MECHANICAL MUSIC

Journal of the Musical Box Society International Devoted to All Automatic Musical Instruments
Volume 67, No. 5 September/October 2021

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Editor/Publisher
Russell Kasselman (253) 228-1634 editor@mbsi.org
MBSI Editorial Office:
Iron Dog Media 130 Coral Court Pismo Beach, CA 93449 editor@mbsi.org

MECHANICAL MUSIC
Journal of the Musical Box Society International
Devoted to All Automatic Musical Instruments
Volume 67, No. 5 September/October 2021

MBSI NEWS
5 President’s Message 7 Editor’s Notes 8 Outreach Corner
53 In Memoriam

Publications Chair
Bob Caletti
All manuscripts will be subject to editorial review. Articles submitted for publication may be edited or rejected at the discretion of the Publications Committee and the Editorial Staff. The article will not be published with significant changes without the author’s approval. All articles are considered to be the author’s personal opinion. The author may be asked to substantiate his/her statements.
Mechanical Music (ISSN 1045-795X) is published by the Musical Box Society International, 130 Coral Court, Pismo Beach, CA 93449 six times per year. A Direc.tory of Members, Museums and Dealers is published biennially. Domestic subscription rate, $60. Periodicals postage paid at San Luis Obispo, CA and additional mailing offices.
Copyright 2021. The Musical Box Society Inter.national, all rights reserved. Mechanical Music cannot be copied, reproduced or transmitted in whole or in part in any form whatsoever without written consent of the Editor and the Executive Committee.
MEMBERS: SEND ADDRESS CORRECTIONS TO: MBSI, PO Box 10196, Springfield, MO 65808-0196 Or, make corrections on the website at www.mbsi.org.
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Features
11 Nickel Notes by Matt Jaro
24 A Family Affair
31 A Tip on Repairing a Tuning Lead
33 An Italian Organ Grind.er’s Life
41 The SEGA Grand Pianist
47 A Fortunate Find
52 Interesting Tidbits

MBSI has replanted 146 trees so far as part of the Print ReLeaf program.

On the Cover
Matt Jaro took this detailed shot of a Hupfeld Excelsior Pan Orchester case while on a tour of the Nether.cutt Collection’s music room. Read more about the entire collection in Nickel Notes on Page 11.

M
echanical music is a fascinating hobby! It appeals to the artist, historian, craftsman, and
musician all at the same time. Play an automatic
musical instrument in a room full of people and all else
will stop as the machine enraptures the audience with the
sparkling melodies of yesteryear!

Mechanical music instruments are any sort of auto.
matically-played machine that produces melodic sound
including discs and cylinder music boxes that pluck a steel
comb; orchestrions and organs that engage many instru.
ments at once using vacuum and air pressure; player and
reproducing pianos that use variable vacuum to strike piano
wires; phonographs; and self-playing stringed, wind, and
percussion instruments of any kind.

The Musical Box Society International, chartered by the
New York State Board of Regents, is a nonprofit society
dedicated to the enjoyment, study, and preservation of
automatic musical instruments. Founded in 1949, it now
has members around the world, and supports various educational projects.
Regional chapters and an Annual Meeting held each year in different cities within the United States enable members to visit collections, exchange ideas, and attend educational workshops. Members receive six issues of the journal, Mechanical Music, which also contains advertising space for members who wish to buy, sell, and restore mechanical musical instruments and related items. Members also receive the biennial MBSI Directory of Members, Muse.ums, and Dealers.
The only requirements for membership are an interest in automatic music machines and the desire to share infor.mation about them. And you’ll take pride in knowing you are contributing to the preservation of these marvelous examples of bygone craftsmanship.
More Information online at www.MBSI.org, or
Call: (417) 886-8839, or
Email: jbeeman.mbsi@att.net
Copy this page, and give it to a potential new member. Spread the word about MBSI.
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By Tom Kuehn
MBSI President
As my term of office comes to an end, I’d like to say that it has been a privilege and an honor to serve as your president. Two years ago, at the conclusion of the business meeting in Rockville, MD, when I was elected to serve as the 37th president of MBSI, I said I would do my best to serve you. I have tried to live up to that promise.
In the course of these turbulent two years, the main disruption, caused by a global pandemic, was something no one could have seen coming. Our soci.ety, however, continued to function well even at a reduced activity level.
Chapter meetings, among our most popular events, were put on hold for the most part, but a few enterprising chapters found ways to conduct well-attended virtual meetings. One lesson learned from that experience is that virtual meetings can remain a viable option to connect those who might be unable to attend future meet.ings in person. In my opinion, face to face interactions will always be pref.erable since one never knows what topics of conversation and nuggets of information will be shared between individuals cruising the buffet table or examining a mechanical music machine at a member’s home.
In fact, I may have never completed the band organ replica I began 30 years ago if not for the tips, advice and assistance graciously provided by members of the Snowbelt Chapter. That said, however, I believe we should not shy away from using technological advancements like virtual meetings to continue to share our wonderful hobby with as many people as we can. Distance and disease don’t exist in the virtual world, which means even those who live far away or are recuperating from illness or injury can still enjoy fellowship with other members and experience the wonderful music and machines we all love.

