Mechanical Music: Automated Instruments

[@gscott5778]

My grandmother worked at a company in Chicago in the early 1900's playing the piano to create the master player piano rolls which were then later used to make as many copies as needed. In her memoirs she described the process and the people she worked with. The following is from her memoirs. She was 14 or 15 when she was working at the "US Music Company": When I had learned the position, I quit the telephone company and went to work at the Music Company. My duties for this company were to transcribe the notes onto a master gage, in order to have the men in the factory make 600 copies of the roll. We changed the music on some of the popular music adding trills, runs, grace notes etc. but never doing this to the classical music. The perforations on the roll were first written in; the length of the note determined the line on the paper which is what I did. After I was finished with the paper it was given to the person who hand punched the holes, sometimes I would do it if necessary, it had to be done just right of course. Then I would put it on the player piano and correct any errors, wrong notes, rests etc. by pasting them over and then putting in the proper note or rest. The work was very interesting and I really enjoyed it. There were just three of us in a sound proof room all girls. Lila Nelson, Lillian Anderson and myself. At lunch time after we had eaten, would have a sort of game between us, one would select a roll play it and at the first Bar we would tell what the piece was, also the composer. I rarely lost, now I say what happened to my memory? I stayed in this position until I married. ( 2 years) Born in 1889, she lived to be 104 and until the last couple of years had a very clear mind.

[@EZurg]

That's awesome thanks for sharing!

[@zsazsa3026]

Thank you for such a wonderful story! Definitely “History that deserves to be remembered”!❤

[@Errr717]

Now that’s history.

[@paparalph4]

Another hidden gem is the House on the Rock in Spring Green Wisconsin. They not only have self playing instruments but also entire rooms with full orchestras. It also has warehouses of oddities to stroll through. An enjoyable and very interesting place to visit.

[@garywatson3778]

Came here to mention this! It is a day trip worth every minute! So many automated instruments, the world's largest indoor carousel (it is MONSTROUS), and a lifesize whale are just a few of the things. The infinity room will scare the shit out of you, and if you go at Christmastime, as I did, you'll see the world's largest collection of Santa Claus figures which is very much as creepy as it sounds.

[@gregoryschmidt1233]

Seconded. And Frank Lloyd Wright's "Taliesin" compound is just down the road.

[@MrWhatsHisFace87]

In 1994 my family moved into a home with a pneumatic player piano and a couple hundred rolls. My brother and I had so much fun playing it! Great memories

[@scottthomas6202]

Same thing happened to me as a child, but it was around 1971. My parents bought a house with a player piano in the basement, and a box of....1920? music rolls for it. It was a source of laughs, and some funny memories.

[@chucks4328]

My grandmother had an old player piano in the living room of an old house along with a box filled with rolls of music. She's been gone several years now and the house is still standing but starting to fall apart. No one wanted the piano so it's still there.

[@davidlium9338]

@@chucks4328 Have you tried selling it on eBay? It would probably take some negotiation between and the buyer as to pickup, etc. But it could be saved.

[@chucks4328]

@@davidlium9338 It didn't work even when I was a kid. I know the rolls were so dry rotted they fell apart when you tried to pick them up. I've seen a couple pianos sell at local auctions. I guess I should say try to sell because they didn't even get a bid.

[@andrewbarrett1537]

Out of curiosity do you know the make and serial number of the player piano left abandoned in the house? Could you get some pictures? I’m trying to document all USA made antique pianos on a future website, regardless of existence or condition, and would love to get this info. It’s very unlikely it’s one of the 6 or 7 foot pumped player pianos still to get on my piano wishlist, but I guess anything’s possible. Even if not it would be nice to document it.

[@joshpayne4015]

If anyone ever gets over to the Netherlands, go to Utrecht. There's a wonderful museum there that's not far from the train station, nearby the famous big church tower. The museum is called the "Museum Speelklok" and is dedicated to automated things that play music, be they clocks, music boxes, street organs, player pianos (many varieties, some including other instrumentation!) -- you name it! Their collection is quite impressive and extensive. I've been there several times and majorly enjoy each visit!

[@alec_f1]

Artis Woodehouse has videos on here of her getting a personal tour of it I believe. She is a master pianolist from New Hampshire I believe.

[@jamespfitz]

It was delightful -- as much fun as Madurodam.

[@The1andOnlyWog]

I went there in the early 2000's when I was stationed over in Germany. Very interesting place. Neat little place to spend an hour or so

[@mwjones71]

Martin over at the KZbin Channel "Wintergatan" has also done some videos on Museum Speelklok, as part of his research into building his "Marble Machine". His first "Marble Machine" made one recorded performance (you can see it on his channel), but had so many mechanical issues it wasn't sustainable. He set about building a second "Marble Machine", which is documented on his Channel, but it also had issues from the design. Both of those "Marble Machines" I believe are now at Museum Speelklok, while Martin, working with others have moved on to designing a 3rd "Marble Machine".

[@nfreeman7]

Don't they have the marble music machine there?

