-
five to seventy men will be erected.
E. O. Fay, advertising manager of the Wurlitzer
Grand Piano. Company, is spending his vacation at
Springfield, 111., with his father. The senior Mr.
Fay is official state custodian of the Lincoln tomb
and is regarded as the foremost authority on Lincoln
relics and historical records.
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