•-- forwarded message, please reply to sender and MMD -- I used to run a merry-go-round about 40 years ago. We used reel-to-reel tape for our music. One tape was of the band organ from the old 78 rpm records of Allan Herschell's merry-go-round company in New York. That tape I still have. The other t...

•-- non-subscriber, please reply to sender and MMD -- Hello! I'm trying to purchase a tape recording or CD of 17th century barrel organ or hurdy-gurdy music. I'm directing the play, "Playhouse Creatures", about the five first female actresses to perform on the English stage during the reign of Charl...

•You have a classic case of 'bellows cloth death'. The cloth, which came from Player Piano Company, was made with synthetic rubber and has hardened and is now about crispy. You should tape up all the ports from the bellows system, pump the reservoir closed and time how long it takes to open up -- le...

•Well this _is_ an interesting defense. And to the computer-uninformed it just might work. Most judges seem to be "computer-uninformed". Being that nowadays music is rarely recorded to a true [analog] "sound recording" (this being vinyl or analog tape) and today is almost always in a digital format...

•[ Ray Finch wrote in 040608 MMDigest: >> Being that nowadays music is rarely recorded to a true [analog] >> "sound recording" (this being vinyl or analog tape) and today >> is almost always in a digital format, This overlooks the essential difference between sound recordings, digital or analogue, a...

•Hi Group, Dave Saul wrote: >> Does anyone know of a source for production quantities of >> adhesive-backed cloth "D" ring roll tabs? The black gummed Holland tape is still available from Gane Brothers and Lane, suppliers of bookbinding supplies and equipment: Gane Brothers and Lane 1400 Greenleaf E...

•Friends: As others eloquently have said, any "performance" of a piano roll is only "authentic" if it includes the human being behind the pedals, since the maker of the roll assumed that as a given. Same with classical compositions (except avant-garde tape music and the like). As with any performanc...

•I have a Pianocorder Vorsetzer that my wife would like for me to sell. It works, and has all the parts. The tape player has been repaired, and could still probably use some work (although one might want to just scrap the tape player and replace it with a digital interface). I have no idea how much ...

•Often the "extended notes" which are so prevalent in Ampico rolls cause the paper to be weak, and long tears can occur through the chain-bridge perforations. These are difficult to repair because a tape reinforcement will cause that note to repeat. In desperate cases, go ahead and make the repair i...

•Hi Eliyahu and MMD. I have two punches, one for 88-note and one for 65-note rolls, that produce a strip of iron-on tape about 7 cm long, with three side-by-side rows of holes punched in it (two rows in the case of the 65n punch). I separate the rows with a scalpel. The iron-on tape is called Crompt...

•In July of this year I finally got my Dynavoice back on the piano and played some rolls. I was pleased to find that the mesh tape repaired rolls that had been rolled up for several years played just fine. The mesh was still pliable and did not cause any problems going over the bar. For others wishi...

•Terry, First of all, you want to be _very_ careful of the area where the organ pins/bridges are. They are very fragile and nearly impossible to replace. Watch out for the masking tape on the combs. I'd write the tuning on a piece of paper/cardboard that you can hold near the comb. The tape can caus...

•-- non-subscriber, please reply to sender and MMD -- Many years ago, I heard on PBS an astounding player-piano rendition of the song "Dixie". Do you know if there is an available tape of it? Thanks. Doug McMillan

•Hi Group, I have just finished cataloging my 5-tune Pianino rolls. I have five rolls missing titles and/or roll numbers, and I have made a tape recording of those rolls. I wondered if anyone would be willing to help identify them as some of you did with the tape of my Wurlitzer APP rolls that were ...

•The best and simplest way to curtail the tearing of piano rolls is to pull off the left flange and wrap one round of Scotch tape on the part that goes into the core of the roll. It should fit tight, now pull the left flange out about one eighth of an inch. This gives room for the roll to wander som...

•Hello group, Nicholas [Simons] has a good point of course but then again, these old machines are here for amusement and half the fun is gone if the keys don't move. One might as well have a tape recorder play. I own a Duo-Art grand piano, made in England. It plays perfectly well but the keys don't ...

•Hi Group, May I pester you with a question? I recently acquired a 1929 Wurlitzer 105 band organ. It has been heavily used and somewhat abused, the pipes repaired with duct tape and Popsicle sticks. When tuning was started it was tuned to A=424 Hz. I asked if it could be taken up to A=440, which has...

•Well, do remember Admiral Perry took one to the Arctic in the 1820's or 30's. The organ exists today in the Scott Polar Research Institute in Cambridge, England; a cassette tape was issued of it about 15 years ago. Also Captain Scott took an 88-note Broadwood to Antarctic in 1910. (There was an art...

•Pat DeWitt posed a question in MMD 060209 about sealing pouches in Ampico secondary valves. Specifically, the question of gluing the lifter disk to treated pouch leather was addressed. One method that can be used is to place a small masking tape dot on the pouch leather center. Apply the sealant an...

•Dear George, You have directed your inquiry to an illustrious group of experts, who I am sure will give you more information than I am providing. I visited the museum in the 1950's with my old reel-to-reel tape recorder, and I remember cranking and recording a barrel organ there, though probably no...