Our publication, Mechanical Music, continues to be a high-quality font of information thanks to everyone who contributes articles, the extensive list of those who review each issue before it goes to press and our very capable editor, Russell Kasselman. Don’t hesitate to contact him if you have something interesting to share with the rest of us. Also don’t forget that past issues and articles are available on our website should you wish to search for a specific topic.
Several forms, our website and copies of Mechanical Music articles are now available in languages besides English. This should assist those who are not native English speakers and attract new members from around the world to our international organization.
Our society would not function without the dedication of a large number of members who volunteer their time and talents for chapter meetings, annual meetings, society committees and leadership positions. Approximately 60 individuals are listed near the back of each issue of Mechanical Music, but I know the total number of volunteers who make our society great is much larger than that.
I want to thank each of you for continuing to support our society. We have endured difficult times together and I think everyone looks forward to resuming more normal activities. I encourage you to continue to share your knowledge and enthusiasm with those who may not be familiar with our hobby.
Keep the music flowing!

Mail any MBSI Editorial / Advertising materials to 130 Coral Court, Pismo Beach, CA 93449 Emails with attachments can be sent to editor@mbsi.org
MBSI MEMBERSHIP DRIVE EACH ONE/REACH ONE NEW MEMBER
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Current MBSI members who sponsor a new member will receive a $5 discount off their next year’s MBSI membership renewal for each sponsorship. Attach a copy of the discount voucher below to a copy of the membership application form on Page 4 of this issue of Mechanical Music. Place your name as “sponsor” on the application form.
Please make copies of these forms as needed and send the completed forms with checks to the MBSI administrator at the address listed below.

been members of MBSI or those who have not been members for three years prior to submission of this certiÿcate.
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Address, City, State, ZIP Phone Email Sponsor
SPECIAL OFFER: Purchase one or more ÿrst-year MBSI gift memberships at $45 each U.S., $55 Canadian, or $60 other Interna.tional and you will receive $5 off your next year’s MBSI membership renewal for each “New Member” gift.
Please mail this form together with your check made payable to “MBSI” to the MBSI Administrator at the address listed above. Memberships are $45 for U.S. residents, $55 for Canadian residents, and $60 for other International residents.
Editor’s Notes
By Russell Kasselman
MBSI Editor/Publisher
It’s rare when I get a chance to share a bit of a timely news story in this space so I’m excited to get to it, but,
before I do, I want to say a huge thank you to all the wonderful writers who contributed to making this another fantastic issue. In order of appear.ance, Jack Hostetler, Matt Jaro, Henry Bennett, Jamie Brewer, Dr. Robert Penna, Uwe Generet, Harold Wade and Paul Senger all deserve big pats on the back for contributing visually interesting and mentally stimulating content for all of us to enjoy. There is so much to this hobby, I feel like I’m learning something new each time I put together another issue. I encour.age everyone to keep sending in articles that let us all learn and grow together in our pursuit of mechanical music nirvana.
Now, to timely news. Recently, I received a letter from Musical Box Society of Great Britain Vice-President Alison Biden that really didn’t look like it would fit anywhere else in this issue so I’ve chosen to include it here.
“I wonder if you would care to publish this letter in Mechanical Music to bring members of the MBSI up-to.date with developments surrounding one of the subjects I included in my workshop at the 2019 convention in Rockville? Those who were present may remember my talking about the precarious future of a rare Imhof & Mukle orchestrion which had been installed under the stairs in Kinloch Castle, an Edwardian-era hunting lodge on the Scottish Island of Rum. Not only was the orchestrion (often referred to, albeit erroneously, as ‘Queen Victoria’s Orchestrion’) deteriorating, but the entire castle, which had been left to the state by its last private owner, was in danger of falling into ruin. A charitable organi.zation, the Friends of Kinloch Castle Association, was hoping to raise enough funds to rescue both the castle and its contents.
Following the impact of Covid on tourism, and the restrictions on movement generally, it has been decided by the owner (Scottish Nature – the equivalent of the English National Trust) to put it up for sale. This has been reported widely in the British press, although reports vary as to whether the asking price is a nominal £1 (GBP) or a modest £70K.
This is an opportunity for someone to own a piece of Scottish heritage – as well as a fine mechanical musical instrument — although any would-be purchaser is advised that the orches.trion requires repairs last estimated at £50,000, and the ‘castle’ requires several million spent to restore it.
Good background information can be found at https://bit.ly/2VOhOVq. It is also possible to learn more by
MAILING ADDRESS
MBSI Editorial / Advertising 130 Coral Court Pismo Beach, CA 93449
EMAIL ADDRESS
editor@mbsi.org
PHONE
(253) 228-1634
searching ‘Kinloch Castle’ on the
internet:
One hopes a benefactor will come
forward so the orchestrion, if not the
castle, may be saved.
Kind regards
Alison”
This sort of information seems like it plays directly to our society’s mission, which calls for MBSI to cooperate with individuals and other organizations in exhibiting automatic music for the education of the general public. Our mission statement also encourages the society to generally stimulate interest in automatic music. (Read the full mission statement at www.mbsi.org/about/mission.)
I’m certainly not advocating for the society to take direct action on this particular item since that would be something best left to the Board of Trustees and might likely need to be voted on by the full membership.
My only goal here is to expose a wonderful opportunity for any one member or group of members of this society to support the continued pres.ervation of this significant place and the mechanical music within.