[@deonmurphy6383]

Another museum I would like to visit is in Switzerland. The Seewen Museum of Music Automatons. In particular it has what is known as the Britannic Organ, which was built for but never installed on the RMS Britannic. 4 CD’s have been recorded of music played automatically on the organ.

[@danielcarroll3358]

There is also the Pianola museum in Amsterdam. It is run by volunteers and only open a few hours each week, but well worth checking out. They have all kinds of mechanical music devices.

[@tadroid3858]

The highlight of visiting Aunt Sophie was having her spool-up her player piano. She had a huge collection of music rolls. Thanks as always!!

[@PaulHarrell]

My father rebuilt/repaired player pianos as a sideline business. I helped out occasionally. They are marvel's of engineering and highly vomplex.

[@6295LARGE]

A person who has "perfected" or 'mastered" the art of foot pumping a piano roll with great dynamics (expression) is called a Pianolist. The Aeolian company produced a serious of classical piano rolls called "Pianolist's Library". These rolls came in nicer boxes and had beautiful paper leaders with gold printing. The rolls' condition is as though they were made yesterday. The best acid-paper was used.

[@jeffreyb.2817]

I worked for a company that made optical encoders for both commercial and space applications. This company started out as a department of The Baldwin Piano Company. The encoders we're originally designed to be a more stable way to encode the song, but became a way to encode the radial position of a motor.

[@thesisypheanjournal1271]

I went to a music box museum demonstration once when I was in Korea. Some of them were enormous, larger than a modern jukebox, and had compartments for multiple discs nearly three feet across. Awesome!

[@pal4140]

love how thg talks enthusiastically and clear with correct pause and emphasis

[@jaredwblack]

The history of these instruments continues into the 21st century with Martin Molin and the Marble Machine

[@dpmierow]

I recently discovered your channel and I just finished binge watching every episode that you have posted. You sir, your wife, and your channel are amazing. Thank you for ever piece of history and knowledge that you have shared. Any chance you could cover the history of the toilet? Possibly one of the world's greatest inventions.

[@TrickiVicBB71]

That would make a good video. He already done toilet paper

[@Taurencowpew]

Music, creativity, ingenious mechanics and History! What a fantastic episode for me, who adores all these subjects. I love playing music. These days, it is very handy to be accompanied by a computer. I also love some of the gorgeous examples of musical automata you've found. Bravo.

[@thexalon]

From what I've read about the ragtime era, it's useful to think of player piano rolls the way you might think of a Beyonce track today: The performers were well-known, and a new release was treated as a cool event you wanted to be in on much like a new single today.

[@gtbkts]

Different times, same people. Pretty cool to think about.

[@goodun2974]

@@gtbkts , Back in the Seventies we would line up at the record store on the day that a new release by a favorite band became available to buy. The dedication to music was stronger and more ingrained then, and we would take our purchase home and play it with all our friends and talk about the meaning of it, perhaps while we shared a favorite libation (or inhalation). We don't really have anything like that with popular music nowadays; nearly all of it is instantly forgettable, and everyone is always waiting for * the next big thing* instead of really considering today's shiny object. In my case, listening to it, even by accident, is often instantly regrettable.

[@chasbodaniels1744]

My great-uncle was a “technical arranger” for the Wurlitzer Company in Niagara Falls, NY. I have an article from a mechanical music hobbyist’s site which cites his creativity in “programming” the punched hole patterns to recreate the musicality of the original source sounds. This fan website has identified which Wurlitzer arranger “programmed” specific titles, and Mom’s uncle Jimmy put his ears to good use, apparently.

[@johnnyjames7139]

A bit off topic, but a Mighty WurliTzer lives in my home and gets played daily.

[@ldbarthel]

Biograph has put out CDs mastered from piano rolls. Some of the rolls they used were recorded by Scott Joplin himself. For a rag aficionado, there is nothing better than listening to Joplin play his own works.

[@krumet8]

This is great. Have you ever thought about perhaps talking about Robert Hope-Jones and theater pipe organs? These wonderful instruments first provided music for silent movies, and are quite complex even containing air-powered sound effects. one brand of these instruments was know as the Mighty Wurlitzer, but many different companies built them.

[@loumontcalm3500]

The Nethercutt collection in Sylmar, CA has an outstanding collection of mechanical instruments, orchestrions, and one of the largest Wurlitzer theater pipe organs in the USA. All have been restored and work. They also have a stunning collection of Pebble Beach winning antique autos. Well worth the time to visit.

[@indyracingnut]

Easily one of my most favorite videos you've done. I live not too far from that place in Williamsburg. Thank you for highlighting that organization. It truly is a hidden gem of Virginia that deserves more attention.

[@TimothySKlugh]

I really enjoyed this video that you made on mechanically-automated music instruments. I am a music composer, and that music passion goes back generations in my family line. My great uncle Paul B. Klugh (1878-1941) was very much involved in refinements for the player piano. From 1900 through around 1920, Paul received 51 patents on his mechanical innovations and improvements to the player piano. Paul was also involved in the establishment of music in radio broadcasts. He actually spoke before Congress in regards to it. The player piano and all these other wonders of automated musical performance may have faded over time as far as the actual mechanical instruments, but in the area of MIDI, it is still very significant. And, as I am sure you are well aware, MIDI is the music instruction language of synthesizers, samplers, digital pianos, digital organs, computer music software, sequencers and all the other MIDI software and hardware out there. I am very appreciative of you making this video that calls attention to the mechanical automated instruments that set the path for digital music today. The video was very well made and greatly informative.

