Mechanical Music Digest  Archives
You Are Not Logged In Login/Get New Account
Please Log In. Accounts are free!
Logged In users are granted additional features including a more current version of the Archives and a simplified process for submitting articles.
Home Archives Calendar Gallery Store Links Info
MMD > Archives > February 1998 > 1998.02.28 > 05Prev  Next


Pauline Alpert Piano Rolls
By Craig Brougher

Regarding Pauline Alpert's rolls, I spoke with her in Philadelphia
about 1979 when she attended the AMICA convention there.  She sounded
bitter about the fact that in those days, women were given a short
shrift on everything, and because she was a woman, received only
$50 per recording.

The chief editor and head of the recording department at that time was
Robert Armbruster, who admitted to all of us that Pauline played so
fast and profusely that he had to ask her to not play so many notes,
because nobody would really believe it was hand-played for a Duo-Art.
(Not to mention the fact that they would have to record at about a
120-140 tempo, and few if any Duo-Art popular rolls were ever recorded
like that to my knowledge.)  It would have doubled the cost of the roll
and their profit would have gone right down the drain (they figured).

Duo-Art wasn't too critical about their pop tunes being performed
authentically.  They used a "formula" pop coding style, mostly.
Aeolian always considered their piano a classical instrument that could
also play pop tunes.  I suspect that may be why they emphasized the
Ampico later [after the merger of the companies in the '30s] as a
"popular music" instrument, like the "Lambada" advertisement: an
attempt to prevent too much overlapping and self-competition.  But it
gave the Ampico an unfair disadvantage, later.

Pauline didn't mention Frank Milne, or any other financial arrangement
in which they would use her style and her name, but I suppose it didn't
matter anyway on these watered-down versions of her style.  They're
still good but not authentic, or anything to get excited about.  I
believe it was just a good way to keep her name before the public as a
performer on call.

What would be more valuable today would be an arranger who could cut
some rolls in Pauline Alpert's style by listening to her actual playing
on records.  I know of one person in particular who would be up to
that, and when I finished the job, you would swear that Pauline had
just been resurrected! : George Bogatko !

Craig Brougher

 [ That would be great!  Another "pair of good ears" would be John
 [ Farrell; he's made lots of roll transcriptions from phono recordings
 [ which appear on "JAM" and "Hot Piano Classics" labels.
 [
 [ Thanks for writing with your recollections, Craig.  I seems that all
 [ who spoke with Pauline Alpert heard the same basic story.  And isn't
 [ it great that her boss at the time, Robert Armbruster, confirmed it!
 [ -- Robbie


(Message sent Sat 28 Feb 1998, 15:44:30 GMT, from time zone GMT-0600.)

Key Words in Subject:  Alpert, Pauline, Piano, Rolls

Home    Archives    Calendar    Gallery    Store    Links    Info   


Enter text below to search the MMD Website with Google



CONTACT FORM: Click HERE to write to the editor, or to post a message about Mechanical Musical Instruments to the MMD

Unless otherwise noted, all opinions are those of the individual authors and may not represent those of the editors. Compilation copyright 1995-2024 by Jody Kravitz.

Please read our Republication Policy before copying information from or creating links to this web site.

Click HERE to contact the webmaster regarding problems with the website.

Please support publication of the MMD by donating online

Please Support Publication of the MMD with your Generous Donation

Pay via PayPal

No PayPal account required

                                     
Translate This Page