Welcome new members!
David VanSciver & Lowell Collins June 2021 Marlton, NJ Daniel Walker Greg Minuskin Renton, WA Tustin, CA Lanny Hunter Sponsor: Don CaineSarasota, FL Sponsor: Glen Gurwit July 2021MaryHope Milligan Amanda HoStatesville, NC North Brunswick, NJBarrie Wright Kathleen & Terry Hillis Fairfax, VA Nevada City, CA Russell Kriegel & Mark Williams San Jose, CA Robert Howard Newport News, VA Elizabeth & Thomas Fisher-York Ithaca, NY Allen Salyer Troy, MI Rich LeVangie & Kathy Dunn Nashua, NH Kim Westphalen Lakewood Ranch, FL Dean Bullock & Bryan Malone Folsom, CA

Special exhibit opportunities abound
By Jack Hostetler
Special Exhibits Committee Member,
Southeast Chapter
I am writing this article to point out opportunities that surely exist in your hometown for special exhibits of mechanical music. Every town has festivals, parades, restored antique homes and buildings, science centers, outdoor parks and other venues that welcome our special exhibits. One selling point they all love is when members of our society offer to put on an exhibit for free! Let me tell you a bit about how the Southeast Chapter makes sharing our hobby happen here in The Villages, FL.
Mary-Ann and I joined MBSI in 2012. We quickly formed a small local club called the Mechanical Music Society of The Villages. I was sure that this club could help smooth the path for MBSI to put on special exhibits of instruments and present information to others who might find an interest in this hobby in The Villages. So far, it’s worked very well and the society has gained some new members through our efforts.
Our club began planning special exhibits for The Villages almost immediately. I contacted Wayne and Mary Ellen Myers to see what the international society might do to bring mechanical music machines here for display. Wayne and Mary Ellen agreed to visit The Villages to see how this city of over-55-year-olds functioned.
We contacted the city’s recreation department and they arranged for us to participate in a two-day Christmas exhibit that would run alongside an annual model railroad club exhibit. This was in 2013.
Our first show was a success. We had a room filled with music machines and several MBSI members attended to demonstrate and talk about them. Hundreds of people came through the display, and it has since become an annual event.

