An article in today's issue of The Buffalo News, of Buffalo, New York,
says that at noon on Wednesday, December 31st, 2008, the last piano
roll was perforated at QRS Music Technologies in Buffalo, New York, 108
years after the company was founded in Chicago and 42 years since it
moved to Buffalo.

"The roll market has continued to decline, which is no surprise," said
Bob Berkman, the company's music director and manager of the Buffalo
office.  "It no longer is, nor has it been for some time, the central
part of our business.  We're still doing what we always did, which is
to provide software for pianos that play themselves.  It's just the
technology that has changed.  But I would be lying to say [the halting
of production] doesn't sadden me."

Berkman said that piano rolls were at full production in 2008, building
up a stockpile of one to two years.  The piano roll manufacturing
equipment will be sent to the QRS plant in Seneca, Pennsylvania, where
the company hopes to resume production, he said.  The full article is
at http://www.buffalonews.com/cityregion/story/538967.html 

Robbie Rhodes, MMDigest