El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-02-08

each of which could be made in one
casting. The combined principles of
cast iron frames and over-string1ng
were developed by Theodore Steinway
and patented in 1853
These inventions were Of unparalleled
value to the piano manufacturers or
the world. The iron frame is one of the
essentials of the pianoforte. 1t must be
of great strength, as it needs to sus-
tain a constant strain equivalent Of
from 1000 to 5000 pounds from the
tightly stretched wires and al the same
time 1t must not be too heavy In weight
for the piano frame to support Where
ever they can be inserted without IN
terfering with the sound vibration es-
sential to music, openings are mace IN
this iron frame, as the material taken
out lessons the weight.
Sounding Board a Problem.
Next to the iron frame comes the
sounding board which is also a diff
cult problem. It is usually made Of
light spruce wood very well seasoned.
1t is Slightly followed on the side next
to the wires. On the opposite side are
glued, at right angles of the grain,
light bars of spruce wood to prevent
varying. These bars also prevent the
sounding board from swelling below,
while at the same time permitting it to
bration Of the wires. The seasoning of
the woods for sounding boards re-
quires scientific exactness. A cracked
sounding board means a broken
hearted piano." and is generally the
cause Of the tin-panny SOUND heard
from bad instruments
Ivory for piano keys was formerly so
greatly in demand that 1t was feared
the supply would be insufficient Now
ri
for this purpose. The latest develop
ment is the material called Bakelite.
which can be used as cellulofd, but is
more durable and possesses the advant-
age OF being nOn-inflanfma BILE The from
and steel used in piano construction
must be Of the highest quality, as must
also the wires used for the strings.
These last, ranging from the copper
wire-wrapped brass strings four feet
long to the slender two inch strand
for the upper treble require absolute
perfection in tempering since they are
the tone producers
Development OF Player Attachment.
The newest thing In the manuractur-
ing OF pianos is the development of its
player attachment. This has now be-
come recognized as so desirable a rea-
ture that a manufacturer remarked re-
Gently: In the near future the PLAYER
viii be recognized as an important a
part to the piano as its action or Key
board" In the mind Of the manurac-
turer, the player has come to stay and
each month develops Improvements IN
its operation and attachment The
player viii not, as has been feared. in
terfere in any way with the study Of
music because its mechanism Obviates
the need Of practicing. Real musicians
will always delight in the composition
OF new themes and in their own inter-
probation OF the classics but the piano
player puts music within the reach of
those who have neither the time 70
practice nor the skill for original play
ing. The larger manufacturers are de-
voting much effort to the development
OF the player. One firm is erecting a
large building to be devoted entirely
TO this purpose 1t viii have a floor
space of 20. 600 square feet
Many Names for Pianos.
While there are hundreds Of manu-
facturers in the United States, there
are thousands OF names under which
pianos are sold. One the tricks of the
trade is the "stenciled' piano There
are many large factories which make a
speciality OF furnishing pianos to deal
ers in various parts of the country.
Some dealers like to sell a piano bear
ing their own firm name This is or
dered from the general stock of the
manufactures who may, in an output OF