Over time, our display grew larger, and we found that some machines were louder than others, so we now use two rooms. One room is for softer playing machines and the other for the more outspoken. We also had a Wurlitzer 105 organ parked on a trailer outside the recreation center to welcome people as they arrived in the parking lot. Our 2021 show will be our eighth annual presentation. We “lost” last year to the pandemic.
Wayne and Mary Ellen developed a teaching exercise that allows children to build and decorate their own music box. They introduced this event at the Orlando Science Center several years ago and continue to present it at our special exhibit with great success.
The Villages Recreation Depart.ment heard of the program and they contacted us to see if we would be willing to put on an encore. They present programs every summer for visiting grandchildren to work with grandparents, called Summer Camp. We have now presented our Summer Camp music box building program six times as of this year. We usually see 30 or more children with grandparents taking part in building a music box. They also learn how music is made in the box.

Mary Ellen Myers assists Summer Campers with their music box construc.tion project.
Our indoor activities came to the attention of the The Villages Enter.tainment Department, which is in charge of providing outdoor activities. They asked if we could have a display at one of their festivals. We said sure. So, for three years now we have had a display in the downtown area during a festival and parade. We had lots of people come to our display attracted by the large organ on a trailer (our “Pied Piper”).
Word then got around in The Villages that we could present wonderful displays for both indoor and outdoor events, and all free! I was contacted by a group that has been restoring a home built ca. 1892. The Baker House, as it is called, was the home of a Florida senator who moved there in 1890 or so. The group restoring the house asked if we might display some mechanical music machines from that period in the house during their annual Legacy Festival. I said we sure would.
I displayed my Concert Roller Organ and my Edison Home Phonograph in the front parlor. Many people came to see the house and were fascinated with the machines and music from that time. I repeated the exhibit the next year. Each time was another opportunity to talk about MBSI and the mechanical music hobby.

In 2020, the pandemic caused the Legacy Festival to be canceled. Even so, we received another request to put on a show-and-tell at a local Rotary club. We were ready to go, but the meeting was put on hold until Rotary meetings can resume. We will be ready when they are.
In summary, our experiences so far have shown us that MBSI special exhibits are well received everywhere because they offer good music, wonderful machines with history, nostalgia, and entertainment. Plus, the organizers of these events love that we do it for free!
All you need to do to get started is to contact someone in charge of festivi.ties in your area. Perhaps start with your local chamber of commerce, Rotary or Lions club, or even your city’s recreation department. Offer to conduct your exhibit along with what.ever other displays are happening at the time. You might even consider presenting single-day exhibits at a high school or nearby college in association with a celebration of a historically significant date or other holiday event or even at an assisted care facility.

All it takes is one good presentation to start spreading the word that you are available to present an exhibit that will entertain crowds and soon you will be quite popular!
Bring advertising pamphlets (avail.able from the MBSI administrator) and registration forms for MBSI to display next to your exhibits. We have signed up several new MBSI members at our exhibits and we’d love to see you do the same. Putting on a special exhibit of mechanical music at a local event where people can experience the joy of this hobby is a win-win situation if ever there was one.

Nickel Notes
By Matthew Jaro

The Nethercutt Collection
The Nethercutt Collection in Sylmar, CA (near Los Angeles), houses the largest array of mechanical musical instruments on public display in the United States. J.B. Nethercutt, along with his aunt, Merle Norman, founded Merle Norman Cosmetics. J.B. started collecting and restoring antique auto.mobiles in 1956. In 1971, he and his wife, Dorothy, built a museum which has been free to the public since its inception. The first tours began in 1974. Now, J.B.’s eldest son, Jack, is head of the corporation and the museum foundation.
This article chronicles a conver.sation I had with the curator of the mechanical music collection and master technician. His name is Kyle B. Irwin.
The start of the mechanical music collection
I knew that the Nethercutt Collec.tion had started with automobiles, so I asked how J.B. Nethercutt became interested in mechanical music. Kyle said that J.B. had already started construction on a building to house his collection when he decided to buy his wife a present. He found a beautiful cloisonné music box. It was the size of a powder box (about three inches). When you played it, a little bird would pop up and sing. While shopping for the music box, J.B. couldn’t help but notice the large display of nickelode.ons and orchestrions around him. Why? Well, because he happened to be shopping at Hathaway and Bowers!
For our younger readers, let me

