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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
The Mission of the Record Roll and Its Success in Making the Player-
Piano Appeal to Many Who Hitherto Claimed it Incapable of Produc-
ing Artistic Effects—Work of Dealer and Demonstrator Made Easier.
The purpose of this article is to speak of hand-
played (so-called) rolls. It is a good topic at this
particular time. It had been observed, even be-
fore the present European situation developed, that
the music roll business was in a somewhat drag-
ging state; that it was, in fact, very largely de-
pendent for its continuance upon the persistent
publication of all the latest ephemeralities. It had
become a case of "grind out new stuff in a hurry"
and keep the public asking for it.
A short time ago we were talking with a well-
known Western music-roll man. Th:? gentleman
informed us that during the previous twelve
months the greatest number of copies sold by his
company of any single so-called "classic" roll was
seven! He was, of course, referring to the ordi-
nary, not to the hand-played, edition. Let us con-
sider for a moment what this means.
Of course, it means that the public demands
something else. We all know that without having
to set it down here. But also it means that nobody
is trying to direct the public taste along better
lines. Why is this?
Viewpoint on the "Classic" Roll.
If you ask the intelligent dealer he will tell
you, and truthfully enough, that the trouble lies
in the fact that scarcely anybody can "make any
sense" out of the so-called "classic" roll. To the
ordinary ear, trained only to the crudest melody
and rawest harmony, the subtleties of art music
are too much. The complaint is, of course, quite
just, and must rightly be heeded by the dealer who
would wish to satisfy his clients.
Now, however, comes the record-roll, sometimes
called the "hand-played" roll, and offers to the un-
educated music lover not alone the bare notes and
the bare ability sufficient to reproduce them, but
also the artistic phrase-conception of a finished
musician, so that the form and design of the piece
at once are made intelligible to anyone who is
musically inclined enough to recognize them.
Here, in fact, appears to be a solution of the whole
problem, and a very interesting and valuable solu-
tion.
Nevertheless, we find that the hand-played roll
has by no means led to the revolution in piano-
player itaste that might have been expected. If
we are to get out of the hand-played roll, the com-
mercial advantages rightly to be anticipated, we
must understand first what the whole means. Let
us try to do this.
What Is the Hand-Played Roll?
The hand-played roll is in reality a record of
the phrasing which an artist conceives in his study
of a piece and works out in his playing. Phrasing
is the grouping of the notes in regard to their
succession in time. The hand-played roll, there-
fore, gives us the proper speed, and the proper
modification of that general speed as these take
place from moment to moment. Thus, it gives
us what is perhaps the most difficult part of play-
ing—the ability to conceive and carry out a definite
presentation of a piece in a manner at once intelli-
gible and intelligent.
The varying degrees of softness and loudness,
and the equally important matter of the sustaining
pedal and its use, are not provided for in the
ordinary hand-played roll, so far as concerns giving
an automatic reproduction of the way in which the
artist does these things. In other words, unless
we have a player mechanism specially designed for
the purpose, we cannot reproduce all the elements
of playing automatically, although we can and do
reproduce the phrasing. Of course, there are play-
ers that do this, but we are speaking of the ordi-
nary player-piano.
The performer, then, is faced by the necessity
for providing his own conception of dynamic treat-
ment and of sustaining-pedal use. It is necessary
for him to follow the indications provided on the
roll to guide him in these matters, or else to work
out his own conception. Yet, even with these limi-
tations the record or hand-played roll is by all
means to be regarded as a meritorious and valua-
ble development.
Now, it can easily be seen that the use of these
rolls is of the utmost value to the dealer and to
the music-loving public alike. Speaking from the
dealer's point of view, it is surely right to say that
the record roll is a god-send to him, and this for
two reasons: The first reason is that the hand-
played roll avoids the awful travesty of playing
that the usual salesman makes when he undertakes
to demonstrate. The player-piano may indeed be
that "noise-maker" for the dear public which many
dealers seem to think it is, but the intelligent sec-
tion of the public does not want that sort of thing,
and the hand-played roll does help to get away
from it. So the dealer should cultivate the hand-
played roll, if only for that reason.
within a short time. For consider what this means.
If it can be shown to the intelligent person that the
"mechanical" effect of the player is mainly due,
as indeed it is, to the fact that scarcely anybody
ever seems to get the knack of reproducing artistic
phrasing by manipulation of the tempo lever, and
that this stiff phrasing is at the bottom of the
whole trouble, it will be an easy matter to show
that when the phrasing is once attended to the rest
will take care of itself. Once bring this idea to
bear on the consciousness of the prospect, showing
in its inner meaning to him in a practical way and
you have him.
Helps Player Sales with the Public.
Many, many people are refusing to buy players
because they do not believe them to be capable of
true artistic effect. Art, be it understood by the
player dealer, is the application of principles to
an intelligent end. Art consequently involves crea-
tion and intelligent expression, and intelligent ex-
pression is exactly what is not given by blind
following of a set tempo on an ordinary roll, and
is given by the hand-played roll, even if less than
altogether perfectly.
From every point of view, except, perhaps, that
of the really finished player pianist, the hand-
played roll comes as a blessing unmixed. Its use
will continue to furnish a practical preachment on
the value and beauty of fine music. It becomes an
educator of the highest value. Its use is not con-
fined to the ignorant music lover, but through it
the conceptions of artists may be preserved for all
time. The hand-played roll is useful to every-
body, indicating the dawning of a new day for the
player-piano and for the player industry. The
dealer who is wise will push it intelligently after
an intelligent study of its possibilities.
The Dealer's Duty and Responsibility.
Again, the realer should push the hand-played
roll among his unmusical customers, because by
so doing he avoids the complaint so commonly
made that the player-piano sounds dreadfully "me-
chanical." Of course it does! Can anything be
conceived more hideous than the grinding out of a
long Liszt rhapsody at one single unvarying tempo
by a persistent "operator" intent on getting the last
ounce of dynamic energy out of the patient piano?
That is what we hear every day whenever we walk
along a street of apartment houses. And the
dealer who does not see that this sort of musical
murder is harming 'his player business must be
particularly blind. All this is, to an extent at least,
avoided by the use of the hand-played roll. So
far so good.
To the music lover who has ever considered the
use of a player-piano, but has hesitated, as so
many have, the hand-played roll comes as the very
thing that is needed. The dealer who can see this
fact can work a miracle in his player department
(Special to The Review.)
WASHINGTON, D. C, October 24.—William T.
PLAYER-PIANO ^EDAL MECHANISM.
Waite, Laporte, Ind., was last week granted patent
No. 1,114,074 for a player-piano pedal mechanism,
which he has assigned to the Orpheola Co., same
place, which has particular reference to the
mechanism for positioning the pedals, which in
pianos of this general type are adapted to be
swung from operative position outside the piano
case to inoperative position within the case when
the instrument is to be played bv hand.
The primary object of the present invention is
the provision of novel mechanism for positively
moving the player pedals from operative to in-
operative position and vicj versa.
SECURES SEYBOLD AGENCY.
The F. N. Goosman Piano Co., Toledo, Ohio,
which handles the Hallet & Davis and other lines
of instruments very successfully in that city, has
recently secured the agency for Toledo and
vicinity for the Seybold reed pipe organs.
The Master Player-Piano
is now equipped with an
AUTOMATIC TRACKING DEVICE
Which guarantees absolutely correct tracking of even the most imperfect music rolls
W I N T E R & CO., 220 Southern Boulevard, New York City