[@haraldputensen7955]

Danke!

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

Thank you!

[@rogersheddy6414]

I recall when my grandmother was in a nursing home, I found they had a player piano and something like 60 plus rolls of music for it. I arranged for one of the nurses who had an interest in this to give periodic concerts to Residents who were interested. Sitting in their chairs just placidly watching the player piano do its thing. And sometimes they would sing along when they recognize the song. Has my grandmother was born in 1897, and was not the oldest resident there, you may know that there were a fair number of people who recognize just about every song that was being played. I do hope they are still playing that piano there in that fashion today.

[@royboymoi]

I am a park ranger at a historic water powered flower mill on the west coast. I always tell my co-workers that I would love for you to do the voice over for our park. If you ever want to do a video about Thompson's Mill's State Heritage Site in Oregon we would love it!

[@gondolacrescent5]

There’s a “Barrel” Pipe organ in a Toronto Anglican Church. It was built in Britain in the 1840’s and shipped over. There are 3 or 4 wood barrels and in total they reproduce about 40 hymn tunes. The organ still works and remains where it was originally; they have a conventionally operated pipe organ at the East end of the church and use it exclusively.

[@andrewscott1451]

Started practicing on a Steinway grand piano that was also a player piano. About 1960. Grandfather bought and sold pianos and used our house as storage for this. He also has an upright player piano , pedal driven. Think he had a roll played by Rachmaninoff, long time ago. Favorite was appassionata. Could play for hours when visiting.

[@johnbernstein7887]

The Player piano led to the Jaquard Loom which led to the Charles Babbage's Analytical Engine which led to Herman Hollerith's tabulation machine which led to the Modern Computer...

[@q.e.d.9112]

The Jacquard loom was about 80+ years before the player piano.

[@johnbernstein7887]

@@q.e.d.9112 The player piano was 200+ years before the Jaquard Loom, It used water wheels. The Jaquard Loom changed that to punch cards. Do try to keep up. You can rewatch this video to learn more

[@jamespuleo3269]

I remember a series of one-hour shows called "Connections" hosted by John Burke. One episode specifically traced this line of technical evolution, a section on vote-counting machines was also part of the mix.

[@johnbernstein7887]

@@jamespuleo3269 I remember it too. I also remember The Mechanical Universe which preceeded it by about ten years also starring James Burke. Those two show taught me allot.

[@BlasphemousBill2023]

Enjoyed it very much! I live in Michigan, not far from the Stahl museum. It’s mainly cars but they have a great display of automated instruments. Definitely worth the time if you are in the area!

[@theorganguy]

attention to this video - albeit I periodically watch things from this channel - has been brought to me by one of our online groups of enthusiasts. while I'm thrilled that you have made this video and really tried to scope the entire history, it is unsure from my point of view, if a viewer can truely grasp all the aspects involved. at the very least, if someones interest got spiked thru this video, then that already will be an achievement and then indeed - somewhat like at the end of your video - I can only recommend viewers to go seek out any sort of mechanical automatic music museum in any country anywheres! they will be all too glad to tell you more and answer all your questions. One thing I do miss entirely as a sidenote from this, tho, is: never mind the continuation of the development of automatic music into the AI-era - we STILL have places on earth where you will see automatic mechanical music being the bread and butter of peoples livelihood - from Mexico to Chile there is still actual barrel organs and with them the organ grinders still fending for their families - mostly STILL in a bizarre old system of these instruments not belonging to the organ grinders, but STILL being RENTED from their local organ company. Fairgrounds and Amusement parks still occasionally operate their band organs - and BTW, if NOT: do bug them about it! Tell them you want to hear them! In the Netherlands it is essentially a national symbol next to the orange colour and tulips and windmills and Delfterware to see and hear trailer-mounted street organs roaming the streets and markets on weekends, collecting money by rhythmically shaking a collection tin to the music - money that is mostly used for the upkeep of the old instruments and the purchase of new perforated books, still being newly arranged and produced. Many examples of modern hits can be heard right here on KZbin by searching for the term "draaiorgel" No matter where in the world you meet one of my "colleagues": completely disregarding if you enjoy the music or not, please DO take out some change from your pocket and put it in their hat, collection bin or which ever other form they set up for you to donate. That literally means the world to them!!!

[@hoffmanaeronautics6192]

I never considered my Bavarian cuckoo clock as an automated instrument. Thank you for the perspective.

[@eaglescout1984]

Oh, I'll have to check that museum out next time I'm down in the 757. Also, I'm surprised you didn't mention the development of "MIDI", a computer format which allows for the recording/creation of not audio files, but instrument inputs. Basically a digital version of the paper roll.

[@DaltonClockRepair]

A very nice historical journey of mechanical music. I have one of those German flute clocks from 1868 made by German manufacturer Emilian Werhle. The advancement of mechanical technology in such a short period time amazes me and will never be repeated.