In the Grand Salon room of the music building are even more cars. The floor below and the floor above this are filled with music
boxes, automata, French furniture and more.
explain that Hathaway and Bowers, the store named for owners Terry Hathaway and Q. David Bowers, was a source for all types of mechanical musical instruments. Located in Santa Fe Springs, CA, the store had a sales floor where you could buy almost any instrument. Hathaway and Bowers published catalogs that created intense public interest in the instruments we all know and love today. It would be hard to overestimate their influence on the hobby of collecting mechanical music machines. Older readers might remember that in the 1950s nickel.odeons were being destroyed in large numbers because they were consid.ered obsolete machines with little or no value. European mechanical music machines were largely unknown in the United States at the time. Hatha.way and Bowers helped turn the tide and made mechanical music machines attractive and valuable again.
Anyway, J.B. Nethercutt looked around at all the wonderful machines, asking Hathaway and Bowers to demonstrate them. Kyle said J.B. just went a little nuts with it. He loved music and anything mechanical (cars, trains, etc.). He literally purchased one of the finest museum reference collec.tions in the world – the Hathaway and Bowers Collection. While machines in the Hathaway and Bowers Collection were not exactly for sale – it was strictly intended to be a reference collection – Mr. Nethercutt made them an offer they couldn’t refuse and the rest is history.
Growing the Collection
There are currently two buildings in the Nethercutt Collection. The first building was begun in 1971 and completed in 1974. There was an earthquake in Sylmar, CA, in 1971. The building was only a skeletal frame when the earthquake occurred. None of the collections were in this building at the time. Since the building was only a frame, the builders were able to retrofit the building for better earthquake tolerance. Eventually, the collection outgrew the original build.ing, and in the year 2000, construction on the museum building was begun. This building houses 150 additional cars and has a separate area in the back for the train.
The Nethercutt Collection includes a massive, 5,000-pipe Wurlitzer Theatre organ, also Kyle’s responsibility.
Short Biography
I asked Kyle to describe his years before obtaining the dream job of being curator of the Nethercutt Collection.
Kyle said he always loved music. He grew up in a church-going family and instead of going to Sunday School, Kyle always wanted to go to the big church to hear the organ play. He absolutely fell in love with it. At the end of the service, when the organist would play exit music, Kyle would run up to the organ and the organist would pick him up and sit him next to her. Kyle would watch her play. When the organist finished, she would turn on the bells and without banging or anything Kyle would play the melody line, by ear, of what she had just finished playing.

The organist became Kyle’s first piano teacher when he was 4 years old. He started playing the organ for church services when he was 7 or 8 years old. Kyle has been an organist pretty much all his life. He’s still an organist and choirmaster at a church in downtown Los Angeles (one of the founding churches of the city).
Kyle’s love for pipe organs grew so great that he wanted to know how they worked. He apprenticed and learned how to service, tune and rebuild organs to some extent. Many years later, he owned his own company servicing pipe organs. They would maintain, tune and rebuild pipe organs all over Southern California. Then his business partner passed away. Kyle was going to dissolve the business and retire, but during that period J.B. Nethercutt contacted Kyle and asked him to come and take care of his collection. Kyle said he just couldn’t say no. Thirteen years later, he is still going strong.
Museum Tours
The Nethercutt Museum (which consists mainly of the automobile collection) is open for self-guided tours Thursday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The Nether.cutt Collection (separate from the museum) is available to view by guided tour only. Unfortunately for all us mechanical music lovers, the tour is temporarily closed with no reserva.tions being accepted at this time.
The two-hour tour normally takes people to four floors of the collection building. The building houses some of the finer cars in the Nethercutt Collection, plus 18th and 19th century French furniture, clocks and watches, automata, reproducing pianos, nick.elodeons, orchestrions, more than 100 music boxes, not to mention the third largest theatre pipe organ in the world. All tours are entirely free to the public.

The Fifth Floor
There is a fifth floor which is not open to the public since there is no safe way to bring groups of people in.
The elevator only holds six people. On the fifth floor, there is a library of more than 40,000 music rolls. The roll library is still growing, and many people donate new rolls each year. On this floor is an example of almost every player piano system ever built. They even have a Tel-Electric. The

