Hi all,  As many of you know, I have a web site documenting my efforts
to optically scan and preserve our aging piano rolls, and offering the
resulting MIDI files free for download to anyone who cares to listen
-- http://www.pianola.co.nz/ 

One of the unexpected side benefits has been contact from the relatives
of various roll artists, namely Pete Wendling (QRS), Edgar Fairchild
(Ampico), Lettie Keyes (Mastertouch), Howard Lutter (Artempo/Welte) and
many more.  One of the most exciting was from the daughter of Artempo
artist Leo Schornstein.

I'd put up a photo of Leo from a scanned Artempo catalogue, and
a brief note speculating he was one of the pseudonyms Artempo used.
His daughter, Bernice, saw this, recognised her father, and wrote in to
tell me about his life, which made a lovely addition to his biography
page.  At one time he'd related to her how he ended up making rolls:

  'First of all, he never actually took piano lessons and he played
  by ear!  He did take violin lessons and learned about chords and
  harmony.  I have a number of books that he must have purchased where
  he evidently learned what he could.  When he was about 18 he was at
  a party playing piano for his friends very late at night and someone
  came knocking on the door to ask who was playing.  My father said
  when he was telling me this story that he was "scared stiff".  The
  man was from the Artempo Company.  He gave my father his card and
  told him to come see him about making piano rolls.  He did explain
  to me how the rolls were made.  Of course, we did have a player
  piano at home and my father embellished the melodies on the piano
  rolls we did have by punching additional holes.  I was always
  fascinated by the whole process.  He continued to teach piano until
  he died in 1969.'

I only own two rolls played by Leo Schornstein, but when Bernice heard
the MIDIs via email she was so emotional that she was moved to tears,
hence this appeal to MMD.

Would you all be able to check your roll collections for any Artempo
rolls "Played by Leo Schornstein" and let me know the titles and serial
numbers?  It would be great to pass on some more information to Bernice.
If you feel the roll is one you wouldn't mind letting go of, I'm sure
she would be thrilled to purchase a few.

Regards,
Robert Perry
Auckland, New Zealand
http://www.pianola.co.nz/