I am a San Francisco musician and a native. When you inquire about musicians at the White House, Weinstock-Lubin, City of Paris or any of the early department stores, I can tell you that musicians have historically only been brought in for promotional events UNLESS they were steady performers at the restaurants in the department stores. It was common for a quartet or trio to play for luncheon and dinner at almost any decent restaurant in the city. Musicians would work the luncheon service, rest, play dinner service, rest, then do either a show or evening performance at a theatre or hall. Many would work seven days a week. Later, when radio was prominent, musicians would work the station live, getting away for work in restaurants, theatres, auditoriums, etc. There was a time when it was a way to make a pretty penny. My late friend, violinist Sam Stern, remembers making so much money as a young teenager around 1916, that he strode into a car dealership and bought a car for cash. What he failed to notice is that he had no idea how to drive it home!