On Fri, 12 Jan 2001, Tim Trager wrote about the trashing of heritage
for profit.  A similar situation existed (exists?) with the large pipe
organs in the Philadelphia Wanamaker store, and Atlantic City's
convention hall.  They are played to death and maintenance staff
is cut smaller and smaller until they become just loss items on the
balance sheet.  Why keep a 200-rank string section running when you can
use the space to sell Calvin Klein jock straps?

I once held the perverse wish that the Japanese or Austrians would
buy both and install them in some large culture palace in Tokyo or
Vienna where they would be lovingly maintained and played.  The sheer
embarrassment of the situation (I dreamed) would give pause to the
financial raptors destroying what's left.  I don't hold this any more
since it is a vain hope.  Even if such a thing happened, I doubt that
the money-grubbers would even notice or care.

No, folks, it's up to us, the collectors, musicians and technicians
to keep this thing alive.  People like the fellow I met at the Dallas
Fairground who owns and maintains the Wurlitzer playing daily on the
merry-go-round because he loves it and thinks it is a good thing to do.
He's repairing and fixing the horses for the same reason.

Here's a futile thought:  The big mega-collecters open up their temples
and advertise/encourage people to come and play the instruments.
They'd lose money hand over fist doing it, but wouldn't it be fun?

George Bogatko
http://www.inluxeditions.com/