[@charleslayton9463]

The ink drawing at 1:31 is a hydraulis. This is a pipe organ where the wind pressure is kept steady by blowing air into the barrels with bellows. The barrels are open on the bottom, and they are sitting in water, which causes even air pressure to be fed to the pipes. This is similar to turning an empty glass upside down and putting it into water. The air pressure keeps the water out. Now, think about a small hole in the "top" (bottom) of the glass where the air drains out slowly. If you put a straw down to the open end of the glass and blow air in, it will replace the air escaping, and maintain even pressure., And the The two men on top are actually playing the organ using rudimentary keys. So, while this instrument is very mechanical, it isn't "automatic" in the same way that a player piano is. These were often played in the arenas and could be quite loud.

[@jamesschneider3828]

Pay a visit to the house on the rocks in Wisconsin, they have many mechanical self playing music machines along with a large collection of collections of all types.

[@erpi-ks1by]

If you ever come to southern California there is the Nethercutt Museum which has old cars, extensive collection of Lalique glass and many mechanical orchestras. The museum is free (no shorts or sandals) and they play the machines for the guests. A two hour treat. Located in the city of Sunland, a 15 minute ride from LA up the 5 freeway.

[@markraymond3886]

There are two orchestrions at Disneyland. One is a Welte Style 4 Concert Orchestrion in the Penny Archade on Main Street and a Nelson-Wiggen Style 6 Orchestrion in one of the shops in Frontierland. Walt Disney purchased these devices for placing in the park and each has a variety of rolls available. The rolls play both classical tunes of their era or Disney themes custom arranged for the device. There are videos here on KZbin of both units.

[@Guitfiddlejase]

We love you Lance..!

[@trish5556]

I love player pianos and such. In the 1980's Silver Springs had an antique auto and music museum and I would spend hours changing rolls on piano players and watching them and other mechanical music machines. I think my favs were the ones that contained a whole band, including a drum. Sadly, the museum closed in the 1990's and then later the whole attraction closed. I wonder what happened to all the players. Silver Springs is now a state park. Thanks for this video, loved it!

[@terrallputnam7979]

My mother lived in an independent living complex in Chattanooga and another similar one in Evans, Georgia. The one thing that added elegance to the luncheons which were the highlight of these people's day, was a baby grand piano with an electronic playing device. It constantly played background music during lunch and dinner. There was rarely a real person playing, but occasionally someone would sit down and actually play requests for the residents.

[@bobbysenterprises3220]

Living in the carousel capital of the US there is a couple of whirlitzers here. As a mechanically inclined person I'm fascinated by them. Just saw the gorgeous one at knobels park in PA. I bought their CD and just expressed to my daughter how I should learn more about these machines. I have interest and I'm sure the ability. Although I don't have time I think those who are able should try and keep the dying arts from disappearing into disrepair.

[@wurly164]

Wurlitzer. My channel shows our museum with hundreds of mechanical music machines. Every other year, knoebels has a band organ rally and people from all over America bring their band organs to share with everyone

[@bobbysenterprises3220]

@@wurly164 thank you. I'll check these out. I'm about 3 hours from knobels and would check it out if scheduling lines up. If I do and your there I'll try and seek you out

[@bobbysenterprises3220]

@@wurly164 is there a link or name or even town etc that the museum is in?

[@wurly164]

@@bobbysenterprises3220 it's called American treasure tours and it's in Oaks Pennsylvania right next to Valley forge.

[@wurly164]

@@bobbysenterprises3220 we use to take the General, the organ in the circus trailer, to knoebels every other year for a band organ rally. We went 2012, 14 and 16.

[@mar4kl]

Thank you for this video. I've had a fascination for player pianos, band organs and other mostly electric-pneumatic self-playing instruments. They're almost miraculous to watch in action, and I can only wonder how people figured out how to design and build them, since most of them are between 90 and 120 years old at this point. I'm nearly as amazed at how people have learned how to repair and restore them. I'm an IT consultant, and I know that modern electronics and computer technology have made it a relatively simple matter to build machines that make music, and even direct mechanisms that play musical instruments. But those electro-mechanical marvels from a century ago had to be run by electric motors, wind, mechanical relays, electromagnets and clockwork. The feats of engineering that resulted in their designs and the precision manufacturing required to make their working parts are largely absent from today's computer products. When I was a teenager, I babysat for a family that owned an antique Baldwin compact grand player piano. It didn't work, because the rubber air hoses were all dry-rotted and crumbling. (The piano played beautifully, and as I recall, its woodwork looked pretty good, too. Only the self-playing mechanism was out of order.) I once asked them what it would take to fix it, and they told me they'd received an estimate of about $8,000. (To put that into perspective, that was almost enough to buy a pair of nicely equipped American compact cars at the time.) I answered something like, "Oh. I guess it's not worth repairing, then." To my surprise, the family told me that they had seriously considered repairing the player mechanism, because fully functional, that piano might have been worth over $20,000! That was probably about the cost of a new Steinway baby grand at the time, but this Baldwin was antique, looked terrific, played well, and, as a grand *player* piano, something of an oddity.

