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 > April 2018 > 2018.04.01 > 01Prev  Next


Kay Harmas, Player Piano Collector
By Roger Dayton

Kay Harmas regularly appeared at my store, Pedals Pumpers & Rolls,
in Villa Park, Illinois, in his station wagon and loaded up anything
loose for sale that interested him.  This was in the 1970s and into
the '80s, and then we did not see much of him.  Then in 2001 we
received a call that people were emptying piano related items into
dumpsters from several garages in Evanston, Illinois.

We hastened to the site and discovered two men throwing piano legs,
parts and rolls into a dumpster.  We arranged to load up the largest
of the player grands, a 9-1/2-foot Steinway Duo-Art, and boxes of rolls
and went back with two trucks for the other seven player grands, two
wretched nickelodeons and eight thousand rolls, plus other items that
were already in the dumpster.

We also learned that Kay Harmas was either in the hospital dying of
a brain tumor, or had already passed, and the owners of the apartment
building had a court order to clear out the garages.  Pedals Pumpers
& Rolls had the Steinway completely restored and later sold to a
collector in the Chicago area.  The 9-1/2-foot Steinway turned out to
be a wonderful instrument and was a pleasure to restore since it was
still trying to play in mostly original condition.

Roger Dayton - Pedals Pumpers & Rolls
Greenville, South Carolina
http://www.pedalspumpersrolls.com/ 


(Message sent Sun 1 Apr 2018, 17:57:50 GMT, from time zone GMT-0700.)

Key Words in Subject:  Collector, Harmas, Kay, Piano, Player

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