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The AMICA BULLETINAUTOMATIC MUSICAL INSTRUMENT COLLECTORS’ ASSOCIATIONSEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2003 VOLUME 40, NUMBER 5

Entire contents © 2003 AMICA International 233

VOLUME 40, Number 5 September/October 2003

FEATURESDay of the Player Piano — 238Bugatti Step — 243About Knabe Pianos — 248Peary and the Pianola — 254Here’s an Automatic Piano. . . — 256Serge Bortkiewicz — 257For Immediate Release — 259Military Band in a Box — 260

DEPARTMENTSAMICA International — 234

President’s Message — 235From the Publisher’s Desk — 235Calendar of Events — 236Letters —236He Shall Be Remembered —237Chapter News — 261AMICA 20 + 40 years ago — 271Classified Ads — 272

Front Cover: American Heritage Magazine, May/June 1988, page 92, photo comesfrom the article “Day of the Player Piano” reprinted in this issue.

Inside Front: Back page of Sheet Music from 1919, “How ‘Ya Gonna Keep’Em Downon the Farm...” advertising songs “Take your Girlie to the Movies,” and“ I’m Tickled to Death that You’re Irish.”

Back Cover: Sheet Music Cover from 1919, “How ‘Ya Gonna Keep’Em Down on theFarm (After they’ve seen Paree?)”

Inside Back Cover: Australian Collectors of Mechanical Musical Instruments BulletinNo. 118, page 7, “When is a Broadwood Piano not a piano...”

THE AMICA BULLETINAUTOMATIC MUSICAL INSTRUMENT COLLECTORS' ASSOCIATION

Published by the Automatic Musical Instrument Collectors’ Association, a non-profit, tax exempt group devoted to the restoration, distributionand enjoyment of musical instruments using perforated paper music rolls and perforated music books. AMICA was founded in San Francisco, California in 1963.

PROFESSOR MICHAEL A. KUKRAL, PUBLISHER, 216 MADISON BLVD., TERRE HAUTE, IN 47803-1912 -- Phone 812-238-9656, E-mail: [email protected] the AMICA Web page at: http://www.amica.org

Associate Editors: Mr. Larry Givens & Robin Pratt

AMICA BULLETINDisplay and Classified AdsArticles for PublicationLetters to the PublisherChapter News

UPCOMING PUBLICATIONDEADLINESThe ads and articles must be receivedby the Publisher on the 1st of theOdd number months:

January JulyMarch SeptemberMay November

Bulletins will be mailed on the 1st weekof the even months.

Dr. Michael A. Kukral, Publisher216 Madison Blvd.Terre Haute, Indiana 47803-1912Phone: 812-238-9656e-mail: [email protected]

MEMBERSHIP SERVICES

New Memberships . . . . . . . . . . $42.00

Renewals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $42.00Additional $5.00 due if renewed

past the Jan. 31 deadline

Address changes and corrections

Directory information updates

Additional copies ofMember Directory . . . . $25.00

Single copies of back issues($10.00 per issue - basedupon availability)

William Chapman (Bill)53685 Avenida BermudasLa Quinta, CA 92253-3586(760) 564-2951e-mail: [email protected]

To ensure timely delivery of yourBULLETIN, please allow 6-weeksadvance notice of address changes.

AMICA Publications reserves the right to accept, reject, or edit any and all submitted articles and advertising.

234

AMICA INTERNATIONAL

INTERNATIONAL OFFICERSPRESIDENT Dan C. Brown

N. 4828 Monroe StreetSpokane, WA 99205-5354

509-325-2626e-mail: [email protected]

PAST PRESIDENT Linda Bird3300 Robinson Pike

Grandview, MO 64030-2275Phone/Fax 816-767-8246

e-mail: OGM [email protected] PRESIDENT Mike Walter

65 Running Brook Dr.,Lancaster, NY 14086-3314


SECRETARY Christy Counterman544 Sunset View Drive, Akron, Ohio 44320


TREASURER Wesley Neff128 Church Hill Drive, Findlay, Ohio 45840


PUBLISHER Dr. Michael A. Kukral216 Madison Blvd., Terre Haute, IN 47803-1912


MEMBERSHIP SECRETARY William Chapman (Bill)53685 Avenida Bermudas, La Quinta, CA 92253-3586

760-564-2951 – Fax 775-923-7117e-mail: [email protected]

— COMMITTEES —AMICA ARCHIVES Stuart Grigg

20982 Bridge St., Southfield, MI 48034 - Fax: (248) 356-5636

AMICA MEMORIAL FUND John Motto-RosP.O. Box 908, Sutter Creek, CA 95685-0908 209-267-9252

AUDIO-VISUAL & TECHNICAL Harold Malakinian2345 Forest Trail Dr., Troy, MI 48098

CONVENTION COORDINATOR Frank Nix6030 Oakdale Ave., Woodland Hills, CA 91367 818-884-6849

HONORARY MEMBERS Jay Albert904-A West Victoria Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101-4745

(805) 966-9602 - e-mail: [email protected]

PUBLICATIONS Robin Pratt630 E. Monroe St., Sandusky, OH 44870-3708

WEB MASTER Meta Brown400 East Randolph Street, Apt. 3117, Chicago, IL 60601

312-946-8417 — Fax 312-946-8419

BOSTON AREAPres. Bill Koenigsburg -(978) 369-8523Vice Pres: Bob TempestSec: Ginger ChristiansenTreas: Karl EllisonReporter: Don BrownBoard Rep: Karl Ellison

CHICAGO AREAPres: Curt Clifford - (630) 279-0872Vice Pres: John MuellerSec: Thad KochannyTreas: Joe PekarekReporter: Kathy StoneBoard Rep: George Wilder

FOUNDING CHAPTERPres: Bing Gibbs - (408) 253-1866Vice Pres: Karen Ann SimonsSec: Lyle Merithew & Sandy SwirskyTreas: Richard ReutlingerReporter: Tom McWayBoard Rep: Richard Reutlinger

GATEWAY CHAPTERPres: Tom Novak - Vice Pres: Bob CrowleySec,/Treas: Jane NovakReporter: Mary WilsonBoard Rep: Gary Craig

HEART OF AMERICAPres: Tom McAuleyVice Pres: Robbie TubbsSec/Treas: Kay BodeReporter:Board Rep: Ron Connor

LADY LIBERTYPres: Vincent Morgan (718) 479-2562Vice Pres: Keith BiggerSec: Richard KarlssonTreas: Ira MalekReporter:Marty RosaBoard Reps: Marvin & Dianne Polan

MIDWEST (OH, MI, IN, KY)Pres: Stuart Grigg - (248) 356-5005Vice Pres: Liz BarnhartSec: Sharon NeffTreas: Alvin WulfekuhlReporter: Christy CountermanBoard Rep: Liz Barnhart

NORTHERN LIGHTSPres: Phil BairdVice Pres: Sec: Jason E. Beyer - (507) 454-3124Treas: Howie O’NeillReporter: Dorothy OldsBoard Rep: Dorothy Olds

PACIFIC CAN-AMPres: Carl Kehret - (360) 892-3161Vice Pres: Peg KehretSec: Halie DodrillTreas: Bev SporeReporter: Mark Smithberg Board Rep: Carl Dodrill

SIERRA NEVADAPres: John Motto-Ros - (209) 267-9252Vice Pres: Sonja LemonSec/Treas: Doug & Vicki MahrReporter: Nadine Motto-RosBoard Rep: John Motto-Ros

SOWNY (Southern Ontario,Western New York)

Pres: Mike Walter - (716) 656-9583Vice Pres: Stan AldridgeSec/Mem. Sec: Gary & Anne LemonTreas: Holly WalterReporter: Frank WarbisBoard Rep:

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIAPres: Frank Nix - (818) 884-6849Vice Pres: Richard IngramSec./Reporter. Shirley NixTreas: Ken HodgeBoard Rep: Frank Nix

TEXASPres: Jerry Bacon - (214) 328-9369Vice Pres: Tony Palmer (817) 261-1334Sec./Treas: Janet TonnesenBoard Rep: Dick MerchantBulletin Reporter: Bryan CatherNewsletter Editor: Bryan Cather

CHAPTER OFFICERS

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES AND ORGANIZATIONSATOSPresident - Nelson PageThe Galaxy Theatre7000 Blvd East, Guttenberg, NJ 07093Phone: (201) 854-7847 Fax: (201) 854-1477E-Mail: [email protected] - Vernon P. Bickel786 Palomino CourtSan Marcos, CA 92069-2102Phone: (760) 471-6194 Fax: (760) 471-9194E-Mail: [email protected]

AUSTRALIAN COLLECTORS OFMECHANICAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS19 Waipori StreetSt. Ives NSW 2075, Australia

DUTCH PIANOLA ASSOC.Nederlandse Pianola VerenigingEikendreef 245342 HR Oss, Netherlands

FRIENDS OF SCOTT JOPLIN1217 St. Croix Ct.Kirkwood, MO 63122-2326

website: http//stlouis.missouri.org/[email protected]

INTERNATIONAL PIANOARCHIVES AT MARYLANDPerforming Arts Library,University of Maryland2511 Clarice Smith Performing Arts CenterCollege Park, MD 20742Phone: (301) 405-9224Fax: (301) 314-7170E-Mail: [email protected]

INT. VINTAGE PHONO & MECH.MUSIC SOCIETYC.G. Nijsen, Secretaire General19 Mackaylaan5631 NM Eindhoven, Netherlands

MUSICAL BOX SOCIETY OF GREATBRITAINAlan Pratt, EditorP. O. Box 299Waterbeach, Cambridge CB4 4PJEngland

MUSICAL BOX SOCIETYINTERNATIONALRosanna Harris, Editor5815 West 52nd AvenueDenver, CO 80212Phone: (303) 431-9033 Fax: (303) 431-6978E-Mail: [email protected]

NETHERLANDS MECHANICALORGAN SOCIETY - KDVA. T. MeijerWilgenstraat 24NL-4462 VS Goes, Netherlands

NORTHWEST PLAYER PIANOASSOCIATIONEverson Whittle, Secretary11 Smiths Road, Darcy Lever,Bolton BL3 2PP, Gt. Manchester, EnglandHome Phone: 01204 529939Business Phone: 01772 208003

PIANOLA INSTITUTEClair Cavanagh, Secretary

43 Great Percy St., London WC1X 9RAEngland

PLAYER PIANO GROUPJulian Dyer, Bulletin Editor5 Richmond Rise, Workingham,Berkshire RG41 3XH, United KingdomPhone: 0118 977 1057Email: [email protected]

SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTIONDivision of Musical HistoryWashington, D.C. 20560

SOCIETY FOR SELF-PLAYINGMUSICAL INSTRUMENTSGesellschaft für Selbstspielende Musikinstrumente (GSM) E.V.Ralf SmolneEmmastr. 56D-45130 Essen, GermanyPhone:**49-201-784927Fax:**49-201-7266240Email: [email protected]

Dear Fellow Collectors of Automatic Musical Instruments,A few years ago my father, Cal Kukral, and I drove through the now impoverished city neighborhood where he lived as a

child. We parked for a moment in front of the house on Forest Avenue and Dad clearly remembered the day in 1917 when a brandnew Beckwith Player Piano was delivered by Sears, Roebuck & Company to their house.

“Gee whiz! That was something! To have a piano like that in this neighborhood. That was really something in those days,” Dad said.

He remembered the titles of dozens of rolls, the name of the roll salesman who came by streetcar to their house every month to demonstrate new titles, and a surprising number of details about playing the piano. Dad told me it still worked great when his mother donated the Beckwith to the USO while he was away fighting the Nazis in Germany.

And now these many years later, I am delighted and honored to serve as the new publisher of the AMICA Bulletin in its 40thyear of existence. Looking though past bulletins I see a continuity of interest in the music, people, and instruments associatedwith our membership. Overall, the bulletins past and present form a unique collection of information in writing and photographsof a primarily American musical art form. It also appears that many AMICAns are a fun and sociable group of people with adiversity of interests and talents!

Many people, like my father, who could remember when a brand new player piano was delivered to their home during the heyday of automatic musical instruments, are now gone. If you are like me, however, it is still a day of big excitement when anew (to me) instrument arrives at my house and I find myself saying, “Gee whiz! This is really something!”

And that is exactly how I now feel as the new publisher of the AMICA Bulletin. This is really something.Mike Kukral

Welcome aboard to new Publisher Mike Kukral. I am confident that the Bulletin will continue to be a quality and varied publication. Bulletin content, as always, was discussed at the Board meeting in August. As I have been saying for a long time, the primary reason that particular topics are not featured is that no articles on them have been submitted. Mike willwork with authors who request help in composing and polishing articles, so don’t hesitate whenconsidering that an article could be of limited interest, too long or short, or needing grammaticalor layout work.

I am pleased to say that the Portland Convention was a rousing success. Thanks to all thecommittee for putting in so much effort and planning and working so hard to meet needs as they arose. Board actions included accepting affiliation with Associazione Italiana Musica Meccanica, which has a beautiful publication on automatic music (in Italian). Over the nextyear, a committee with co-chairs Gary Craig and Ron Connor will review the purpose and definition of the association. John Motto-Ros, Bill Chapman, and Dick Merchant will also participate. Much of the time at the Board meeting was spent brainstorming ideas to build AMICA membership and the variety of ideas suggested some excellent opportunities. These suggestions will be included in the minutes of the Board meeting and a committee will work during the year to develop membership activities. I will chair this and participants include John Motto-Ros, BingGibb, Carl Dodrill, and Bill Chapman. Several chapters reported good responses to their websites and Karl Ellison offered his technical expertise in helping chapters develop their sites. The Adopt-A-Piano program is moving forward and donations to this causefrom individuals and chapters can be sent to Treasurer Wes Neff. The first project in mind is the restoration of an instrument or instruments at Virginia/Nevada Cities in Montana. Thanks to Richard Reutlinger for putting the project together. The minutes andcoverage of the convention will be in the next Bulletin.

