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Igor Stravinsky on Piano Rolls
By Robbie Rhodes

I came upon an article by M. Jean Touselet in AMICA Bulletin, Vol. 20
Nr. 7, 1983, page 187, which says that fourteen compositions spanning
"50 rolls exactly" were made by composer Igor Stravinsky for Pleyela
of France.

Touselet's article also reproduces a 1927 concert advert, "Gala de
Musique Mecanique", announcing that "The Firebird" would be performed
in Paris with Stravinsky himself operating the Pleyela piano.  (The
famous French duo-pianists, Jean Wiener and Clement Doucet, were added
on the same programme to balance the Stravinsky suite with their segment
entitled "A Little Human Mechanical Music"!)

Jan Kijlstra, in MMD 970703, wrote that these compositions by Stravinsky
are listed in a 1981 book by Nederlandse Pianola Vereniging (The Dutch
Pianola Society):

  Concertino for String Quartet - Pleyela
  Chant du Rossignol - Pleyela, Aeolian
  Etude pour pianola - Aeolian
  Les Noces - Pleyela
  l'Oiseau de feu [The Firebird] - Pleyela, Aeolian
  Petrouchka - Pleyela
  Le sacre du printemps [The Rite of Spring] - Pleyela, Aeolian

Could someone provide us with a complete list of music rolls played
by Stravinsky, and also his compositions performed by others?

Thanks,
Robbie Rhodes, MMD

PS: These humorous Stravinsky quotes were in MMD 9904012:

  "Why is it that whenever I hear a piece of music I don't like,
  it's always by Villa-Lobos?" -- Igor Stravinsky

  "His music used to be original.  Now it's aboriginal."
  -- Sir Ernest Newman on Igor Stravinsky


(Message sent Sun 18 Jun 2000, 00:50:00 GMT, from time zone GMT-0700.)

Key Words in Subject:  Igor, Piano, Rolls, Stravinsky

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