Kyle demonstrates the Tel-Electric in the fifth-floor workshop The Wurlitzer Mandolin PianOrchestra, Style 40, featuring 42
area.
beauty of the Nethercutt Collection is that everything in it works! J.B. Nethercutt’s dream was to preserve and share the beauty of these instru.ments but never to hoard them. Even though there are a lot of pianos on the fifth floor, no two are alike. Each has a different player system. They have rolls for the original Stoddard-Ampico, the Ampico-A and B, red Welte, green Welte, Recordo, Apollo, Themodist and 88-note rolls. They have early and later Duo-Art reproducing pianos, a rare electric Duo-Art, all the Welte systems, and pianos that will play all of those rolls.
There are more than 8,000 Ampico rolls in the collection. Docents donated their time one summer to help organize the Ampico rolls.
One of the newer acquisitions was the Blüthner Triphonola (supposedly

violin pipes, 12 violas, 30 cellos and so much more.
the only one in the United States).
I asked Kyle about the problem of the roll paper. As most of our readers know, the original Ampico and Duo-Art rolls are brittle and they tend to shred. Kyle said they only have original Wurlitzer APP rolls and the paper is quite brittle for these as well. He expressed a need to obtain copies (recuts) of APP rolls to play on the instruments. Kyle said he also needs Pianino rolls. He only has six original rolls for the Pianino and that’s it.
Nickelodeons and Orchestrions
I asked Kyle for a short list of the nickelodeons and orchestrions in the collection. There is no actual list, so Kyle had to look through the file cabinet to name the instruments in the collection. The following are details of the American machines (and machines distributed by American companies).
Seeburg L: The smallest Seeburg model with piano and mandolin rail. It plays A rolls.
Seeburg KT: A G-roll piano with mandolin rail, xylophone, castanets, triangle, tambourine and (rare) snare drum.
Seeburg Photoplayer: A pipe-organ orchestra, Style R, with violin, flute, cello, Vox Humana, xylophone, cathe.dral chimes, tremolo, bass drum, snare drum, cymbal, crash cymbal, triangle, organ swell, 88-note piano, castanets, tambourine, mandolin, tom-tom effect, telephone bell, doorbell, fire gong, horse trot, tympani effect, steamboat whistle, bird whistle, baby cry, wind siren and thunder effect.
Wurlitzer Pianino: A 44-note piano, the pianino was in production for more than 25 years although few remain

The music roll library, featuring more than 40,000 rolls.
today.
Wurlitzer LX: Introduced in mid-1921, the LX was the last in the keyboard orchestrions series. It has a piano with mandolin rail, 38 violin pipes, 38 flute pipes, a set of orchestra bells, bass drum, snare drum and triangle.
Wurlitzer Automatic Harp: Tiny mechanical fingers actually pluck the strings.
Wurlitzer Mandolin Quartette: It has 34 notes and a separate 27-note repeating mandolin mechanism. When a note plays in the mandolin section, the pneumatic pushes a wooden lever into the path of a rotating camshaft. This causes the small, hard felt-covered hammer to repeat rapidly against the strings producing a loud metallic tone. Dave Ramey has a wonderful video of the machine in action. Search YouTube for Wurlitzer Mandolin Quartette.
Wurlitzer Tonophone: The first Wurlitzer coin piano. The machines were made from 1899 to 1908. Early machines were made by DeKleist. The first machines used a 10-tune wooden Wurlitzer Mandolin PianOrchestra: cylinder and were later converted to Style 40 with piano, mandolin, 42 violin play Wurlitzer APP rolls. The Tono-pipes, 12 violas, 30 cellos, xylophone, phone in the collection is a barrel drums and percussion effects. These piano. machines were built by Philipps.

The Encore Banjo was the first coin-operated musical instru-A Regina Sublima Piano and Mandolin Orchestra powered by
ment, marketed in late 1896.
Wurlitzer Concert PianOrchestra: A Philipps Pianella Model 32 (Caecilia) with piano, 56 violins, 30 cellos, 30 violas, 26 saxophones, 30 flutes, 30 piccolos, 30 clarinets, 30 oboes, 26 French horns, chimes, bass and snare drums, triangle, tambourine, castanets, tremolo, kettle drum and cymbals.
Encore Banjo: This was the first coin-operated musical instrument, marketed in late 1896. It consists of four metal pickers and 40 leather-faced fingerings buttons. It has a two-octave range and many duplicate notes. It can play a melody and accompaniment at the same time.
Mills Bow-front Violano Virtuoso: This style was the commercial model and was popular from 1912-1915. The Mills is an electrically operated instrument, instead of the pneumatic systems used by most of the nickelodeons and