The Board agreed that it would be helpful to begin the award nomination process earlier in the year so that this could be a topic tocover at heavily attended holiday chapter meetings. This is a great opportunity to recognize AMICAns who significantly contribute tothe association and to automatic music collecting. Congratulations to this year’s winners Ron Bopp (Leo Ornstein Literary Award),Nancy and Ray Dietz (AMICA International Award), and Robin Pratt (AMICA President’s Award). The Chicago Chapter announcedat the Board meeting this year the creation of the Mabel and Simon Zivin Award to recognize members who share their collectionsand encourage new membership. This award will be funded and facilitated entirely by this chapter.

Start planning now for Denver next summer!Amicably,

Dan Brown

235

President’s Message

From the Publisher’s Desk

CALENDAR

OF

EVENTS

CHAPTER MEETINGS

Heart of America Chapter

– September, 2003 – Meeting in Branson, MO -

hosted by Billie & Bill Pohl.

236

Pacific Can-Am Chapter

– Octobor 12, 2003 – Meeting hosted by Ted and Aileen

Miholovich, Seattle

– December 13, 2003 – Meeting hosted by Carl and Halie Dodril,

Mercer Island, WA

Dear Mike:

Really enjoyed the Ethel Leginska articles in the last Bulletin. It made myweekend - locating the rolls and playing them again! (several in years hadgone past!) It was great rehearing them! I do like the roll listings!

I would like to point out she had made 35 Artiro rolls, as well as 7 Recordorolls! Amongst the Artiro rolls, she had a 7 roll set of the “Souvenir D’Italie,Op 39 of Leschetizky. A large majority of the Artiro and Recordo rolls werenot available on Duo-Art or Ampico (the selections) _____________.

Good luck with the new job!Bill Dean

LettersBy Mike Kukral

Open house will be held at

CHICKERING HALLMonday, Washington’s Birthday

This affords a convenient time

for busy people to hear the

famous Chickering piano and

to listen to the great living

artists perform on it through

The AAMMPPIICCOO

Visitors are most cordially invited to

attend a recital in the Music Salon

given by the eminent pianist

HHAANNSS BBAARRTTHHThree to four-thirty

Chickering & Sons, Inc.Established 1823

Chickering Hall • 27 West 57th Street • Just west of Fifth Avenue

Sent in by Jeffrey Morgan, From 1925-30

Midwest Chapter

– December 6 & 7, 2003 – Findlay, OH

237

FRANK RIDERFrank has belonged to AMICA for

some years and passed away June 10,2003.

When Terry Borne was in high schoolin Fort Wayne he used to wait for hourson a Saturday to greet Frank when he serviced his automatic piano. The pianowas actually a mortuary organ, which heeventually sold to a delighted Terry.

Frank has, over the years, set a recordin placing and servicing automatic pianos on “location” in Fort Wayne, Warsaw, Huntington and Decatur, Indiana. The pianos still play at the “Back 40” Restaurant in Decatur - serviced by our son Karl.

Along with membership in AMICA,Frank belonged to MBSI, COAA, andFOPS (Fair Organ Preservation Society ofGreat Britain).

Many years ago Frank began his interest in automatic music throughacquaintance with Dave Ramey and TomSprague, Lagrange, Indiana. Dave hadmoved his family to Lagrange and wasrestoring pianos with Tom.

Since then and some years back, Daveand Lavina (Tony) moved back to theChicago area (Lynwood, Illinois) andDave was joined by his son, Dave Jr. inrebuilding and restoring automatic pianos.They then branched out and now build theRamey Banjo and Banjo Orchestra.

Frank became the proud owner of oneof the latter and enjoyed it almost everyday - usually early morning.

Frank was chairman of MBSI Mid AmChapter when Dan Slack proposed starting Band Organ Rallies in the UnitedStates. Dan had seen them in varioustowns and cities in England and Europe.Frank said, “Go for it, Dan,” - and he did!

Everyone now enjoys multiple BandOrgan Rallies throughout the country.

Sincerely,Hope RiderWabash, Indiana

Frank M. Rider, 71Wabash County’s “Calliope Man”

Oct. 31, 1931 - June 10, 2003

Frank M. Rider, Wabash,passed away June 10 at AmericanLiving Center, Wabash. He wasill 4 months.

Frank was an avid collector,first of antique cars, then ofautomatic musical instruments: calliopes,fair organs, band organs and small streetorgans. He was a popular sight in localparades with his ornate, gilded calliopewagon. His trademark straw hat, stripedshirt and hand puppets amused thecrowds. This tradition will live onthrough his sons.

He was born in Port Clinton, Ohio,October 31, 1931, to John F. “Jack” Riderand Caroline (McClure) Rider. His fatherwas an avid hunter and decoy carver.

Frank was a 1949 graduate of PortClinton High School and a 1953 graduateof Bowling Green State University. Hemarried Evelyn Hope McCandlish, alsoof Port Clinton, in 1955.

Frank began a lifelong career inHuman Relations at the U.S. Gypsum Co.plant near Port Clinton, transferring toGenoa, Ohio, then to Wabash. He was afounding member of the Wabash ValleyPersonnel Association. He served on theBoard of Directors of the Otis R. BowenCenter for over 30 years. He was appointed by Mayor Mitten to the City of Wabash Board of Zoning Appeals and Plan Commission, serving for over 30 years. Mr. Rider was a member of the board of trustees of the Musical Box Society International and was a member of the Carousel Organ Association of America.

Masonic affiliations were O.H. PerryLodge, Port Clinton; Fort Wayne MizpahShrine; and Wabash Shrine Club. Mason-

ic services were held June 12 at Grandstaff-Hentgen Funeral Home.

Frank is survived by his wife, EvelynHope, and sons John F. (Karen) Rider,Noblesville, Karl (Sally) Rider, Wabash,and Mark (Marie) Rider, Milwaukee,Wisconsin; and his grandchildren ClareRider, Noblesville, Cale and Matt Rider,Wabash, and David Rider, Milwaukee,Wisconsin.

With a lifetime membership in theMethodist Church, June 13 services wereheld at First United Methodist Church,Wabash. Pastor Jim MacDonald officiated. Susan Vanlandingham wasorganist. Burial was in Chapel of Remem-brance, Memorial Lawns Cemetery,Wabash. Pallbearers were Ray Hood,Roger Rapp, George Akers, and Cal and Matt Rider, Wabash; Mike Grant, Columbia City; Don Stinson, Bellefontaine, Ohio; and Leonard Railsback, Hutchinson, Kansas. Calliopistwas Paul Dyer, Fortville.

He shall beremembered

Sent in by Hope Rider

Frank Rider and his son Mark.

Frank Rider and friend Dave Ramey in 2003

238

IT DIDN’T LAST LONG.BUT WE NEVER GOTOVER IT.

The player piano came of age inAmerica ninety years ago, and it causedan almighty stir. Within four decades itappeared to be dead. The craze dwindled,and in 1932 not a single player wasshipped from the factories. But althoughplayer pianos have been manufacturedonly desultorily since, the machine established itself so firmly during itsbrief lifetime that it is impossible to findsomeone today who doesn’t know what aplayer piano is, who doesn’t rememberwhat fun they were. Rolls for the pianoshave been manufactured continuouslysince the 1890s, and new ones are stillbeing made. The Vestal Press has longhad a successful book in print on how torestore player pianos, and an enterprisingfirm in Kansas is busy supplying spareparts for them. People still find them agreat pleasure, repairing them, rebuildingthem, adding more piano rolls to theirlibraries (the market in secondhand rollsis brisk).

Many of the pianos themselves fetchhigh prices, for so many of the hundredsof thousands made are gone. Some simply were discarded, but thousands ofothers suffered an ignominious surgery.Lost in a limbo brought on by the growing popularity of radio before the

Second World War, they werebought by the freight carloadsfor peanuts, divested of theirautomatic innards, and shippedto Southern states, where theywere resold as ordinary uprightpianos to people for whom theownership of a piano was still anemblem of middle-class dignity but whohad never been able to afford one before.A piano that worked, bought for as littleas thirty dollars, was heaven, whetheryou could play it or not.

Piano ownership had connoted gentility for generations before thearrival of the player piano. Throughoutthe nineteenth century, well-bred youngwomen “took.” “Taking” meant pianolessons: learning to arch the fingersproperly, not to stoop the back, and tomaster all the crossing of the hands necessary to accomplish such dainty and showy works as Ethelbert Nevin’s“Narcissus,” surely one of the world’smost insipid compositions.

But learning to play was never easy.Those of us who are not musicians,offered a sight of any mildly elaboratepiano score, recoil in shock from a sheafof coded material so dense that the pageseems almost black; this must somehowbe transferred from the printed score tothe keyboard, to be played with both

hands. It is small wonder, then, that theadvent of the self-playing piano seemedmiraculous. The years of hard study andendless practice were replaced in amoment by the marvel of a machine thatcould play a piano far better than anyamateur and, moreover, play it again and again for as long as anyone couldstand it.

The machine that blew across thecountry, starting in the late 1890s, like ablizzard over a Nebraska plain was not,in fact, a player piano. It was called a“piano player,” and it was on wheels.You rolled it up to your piano keyboard,adjusted several knobs for height, thensat in front of it (some distance by nowfrom the piano itself) and pumped twotreadles that worked its pneumaticinsides. A traveling perforated paper rollof anything from forty-four to sixty-fivenotes’ compass actuated felt-tippedwooden rods that dropped down on thepiano keys and played them.

There were a number of early attemptsat mechanical piano players, including afine one called a “Pianista” invented by aFrenchman named Fourneaux, which wasintroduced at the Philadelphia CentennialExhibition in 1876, but it was veryexpensive. The Italians had for manyyears exhibited the street piano, a rudimentary instrument on a wheeledcart, worked by a wood cylinder turnedby a crank; pins in the cylinder slammedhammers loudly against the strings. Mussolini, furious over the erosion ofItalian dignity by the hordes of Italianoperators of street pianos in several countries, attempted to recall them all to

Day of the

continue. . .

player pianoBy Joseph Fox - Photos from Roehl Collection - From American Heritage Magazine, May/June 1988

A Pianola from a turn-of-the-century ad.

An enthusiast pumps away at a HardmanAutotone player piano around 1910.

239

Italy and tried to abolish the trade. He didn’t succeed. In 1944, about the time he was being hanged by hisheels, an enterprising fellow with a street piano and a wide grin greetedAllied troops arriving in Naples with abloodcurdling homemade version of“The Star-Spangled Banner.”

In 1891 a Texas newspaper describeda wheel-up player and remarked that it“enables the cook to furnish music forher mistress’s guests with exactly thesame technic that is required to mash upcoffee for their dinner delectation.” Therewas no dearth of such instrumentsthroughout the latter years of the nineteenth century. A lot of people werebent on producing a piano that could playby itself, and a number of machines werebuilt to do just that. But it took a specialcombination of skill, timing, perspicacity,and a certain Barnum-like quality tobring the self-playing piano into its own.

These all occurred when a man namedEdwin S. Votey developed a pretty goodpneumatic piano player, applied for apatent in 1897, and interested the AeolianCompany in it. The company put theinstrument on the market in 1898. Itbecame one of the great success storiesof advertising.

Arthur Loesser, in his fine social history called Men, Women and Pianos,writes: “Some unnamed poetic genius,however, created a name for it so potentthat Americans surrendered to it in battalions and regiments . . . ‘Pianola’was, clearly, a piano and something more. . . a musical word for a musical object:quite perfect. Used in an aggressive

advertising campaign, it was aninvincible weapon . . . the publictook it up, spelled it with a small‘p,’ and made it into a genericname for all player pianos.

By 1914 there were morethan forty companies scramblingto get into the player business:Amphion, Auto-Piano, Auto-tone, Air-O-Player, Manualo,Angelus, Cecilian, Apollo,Euphona, Aristano, Symphonola,Harmonola, Peerless, Simplex,Humana - and a 1906 confectionthat barely skirted the trademarklaws: Pianova. “But,” observedLoesser, “to the man in thestreet, they were all pianolas.”

Edwin Votey’s connectionwith the Aeolian Company hadn’t happened accidentally;he’d been associated with it forsome time, building pipe organswith mechanisms that could playthe keyboards automatically. By1883, William and HarryTremaine, the father and sonwho guided the company through itsfifty-four tumultuous years of business,had made an upright parlor reed organ ofa type then familiar to everyone, exceptthat this one could also play forty-sixnotes automatically with a paper roll.This little organ was so successful that itsbeautiful name, Aeolian, was adopted bythe Tremaines’ company. The Aeolianwas followed swiftly by a bigger reedorgan called the Aeolian Grand, and then,in 1897, by the Aeolian Orchestrelle,which was available in many versionsfrom the size of an upright piano to amagnificent behemoth nine feet high.Mark Twain owned one that he loved andlistened to every night. When Twain’sdaughter Jean died suddenly in 1909,Albert Bigelow Paine sadly played rollsselected by Mark Twain on the organ ather funeral. (The Orchestrelle is stillplaying at the Mark Twain Museum inHannibal, Missouri.)

