I have just finished reading three possibly rare early British books
written for the Pianolist (the person who plays the piano player/player
piano/pianola), lent to me by my fellow collector John Simpson here
in Oz.  They are:-

1. The Pianolist, by Gustav Kobbe. Sydney Appleton, London. 1908.  With
a chapter on 'The charm of playing a musical instrument your self'.

2. The Piano-Player and its Music, by Ernest Newman. Grant Richards
Ltd, London. 1920.

3.  How to use a Player-Piano, by Harry Ellingham. Grant Richards Ltd,
London. 1922.

To me the latter book is the better of the three, with good chapters
on 'How to play' and 'How to accompany'.  Books 2. and 3. are from a
series called The Musicians Handbooks.

Here is some of the 'charm' from book 1. p10.

  "What formerly was an insuperable obstacle, the lack of technical
  facility -- the real inability to play -- absolutely has been done
  away with. There is no excuse for anybody not playing who wants to.
  The pianola furnishes the technique, the dexterity, the finger fa-
  cility, or whatever you may choose to call it. So far as this is
  concerned the instrument itself makes you a virtuoso -- places you
  on a par with Liszt, Paderewski or Rosenthal. It does so mechani-
  cally, yet without the sharpness and insistent preciseness of a
  machine. Its action is pneumatic and the effect of the compressed
  air is to impart to its "touch" -- the manner in which its "fingers"
  strike the keys -- an elasticity which at least is comparable with
  the touch of human fingers".

A 'must' read if you can catch up with them.

Ian McDonald