Don Teach wrote:

> I personally find the coin operated player pianos with their stained
> glass fronts and quarter sawn oak cabinets to be more attractive than
> many cars.  A steam locomotive still holds the attention of anyone
> standing near it as does the sound of a fine old player piano.

From my experience as a monkey organ grinder, I'd say that a plain
player piano, with a live person pumping the pedals and working the
expression controls, will hold more attention from onlookers than will
a motor-driven, fully automated nickelodeon.

People seem more interested in a small organ being cranked by a live
person, who is also working stop knobs and animating his monkey puppet,
than they are in the big band organs have much more interesting sound.

Man-machine interaction is exciting.  Think of the great books and
movies about submarines, aircraft, space ships, ships, auto racing --
it isn't the machines, it's the way people and machines work together
that captures the imagination.

I love the big organs and orchestrions too, but most people seem to
like having someone using their hands and feet.

Mike Knudsen