[@davida.logansr1692]

You touched on a particular passion of mine, vintage music machines! I have 3 Edison machines (from 1899-1929, a Columbia from 1926 and a Brunswick from 1921) all are phonographs of one type or another. However my favorite machine is my 1917 Apollo Expression Player Piano which my late wife and I had mechanically restored in 1987. One of the best sounding machines I have ever heard was the Mortier Orchestrion playing the Flik Flak Polka! It is available to enjoy on KZbin. Some machines perform better than others. I have heard a Violino Virtuoso which is indistinguishable from the best human players! There are also Banjo playing machines that are just great! Thank You for touching on my hobby!

[@mikenixon2401]

Oh, I remember and loved my grendparent's player piano. It helped me learn to play more than any formal lessons. Unfortunately, I'm now feeling the traits of advancing age and my hands no longer want to cooperate. But I still enjoy a variety of music. Ha. Take that physical bounds. The mind and spirit can always appreciate. Good report.

[@cdstoc]

Thereʻs a great museum in Sylmar, California, called The Nethercutt. It has a fabulous collection of automobiles available without a reservation (and for free!), but if you take the time to schedule a tour of The Nethercutt Collection then you can see their great collection of orchestrions, music boxes, Wurlitzer theater organ, and other instruments. Theyʻre all in playable condition and they will play them for you. One of my favorites was a reproducing grand piano that played, from a roll cut by George Gershwin himself, "Rhapsody in Blue".

[@pauldietrich6790]

We had a player piano growing up...a Hobart M. Cable. We had hours and hours of fun on it ( poor mom...) and that was just us kids...when the adults acme over it was game on! Dad had to re build it as it was pretty worn, bellows and leathers cracked etc...and it was good to go...through the years it got played less and less then it would not play at all. Dad died ( RIP Dad...) and it was willed to my sister in Tx ( from Indiana ) so we rented a trailer, loaded it up ( they are not light by any means ) plus about 900 rolls and took it to her. She found a professional to rebuild it ( real tough to fine, he said it's the last one he will ever do ) and re strung it as the original strings were so old and brittle if one were to snap while tuning it's take out all his work. After almost 2 years it was finished. She sent a video with sound to us...wow. Sounds like a million bucks ...and it pumps real easy... Great Video. My dad would have loved to see this video. This was one of his very many interests....Thank you!

[@keyplayajim]

My father was -- and I later became -- a piano technician, in whose shop I learned to rebuild pianos, player-pianos, reproducing pianos and reed ("parlor") organs, beginning around 1968, when I was fourteen years old. Of all the instruments in the shop, my favorite was the 1923 5'6" Chickering AMPICO -- accent on the *first* syllable ;-) -- grand. It was ours and not for sale, so it was always in poor repair, but I would nevertheless listen to it for hours on end in the way that other kids my age would listen to the radio. In the 1960s and '70s, a company named Hathaway and Bowers bought and sold player-pianos, reproducing pianos, nickelodeons, orchestrions, etc. all over the world and periodically published a beautiful catalog of their inventory. This seemed to drive the price and desirability of these old instruments through the roof, which helped to keep us busy for many years. Whether by coincidence or not, it seemed that the "player craze" faded away at about the same time that H&B did. A few years after Dad passed away in 1984, I sold his shop and its contents, and except for the occasional tuning (which continues to this day), I was out of the piano business, but I still remember those days with great fondness.

[@MrBig1946]

Really nice overview. I have a Wilcox & White Organ Company “Symphony” home player organ and around 45 or so music roles. It was made prior to 1895, when they changed the name and decal on the player to drop “organ” to begin manufacturing the increasing popularity and affordability of the piano. Also have a 15 1/2-disk Regina music box and a Kalliope 7-inch interchangeable disk box w/4 bells.

[@johnnyjames7139]

I knew a woman who's parents operated Johnson's restaurant in Gunnison Colorado. The woman still owned the building years later. On a vacation trip, I was able to repair the player piano in the building and great fun pumping the instrument and listening to the old rolls.

[@annegoodreau4925]

What a great story from G Scott about their grandmother! It should be mentioned, too, that some famous composers played their own works on piano rolls. Rachmaninoff and Scott Joplin are two such. I think Gershwin had some, too. When you consider the poor quality of phonographic recording of the period, we are very lucky to have these examples of the composers playing.

[@breth8159]

The fascination with this equipment I developed at Disneyland in the 60s as a small child has stayed with me and I still work on this equipment along with jukeboxes thanks for the amazing report & Cheers from Southern California history guy

[@wurly164]

Some of those organs are on my channel. The museum I work for bought some machines from Disney

[@LarcR]

Many newer pipe organs in churches and elsewhere have digital recording technology that can be used to record and re-play anything performed on the organ. This not only enables precise re-playing of entire concerts, but organ students can hear pieces they have played and critique their own performances.

[@filanfyretracker]

Carousels often had mechanical band organs providing the music as well. Wurlitzer was one of the big names in these instrument systems in the US, I guess makes sense they eventually moved onto the Jukebox. automated music was their thing.