William Tremaine did so well that heexpanded from reed to pipe organs andin time bought part of the Farrand &Votey pipe organ company of Detroit,acquiring Edwin Votey in the deal, andbegan producing his own organs at

Aeolian (now Garwood), New Jersey.When in 1897 Votey came up with hispiano player mechanism, Aeolian senseda coup, made him a vice-president of thecompany, dreamed up the name Pianola,and directed him to start production inhis Detroit workshops. The fad waslaunched.

Remember that Votey’s player, popularthough it was, had to be wheeled up tothe piano it played, thereby putting a lotof machinery between the operator andthe keyboard. Very soon after its initialsuccess Aeolian realized - as some of itscompetitors already had - that there was alot more money to be made if the playercould be combined with the piano itplayed on. This meant that to be in theforefront of things, you had to buy a newpiano with the player mechanism builtinto it. For some odd reason this newcombination was called a player pianoinstead of a piano player, but that didn’tmatter; after Aeolian’s fabulous success itwas always known as a pianola.

Most of the early player pianos usedrolls of not more than sixty-five notesuntil, in 1910, the piano makers realized

Day of the player piano

Perhaps the most gorgeous of all the Wurlitzers, the 1914 Style CX Orchestrion had six tune rolls

and an automatic changer.

continued. . .

The pianola had to be pushed up to the keyboard, as in this advertisement.

continue. . .

240

once more that they’d all make moremoney if they standardized their instruments so everybody’s piano couldplay anybody’s roll. An industry conference that year, in Buffalo, NewYork, established eighty-eight notes (the full keyboard) as the compass fromthen on, with a roll running from top to bottom.

In the larger stores you handed yourchoice of roll to a lady seated at a playerpiano, and she would obligingly put onein, play enough to give you a sense of thetune, then rewind it and hand it back. Therolls sold briskly. The period before theFirst World War was the brightest in thepiano’s history: in 1909 there were 294piano makers in the United States. Tenyears later, players outsold standardpianos.

A lot of things had coalesced to makeall this happen, and Votey’s player wasonly one of them. At the tail end of thenineteenth century, two kinds of musichad become remarkably popular:Sousa’s marches - which gave birth to theubiquitous two-step - and ragtime. Theplayer organs tried without much successto cope with the new music, but thepiano, on which ragtime was composedand which far more people owned thanorgans, came out the winner. Moreover,with the playing mechanism now hiddenin the bowels of the piano, the freed keysfell and rose magically and the musiccould be seen as if played by a ghostlyperformer. It was twice as much fun,now, to play faster music. “Kitten on theKeys,” a fast jazz piece written in 1921by Zez Confrey that had the right handplaying triplets, which was marvelous towatch, and everyone bought a roll.

The player piano’s great popularityinevitably made it sophisticated to decry the machine in print. SomersetMaugham’s 1921 short story “Rain”opened with “. . . Since some of the passengers were leaving the ship nextday at Pago-Pago they had had a littledance that evening and in his ears hammered still the harsh notes of themechanical piano.” But Maugham didnot seem to like music much in any case.Beverley Nichols, in a book calledLaughter On The Stairs, wrote: “I nevermet the late Mr. Stebbing; . . . all I

know about him is that . . . heencouraged his dogs to chasecats, and that he played Liszt onan old pianola for half an hourevery morning after breakfast,not because he liked music but because the action of pedaling was stimulating to his intestines.” Even JohnGalsworthy’s The Forsyte Sagarecognized the player piano, in a somewhat lofty and backhanded way. It remindedthe protagonist, Soames Forsyte,of the “musical box of his nursery days . . . the thing hadalways made him miserablewhen his mother set it going onSunday afternoons. Here it wasagain, the same thing, only larger, more expensive, and nowit played ‘The Wild, WildWomen’ and ‘The Policeman’sHoliday,’ and he was no longer in blackvelvet with a sky blue collar.”

For those who hated the pianola,things got worse. As early as 1898 a NewYork firm called Roth & Engelhardt hadintroduced a forty-four-note player pianothat was driven by an electric motorrather than by feet pumping bellows andthat you could start by dropping a nickel in a slot. Similar machines sprangup everywhere in places of public amusement. Since there was little toadvertise if you simply built anothercoin-operated player, makers almostimmediately began to add effects. Soon electric pianos were offering a“mandolin” effect; extra holes in the rollactivated a mechanism that dropped along wood bar dangling canvas stripstipped with brass rivets between hammers and strings. The result bore noresemblance to a mandolin, but the ricky-ticky sound was forever after inextricably tied to the nickelodeon. (Theterm nickelodeon was first applied to tinyhalls showing very early movies, towhich admission cost a nickel; the termdid not attach itself to the pianos thatoften accompanied the movies there untillong after the nickelodeons had vanished.) Makers of coin-operatedpianos added mechanical xylophones,drums, traps, and tambourines. Seeburg

of Chicago fitted in several ranks oforgan pipes. The Mills Company built amechanically played violin accompaniedby an electric player piano. It soundedfine - when both were freshly tuned.

The music rolls for these instrumentsbecame longer and longer, often holdingfifteen or more selections. Because thepause during rewinding meant a loss ofincome, the Link Piano Company built aclever mechanical piano that used anendless roll. (Edwin Link, whose pianohad a very effective pumping system,later restructured a good deal of theworks as the Link trainer, the famousmachine on which thousands of SecondWorld War airmen got their first exhilarating sensation of flight.)

The builders of nickelodeons took atleast as much care with their pianos’cases as they did with their innards. Thepianos grew ever more gaudy and showy:stained glass (they called it “art glass”);electric lights backed by shiny tin stars;then stained glass with blinking lightsbehind it; revolving stained glass; anddecorative illusory images of forest fires,waterfalls, and snow scenes animated bymoving films behind painted glass, all ofthis in a forest of carved-wood caryatidsand scrollwork. The jukebox of a laterday was restrained by comparison.

This Kohler and Campbell autopiano is different fromthousands of its fellows only in its case, which is made

of walnut rather than the more common mahogany. Otherwise it is perfectly emblematic of the machines that fueled the craze - right down to the year of its

manufacture, 1923, which, with two hundred thousand of them made, represented the peak of player-piano

production. It would have sold for about $450.

Day of the player piano continued. . .

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The coin-operated piano occupied afond niche in the American psyche; it turned up regularly in films. A scene in the 1932 Marx Brothers movie Horsefeathers is shouted against anunending nickelodeon. A favorite clichéin gangster pictures was to have an actor,after being shot, fall against a piano andset it going, the rackety jazz providing anice counterpoint to the pathos of death.In a 1938 film, Algiers, there was aninventive variation: The escapinginformer fell against the piano, starting itup, and then was shot. Ginger Rogers’s1942 movie Roxie Hart (in which sheperformed a memorable Black Bottomfor the appreciative members of the press while she was ostensibly in jail) finished with a splendid performance of “Brokenharted” on acoin-operated piano.

Loud though they were, nickelodeonshad their heyday on the eve of the Prohibition era. They sold well during theearly 1920s, but by the end of the decadethe industry was in a steep decline, andthe 1930s saw the old pianos junked orretired to fading amusement arcades.

Meanwhile, something much loftierwas beginning to encroach on the scene.In 1904 a respected old German firm inFreiburg, M.Welte & Sohn, introduced to the market a player piano with a difference: its rolls were made not by amechanical perforating device from the score but as a result of a careful transcription of an actual performance byan artist. When the keyboard of Welte’smaster piano was played, little carbon

rods beneath each key dippedinto pools of mercury, and theresulting electric contact causedmarks to be made on a movingpaper roll, registering the duration of notes played as wellas pedalwork. The artist’s shading was noted on a copy ofthe score by a musician listeningclosely to the performance.These indications were thenadded to the master roll when itwas perforated, in the form ofextra holes that controlled thepower of the vacuum operatingthe small bellows doing themechanical playing. It was acomplex but workable system,and the performing artist wasable to edit the final resultbefore the roll was released to the public (missed notes supplied, wrong notes corrected,greater emphasis her, less there).Welte called this “reproducing” machineMignon, and the Welte-Mignon had thedistinction of being the first popular self-playing piano whose rolls were actually “made” by the great pianists ofthe day. Freiburg suffered heavy bombingduring the Second World War, and theWelte factory was ruined. Welte had,however, thoughtfully hidden its threethousand master rolls and the playinggear in the Black Forest. These werebought, after the war, by a Californianenthusiast named Richard Simonton, whotranscribed them to phonograph records.Hearing the Welte instrument play a roll recorded by Claude Debussy is aremarkable experience; accustomed aswe became to Leopold Stokowski’swispy mauve-and-pink interpretations ofDebussy, it is a surprise to find the oldmaster lively, brilliant, and anything butwispy when he played his own music.

The success of the Welte-Mignon inEurope and America ensured that American makers would catch up as soonas possible, and in 1913 Aeolian proudlyunveiled its Duo-Art reproducing piano.Like the Welte-Mignon, the Duo-Art re-created as accurately as possible theartist’s original performance; it was capable of sixteen degrees of dynamicintensity (although a British critic

claimed that the ear could distinguishonly seven). Aeolian entered into a contract with Steinway under whichDuo-Art mechanisms were installedunder Steinway grand pianos and even inSteinway uprights. Though a SteinwayDuo-Art grand piano cost more than fourthousand dollars in 1920, the companywas hard pressed to fill orders.

There is a certain straining of theimagination required here to understandthe fascination the player piano exertedon the twenties. The piano was unquestionably the most popular instrument then (as probably the guitar isnow), so there was a lot of interest inhearing it. The phonograph had comealong, but until the advent of electricrecording, records of piano music weremiserable. Any player piano was superior; it played for you right in yourown home, lively and bright and satisfying. To emphasize the potency ofthis vibrant, intimate music, Aeolianoffered an expensive cabinet called a“Concertola” into which the owner couldput a number of rolls, which were thenoperated by a remote-control, electricpush-button device. The rolls, one byone, threaded themselves, played thepiano, then rewound themselves and

The Seeburg Style G Orchestrion, which backed up itspiano with a mandolin attachment, cymbal, snare drum,

and the like, is the coin-operated instrument most prized by today’s collectors.


A family enjoys a Beckwith player in a 1920s Sear Roebuck ad.

continue. . .

242

rotated to the next roll. Advertisements ofthe time show a number of handsome,thoughtful people solemnly listening toroll after roll on the Duo-Art as theevening went by.

The advent of the reproducing pianocaused a considerable stir in the musicalworld. The Wagner biographer and musiccritic Ernest Newman listened to a performance in London in which passages of a Liszt rhapsody were playedon a Duo-Art in Aeolian Hall, alternatelyby a pianist and by a roll he’d made.“With one’s eyes closed,” Newmanremarked afterward, “it was impossibleto say which was which.” So great wasthe excitement that musicians began totake the player piano seriously as a teach-ing medium. Aeolian helpfully providedAudiographic rolls for the Duo-Art thatincluded all sorts of information: barlines, phrasing marks, indications of theformal development of the music, evenliterary explanations - all “signed” by thefamous artist who’d made them. It was afar cry from “Kitten on the Keys.”

One excellent side result of this interest in the player piano was that really fine jazz musicians were hired tomake piano rolls, and not only the expensive reproducing rolls. Thomas(Fats) Waller and Jelly Roll Morton madea number of splendid rolls. In the earlydays of ragtime, a good many composersturned their music over to the new pianoroll companies, and some fine early ragtime tunes that never made it to a printed score have survived on piano rolls.

By 1927, when radios werebecoming commonplace, theexcitement of the player pianohad waned. By 1929 both the giants, Aeolian and theAmerican Piano Company, werein financial trouble. Aeolianwas in hock to Steinway for several millions of dollars’worthof grand pianos ready for Duo-Art installation that nobodywanted; Steinway was notinclined to be understanding, but eventually a settlement was reached. However, before anyone could do anything at all, the stock market crash of1929 dealt the final blow tothese expensive instruments. By the early 1930s Aeolian’sorgan business had become Aeolian-Skinner, and the pianobusiness merged to become theAeolian-American Corporation.

In the years following theSecond World War, there have been several attempts to revive the playerpiano. None were able to restore theinstrument to anything like its old prominence. It probably never will be,now, though the sound of old machinescan still revive the excitement we knewwhen players were popular and everyonewanted to own the latest rolls. As Arthur Loesser dolefully observes,“Many persons still wear vests, readbooks, write their own Christmas greetings, go to the theater, and play thepiano.” So, too, there are many peoplewho still put a roll on the old Pianola andlisten to it lovingly; it may be a livelyperformance of “Charlie, My Boy,” or anexpensive Duo-Art rendition of that lovely old song “Just a Memory,” butinevitably there will be recall of the dayswhen Lindbergh flew the Atlantic and an apocryphal story said he’d carried akitten in his pocket, when ladies droveelectric cars like tall china cabinets inwhich they sat in the back seat andsteered with a tiller, when all the girlstried to copy Clara Bow’s bee-stung lips,and half the pianos in the land were joyously rattling out “Ain’t We GotFun?”

Joseph Fox, who was with the ForeignService in Saigon, Teheran, and Borneo,today runs his own business in NorthCarolina. He used to buy and restore oldcoin-operated pianos.

