•Several people have asked me about how I derived the scale I used in our Foster piano, and why. First, let me say that I would never impose this scale on a high quality piano. But as a pianist, I feel that the "no name" or cheaper pianos can be improved simply by changing the way these piano were s...

•In Digest 970901 Ingmar Krause writes: > By the way: The minimum size to play a lot of music would be 12 notes, > which is one octave. (Now, who is going to discuss this with me? :))) This reminded me of an entry in Pierce's Piano Atlas (p. 360), which shows a picture of Bob Pierce and a spinet wit...

•I'm slightly surprised it takes someone from this side of the pond to confirm that Aeolian Music Rolls were indeed an offshoot of the Aeolian- American Corporation. I have a folder of old invoices downstairs to prove it ! I bought these rolls in some quantity for only about two years around 1968-9...

•Greetings, This is not a request regarding a player piano, but one out of the annals of strange and innovative late 30's-early 40's modern. I just acquired a 1939 Story & Clark Storytone, serial # 153152, voiced by RCA Victor. It has no soundboard; it's strung similar to a normal spinet, with a har...

•In the last Digest Gary Rasmussen wrote: > Mister Rogers first hand-played a piano, then visited the local music > store where he played a newer, studio size, foot-pumped 88-note pumper > player. I could not see the brand of the piano. Hi Gary: I seen that too. I am pretty sure the player was one o...

•I was wondering if anyone had contributed articles about Father Jim Miller, a Greek Orthodox catholic priest, who lives in Fenton, Michigan? I was at his house today to begin piano lessons. He has an extremely impressive home. The house itself I guess to be built in the 20's, it's a two story home...

•Hi All, Regarding Wayne's Rachmaninoff CD, I am a bit confused at the odd reference to the old Victor records that Douglas Henderson has made. I honestly don't see how Rachmaninoff's playing could ever be judged by an old 78-rpm record! Fact is, the audio quality just isn't there. It would never co...

•There was indeed an aluminum piano on board the Hindenburg. It was custom built, of course, and was apparently somewhat of a marvel. I used to know who built it, but memory fails. In the movie, the character Joseph Spah (an actual Hindenburg passenger portrayed by an actor who looked just like him)...

•Saw Doug Henderson's item on the new Duo-Arts and noticed the remark on the "rest of the players being frozen in time". The good and bad news is that in the 1980's, when Universal Piano Co. in Los Angeles was making 88-note players, I walked into Carty Piano Co. one day and Universal Piano had brou...

•I have been hesitant to enter into this discussion. The last time I took part in the MMD about my band organ music on a vintage phono- graph recording, I got clobbered for days on end from far and wide. Thankfully I was vindicated in the end. Time period 1958 to 1960. In a music store in Smiths Fal...

•Mike Kinsler had asked about his memory image of a piano-equipped passenger lounge on a Boeing 747 airplane. Today I did some investi- gation with a "Boeingite" and learned that Mike's memory likely isn't faulty. Among the first 747s delivered, Pan-Am, TWA and United received planes with passenger ...

•Hi all, This is in regards to the Pianomation thread running presently. I agree almost totally with D. L Bullock's analysis of the problems associated with key lift problems. Now, to throw my stick into the works... I was recently in Seneca, PA, talking to both Mark and John Omiatek regarding insta...

•Hi Gang, Why aren't full size uprights made anymore? The public probably wouldn't buy them, but the _pianists_ probably would. What would be wrong with building brand new 52" or 54" upright players? Hey, Story & Clark are you listening? (Rattling your cage here a bit!) Every since 1940 it seems, ne...

•Not sure how relevant this is to MMD, but Robbie asked, so... [ Sure it's relevant -- MMD serves the interest of the readers, [ and us old-timers enjoy trivia like this! ;) -- Robbie Baldwin's "Acrosonic" got to be almost a house brand. Some ads seemed to plug "Acrosonic" spinet pianos, with "built...

•It might be time to list again the various types of pianos. I see people referring to "upright grands", "square grands" and some other mis-applied terms. Basically there are two general types of pianos: vertical and horizontal. Examples of vertical pianos are spinet pianos, console pianos, studio p...

•Somewhere around here I have an old Broadwood piano catalog that refers to what are today called "birdcage uprights" as "Cottage uprights", while modern, overstrung, underdampered uprights are called "Upright Grands". This is the only time I've ever seen "Upright Grand" used to distinguish a partic...

•I would like to take mild exception to some things said about square pianos by Hal Davis. No, I am not incensed; I am used to folks perpetuating these ideas. The main problem with square pianos is they are ALL more than 110 years old, and most of them have not been tuned or kept well for over 50 ye...

•Hi. I am seeking an 88-note pushup, or an 88-note keytop pneumatic player (like a Dynavoice, etc.). It does not have to work. Also seeking the "plunger type" Wurlitzer spoolbox from the early solenoid type spinet action. Lastly, has anyone installed the new "optic" record strip that QRS has just in...

•Randolph Herr wrote: > If you are familiar with pianos, you know that occasionally you > run across these things. > > Perhaps there is nothing wrong in theory with this design, but in > practice it is the most despised piano in the trade, even more than > square grands! Some square grands do not de...

•Some of you may remember my introduction. When I was 12 I was fascinated by a 1914 Seeburg E and I wanted a player piano, and bugged my parents for a year. First I asked for a Yamaha Disklavier, but Dad would not give me the $6,000 to get one. (I wonder why?!) Next Mom and I looked at some 1940's p...