a spring motor that must be wound by hand.
orchestrions. It has a violin and piano.
Mills Double Violano Virtuoso: This style plays two violins and has a heavier piano than used in the home models. Both violins play the same notes.
Regina Sublima Piano and Mandolin Orchestra: This is powered by a spring motor which must be wound by hand. It plays a five-tune roll on heavy manila paper. Metal fingers read the perfora.tions. The piano hammer re-iterates, producing an effect like a mandolin.
Automatic Musical Company, Automatic Self-Playing Xylophone: Since the bars are metal, it is technically a glocken.spiel. It was made in 1905. This is the only example known to exist. It’s a solo instrument, having a xylophone only. The company was in Bingham.ton, NY, and would eventually become the Link Company.
Multiphone Cylinder Changer: This
can only roughly be described as a mechanical music machine. It is a coin-operated juke box that plays Edison cylinders. One of 24 cylinders can be selected.
And now we move on to some details of the European Machines in the collection.
Gloria Monopol Double-disk Music Box: This was sold by George Schneider and has his name in gold letters on the front. The two discs rotate in opposite directions, unlike most music boxes. It is known for its superb tone.
Weber Maestro: Musically one of the finest German orchestrions ever made. It has 112 pipes, 28 each of violins, flutes, trumpets/saxophones and clarinets. There is a three-speed vibrato, piano with mandolin attachment, 28-note xylophone, bass drum, tympani effect, snare drum,

The Hupfeld Excelsior Pan Orchester is the largest example of this type of machine ever made. It once played in the Postzegel Hotel in Holland but came to America in 1966. This machine is located above the Grand Salon in the music building.
cymbal, triangle, castanets, wood block and tambourine. It has a pipe and xylophone solo capability and an automatic register for piano treble.
Weber Brabo: This machine has a piano with mandolin, 28 violin pipes, vibrato and 28-note repeating xylo.phone. It has an elaborate expression mechanism. Solo instruments can be heard alone.
Welte Wotan: This is one of the Welte Brass Band Orchestrion series. The Wotan would replace a brass band of about 30 to 35 men. This instrument sold for $5,000 in 1912. This orches.trion has first and second cornets, first and second clarinets, trumpet, alto, trombone, French horn, baritone, bass, contra bass, saxophone, bour.don, piccolo, oboe, flutes, xylophone, snare drum, bass drum, cymbals and triangle. It is 12 feet, 9 inches high and 9 feet, 3 inches wide. The middle panel represents the fire scene from the Walküre picturing Siegfried and Brünnhilde.
Welte Style III Cottage Orchestrion: This beautiful orchestrion has 134 pipes and 44 notes. It has bass drum, tympani effect, snare drum, cymbal and triangle. It is 9 feet, 7 inches high.
Welte Philharmonic Organ Orchestrion: These machines were automatic pipe organs. They were supplied in various sizes and configurations.
Hupfeld Excelsior Pan Orchestra: This is the largest example ever made. It took two years to build and was delivered to the Postzegel Hotel in Holland. It remained there until it was acquired by Eugene DeRoy in 1966. He cared for it from the delivery date to the present. Using a heavily multi.plexed 124-note roll, several different orchestral voices could be played simultaneously. The piano portion is a reproducing piano so that original expression is maintained.
Hupfeld Helios Lb/29 Orchestrion: An overstrung piano with mandolin, regis.ters of pipes for violin, flute and cello, orchestral bells, bass drum, Chinese cymbal, snare drum and expression effects.
Hupfeld Phonoliszt Violana: A machine with three violins bowed by a circular horsehair bow. Mechanical fingers select the notes. A piano plays the accompaniment.
Mortier Style 41 Café Organ: It uses fully chromatic 84-key cardboard books. It has 311 pipes, bass drum, snare drum, cymbal and wood block. There are ranks of melody jazz flute, violin, and unda maris pipes. For countermelody, there is a Vox Celeste, flute and cello. There are also bass pipes.
Philipps Model 3 Paganini Orchestrion (Wurlitzer Paganini Violin Piano, Style 3) (on the fifth floor): This machine has 39 loud violins, 39 soft violins, 27

flageolets, 12 extended octave violins, 44-note harmonium (metal reeds) accompaniment and variable speed tremolo. This is the only surviving example imported and sold by Wurlitzer.
Philipps Keyboard Style Paganini Orchestrion Style 3: This machine has 117 pipes, 39 each of loud and soft violins, 27 flageolets, 12 high-octave violins, variable speed vibrato, 44 harmonium reeds and piano.
Popper Salon Orchestra No. 1: Manufactured from about 1912 until well into the 1920s, this was one of the most popular Popper models ever made. It consists of a piano, mandolin, xylophone, bells, bass and snare drums, cymbals and triangle. An extended rank of pipes is arranged in a double row and represents violin and cello. There is a harmonium as well. The top of the case has louvered swell shutters for expression. The front is a motion picture effect scene that is backlighted and shows two waxing and waning torches in the marble patio of an ancient Roman villa. It’s 9 feet, 4 inches high.
Popper Gladiator (No. 7) Symphony Orchestra: This machine has a piano, mandolin, xylophone, bells, piccolo flute, violin pipes, muted strings, violin solo, clarinet, flute, violoncello,

