It was refreshing to read in 191229 MMD about the recording Denis
Condon and I made in 1978 with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra of Percy
Grainger playing the Grieg Piano Concerto.  Here's a bit of background.

The Duo-Art Vorsetzer used to play the rolls was my construction, and
incorporated all the aspects Denis wanted in this modern iteration of
a Vorsetzer.  The only Duo-Art part in the entire thing was a tracker
bar.

It had electric solenoids to operate the pedals, an electric roll
drive, a late model Amphion player stack and Ampico B suction regulators
controlled electronically via a bank of electric valves triggered by
optical sensors connected to pneumatic valves responding to expression
perforations.

To synchronise orchestra and rolls, Denis and Robert Mitchell drew bar
lines on the rolls, after deleting the orchestral notes.  We punched
holes in the rolls to cause it to stop just before the next piano entry,
and Denis would press a button on the conductor's beat to start the roll
playing.  Conductor John Hopkins later remarked it was like looking at
railway tracks!

The recording sold around the world, winning awards in the USA and UK,
and put the Sydney Symphony Orchestra on the world map, as it was the
orchestra's first international recording.  Following this success, we
then recorded Grainger's performance of the Tschaikovsky Piano Concerto
a few years later with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.  However, it
was impossible to synchronise orchestra and Grainger in some parts, so
the recording was only issued locally.

Keeping up the roll and orchestra thing, readers may be interested
to know that on January 18th and 19th, 2020, the Cincinnati Orchestra
is accompanying Gershwin's roll recordings of Rhapsody in Blue.  I am
providing the MIDI file, combined with a click track, and my role is
mainly advisory in matters MIDI and synchronism.  This event culminates
many months of work during 2019 producing a click track and removing
the last vestiges of the accompaniment.

My only concern is going from steamy, hot, smoke-laden Sydney to
freezing temperatures that we never get here -- perhaps a welcome
relief!  If any MMDers are there on these days, please say hi.

Peter Phillips
Sydney
https://petersmidi.com/