I would really appreciate any help in locating a copy of a Duo Art
recording of 12th Street Rag (Bowman), played by (?).  Object: duet with
Steinway Duo-Art and Aeolian residence organ.  An old copy not needed
or a recut would be great; am willing to pay any reasonable amount.

Also, I have really learned a lot in the disaster stories for signs to
look for in my collecting.  I too have encountered many sad products of
the "Why do it right when we can do it half-assed" school of thought.
The most blatant was a beautiful Aeolian Orchestrelle, with a burl
walnut case, that someone had chopped the tracker bar out with a
hatchet and spliced aquarium tubing with putty to a 88 note tracker bar
and sawed through all the stop connectors to access the reeds.  I felt,
as a florist, like sending funeral flowers to the instrument.

The owner, a supposed instrument restorer and collector, assured me
that a box full of spare parts would do the repair trick.  Thankfully
I ran and lost the contact number for that one!

John McClure, Marietta, GA