TO FIND OUT MOREThere is extensive literature on the

player piano, and a good place to startseeking it out is the Vestal Press (P.O. Box 97, Vestal, NY 13850; 607-797-4872). Vestal not only offers acomprehensive line of books on the subject but sells piano rolls and relateditems and is the publisher of HarveyRoehl’s Player Piano Treasury and Q.David Bowers’s fine Encyclopedia ofAutomatic Musical Instruments.

There are a good many recordings ofpiano rolls available - especially of theearly ragtime and jazz pianists, much ofwhose work is available in no other form.There is something haunting in hearing,say, Scott Joplin playing his own rags,despite the rather stiff tempo imposed bythe machine. The limitations are far lessevident in the more sophisticated Duo-Art recordings, although sometimes

The Orchestrion revealed: the innards of the sumptuousmachine on previous page include two ranks of organ

pipes and a bass drum.


A musician supervises the correction of apiano roll around 1910.

continue. . .

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the artists were ill served by the peoplewho made their rolls. Joseph Fox writes,“The perforators added their own touches, and the trademark of the playerpiano: a thrumming sound made by aseries of perforations that caused a noteto be repeated far more rapidly than anypianist could manage.” On the otherhand, piano rolls sometimes can bring usmiraculously close to the performers whomade them. Says Fox of the ColumbiaRecords release of Rhapsody in Blue(M34205): “Gershwin recorded hisRhapsody on two Aeolian Duo-Art rolls,playing both the piano solo part and apiano reduction of the orchestral part. Forthis recording, the orchestral part wastaped over so only the piano solo was left. The score used for the accompanying jazz band is the originalone arranged by Ferde Grofe for Paul

Whiteman’s band. The result isvery likely a near-perfect replicaof the original performance at its1924 premiere.”

Finally, because any goodidea comes around again andagain, as we go to press theYamaha Company is preparingto introduce in America itsDisklavier Model MX100A - anupright piano outfitted to take amicro floppy disk. The keyboardis hooked up to fiber-optic sensors that determine the exactamount of time that elapses during each strike of a key. TheDisklavier records whatever is played onit exactly, and reproduces it perfectly.Eventually, Yamaha will have eleven different collections of music to choose from, ranging from classical to -

appropriately - “yesteryear.” Aeolian’sEdwin Votey might have been baffled bythe technology, but he would have had notrouble with the basic idea.


While walking down a rainy street inPrague this past July, I nearly stumbledover a small sign announcing that theJezek Museum was only open on Tuesdays from 2 to 4 p.m. and that timeand day was now. I went up the twoflights of stairs and found myself inJaroslav Jezek’s small “Blue Room”apartment. His music, well known tomany Americans through the recentCzech film “Dark Blue World,” (note:this is a truly great film about the late1930s and is currently available for rentalin most video stores in the U.S. - highlyrecommended! MK) forms some of thebest stage and jazz music created in the1920s and 30s.

Jaroslav Jezek was born in Prague in1906 and died in New York in 1942.

Most of his compositions datefrom his work with the lively avant-garde Prague FreeTheatre from the years 1925 to 1938. During this time he worked with Schulhoff, Hindemith, Voskovec, Werich,and many others. Jezek sufferedfrom vision problems and declininghealth and the war forced him to move toNew York City where he was unhappyand homesick.

As a special bonus in this Bulletin, I am including Jezek’s “Bugatti Step,”composed in 1931 as the overture to theplay Don Juan & Company. This solo islike what the “Maple Leaf Rag” is tomany aspiring young American pianists.When a Czech piano player conquers

this piece, he or she has arrived! I know many AMICAns are excellentmusicians and I offer this piece as a challenge to learn. Play it for jazz andragtime enthusiasts and they will bedumbfounded that they have never heardit before. And for those of you in the rollcutting business. . . .

Mike Kukral, Publisher

Bugatti step- piano music -

By Mike Kukral

– SPECIAL BONUS –

248

Dear Mike,Congratulations on your new position

as AMICA Publisher! I know you havethe interest and knowledge to do a greatjob for our fine organization.

Enclosed are photocopies of Knabeand Ampico literature received years ago by an area music dealer and saved by the family. Unfortunately the store did not secure the line. The price deductions in the mid 1930’s reflects the slow sales of pianos and especiallyreproducing pianos. If you feel this isworthy of publication in the Bulletin,please note it was supplied through meby Mr. and Mrs. T. Olson.

Best wishes. If I can assist in any way,please let me know.

Sincerely, Bill

e-mail: [email protected]

About knabepianos

Sent in by Bill Burkhardt

254

Five little words made an armchairexploress of me, and during my vicarious Artic travels quite a number of mechanical musical tidbits were discovered. A casual comment in an article by Geoffrey T. Hellman in TheNew Yorker for November 30, 1968,about the American Museum of NaturalHistory in New York City sent me scurrying to our public library, and Ireturned heavily laden with books aboutRobert E. Peary’s persistent efforts to bethe first to reach the North Pole, happilycrowned with success on April 6, 1909.The sentence that set me off began: “Onthe first (trip) in 1905, Peary, now a commander, set sail with a photograph of Jesup hanging over a pianola in his cabin. . . .” Those last five words constituted the fateful phrase.

In Nearest the Pole, Peary’s bookabout this expedition on the Roosevelt,designed by and built for Peary andnamed for President Theodore Roosevelt,who was very interested in Peary’s exploration, there was a brief descriptionof the Commander’s cabin: “A berth, atable and a chair, are of course essentialand were present. Then came the piece de resistance, the beautiful pianola given me by my friend H(enry) H. Benedict (a member of the Peary Arctic Club).This, with a rack of nearly 150 musicrolls, popular operas, marches, waltzesand ragtime, was screwed to the deck atthe forward end of the room. Over it wasa large framed portrait of the founder ofthe Expedition, Morris K. Jesup, flankedon either side by an etching of PresidentRoosevelt and a photo of Judge Darling,Assistant Secretary of the Navy.” Thepiece de resistance in this book for us is aphotograph of the Pianola in situ in hiscabin, reproduced here with the kind permission of his son, Robert E. Peary,Jr., in whose home the famous Pianola isnow a cherished memento. In a later discussion, about the effects on men ofthe Arctic winter, with its exaggerated,

contrasting moods, Peary wrote:“At all these times the pianola,Mr. Benedict’s splendid gift,was invaluable, soothing andlightening many an hour, andsending me back to my workrefreshed and with new energy.”

In his next book, The NorthPole, written after his successful expedition in 1909, he again mentionedthe photograph of Mr. Jesup hangingover the Pianola and the autographedportrait of President Roosevelt, and wenton to say: “The pianola, a gift from myfriend H.H. Benedict, had been my pleasant companion on my previous voyage, and again on this it proved one ofour greatest sources of pleasure. Therewere at least two hundred pieces of musicin my collection, but the strains of ‘Faust’rolled out over the Arctic Ocean moreoften that any other. Marches and songswere also popular, with the ‘Blue Danube’waltz; and sometimes, when the spirits ofmy party were at rather a low ebb, we hadragtime pieces, which they especiallyenjoyed.” About 50 rolls seem to havebeen added since the previous trip. Afterhis return in 1909, when someone asked ifhe had played the Pianola on the first dayat sea, he replied: “I did not, for the excellent reason that I could not get nearit. The thrilling experiences of those firstfew hours were mainly connected withexcavating a space some six feet long bytwo feet broad in the region of my bunk,where I could lay myself down to sleepwhen the time came.”

Several other members of the expedition wrote books about their experiences and reactions, and the Captain, Robert, usually known as ‘Bob,’Bartlett, had only this to say about thematter at hand: “It sounds like a roughlife. But it wasn’t. Peary had a neat shipwith plenty of books aboard and alwayssome form of music.” Matthew Henson,the Negro who accompanied Peary onmany of his expeditions and who was the

only non-Eskimo member of the Expedition besides Peary actually toreach the Pole itself, had a brief bit aboutthe Pianola. Saying that the Eskimos had the run of the ship except for theCommander’s cabin, he went on: “TheCommander’s stateroom is a state room.He has a piano in there and a photographof President Roosevelt.” Only one comment about the Pianola was found inArctic Odyssey, the biography of DonaldB. MacMillan, now in his nineties andthe only member of the expedition stillliving: “There was no sound but therhythmic chung-chung-chung of thethousand-horsepower engines, the splashand gurgle of the sea alongside, and,occasionally, the tinny cheer of themechanical piano in the commander’scabin.” Obviously not a player-pianobuff.

We are grateful to Mr. Robert E.Peary, Jr., for the following informationabout the history of the Pianola subsequent to its arctic travels. “Upon thereturn of the successful 1908-1909 expedition, the Pianola was unloadedfrom the Roosevelt, given a thoroughgoing over, and brought to Eagle Islandin Casco Bay, Maine, our summer homeand my father’s ‘pride and joy.’

“There it remained, a pleasure to thefamily and our guests, until we no longermaintained a year-round caretaker on theisland. Then it, with other priceless relics,was brought ashore and taken to myhome in Augusta, Maine, where it hasbeen ever since.

“After years of exposure to the salt air of Casco Bay, it required a major

Peary and thepianola

By Helen F. Fitch – From Silver Anniversary Collection, Selected Articles from the Bulletin, Musical Box SocietyInternational, 1974

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255

overhaul and since then we have had difficulty in keeping it in tune and ingood working order, but we still cherishit and enjoy its old-time music as a relieffrom the ubiquitous TV and radio!”

Mr. Peary also enclosed a rubbing ofthe plaque that has been placed on themuch-traveled Aeolian. We have had this copied in type as close as possible tothe original in size and style. He alsotook pictures of the Pianola for us in itspresent location; you may see that it is ahandsome instrument as well as a famousone. It is our understanding that it wasbuilt narrower than normal in order to fitexactly the space available on the ship.Mr. Peary has made a tape recording of some of the Pianola rolls; these were selected for the expedition by Commander Peary’s daughter, now Mrs.Marie Peary Stafford. She was the firstwhite child born north of the Arctic Circle (during one of her father’s earlierexpeditions), and was widely known asthe ‘Snow Baby,’ with Eskimos travelinggreat distances to get a glimpse of her. A copy of this tape recording is owned by Russ Gurnee, who is a member of the Explorers’ Club as well as of ourSociety, and who was kind enough to give us Mr. Peary’s present addressafter the publishers we wrote were unable to do so.

The Pianola was not the only automatic instrument to winter in theArctic on the Roosevelt. To quote againfrom Nearest the Pole, Peary had this tosay about Thanksgiving Day: “ . . .marked by the presence of plum-pudding,candy and cigars on the dinner table, and a graphophone performance by theDoctor [Dr. Louis J. Wolf] in theevening.” And on Christmas Day:“Returning to my room I sat down to listen to the graphophone which the

Doctor had started in the neighbouring mess room.” Onthe next expedition, chronicledin The North Pole, we learn thatthe graphophone was in chargeof Charles Percy, the steward,who “. . . often treated the mento a concert, and all through thewinter I heard nobody complainof monotony or homesickness.”On Christmas that year: “Afterdinner came the dice-throwingcontests, and the wrestling andpulling contests in the forecastle.The celebrations ended with agraphophone concert, given by Percy.”

In Race for the Pole, by John EdwardWeems, we find another reference to the graphophone. At the conclusion of hisfinal trip, Peary gave the Eskimos a‘phonograph’ and several records: “Inone recording Peary greeted them in theirown language, but they broke it andthrew it into the sea after listening to it.The Eskimos could not bear to hear hisvoice, realizing that he would neverreturn.”

Another phonographic farewell wasrelated by ‘Bob’ Bartlett. This time it wasfarewell to a ship, and the instrumentinvolved was a Victrola, a bit outside ourprovince, but you may find it interestingnevertheless. In 1913, on a CanadianArctic Expedition on the Alaskan side,Bartlett was master of the Karluk, whichgot locked in the ice. On January 10,1914, the crew had to abandon ship whenthe pack ice crushed the hull and waterstarted pouring in. Now let Bartlett tell it:“I went down into the cabin. I went downalone and sat and thought about what theKarluk has been through. We had aphonograph and about a hundred and fifty records. With the cracking oftimbers and the rushing of waters aroundme I played tune after tune. As I playedthe records, I threw them into the stove. I ate when I was hungry and had plentyof tea and coffee.

When I came to Chopin’s FuneralMarch I laid it aside. I knew I wouldsoon need it. About an hour or so laterthe ship began to settle in earnest. Putting the Funeral March on the VictrolaI started the machine. When the watercame trickling along the upper deck and

began splashing into the hatch, I ran upand stood on the rail. Slowly the Karlukslipped into a header. When her rail waslevel with the ice I stepped off. I turnedand looked at her as she went down bythe head into 38 fathoms of water. I couldhear the Victrola in the galley sending outthe strains of the Funeral March. Pushingmy hood back I bared my head and said,‘Goodby, old girl.’”

On an Arctic expedition subsequent tothe discovery of the Pole, Dr. MacMillantook along a phonograph, of unidentifiedmake, and tried recording Eskimosinging on it. Although the Eskimowoman, Ahlnayah, ‘did her best,’ he hadserious doubts that a woman’s voicecould be “transmitted to a wax cylinderwith such a machine as I have.” He alsoattempted to record “the musical notesemitted from the throats of thousands oflittle auks.” One more anecdote fromArctic Odyssey concerned an Eskimofamily at Nain, the Moravian MissionStation in Labrador. They were a friendlyfamily, and the little daughter showed Dr.MacMillan her books, including KristibNipliajorutinga Nutaugitok, or Christie’sOld Organ, printed by the MoravianChurch, which had sent missionaries to Labrador as early as the eighteenthcentury. The ‘organ’ in the book was really a small street piano and seemsrather inappropriate subject matter to translate into Eskimo.

