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MMD > Archives > December 2009 > 2009.12.24 > 06Prev  Next


Roll-playing Theater Organs
By Tom DeLay

The 1922 Leon Douglass residence special Wurlitzer of Menlo Park,
California, initially used Concert Organ rolls to play about 7 ranks
of the 9 rank organ.  In the late 1920s Wurlitzer came back and
installed some sort of an R-series player on that organ that played
more of the instrument.

It would seem the piano console organs had at least three options:
no player, 88/98 player (Concert Rolls and 88-note rolls), and the
economy player that had two spool boxes for just 88-note rolls.
The latter is what my machine was equipped with.

This is an interesting clarification that the larger photoplayers used
the PianOrchestra rolls but the piano console organs did not.

The Style L organs were pretty early compared to the theatre organs
that followed.  Without looking it up, I would doubt any Style L or
Style J organs were built after 1915, with general theatre organ
construction continuing to circa 1932.  I may or may not be correct in
this, but it seems to me the style J did not have a 32-note pedal board.

The Style L was very similar to the later Style 160 of 6 ranks.
Nine Style L organs were built according to "the list."  The Style 135
had the second largest production run of any Wurlitzer style, with 203
organs built.  (The similar, 4-rank non-piano console Style B saw 225
instruments built.)

Of all piano console styles, here is what the Judd Walton shipping list
shows:

 Style/ No. Built/ Size (ranks)
   1    30         4rk
   2     3         6rk
 105    38         3rk
 108    49         3rk
 109    55         3rk
 110     8         3rk
 125     1         3rk  (earlier style was the 108)
 135   203         4rk  (earlier built as style A and 1)
 160    84         6rk  (earlier style J and 2)
  A      1         4rk  (later style 1 and 135)
  L      9         6rk  (later style 2 and 160)
  V     26         8rk

While you and I both know about the Style J was a limited sort of piano
console instrument, the Walton Wurlitzer shipment list shows a Style J
as being 2 manuals and 7 ranks and a typical theatrical curved console
(and was later known as the style N, 3, and 185.)  That is certainly
not the early Style J with the piano console.

There were gobs of the relatively colorless, tibia-less Style 185 organs
around, some survive.  One style 185 survives with a factory added
Tibia Clausa and was likely the prototype of the Styles F and 200 2/8
that saw great production.  Enough minutia?

Merry Christmas indeed!
Tom DeLay


(Message sent Thu 24 Dec 2009, 20:07:25 GMT, from time zone GMT-0800.)

Key Words in Subject:  Organs, Roll-playing, Theater

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