[@wurly164]

My channel shows all types of wurlitzer band organs

[@Pluggit1953]

Multi-Grammy winning musician Pat Metheny created an electronic orchestrion. He recorded an album called Orchestrion and I was lucky enough to attend a performance in the Netherlands.

[@briansmith9439]

Conversions of standard upright pianos were also popular in the early 20th century. My uncle had his upright, which dated to the 1880s, converted in the early 1920s and the next generation (mine) still gathered around it while the player pumped the peddles and stopped herself from being pushed back off the piano bench by latching onto the finger grips on the underneath the keyboard until 2015; hopefully, it is still doing that at another cousin's home.

[@crispincain9654]

Thank you for the fine episode! We listen and watch every Monday and Wednesday over breakfast. The Odd Fellows Lodge we are members of has an old player piano from 1927, we have all the papers associated with it. And while it does not play automatically any more, I bought a more modern electric model, as portrayed in this episode, to have in the social hall. With boxes of piano rolls from as far back as 1904, my two favorites are a Scott Joplin roll from 1908, and a Wagner roll, Ride of the Valkyries that no human can reproduce with two hands.

[@flintsteele3638]

In Mesa AZ there is the Organ Stop Pizza, which you really should visit if you liked this video, hundreds of instruments played by one organist beautifully, really a treasure.

[@charleskramer7062]

Just two weeks ago I was given a small roller organ with about a dozen wooden rolls of music (including "Yankee Doodle"). The date on the instrument is 1887.

[@garyk.nedrow8302]

The player piano that used foot pedals to pump air through perforated piano rolls to create music was indeed an ingenious device. As a boy, I played the one in my grandmother's parlor and marveled at the complexity of the instrument. The same concept was later used in early computers to send coded messages. An operator created perforated paper tapes using a modified typewriter keyboard. The tapes could then be used to record or transmit information electronically to a second keyboard that would transcribe the message. The device was known as a Flexowriter, a device that I used while working for Naval Intelligence in Washington in 1960. Another ingenious musical instrument was the glass armonica invented by Ben Franklin in 1760 -- it was not automated, but it was remarkable in its use of curved glass bells of different sizes played by caressing the glass with wet fingers while the glass bells rotated on a spindle. Each bell produced a different note. Mozart among many others wrote music specifically for the instrument.

[@BangerFleet]

Tangentially related is the programmable combination action on early 20th century pipe organs… like Ernest Skinner and others built. Behind each organ stop was a long stick, with small swiveling bits of metal. You would pull out the combination of stops you wanted, and press a set button. The set button caused leather bellows to open, which would would flick these bits of metal on and off, saving to metal and wood based memory the organ stop settings you wish to recall later. Recalling the stop combination was as simple as pushing another button, which opened more bellows and pushed against which ever of these metal bits were tipped up earlier in the setting process. Completely invisible to the user, except the occasional hiss of the pressurized air that powered it all. Bits of metal to bits in silicon, the biggest difference is the scale.

[@mikewithers299]

THG you never cease to amaze me with your awesome history findings. Music, mechanics, plumbing? Who would have guessed?

[@goodun2974]

My parents had a restored antique player piano in their bar & restaurant back in the 1980's. Occasionally a patron who could really play would wander over to it ---- when it wasn't actually playing a paper roll ---- and entertain us for a bit.

[@onliwankannoli]

Great video! In a day when so much music is produced by computer, actually conceiving of and building simple machines to do it seems much more creative.

[@discerningmind]

When I was six in 1964 my parents wanted me to learn how to play the piano. And they bought the most wonderful old piano for me to learn on. I don't recall the brand, but it was an upright style, and it came with rolls of player music. When a roll was installed two big foot pedals were pumped to make it play. I remember that behind the great front panel of the upright was a lever that could be moved, and it added a multitude of tiny bells to whatever was being played, by roll or person. The bells sounded something like sleigh bells. It was a wonderful and unique piano, unfortunately it was sold two years later when we moved to another state. I imagine that if it's still around it must be worth a fortune now. Sure wish I could remember the brand.

[@tayejupa7589]

One of the most bizarre experiences I had was at a roll top player piano in college. We pumped the pedal and it played, "Yellow Submarine". There was an Inuit from Alaska, a Vaquero from Jalisco, Mexico, a skinhead from Portland, OR and myself, a neo-hippie with dreads singing so loud, repeatedly till the police were called to our venue. They were confused, friendly and told us to keep it down but don't stop, laughed then left.

[@andrewbarrett1537]

That's an awesome story!

[@cyboman9171]

Thanks for this brilliant short history of mechanized music, History Guy! It reminded me of the fabled Sergei Rachmaninoff (also spelled Rachmaninov) Ampico piano roll recordings performed by him from 1919 to 1929 - which were released on compact disc by Decca awhile back, but which are still available in that format and also in mp3 and streaming format on Amazon.

[@Lee-70ish]

Another great post. Never seen one I did not enjoy Thanks HG IMHO these devices with a memory and display all be it audible along side Babbage and his machines with programmable concepts all had an important part in modern computing

[@Otisthelesser]

All the episodes are great, this is my favorite so far!