It is fairly well known that Britishexplorers took chamber barrel-organs on their expeditions. In Church andChamber Barrel-Organs, by Boston andLangwill, there is a picture of a John

Peary and the pianola continued. . .

continue. . .

Pianola in Commander Peary’s cabin on the Roosevelt

256

. . . PLAYING DEVICE THAT DOUBLES AS A COUCH WHEN NOT IN USE

R. Gail Carter, a tuner-technicianemployed by the Bristow Music Co.,Petersburg, VA, has had an interest inplayer pianos ever since he studied withthe late Dr. Wm. Braid White, followingWorld War II. Later, as he carried on hispractice as a tuner, he was called upon torepair many player pianos. He did nothave the time to take care of theserequests, but out of the strong interest inthe player piano he came in contact with,an idea emerged.

That idea was for a separate and automatic piano playing mechanism.After much experimenting, changing, andso on, since the middle of 1958, he hasdeveloped a working model which hedescribes as “the nucleus of what is possible and potential.”

The working model is designed toplay any 88-note standard keyboard

piano, and doubles when not in use as a plastic-coveredcouch-seat furniture piece.Mounted on four rubber casters,plus two larger rubber wheels, it is easily portable to and fromthe piano.

To operate as a piano player,the device is backed up to the piano, and the key-striking mechanism with 81 fingers is moved forward and adjustedto the height of the keys by two thumbnuts. The couch seat is lifted to reveal the music roll receiver and the motormechanism.

It is then ready to operate with regular paper rolls, employing vacuum-pneumatic principles, “with alterationsnecessary to suit the situation.”

The model is powered by an electricvacuum sweeper motor, insulated andwell muffled. The couch seat can be lowered while the player is operating,and there is also storage space for 50 or more rolls.

Mr. Bristow, who lives at 449 ForestLane, Walnut Hill Court, Petersburg, VA,

is interested in obtaining a firm or individual to manufacture the device, the mechanism of which, according toMr. Carter, is patentable.

Here’s an automatic piano...

Submitted by Dick Merchant – From Piano Trade Magazine, Oct. 1959, pg 38

Longman barrel-organ taken by AdmiralSir Edward Parry to the Arctic in 1819-20, and mention of one taken onanother British expedition in 1875. RussGurnee found one more instance inHeroes of Polar Exploration, about SirJohn Franklin, leader of the ill-fated 1845expedition to find the Northwest Passage.Franklin’s two vessels, the Terror and the Erebus, were “as comfortably andcompletely fitted out as was possiblewithin the limits allowed by the tradition-bound Royal Navy. Officers’wardrooms were supplied with cut glass,china and heavy Victorian silver.Libraries were stocked with more thantwelve hundred books, and each ship hada barrel-organ, which, when cranked by

hand, could play a variety offifty tunes.”

Getting back to the originalsubject of this potpourri, we findaccording to The Collector’sEncyclopedia of Dolls that afterthe discovery of the Pole in 1909 four different doll manufacturers produced dollsrepresenting Commander Peary;and the last mention of Polarexplorations as related to ourhobby, this time in the automatadivision, is in Les Automates,by Jean Prasteau. This is in reference to the fact that Decamps madethe first animated window display presented by a large department store,

le Bon Marche - in Paris. The event chosen for this honor was none otherthan Peary’s expedition to the Pole.

continued. . .

R. Gail Carter, tuner-technician of Petersburg,VA, poses with a view of his automatic pianoplaying device, showing the exposed levers

in the rear which play the piano keys inresponse to impulses from a paper roll.

Peary and the pianola

The Polar Aeolian as it looks today.

(1877-1952)COMPOSER & PIANIST

The music of Bortkiewicz came to myattention several years ago while listening to one of his compositionsplayed on the Duo-Art. I was soimpressed with the beauty of this musicthat I resolved, when I had the time,to find out more about this Russian composer and collect some more pianorolls of his music. In regards to the latter, I have only been able to find oneadditional roll. The following article isthe result of my research, once again the work of Stephen Coombs copyright2000 for Hyperion Records who has donea far better research job than I could ever have undertaken. Editor

Sergei Eduardovich Bortkiewicz wasborn in the Ukrainian city of Kharkov on28 February 1877. His background andmusical training mirrors that of many ofhis contemporaries. His mother was an accomplished pianist (a situation socommon with composers of the time, that it now seems almost a cliché) andco-founder of the Kharkov Music School,affiliated to the Imperial Russian MusicSociety where Bortkiewicz was to have his early training. He studied pianothere with Albert Bensch and early influences included Anton Rubinsteinand Tchaikovsky, both of whom visitedthe school and took part in concerts there.

In 1896 Bortkiewicz enrolled at the St. Petersburg Conservatory. As before in Kharkov he concentrated on his studies as a pianist, studying with Karlvan Ark (a pupil of Leschetizky) and, to extend his studies, he joined the theory class of Anatol Liadov. In order toplease his father, Bortkiewicz was alsoenrolled in the faculty of law at the university. It was clearly a subject thathad few charms for the composer as helater recalled: “Being a student at the

university, I had to attend the lectures now and then. I left the goddess Polyhymnia unwillingly, in order to make aformal visit to justice. However,when the time came for the semester examinations, Iimmersed myself in law booksand passed my examinations dutifully.”

Unfortunately, serious student unrestin 1899 forced the university to close and all the students had to extend theirstudies for a further year. This was toomuch for Bortkiewicz who had held outat the university for three years. He nowmade the decision to forego the title of‘Doctor of Law’ and instead decided to undertake his one-year compulsorymilitary service with the AlexanderNevsky Regiment whilst continuing hisstudies part-time at the Conservatory. Hismilitary service did not last for longbecause of illness, and by the summer of1900 he was back on his family estate atArtiomovka near Kharkov. It was therethat he decided to continue his musicalstudies in Germany.

He enrolled at the Leipzig Conservatoryin the autumn of 1900, studying composition with Salomon Jadassohnand piano with Alfred Reisenauer. Reisenauer was a pupil of Liszt and a celebrated virtuoso. Bortkiewicz had first heard him play at the KharkovMusic School and soon became a devoted disciple. Bortkiewicz himselfnever became the ‘great pianist’ he hadhoped to be and in his memoirs he notes,with some regret:

“Reisenauer was a pianistic genius.He did not need to practice much, it cameto him by itself . . . He thought and spokevery little about technical problems.Although I must thank my master verymuch as regards to music, I had to realizelater that I would have done much betterif I had gone to Vienna in order to curemyself under Theodor Leschetizky ofcertain technical limitations, which I tried

to overcome only instinctively and with agreat waste of time.”

In July 1902 Bortkiewicz completedhis studies at the Leipzig Conservatoryand, during a brief stay with his parentson their country estate, became engagedto his sister’s school friend ElisabethGeraklitova. He was to marry her in July1904. In his memoirs Bortkiewiczremarks: ‘Now I was married. A newperiod of my life began.’ This new periodwas marked by his turning seriously tocomposition for the first time. Althoughhis Piano Concerto Op 1 was destroyed,and his Op 2 set of songs remainedunpublished, in 1906 his Four Pieces forPiano, Op 3, were published by theLeipzig firm of Daniel Rahter.

From 1904 until the outbreak of theFirst World War, Bortkiewicz lived inBerlin (spending his summers with hiswife in Russia). He taught briefly at theKlindworth-Scharwenka Conservatoryand continued to give concerts (not onlyin Germany but also in Vienna, Budapest,Paris, Italy and Russia) - although he increasingly played only his own

From the Australian Collectors of Mechanical Musical Instruments, Bulletin No 118

continue. . .

Serge Bortkiewicz, 1910

Sergebortkiewicz

257

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compositions. When hostilities began in1914, Bortkiewicz was placed underhouse arrest and finally deported back to Russia via Sweden and Finland. It was a crushing blow for him. He loved Germany and had made his home therefor so many years - but worse was to follow.

Initially, settled back in Kharkov,things seemed promising. He startedteaching again, drawing a number ofpromising students around him who hadstudied in Moscow and St. Petersburgduring peacetime and now remained insouthern Russia as the war continued. Hefinally met Scriabin and Taneyev inMoscow and, confident that the warwould end soon, Bortkiewicz set aboutrebuilding his career. On 25 March 1918the Germans finally occupied Kharkov.In his memoirs (translated from the German by B.N. Thadani, Cantext Publications, 1996) Bortkiewicz canhardly conceal his delight in having Germans as his neighbors again: ‘Afterthree days there was complete order: wehad light, water, bread, the trains ranflawlessly. The German organizationalskill was astounding . . . I made friendswith some German officers and oftenfunctioned as an interpreter.’ The Germans, however, only stayed untilNovember and after their departure a newhorror arrived - civil war.

As the Revolution gained pace, so didthe atrocities. The Bortkiewicz familyestate at Artiomovka was completelyplundered and finally in the autumn of1919 Bortkiewicz and his wife fled toSevastopol in the Crimea. There theywaited in rented rooms overlooking Yaltaharbor, desperate for a ship that would take them away from Russia andback to freedom. Finally they were ableto push themselves on board a merchantsteamer, the Konstantin, bound for Constantinople. When they arrived theywere penniless.

A chance introduction to Ilen Ilegey,court pianist to the Sultan, saved the situation. The Turkish pianist wasimpressed by Bortkiewicz’s compositionsand helped by recommending him toimportant dignitaries in the city. Beforelong, Bortkiewicz was giving pianolessons to the daughter of the Court

Conductor, the daughter of the Belgian Ambassador and the wife of the YugoslavianAmbassador. He found himself aguest at all the large receptionsin the magnificent embassies.Although he now had plenty of work, he missed the musicand culture of Europe - in Constantinople there were noconcerts, theatre or intellectualinterests. Finally, Bortkiewiczmanaged to re-establish his old business contacts with thepublishing firm Rahter. Hedecided to move to Vienna and on 22July 1922 he and his wife arrived bysteamer at the Austrian capital.

The move to Vienna was to be hisfinal one. He became an Austrian citizenin 1926 and taught piano at the ViennaConservatory. Bortkiewicz’s memoirs,although written in 1936, cover his lifeonly until his arrival in Vienna in 1922.We know little about his subsequent lifeand career, except that he seems to havebeen held in high esteem in his newhome. On 10 April 1947, his seventiethbirthday, the Bortkiewicz Society inVienna was formed. It proved to be short-lived and Bortkiewicz himself diedin Vienna on 25 October 1952. Asubstantial part of his published workswere lost in the destruction of the SecondWorld War and, with his remaining worksincreasingly difficult to obtain, his memory soon faded. In 1977, twenty-fiveyears after his death, the Viennese civicauthorities leveled his grave in the citycemetery. In October 1936 Bortkiewiczhad finished his memoirs with thesewords:

“The one, who lives along with acrescendo of culture, should be praised asbeing happy! Woe to him who has gonedown with the wheel of history! Vae victis! - And the present? Where are weheaded: up - or down? - Oh, if it wouldsoon go up!”

As one would expect, Bortkiewicz’soutput contains many works for his owninstrument, the piano. He wrote twopiano sonatas, many sets of pieces forpiano and three piano concertos (the second for the left hand). He also completed a violin concerto and a cello

concerto as well as an opera, Akrobaten,two symphonies, songs and chambermusic. It is sad that so many of his worksare lost and it can only be hoped that in time some surviving copies of hismissing opus numbers will come to light.

(Serge Bortkiewicz (1877-1952) - Piano Music - 2 - Hyperion Records.

(Excerpts from the sleeve notes byStephen Coombs copyright 2000)

Serge bortkiewicz continued. . .

Bortkiewicz’s music was usedby Artists from the following

Reproducing Piano Roll systems:

Ampico:Etude Op 15 No. 8 - P/b Rosenthal

Duo-Art:Etude Op. 15 No. 8 - P/b Donahue

Etude in F-sharp minor & C sharp- P/b Robinson

Welte-MignonEtude, Op. 15 No. 7, in C-sharp

- P/b Beggs

Prelude, No. 9, in E-flat minor- P/b Mero

“Trois Morceaux” (Three Pieces) No. 1,Prelude - P/b Rapee

“Trois Morceaux” No. 2, Valse triste - P/b Rapee

The engineer of a train passingthrough Poland could see no lightsbecause the power had been knocked out. “We’re running out of coal,” he saidto his fireman, “but I think we’re comingto Gdansk or Danzig, or whatever theycall it. Let’s stop and send the porter out

to buy fuel. Can you see the signon the depot?” The firemanreplied, “It appears to be Danzigin the dark.” And the engineershouted, “Buy coal, Porter!”

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NEW PERIOD MUSICROLLS PRODUCEDFOR 20-NOTEORGANETTES

An international collaborative efforthas produced what is probably the firstnew music for the Aeolian “Celestina”and the Wilcox & White “Symphonia” in80 or more years.

American composer and arranger, Mr.Stephen Kent Goodman, also a CelestinaOwner, has selected tunes from the period, and arranged them in the originalstyles to suit the scale and compass of the instruments. Celestina Owner andEngineer, Mr. John Wolff of Australia,then digitized these arrangements for punching according to the originalperforation standards, and manufacturedthe rolls, labels, spools, and boxes,authentic to the originals.

