A perennial topic that has sparked a lot of posts this month is the
availability of music rolls.  It seems there are quite a number of
enthusiasts out there who have high expectations of roll cutters,
perhaps too high.

I am sure there are situations where there is an unreasonable wait for
a roll or a set of rolls, and this posting doesn't want to excuse that.
However, collectors can simply not expect to log onto a web site and
choose any obscure title from an encyclopaedic list of offerings and
have it delivered in a few days, all for a few bucks.  If that is
someone's attitude, and it has been expressed in this forum, I suggest
they go to Wal-Mart and look for rolls there.

Good rolls will always be a specialty product, and if a buyer can't
be bothered to do a bit of legwork and inquiring, write an email to
a supplier or make a phone call, they don't deserve the pleasure of
listening to a fine roll.

I am not a roll cutter, but I know enough about the process to
understand the huge amount of labor that goes into each roll: the
scanning, editing, perforator set-up, paper trimming, spooling, leader
attaching, label making, boxing and warehousing -- never mind the
hassles and expense of sourcing original rolls, paper, boxes, stocking
and warehousing all this plus the rolls and so on.

Then there is the whole development side of things, from the roll
scanner and software design to the perforator.  It all has to flow into
the equation somewhere and be worth while in the end.

I have been following the progress of Thomas Jansen in this regard
(http://maesto.com/index.html)  Strangely, his name rarely comes up
when scanning and recutting is talked about; he doesn't even appear
in many so-called directories.  But he is truly a pioneer in this area.

Thomas has been cutting rolls commercially for around ten years now.
His optical scanner, editing software and computer controlled punch was
one of, if not the, first successful unit made.  It is still running
today, after tens of thousands of rolls for least thirty different
formats from 5" to 15" wide, from 20 tracks to 150 tracks.

After seeing his operation, one gets a lot of respect for what is takes
to get involved in such an enterprise.  And, one realizes why a good
roll can cost as much as it does.  Which for many instruments, by the
way, is still a lot less than the original rolls cost in their day.

Support your roll cutters, give them credit where credit is due,
encourage them to stick to it and not give up.  No one is getting rich
at producing small runs of excellent rolls.

Jurgen Goering
Vancouver Island