In the time around 1900, neither Hupfeld nor Welte nor any other manufacturer thought about the fact that after more than 100 years, their music rolls would always be
First of all - the following statements do not replace legal advice and do not claim to be correct or complete, any liability is excluded. In specific cases please contact
In 2020 Stanford University / Stanford Libraries digitized the actually still preserved AMPICO ARTIST RECORD book (308 pages) from the late 1920s, the Alan H.
Most of the pieces recorded on reproduction rolls are piano solo pieces. Nevertheless, rolls were also produced which were intended for song accompaniment and were as
In view of the comparatively high prices (approx. an average annual income) of the pianola and Vorsetzer as well as the corresponding music scores, it was mainly wealthy and very rich people who owned these
Only very well-off members of the growing upper middle class and the rich and very rich upper class were able to acquire a pianola and buy additional rolls of music. Considering,
As it is so often the case with big developments, it was several brilliant persons who made Welte-Mignon to this world success. Bockisch-Welten-Popper-Feurich (photo from the magazine for instrument making No
The basic principle of all pianolas is the same. Strongly simplified: Via pedals or an electrically operated suction air blower a negative pressure is generated in the closed self-playing mechanism. Via a playback and a
"Pianola" as a collective term for self-playing upright and grand pianos hardly suggests the great variety of these instruments. This variety is due to the successive development of the technical
The name "Pianola" is actually a product name for the self-playing mechanism built around 1895 by Edwin Votey, which was very popular from 1897 onwards by the Aeolian Company New York.
In order to familiarise yourself a little with the structure of the instrument, a brief description of the essential elements is given here. A more detailed description of the individual elements