The following six rolls havethus far been produced:

The Thunderer March.

My Sweetheart’s the Man in theMoon - waltz song.

Mississippi Rag.

Children’s Medley. Includes:London Bridge is Falling Down, Baa Baa Blacksheep, Hickory DickoryDock, Jack and Jill, The Farmer in theDell, Rock-a-Bye Baby.

Amazing Grace (three verses - includesword sheet).

At A Georgia Camp Meeting - cakewalk& two-step.

Further details and MP3 sound samples of each roll are available on theweb site: www.vicnet.net.au/~wolff

Copies of these rolls are available toorder in limited quantities.

For further information:Contact: John Wolff Web site: www.vicnet.net.au/~wolffE-mail: [email protected]

By Mail:John Wolff,P.O. Box 101Belgrave, VIC, 3160 Australia

For immediaterelease

Sent in by Kelly Goodman & John Wolff

A SUNDAY FUNNY

A railroader’slegend from poland. . .

Sent in Robin Pratt

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July 14, 2003

We had the opportunity to go to Stratford, Ontario, Canada on July 1st,2003 to join friends in their celebrationof Canada Day.

Their newly rebuilt and refinishedWurlitzer Band Organ was, by far, the hitof the celebration in the city center.

We are enclosing this clipping from the Beacon Herald, one of twonewspapers from that area that ran featured articles on this instrument andits owner.

Sincerely,Roland & Judy ChisnellRosebush, Michigan

KEN VINEN’SRESTORED WURLITZER A HITWITH CROWDS ATCANADA DAY CELEBRATION

Few people outside of generals canboast having a full military band at theirbeck and call.

Ken Vinen is an exception.He has one right under his roof, ready

to crank out a rousing march or two ondemand. That’s when you’re most likelyto find the John Street resident outdoors.It’s simply too loud inside.

“I’m sure a few of my neighbors havewondered ‘What’s he up to now?’” hesaid laughing yesterday, a day afterdebuting the Wurlitzer Military BandOrgan at the Canada Day festivitiesdowntown.

The Wurlitzer is the latest addition tothe sizable collection of museum-qualitymusic machines collected by the bed-and-breakfast operator.

“It’s meant to be played outdoors. Youcan’t bear to play it inside a building,” hesaid.

“It’s meant to attract people -and it sure did,” he added.

For starters, it’s a beautifulantique with its highly polishedoak veneer and exposed brasspipes. It also packs quite a musical punch, easily fillingMarket Square with full, clear sound.

Run on electricity, it features 26brass pipes and 75 wooden pipes andweighs in at well over 360 kilograms.

“They called it a military bandbecause of the ‘voices’ of the pipes,”the owner explained. “It has trumpetsand trombones, and it has piccolosand flutes and flageolets and violins.And of course it has the percussion -snare drum, bass drum, cymbal.”

Like a player piano, the militaryband reads music from a paper rollperforated with holes.

The Wurlitzer Company of NorthTonawanda, N.Y., made about 200 of the organs in the early part of thelast century. The particular modelpainstakingly restored by Mr. Vinen wasa No. 125, which was used to providemusic at small arenas and carousels.

He bought the machine in very roughshape in Quebec last year.

Although he can’t prove it yet, he suspects it was used at Montreal’sfamous Belmont Park. The amusementpark built in the 1920s was once ownedby Charles Trudeau, father of formerCanadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.It shut 20 years ago.

“We’ve been doing a lot of detectivework,” he said.

Wurlitzer Company records show Mr.Vinen’s model was shipped to a Montrealdistributor in 1924. Belmont Park openedin 1923 and in 1924 installed a carouselmade by the Philadelphia TobogganCompany.

“We have this coincidence but wehaven’t got any photographic evidence

showing the organ on that carousel,” hesaid.

Mr. Vinen finished the “total, r i g h t - d o w n - t o - a n - e m p t y - b o x restoration” just three days before the Canada Day outing. It’s the secondone he has restored. The other, 30 yearsago, belonged to an agricultural societyin Ontario.

Seeing and hearing one is a rare treatbecause only about 40 are known to exist, and fewer yet are in workingcondition.

“It was an exciting day for me,” Mr.Vinen said.

Although he would like to continueshowing the Wurlitzer, he isn’t sure hecan. There is a huge amount of workinvolved in transporting the heftymachine, he said.

The city center committee picked upthe moving costs for the Canada Dayevent it sponsored.

Stratford resident Ken Vinen stands next to the latestaddition to his collection, a Wurlitzer Military Band,

which he brought to the Canada Day celebration in Market Square. Built in 1923, the instrument

contains 200 pipes and runs on paper rolls similar to a player piano.

Photo by Robin Wilhelm

Military bandin a box

By Brian Shypula, Staff reporter

NewsFrom

The Chapters

Meta Brown and Marty Plys hosted the Chicago Chapter meeting on June 29th. Meta, Marty and daughterDearborn live on the 31st floor of a spectacular lakefront highrise overlooking Chicago’s Grant Park and Chicago Harbor.We were awed by the views from the apartment and were ableto get a birds eye view of “The Taste of Chicago” an annualevent that draws over 100,000 people for each of nine days.

Meta and Marty provided several dishes and other members brought their own specialties. After eating andenjoying the views we had a short business meeting. Plans forthe upcoming chapter trip to “The House on the Rock” inWisconsin in October were discussed. Throughout the meeting we enjoyed listening to Meta and Marty’s YamahaDisklavier piano. The business meeting was followed by apresentation by local piano technician Kurt Eckwald in which he explained the workings and differences between the Piano Disc, QRS Pianomation, and Disklavier systems.There are advantages and disadvantages to each system. For our more technically inclined members, it was most interesting. The meeting ended with plans announced for upcoming meetingsincluding a Christmasmeeting at Jasper andMarian Sanfilippo’s.

CHICAGO CHAPTERReporter: Kathy Stone

President: Curt Clifford (630) 279-0872

Marty Plys with daughter Dearborn

261

A view of the Chicago skyline and Grant Park

Lakeshore Drive and Chicago Harbor

Bob McKanna and Meta Brown

Marty Persky, Sandy Persky and Carol Veome

Curt Clifford and George Wilder

262

Jo Crawford and Thad Kochany

Kurt Eckwald explaining the Yamaha Disklavier

Richard Van Metre, JerryBiasella and Margaret Bisberg

Piano Technician Kurt Eckwaldexplains the Piano Disc System

On May 1, 2, and 3, the Heart of America Chapter heldan organ rally in conjunction with the 2003 Pella, IA, TulipFestival. The city was decked out in every conceivable kindand color of tulips. It was a glorious and inspiring sight forrally participants. The rally was great fun for members whoenjoyed many appreciative comments from passers-by. Thefestival committee was very complimentary of our organs andof our members’ enthusiasm for the event.

Members were treated daily to an afternoon and anevening Volks parade that included a local custom of

HEART OF AMERICA CHAPTERReporter: Kay Bode

President: Tom McAuley

scrubbing the streets before the appearance of the Burgemeester and Royal Court in the parade. Other attractionsare the Molengracht complete with a Dutch canal and working drawbridge, a Klockkenspel (glockenspiel) withseven animated figures and 147-bell carillon. The Pella OperaHouse featured a quilt show and live concert by Bob Ralstonon the 1928 Barton theatre. There were street performancesby local dancers and musicians. At the entrance to Pella’s Historical Village complex is an authentic 1850’s Dutch grainwindmill that was completed in 2002. There is an adjoiningeducational cultural center built to look like a Dutch village.

Our chapter meeting, held at the Pella Community Center, on Friday night followed a delicious meal catered byHyvee.

Cynthia Craig, St. Louis, MO,looking very Dutch came

prepared for rain or shine.She brought her Orgelbau

Stueber Berlin monkey organ.

Mary and Yousuf Wilson,Old Monroe, MO, weretaking a break fromcranking. Even the back of Yousuf’s organ is beautiful.

No, Tom & Kay Bode, KansasCity, MO, weren’t tiptoeing

through the tulips as theycranked their 20-note Jaegger

& Brommer monkey organwhile their little monkey

puppet danced.

Ron and Mary Ellen Connor pose in front of “Big Cindy” their Artizan Style band organ. Ron and Mary Ellen are from Rogers, AR.

263

No, UPS did not just deliver this20-note Raffin monkey organ toCarl Cavitt. Carl brought it withhim from Monteno, IL

Charlie Tyler and his furry friend demonstrated victrolas and hisOGM monkey organ. Charlie is from Kansas City, MO.

Len Railsback’s costume matches that of a local resident. Lenplayed his De Rehlsbach Orgel next to the lake at the Sunken

Gardens Park. Len traveled to the rally from Hutchinson, KS.

David Wilder, Ames, IA, played hisPell crank organ by the canal inthe Mollengracht Plaza.

Gary Craig, St. Louis, MO,sporting Dutch duds, cranked

his Orgelbau Steuber Berlinmonkey organ in front of a

chocolate shop.

Tom Griffith, from Hays, KS,greets visitors at the rally, but

it looks like his friend is stealing the spotlight.

May Meeting

On May 24th the Lady Liberty Chapter members converged on the Holtsville Ecology Center and Animal Preserve to visit the new home of the Empire State Carousel.The head wood carvers for the carousel and organ are GerryHolzman and Tim Beatty. They are quick to point out that100’s of carvers, painters and woodworkers contributed to theproject.

LADY LIBERTY CHAPTERReporter: Buzz Rosa

President: Vincent Morgan (718) 479-2562

264

The music for the carousel is supplied by a Stinson Organthat plays Wurlitzer 165 rolls. The organ had been in storagefor about 3 years and was in need of a tuning. AMICAmember Bob Stuhmer contacted Gerry Holzman and offeredthe services of the Lady Liberty Chapter to get the organ backin shape. Members Bill Maguire (a professional piano tuner)and Allen Dreyfuss (a pipe organ specialist) lead the projectand taught the rest of us how to tune the various types of pipes found in an organ.

After playing the test roll it became obvious the façadewould have to be removed to access many of the pipes. Thefacade is heavily carved and contains John Phillip Sousa asthe band leader, George M Cohan on the left and Irving Berlinon the right and a carved woodpecker that plays a woodblock(All Native New Yorkers). After removing the figures andwoodpecker - the facade was lifted away from the organ. Asthe test roll was advanced each pipe would be isolated,checked for proper pitch and adjusted if necessary. Findingwhich pipes were speaking was sometimes more of a challenge than expected.

Tim Beatty gave us a tour which included a display onhow to carve a duck for the carousel. It consisted of 5 ducks -from a stack of blocks with pencil markings -to the final duck- ready for paint.

Gerry Holzman showed us 8 carved folklore panels thatwill be used to create a fence around the carousel’s stationerycenter. The panels depict historic events in New York Statehistory and will be viewed by the riders.

A unique animal of the carousel is a mountain goat thathas the likeness of Tim and Gerry carved behind the saddleand facing towards the tail.

Jill Holzman Irving gave us a lesson on how to paint acarousel horse. At the time she was painting a kiddy sizehorse which will be for sale when the carousel is open to thepublic.

Gary Peterford, Bill Maguire,Bob Stuhmer, Gerry Holzmanand Tim Beatty lift away thefacade to access the pipes of theorgan.

Allen Dreyfussstands proudly

after finishing thetuning and making

minor repairs tothe organ.

Tim Beatty inspects the organ before the tuningstarts.

Gary Peterford watches as Bill Maguire starts the tuning process.Bob Stuhmer waits to advance the test roll to the next key.

A closeup of the woodpecker revealsthe hardwood mallet that strikes thewood block when the woodpecker is

activated by the organ.

Bob Stuhmer standsby the Stinson organwith George Cohan,

to the left, JohnPhillip Sousa as the

band leader and Irving Berlin.

Gerry Holzman holds one of the eight carvedfolklore panels that will be mounted on the

carousel. His finger is pointing to a face hiding in the forest that appears

similar to Gerry.

June Meeting

On June 8th the Lady Liberty Chapter met at the home ofWalter and Kay Kehoe. President Vince Morgan conductedthe business meeting on the barbeque deck of Kehoe’s home.It was followed by a workshop by Eugene Saboda on how toreplace worn bearings found in music boxes and musicalclocks. After the workshop Walt Kehoe gave us a tour of hiscollection which included a 1926 Weber Duo-Art, an AeolianOrchestrelle that he restored, musical Swiss Station clocksand a fascinating Miraphone Disc box that also plays Victor78 rpm records.

Vince Morgan conducts thebusiness meeting of the

Lady Liberty Chapter on the barbeque deckof Walter and Kay

Kehoe.

265

Walter Kehoe plays a 78 record on his Miraphone music box before switching

it back to play disc music.

Vince and Maryam Morgan enjoythe likeness of Gerry Holzman andTim Beatty that was carved onto therear of a mountain goat.

Tim Beatty holds the headof a carved duck that is

part of the exhibition onhow to carve carousel

animals.

From top left Dale Rowe, Bill Maguire, Bob Stuhmer, Gary Peterford, Tim Beatty,Gerry Holzman, Allen Dreyfuss and Buzz Rosa gather for a group photo after the tuning is completed.

Jill Irving paints a child size carousel horse that will be sold as a fund raiser for the carousel.

Eugene Saboda conductsa workshop on bearingand gear box problemshe has found in musicboxes, automatons andmusical clocks. Hedemonstrated how toprecisely press in newbearings and extend theworking life of thesemachines.

