[ Ref. Paul Lehrman in 101105 MMDigest ]

So -- some film producer wants to shoot a film to include a
self-playing piano in a scene from the early 20th century, and
and has specifically asked for a Pianomation equipped piano.

This will be a great one for those people who look for 'movie
mistakes', i.e., anachronistic and non-contemporaneous elements
within scenes.

Wouldn't it be better for us to persuade this chap to use a piano
which was actually made in the era to be represented?  This would
add authenticity and interest to the scene, and would also educate
the masses.

Nicholas Simons, GB

 [ Paul Lehrman explains,
 [
 [ "It's actually more complicated than one might guess.  I looked
 [ at all the alternatives before posting my message.  I'm not free
 [ to tell you the details at this point, but what I need is a piano
 [ that is MIDI-controlled but that looks like it was made in the
 [ 1920s.  This leaves out Yamaha Disklaviers, but since Pianomation
 [ can be installed in any piano, I am hoping to find an older piano
 [ with that system installed.
 [
 [ "No one will actually be playing this piano in the shoot; if the
 [ camera angles are done carefully so that the player mechanism is
 [ not seen, I won't have to worry about visual anachronisms."
 [
 [ -- Editor