[@gamiezion]

one of the viennesse art museums has a very intersting collection of automata on display, as well as videos showing some of them working which kinda neat.

[@MouseMotes]

There was a pizza chain called Shakey's Pizza when I was little. The 2 draws for me was watching them make my pizza and the player piano!

[@khutchinsoncpa1]

The referenced automaton that was demonstrated to Marie Antoinette was one of a set that still exists, and is still owned by the company that created them. The company is called Jaquet Droz, and it is now owned by Swatch. Jaquet Droz watches can be gorgeous - I recommend looking up the bird repeater.

[@dendroleon]

this channel always manages to find unique little topics to discuss, it's great!

[@banjoman101145]

Growing up in an urban area in the 1950’s there were two elderly blind men who would hire a young teenager to assist them in hauling a two-wheel cart to a busy intersection, park the cart and roll up the canvas cover. Under the cover was a nickel plated herdy-gerdy. One of the men would insert a large crank into the side of the device and start turning the crank handle wherein slowly but getting faster and louder came beautiful mechanical music. People would gather round while the teen boy would pass through the crowd with a tin cup collecting coins from the listeners. To this pre-schooler being old enough to haul this cart around for the two blind men became an unfulfilled ambition.

[@roberttaylor7637]

As late as 2010 you could still eat at Fargo's resturant to the tune of a player piano. In Colorado Springs Co. Alas they are closed now.

[@danwittmayer6539]

Your great videos inspire further investigation. Thanks for that. A sub-type of music box I was hoping to hear in this video operates via perforated metal discs of about 18 inches diameter. When I was a child in the 1960s I was dazzled by the sounds I heard in antique shops of these highly collectable, exquisitely crafted machines. I understood that only wealthy collectors could touch these jewels of technology. Your photo shows a healthy history guy, bravo

[@goodun2974]

"Player Piano" is the title of Kurt Vonnegut Jr's first novel, about a futuristic society where factories and almost everything else were automated, and so virtually everyone was unemployed except for crews of roughnecks who maintained roads and picked up trash for recycling, the Recycling and Reclamation Corps, referred to as the "reeks and wrecks".

[@tayejupa7589]

Marsh's museum in Long Beach, WA has one of the largest collection of mechanical instruments and they all can be played for a dollar. In the 1970's it cost a dime.

[@schroedingersdog7965]

08:10 Johann Maelzel was apparently interested in types of automata other than self-playing musical instruments. "The Turk" - a purported machine (actually a complex puppet) that could play chess - was described in an essay by Edgar Allan Poe ("Maelzel's Chess Player").

[@planeflyer21]

Thank-you for the video! The first part of this one got me thinking...The History Guy would do a really good presentation for the history of automatons from the 17th and 18th centuries (and probably much more of which I am not aware).

[@Fire300M]

Mechanical Music Rocks. I have restored 2 player pianos and have over 300rolls. My grandchildren all know how to pump and play a paper roll in pop pops piano. Morris Museum in Morristown NJ has an entire wing dedicated to operational Mechanical Music

[@PaulJWells-ud2eq]

I would've loved to seen Mr. Peabody and his Boy travel back to Sumaria to watch an ancient Chuck E. Cheese B-day party in full swing. Thanks for the fine thought. Love the Channel!

[@CurCam713]

In the early 70s, my family and I went to visit Underground Atlanta on a Sunday. Hardly anyone was there and it was dank with the smell of alcohol and other bad smells. At the end of an alleyway was a long calliope on a trailer about 30 feet long. My father put in several quarters. It had instruments from drums to horns. The machine was loud and it got the attention of a small group who came to listen. Instead of a strip of paper, it had a long strip of squares with holes in them. I searched the internet years ago for anything like it. There are a few museums with similar or smaller mechanical music machines. I wish more of these machines and their variety could have been featured.

[@corrbhan5138]

Museum Speelklok, located in Utrecht, The Netherlands, is all about automated instruments and has a very large collection. To anyone in the country, or visiting it, a visit to the museum is well worth it.

[@ralphbalfoort2909]

There have been a few restaurants that had mechanical bands playing while diners ate; one of the best was a pizza parlor in Toronto, Ontario, in the 1980s.

[@joelonzello4189]

My Mom has an old music box tucked away. Played with it when we were kids. Gotta dig it out and post a video. Hope it still works. Nice Size....

[@lostboytnt1]

At the NYS fair, there's a display of player pianos, and the history, and one of the things that I always found odd, was they actually sell CD's of player pianos playing music. Think about that.. a recording, of a recording of music.

[@olathestanwalker6717]

House on the Rock outside of Madison, Wisconsin has a great collection of mechanical musical instruments. Well worth seeing if you are in the area. Great video, as always, thanks.

[@icdong5031]

Since I haven't seen mention of it in the comments, someone should note that player pianos played a big role in modern telecommunications. Hedy Lamarr and George Antheil used player piano rolls to control frequency hopping in their torpedo design.

[@theburrowrises8549]

In Historic Valentown Hall in Victor, NY, we have a barrel piano made in Switzerland. The barrel looks like an enormous music box. It plays four different songs. It is still in working order.