Walter plays a roll on his Aeolian Orchestrelleand demonstrates how to properly foot pumpand “knee control” the organ for best sound.

266

SIERRA NEVADA CHAPTERReporter: Nadine Motto-Ros

President: John Motto-Ros (209) 267-9252

Fairfield Family

Julia Riley, Arlow Lusby

The Billings’ perforatordoing its thing

L to R-Jack & Linda Middleton, grandson Billy,Bob Billings, Tom Hawthorn,

“starting the Tel-Electric”L to R-Bing Gibbs, Jack Middleton,

Dan Stofle, Don Ellison, Bill Chapman having

too much fun

Tel-Electric in play mode“12th Street Rag”

Twenty-plus members and guests made the journey toBob and Ginny Billings’ lovely home just outside Reno,Nevada, on July 26th. Ginny has collections of AmericanIndian and Chinese artifacts throughout their home, plus otherinteresting art objects. Bob and Ginny are also lapidary enthusiasts. Their Recordo and Tel-Electric rolls are second tonone. The music room houses a couple of Tel-Electrics, a footpumper and more. The collection of rolls is staggering - wecould have stayed two years and not listened to half of them.

Bob recently built a perforator for his own use, but keepsvery busy with other requests. Watching it in operation wasone of the highlights of the meeting.

International Membership Secretary, Bill Chapman, wasin attendance. He was on his way to the Portland Convention -very glad to have him. Founding Chapter members in attendance were Don Ellison and Dan Stofle from Palo Alto,the Fairfield family, and Bing Gibbs, Founding ChapterPresident. Sierra-Nevada members included Hawthorn’s,Lusby and Motto-Ros’s, and there were several invitedguests.

The Billings have pianos in just about every room of thehouse. Julia Riley, Chip Lusby and John Kirin provided liveentertainment. We had a wonderful catered barbecue. Discus-sion topics were the Portland Convention and how to increase

member-

267

February Meeting

February 16th was the time for the meeting at the homeof Ben and Mary Lilien. Somehow I thought I had sent in the report, but since Robin didn’t get it, either I goofed (verypossible), or it is still traveling around the country courtesy of the U.S. Postal Service. Either way, better late than never,so here it is.

It was great to be back at Ben and Mary’s. It’s been quitea while since we had a meeting there, and the turnout wasexcellent. We had members show up who haven’t been to ameeting in a long time, which is always nice. We also hadseveral new members, and what a place to attend your firstmeeting. It’s a wonderful home in which to have a gathering,and the warmth and hospitality of the Liliens is, of course,legendary. Anyone who has had the privilege of attending oneof their tours or open houses will never forget it.

Ben and Mary have been the backbone of the AMICAlocal chapter (and International, of course), with Mary puttingon some wonderful shows for Conventions, and Ben designing many of the table favors. Mary has a huge

SO. CALIFORNIA CHAPTERReporter: Shirley Nix

President: Frank Nix (818) 884-6849

Bing Gibbs, John Kirin, Nadine Motto-Ros

Bob & Ginny Billings, hosts.

collection of old period clothes, and Ben always had a wonderful shop filled with all sorts of tools. (Better thanSanta’s workshop!) These two could do anything, and usuallydid. That’s what earned them the AMICA International Awardin 1994.

It’s been hard for them to make many meetings since Benis confined to a wheelchair, and it makes it very difficult toget far from home. This way we brought the meeting to them,and we all could enjoy it. I think Ben and Mary were happy tohave us . . . they said they miss the excitement.

We had music, music, music all afternoon courtesy of thegreat collection the Lilien’s have put together over the years,and I’m sure everyone had a favorite sound.

Chuck Cones andFrank Nix

Richard Ingram playingthe Reproducco

Diane and Dave Reidy and Cal Soest enjoying the snacks

Rochelle Mercer, Leora Searand Diane Lloyd

268

July Band Organ Rally and meeting

July 5th found several AMICAns at Memorial Park inSierra Madre for a band organ rally. It was a very warm day,and it seemed very few people ventured out of their homes to come see us, but we played anyway, and enjoyed the camaraderie. The music always sounds great outside, and inthis park we have the added attraction of the wild parrotsmaking all sorts of music of their own. I don’t know if theyappreciate us or not!

July 6th we had a meeting at the home of Bob and DottieDenerson in Chino Hills, and it was a most enjoyable way tospend the time.

Bob has over 7,000 rolls for his player piano. He wasnever happy with the way the words were put on the rolls, sohe has gone over most of them and made the words largeenough for a group of people around the piano to see. He alsomade sure the words hit exactly right with the music, and didn’t split the words into syllables as the original rolls had.This made sing-a-longs much more practical.

Not satisfied with that, he occasionally came across asong without words - “Tijuana Taxi,” for example, and, youguessed it, he wrote words for the song. He would only playone of his originally worded songs, the aforementioned“Tijuana Taxi,” and I must say his talent is amazing - thewords were perfect for the song. Anyone who has ever riddenin a taxi in Tijuana could certainly relate to the theme - “I getyou there”. He included nearly every part of the car that couldgo wrong along with other minor problems this poor driverencountered.

The music room where the piano resides is papered withsheet music, and filled with shelves for the rolls. The rolls areall arranged alphabetically, so it is easy to find if you want aparticular song. It’s quite impressive.

Bob tried to get our members to sing along, but only afew hardy or brave souls sang loud enough to be heard. It wasstrange - all the mouths were moving, but no sound came outof most of them. I thought I was the only one who did that!

Our Vice-President Richard Ingram, who arranged themeeting, wanted Bob to play more of his original pieces, but Iguess we must have intimidated him, since he only allowedthe one.

The Denersons have a lovely home, and Richard Ingramhad done the remodel on it for them. It’s a warm, invitinghome, filled with warm, inviting people, and we certainlyappreciate their hospitality.

We don’t have any meetings scheduled for the nearfuture, since the Convention in Portland is coming up verysoon and we are looking forward to that. Portland is such alovely town, and the committee is working very hard to put ona great meeting for us.

In September we will have a band organ rally in Ventura,and in October we will do our usual Arborfest rally in Fullerton at the Arboretum. It’s been a busy year so far, and I’m sure the rest of the year will be the same.

Richard Ingram,Ken Hodge andRoy Shelso withJack Conway inback

New member Ralph Heidsiek

Roy Shelso, BobLloyd, Marilyn andMike Ames, andHerb Mercer

Caroyl and Jim Westcottwith a picture of their

new toy

Bill Blair, Joan Fernandezand Don Henry

Frank Nix thanks Ben and Mary Lilien for

their hospitality

269

Roy Beltz, Bob Denerson, Richard Ingram, Frank Nix, Jeff Fowlston

Sharon Fowlston and her plastic bag-holding cow which she worked on diligently on the bus to Fresno.(Notice the piano rolls in back)

Bob demonstrates how he puts the words on the roll

Bob plays his “TijuanaTaxi” roll. Notice howeasy the words are toread.

Jack Conway, Hugh Pooleand Bill Chapman, Int. Membership Chairman

Our host and hostess - Boband Dottie Denerson

Jerome and Helen Hill were our hosts for the thirdmeeting of 2003. It was a beautiful Saturday May 3rd, and 15members gathered for a delicious German meal at the BrickOven at noon in Copperas Cove. After lunch it was just ashort distance to the Holy Family Catholic Church where wewent to see the 14 rank church organ. Jerome Hill is organistat the church and he told us the history of the organ andplayed a few pieces. When he asked if anyone else wanted toplay it, we all urged Jerry Bacon, president of our chapter, toplay and also to describe and demonstrate the various ranks ofpipes, which he did much to the pleasure of all of us. (I wasreminded of the “good old days” when Jerry played the theatre organ at the “Pipe Organ & Pizza” restaurant inRichardson years ago when our children were small. Thosewere fun times.)

After Jerome and Jerry’s “concert” we drove to Jeromeand Helen’s home in nearby Kempner to see Jerome’s collection of musical instruments. It was obvious that Jeromehas been collecting a long time - I lost count of the pianos inthe shop. There were many radios and phonographs and amachine I had never seen before - a wire recorder whichJerome demonstrated.

We learned that Jerome’s brother, a radio technician,taught him how to repair radios while he was in high school.His collection started when people would give him their cast-off radios and phonographs. His interest in player pianosbegan when the priest gave him a player mechanism that hadbeen removed by a piano tuner. When he needed some moneyto put himself through college, he got a job at Albert Evans

TEXAS CHAPTERReporter: Janet Tonnesen

President: Jerry Bacon (214) 328-9369

270

piano store in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Mr. Evans liked rebuilding the piano part but not the player mechanisms, soJerome soon took over all player rebuilding.

Before long there was the sound of music coming from apiano in another part of the shop. Jerry was playing thepumper piano - then someone found the QRS roll “RubberDuckie” and Jerry pumped the piano and sang along with theroll, squeaking the little rubber duckie when appropriate. Itwas great! Some long-time members may remember that hehad done this routine at the AMICA Convention when it washeld in Fort Worth in 1974.

A short business meeting was held there in the shop andmembers visited and had some cool drinks - then we wentinto the house to see and hear the Ampico grand. Inside therewas a table filled with “goodies” that Helen had prepared forus which we happily munched on alternately while visitingand listening to the piano. Some members had to leave then,but others stayed for the delicious homemade bread and barbecued brisket that Helen prepared. Outstanding! ThanksJerome and Helen, for a wonderful day!

Jerry Bacon sings and plays “Rubber Duckie” for an appreciative audience.

Holy Family Catholic ChurchSanctuary

Jerome Hill with hisFisher Ampico

MASCAGNI CONDUCTING

271

AMICA PAST: SELECTIONS FROMBULLETINS OF 20 & 40YEARS AGO

1963AMICA (Automatic Musical InstrumentCollectors of America) is founded in the San Francisco Bay area. There is no‘official’ bulletin issued until the nextyear.

1983New Chapter“AMICA has a new chapter, the Southeast Area Chapter. We now have 15chapters, with two more groups holdingorganizational meetings and stirring up a great deal of interest in automatic musical instruments in the areas wherethey are meeting.”

HONORARY MEMBERSBiography of late Honorary Member JoseEchaniz by Emmett FordClaire Rivers - A new Honorary Member(Ampico artist)Eightieth Birthday for Honorary MemberAbram Chasims

NEWS FROM THE CHAPTERSFounding ChapterSam Thompson helps Al Werolin celebrate birthday

New JerseyA scavenger hunt for reproducing pianoparts was successfully completed by Jeffrey Morgan, Frank Thompson, andAlan Lightcap.“Upon arriving at their destination thethree caballeros pooh-poohed the curseof Andre Kmita inscribed over the portal.After prying open the door permitting thefirst rays of light to enter in thirty years,the explorers were held in awe by thesight of hundreds upon hundreds of play-er piano parts . . . They took everything

back to Chez Thompson, wherethe merry band divvied up thespoils.”

Boston ChapterDoug Henderson demonstrated his newArtcraft rolls that he has hand cut onehole at a time on a Leabarjan perforator.

MidwestMeetings were held at the home of Molly& Lee Yeckley, Mary & George Kallis,and Marian & Michael Gorski, all locat-ed in northern Ohio.

REVIEWSDave Saul’s new guide to rebuilding theAmpico B is reviewed.Emmett Ford reviews the Busoni Welterecording of “Ruins of Athens.”Jean Touzelet writes of Stravinsky pianorolls.

CLASSIFIED FOR SALE1928 Knabe Ampico, 5’3”, fully rebuilt,$11,500.

Link Style C with pipes and art glass,restored, $12,500.

1916 Chickering upright Ampico, excellent condition, $8500.

1927 Steinway Duo-Art, XR, fullyrestored, walnut, $15,000.

Fully restored Hoffman player piano,$4800.

1924 Fisher Ampico, complete, unrestored, 5’4”, $2900.

Chickering Grand, Ampico, nice unrestored, $4250.

1924 RBB Mason & Hamlin 7’Ampico,unrestored, $20,000.

1936 Chickering Studio upright Ampico,original condition, $4800.

MEMBERSHIP REPORTHonorary 34Active 1316

Amica 20 & 40

1918 Melville Clark playing new artcraft roll by Doug Henderson.

years agoBy Mike Kukral

Picture 3 shows all the membersgathered around the Duo-Artpile. The Ampico pile, just as bigand impressive had already beenclassified and packed away inFrank Thompson’s restorationstudio. The work done, the triodisbanded, awaiting the nextsiren call of the reproducingpiano.

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ADVERTISING GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT

ALL ADVERTISING IN THE AMICA BULLETINAll advertising should be directed to:

Mike Kukral216 Madison Blvd.Terre Haute, Indiana 47803Phone: 812-238-9656e-mail: [email protected]

Ad copy must contain text directly related to the product/servicebeing offered. Extraneous text will be deleted at the Publisher’sdiscretion. All advertising must be accompanied by payment inU.S. funds. No telephone ads or written ads without payment willbe accepted. This policy was established by a unanimous vote ofthe AMICA Board at the 1991 Board Meeting and reaffirmed atthe 1992 meeting. AMICA reserves the right to edit or toreject any ad deemed inappropriate or not in keeping withAMICA’s objectives.

The BULLETIN accepts advertising without endorsement,implied or otherwise, of the products or services being offered.Publication of business advertising in no way implies AMICA’sendorsement of any commercial operation.

AMICA PUBLICATIONS RESERVES THE RIGHT TOACCEPT, REJECT, OR EDIT ANY AND ALL SUBMITTED ARTICLES AND ADVERTISING.