[@bernardputersznit64]

We just ADORE that Hip Jazzy Logo - thanks for making this series even MORE entertaining 🙂

[@MultiPetercool]

I’ve been in the automatic music hobby for over four decades. I’ve rebuilt at least three player pianos including an Aeolian Duo-Art.

[@alec_f1]

I watch Artis Woodehouse and her master pianolist performances here on KZbin. You should check her out.

[@MultiPetercool]

@@alec_f1 I’ve known about Artis for a long time. I’ll be honest with you, I don’t find her work particularly interesting. Wayne Stahnke is the man!

[@alec_f1]

@@MultiPetercool I enjoy her virtuosity. Thanks for the lead on Stahnke!

[@rrad8106]

We have The Eastern States Exhibition here in New England (The Big E!), and they have several of the automated musical displays throughout the event. Always fascinating to see them in action!

[@reddy2c]

The House on the Rock, String green Wisconsin, has a huge collection of mechanical music . There are many KZbin videos of it.

[@fredwood1490]

This too could be a story about the making of recorded music. We had long needed a way to record the music we made, the first musical recording was on paper, as a language of symbols representing the notes to be played. One of the reasons for those mechanical devices, besides conspicuous consumption and statements of social status, was to always have plenty of good music on hand. Edison's recording devices was probably the first really flexible, good quality, (Sort of), cheap recording device for the masses. It has been a complex journey through Human invention that has led to the current musical recording devices that we take for granted.

[@md_vandenberg]

For those interested, there's a young man here on KZbin who built his own automated instrument called the "Marble Machine". Search for the channel Wintergarten. Also, I love the idea of someone composing music for a machine simply because two human hands isn't enough. Tim Henson (lead guitarist and composer for the band Polyphia) basically does the same thing in a digital workstation. He then figures out how to play it on his guitar.

[@markt.3454]

I love the tie in with the history of mechanical instruments with humanities innate love of, and desire for, music. It does speak volumes about some commonality in the human condition over cultures and ages.

[@DFX2KX]

I remember a grandparent (too young to remember WHICH of them) had a player-piano, I think the self-playing function was used once that I recall. I know a little bit of The Entertainer, and played that on it via my two-finger skills. Those instruments also brought us the Punch Cards for computer data entry via advance telegraph first taking the inspiration (though this was typed before the video got that far, so that Might have been mentioned).

[@barblane4020]

LOVE YOUR HISTORY LESSONS… PROFESSOR HISTORY GUY

[@goodun2974]

There is a musical instrument museum in Barcelona that is worth visiting which has a particularly good collection of early forerunners to the guitar. I'm on the East Coast and I haven't been to California but the Museum of Making Music in that state has a really cpol museum that you can tour online Or watch their KZbin channel. They host concerts from their periodically and put them up on KZbin. The slide guitar series done by Martin Simpson at the museum is particularly good listening.

[@wurly164]

There is a museum in Pennsylvania with over 300 machines. I have them on my KZbin page

[@stratfanstl]

"All this machinery, making modern music..."

[@md_vandenberg]

"Can still be open-hearted" Welp, time for a Rush marathon.

[@KevinWindsor1971]

Wind in my hair Mechanical music Adrenaline surge

[@raydunakin]

It seems to me that the machines which played stringed instruments would have required frequent maintenance to keep them in tune.

[@jonathanperry8331]

I went to music school it was insane. You had to practice at least 6 hours a day then you had your concerts and rehearsals three times a week for 3 hours then all of your other classes including music and electives. It would start at 7:00 and end at 8:00 before I left the building and usually I'd have to stay in practice and then go home and write a paper I barely slept the entire time it was exhausting.

[@andrewbarrett1537]

That doesn't sound like the fun way to become a musician. Happily with the internet, you can now take courses online at your own pace, have plenty of time to practice and jam with friends, and not worry too much about grades, but focus more on learning and enjoyment.

[@jonathanperry8331]

@@andrewbarrett1537 not really. You need to have lessons in person with your teacher. It's not something that you could learn online at least out of professional level. My computer isn't going to take its bow and smack me in the head with it if I miss a note. (My teacher was like a drill sergeant) but I was young and I could deal with the sleep deprivation and I had great teachers and every class I took and made lifelong friends. Orchestra really is like the military without getting shot. You have your different sections and each one stick together like a squad and watch each other's backs and once the machine starts rolling there's something awel inspiring about being a part of it. It was surreal even during my senior year I could not believe that I was doing what I was doing. Everything was just epic. Also since I was a bassist we were the wildest ones of the group so yeah it was exhausting but my body could handle it at the time. I've noticed in any orchestra I've played with the bass players stick together the most. There were a couple that I didn't get along with but when things got bad for example I worked with one at a coffee shop and this dude was always ragging on me. Someone said something rude to me once and he turned around and chewed them out. I really thought this guy had no respect for me and that's what glued or section together is when I realized we might have our differences but if someone f**** with a bass player you f*** with all of us. That's when I new I was a part of something special.

[@septembersurprise5178]

"All of us contain Music & Truth, but most of us can't get it out." - Mark Twain