All items for publication must be submitted directly to thePublisher for consideration.

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING: $.20 per word, $5.00 minimumfor AMICA members. Non-members may advertise double themember rates ($10.00 minimum). Because of the low cost ofadvertising, we are unable to provide proof copies or “tear sheets”.

DISPLAY ADVERTISINGFull Page — 71/2 " x 10" . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $150.00Half Page — 71/2 " x 43/4" . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 80.00Quarter Page —35/8 " x 43/4" . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 45.00Business Card — 31/2 " x 2" . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 30.00

Non-member rates are double for all advertising. Special 6 for 5 Ad Offer - Place any ad, with no changes, for afull year (6 issues), and pay for only 5 issues. Payable in advance.Photographs or halftones $15.00 eachLoose Sheet or Insert Advertising: InquireWe recommend that display advertisers supply camera-readycopy. Copy that is oversized or undersized will be changed tocorrect size at your cost. We can prepare advertisements fromyour suggested layout at cost.PAYMENT: U.S. funds must accompany ad order. Make checkpayable to AMICA INTERNATIONAL. Typesetting and layout size alterations charges will be billed.DEADLINES: Submissions must be received no later than thefirst of the odd months (January, March, May, July, September,November). The Bulletin will be mailed the first week of theeven months.

(Rev. 6-98)

“The one, who lives along with a crescendo of culture, should be

praised as being happy!”~ Serge Bortkiewicz

FOR SALE1929 STEINWAY DUO-ART OR, Italian-Spanish artcase (D3001),original ebony finish over walnut, unrestored, includes electro-pneumaticcoupling to Aeolian residence pipe organ (illustrated pg. 301-Bowers).STROUD DUO-ART, upright, stack unrestored but plays. SEEBURGMO piano pipe organ, lacks roll frame and vacuum/pressure supply.Ideal for converting to play A rolls. Call 585-473-5322 (New York) (5-03)

MOLLER three rank self-contained pipe organ with additions.MOLLER ARTISTE ROLL PLAYER with selection of rolls.WURLITZER 165 player action with selection of rolls. Several theaterorgan traps (harp, xylophone, chimes, bells, drums, cymbals). Pianowith electric action player mechanism. 88-note piano roll player action(needs repair). Selection of player piano rolls. Best offer by 1/31/04.Buyer pays shipping. Phone 401-943-0390 - leave message - will return calls. (5-03)

1914 CHICKERING UPRIGHT AMPICO PLAYERPIANO/REPRODUCER. The piano is dark brown, completely working, and is located in Granada Hills, California. The price is $3,500 and all shipping costs. Please call 818-360-2067 for furtherinformation. (5-03)

1922 KNABE AMPICO A PARLOR GRAND. Restrung andrepinned 1996, pump rebuilt 1997. Bench, cabinet custom built in 1997 for 146 Ampico rolls - classical, popular, religious. $8,500.Rachel, Kauffman Museum, 316-283-1612. Photographs and detailswww.bethelks.edu/kauffman (click on Special Projects, click onKnabe). (5-03)

REPRODUCING 1925 ESTEY BABY GRAND, (Rebuilt 20+ yearsago), bench and ~ 25 Welte Mignon rolls. $7,000 OBO. ALSO 1924HAMILTON UPRIGHT MANUALO PLAYER not rebuilt,unassembled. $700. Contact [email protected] or call (714) 738-4769 weekdays. (Fullerton, CA) (5-03)

A TREASURE FOUND. NEW ELECRIC “O” FRAME. Still inoriginal crate. Best Offer. Phone 623-875-2742 (5-03)

1923 KNABE 5’4” AMPICO A. Beautiful piano restored 15+ yearsago, restrung, new piano action, walnut case refinished, Ampico rebuilt,but needs some work. Includes 350+ rolls and piano bench. Will not sellrolls separately. $5,500. Call Bob or Margaret Wilcox, 510-525-4182,Richmond, California. (6-03)

AMPICO, DUO-ART, WELTE, AND 88 NOTE PIANO ROLLS.New Recuts and Originals, including “Jumbo” and Program Rolls. AlsoN.O.S. QRS 88 Note rolls. Check out my website:http://www.maui.net/~uni/caldwell/ Dave Caldwell, 400 Lincoln LakeAve. N.E., Lowell, MI 49331; e-mail: [email protected];phone 616-897-5609. (6-03)

1924 MARSHALL AND WENDELL 5’ GRAND AMPICO AREPRODUCING PIANO. Plays great! Player fully restored; pianorefinished; piano action regulated and reconditioned with new key bushings, key bed felts, and new key tops. Includes matching bench,$4000 or best offer. Call for pictures. Pat Dewitt, Ft. Wayne, IN 260-749-7737 260-429-7384; [email protected] (6-03)

NEW PIANO ROLL BOXES - “TOP HAT” BOXES FOR AMPICOROLLS - BLACK LEATHER WIH GOLD PRINTING AND FALSE BOTTOM - EXACTLY LIKE THE ORIGINALS! $4.00 EA. + SHIPPING. 2 sizes available for 88 note: Large (fits 2 3/4”Flange) covered with Black Alligator Paper(Top), Black Leather (Bottom) or Brown Leather Paper (Top & Bottom)$2.50 ea. + Shipping.Small (fits 2” Flange) Covered with Black or Tan Leather Paper (Top),White Litho (Bottom)$1.20 ea. + Shipping. 65 Note Roll Boxes MaroonPaper (Top), White Litho (Bottom) $2.25 ea. + Shipping. A 10% Discount will be given on orders over $100.00, and a 20% Discount onorders over $300.00. Many other Repair Supplies available (ParchmentLeaders, Flanges,Tubes, Tabs, Repair Tissue) Richard Ingram (760) 244-ROLL (7655) [email protected] (6-03)

PLAYER AND REPRODUCING ROLLS for sale. Newly re-cut“Magic Melodies” DUO-ART and AMPICO rolls and new “Top Hat” 88 note roll. Original and other re-cut rolls; program rolls for AMPICOand DUO-ART. All in excellent condition. Write or call for listings.Magic Melodies, 360 Lawless Road, Jamestown, KY 42629, call 270-343-2061. (6-03)

273

AMICA TechnicalitiesSince 1969, AMICA has been publishing into bound vol-umes, collections of technical articles written and con-tributed by its members for publication in The AMICABulletin. They may be purchased as follows:Vol 1 - 1969 to 1971 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$10.00Vol 2 - 1972 to 1974 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8.00Vol 3 - 1975 to 1977 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9.00Vol 4 - 1978 to 1980 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7.00Vol 5 - 1981 to 1988 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20.00Vol 6 - 1989 to 1993 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20.00

Postage PaidPlease note: Supplies of the earlier volumes may be

temporarily unavailable as stock is depleted. Overseas orders may take longer than domestic shipments.

AMICA ITEMS FOR SALE

The AMICA Bulletin1971 through 1999 bound annuals

of the AMICA Bulletins$24.00 (U.S. Dollars) per year postage paid

Make checks payable to: AMICA International

Send Orders to: Stuart GriggGrigg Graphic Services, Inc.20982 Bridge StreetSouthfield, MI 48034Fax: (248) 356-5636e-mail: [email protected]

Get the Whole Story !IInn SSttoocckk NNooww SShhiippppeedd IImmmmeeddiiaatteellyy !!The AMICA Bulletin remains the single source of complete information about the technical and

social aspects of our hobby. No home library would be complete without a FULL SET of theAMICA Bulletins, bound into sets by year.

In addition, technical articles published in the bulletin have been extracted and published asinvaluable reference volumes. More than 30 years of knowledge, discovery and revelation can befound in the TECHNICALITIES, a complete set of which takes less than 30 inches of shelf space!

ORDER TODAY! In stock for immediate shipping via United Parcel Service or US Mail.

CLOTH-COVERED ELECTRICAL WIRE FOR REPAIRS ANDRESTORATIONS. Many styles, colors, gauges. Safe and authentic.Sundial Wire, PO Box 1182, Easthampton, MA 01027; phone 413-582-6909. Full service web site: http://www.sundialwire.com; e-mail: [email protected] (4-04)

The Golden Age of Automatic Musical Instruments. Art Reblitz’ magnificent 448-page book. Fabulous photos, history, collecting stories, tracker scales, original prices and more. $120 plus $5 S/H (single copy USA ground shipment). Mechanical Music Press-A, 70Wild Ammonoosuc Road, Woodsville, NH 03785; 603-747-2636.http://www.mechanicalmusicpress.com (4-04)

HANDMADE BARREL AND PNEUMATIC ORGANS made inGermany. With moving figurines and a lot of humorous surprises. See: www.magic-mechanical-music.de Musik & Spiel Automaten Geratebau, Ing. Hansjorg Leible, D-79400 Kandern/Holzen, Kirchstr. 2;Tel: 07626-7613, Fax 07626-971009 (6-05)

WANTEDRED WELTE MIGNON piano rolls (T-100). Paying top dollar. MikeKukral 812-238-9656 or [email protected] (6-04)

ENCORE AUTOMATIC BANJO ROLLS, original or recut. YousufWilson, 636-665-5187; email – [email protected] (6-03)

AMPICO, DUO-ART & WELTE RECORDO Rolls wanted. I’ll buy small or large collections. Now is the time to clean out duplicates andunwanted tunes! Contact: Dave Caldwell, 400 Lincoln Lake Rd. Lowell, MI 49331, phone 1-616-897-5609, E-mail:[email protected] (6-03)

WANTED! ARTECHO, APOLLO, CELCO Reproducing rolls.1 or 1000. Also QRS APOLLO 58-NOTE ROLLS (SQUARECHUCK DRIVE) and QRS Automatic (Red “X”). Also available For Sale, newly scanned and recut ARTECHO TEST ROLL, $18 ppd. Robin Pratt, 630 E. Monroe St., Sandusky, OH 44870; (419) 626-1903, [email protected] (6-04)

274

Complete pianos and player systems restored using factoryoriginal techniques by an experienced professional. Complete

or partial systems can be sent to my shop for restorations. I supply special UPS cartons for this unique service.

Ben Gottfried464 Dugan Rd. • Richfield Springs, NY 13439

315-858-2164 (6-03)

A Complete Restoration ServiceFor The Pneumatic Piano

Ben’s Player Piano Ser vice

WANTED TO BUYMUSIC BOXES

MUSICAL CLOCKSMECHANICAL ORGANS

Always in the market for better quality disc and cylindermusic boxes, musical clocks, singing birds, band organs, player organs, monkey organs, Wurlitzer 78 rpm jukeboxes,slot machines. Any condition.

MARTIN ROENIGK75 Prospect Avenue

Eureka Springs, AR 72632

(800) 671-6333 • (479) 253-0405

www.mechantiques.com • [email protected]

(6-03)

(2-04)

A GUIDE TORESTORING THE

AMPICO “A”Forty-five pages

of technical information focusing on aspects of restoration unique to

the Ampico “A”. A list of materials and suppliers, diagrams for specialized

tools and three floppy discs containing 100 photos.

Send $40 to: Paul Manganaro,

P.O. Box 535, Coopersburg, PA 18036

AMICAMemorial Fund Donations

Please think of AMICA as a place to remember your friends and family with a donation to the AMICA Memorial Fund.

Send to: John Motto-RosP.O. Box 908Sutter Creek, CA 95685-0908209-267-9252

275

(4-05)

(4-05) (4-05)Web Page: www.leedyrolls.com Web Page: www.leedyrolls.com

276

REPLACEMENT LEADERSThese 11 1/4” x 17” reprints, not trimmed and without tabs, are excellent replicas of the more popular types ofreproducing piano roll leaders. While intended for roll repairs, they may also be used for decorative purposes.To splice, overlay new leader on old roll, lay a straightedge on an angle, cut through both papers with a sharpknife, discard scrap, and butt-join with magic mending tape on top surface.

A. Brown on buff (For early red label boxes)

B. Black on ivory (Area for reusable artist photo)

C. Black on ivory (Most common)

D. Black on ivory (Very late rolls by combined Aeolian/American)

E. Green on ivory (Most common)

F. Green on ivory (Favorite Fifty & Selected Roll Service)

G. Welte Brown on buff (Most common)

Note: Early Welte’swith blue leaders maybe repaired with thisbrown leader. Many ofthese when reissuedhad brown leaders.

Please make checks payable toAMICA INTERNATIONAL, And send to:

BRIAN K. MEEDER904A West Victoria StreetSanta Barbara, CA 93101-4745

e-mail address for orders:[email protected]

Checks or moneyorders from foreign

countries must be drawn on U.S. bank.

Style QuantityA ______________

B ______________

C ______________

D ______________

E ______________

F ______________

G ______________

Total Quantity ______________

Price: $ 1.00 eachMinimum Order: $10.00

Postage and Handling $ 5.50

Roll Order $ ________

Total Amount (U.S. $) $ ________

When is a Broadwood Piano not a Piano, ...

...when it’s a Bar.(Our thanks to Adrian from Mastertouch for posing for these photographs)

The Mastertouch Piano Roll Co. has a new attraction - a grand piano nowserving the needs of the company as a Piano Bar. The Bar was originally a9 ft. Broadwood ‘barless’ grand piano

c1900. This beautiful work of art,repolished by member Charles Attard,

is worth a visit to Mastertouch to have a look at.

the amica bulletin - stanford universityyz334py8403/sept_oct-03.pdf · the amica bulletin automatic...

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