The Popper Gladiator is 14 feet wide and 11 feet, 4 inches tall. The Popper Iduna Orchestrion was built in 1915. It is located The Philipps Model 3 Paganini can play loud and soft violins.

in the automobile building.
viola, horn, bass flute, trombone, bass violin, bass, snare drum, kettle drum, cymbals and triangle. It’s 11 feet, 4 inches high by 14 feet wide. Four of these were sold in Belgium in the late 1920s. This example is the only one currently known to exist.
Popper Jazz Flute: This is one of the latest orchestrions made by Popper, dating from the late 1920s. Its modern case design is about 11 feet high. The featured solo instrument is the Swanee Whistle mounted in a niche on the front. Above this, there is a series of recessed panels which constantly change color. Instrumen.tation includes piano, mandolin, ranks of pipes including a large rank of saxophones, and drum and trap effects. This orchestrion has a jazz theme since the saxophone is the

It is the only surviving example of its kind.
most prominent pipe rank.
Popper Othello Orchestrion: The Popper catalogue states that it is a “Mechanical piano orchestrion with mandolin and xylophone. Othello is delivered in a tasteful case with painted glass panels and contains 31 piano keys, 18 of which operate the mandolin, 10 xylophone keys, drum, cymbals and triangle. Othello is delivered with two barrels, playing six different tunes.”
Popper Iduna Orchestrion (1915): This machine is located in the car building and provides an excellent background. It has a piano, mandolin, several ranks of pipes, xylophone, bells, drums, triangle and cymbal. It was billed by Popper as “A first class concert orchestra suitable also for dancing.”
I would like to acknowledge Q.
David Bowers and his “Encyclopedia of Automatic Musical Instruments” as well as Arthur Reblitz and his book, “The Golden Age of Automatic Musical Instruments,” for providing the detailed information on the instru.ments listed above.
Pianos
There are some truly remarkable pianos in the Nethercutt Collection. These include:
Hupfeld Triphonola: This is one of the most recent acquisitions. Prior to production of this model, Hupfeld had offered the Solophonola and Duoph.onola systems. This machine plays all 88 piano notes (unlike the Ampico and Duo-Art systems), with 10 notes for expression. The Duophonola and the Triphonola were identical except that the Triphonola has foot pedals for pumping in addition to an electric motor. The Triphonola was the first Hupfeld instrument with a tracking device (to keep the holes properly aligned on the tracker bar).

Erhbar Piano with Hupfeld DEA Vorsetzer: This very ornate piano was completed in 1898 and was a gift from the Friedrich Erhbar Company to Emperor Franz Josef in the year he celebrated his 50-year reign. It’s an Opus 10,000 and has a mahogany case with 18 coats of hand-rubbed Chinese lacquer and gold ormolu all the way around (representing the various provinces of Austria) applied over a green Chinese silk velvet background. It measures a full 8 feet, 10 inches long. The Hupfeld DEA Vorsetzer is the only reproducing system that appeared as both complete pianos and vorsetzers. A vorsetzer (literally front sitter) is a device that can be pushed up to a piano so that pneumatic fingers can actuate the keys.
The DEA used wide rolls, approxi.mately 16 inches across, and a 106-note tracker bar with 85 playing notes. The DEA had a very complex system with variable bass and treble divisions. Some of the greatest pianists recorded for the DEA. Among them were D’Al.bert, Busoni, Corot, Godowsky, Grieg, Landowska, Mascagni, Saint-Saëns, Plante, Reger, Scharwenka, Scriabin and others. Kyle said that the DEA is a very sensitive reproducing system.
Steinway “Villa Leon” Piano with Duo-Art Mechanism: In 1929, the Steinway Piano Company sent a nine-foot Concert Grand to the Aeolian Company and asked them to design a one-of-a-kind Louis XV art case to accommodate a special Duo-Art reproducing mechanism. Because the piano was located in an estate called the “Villa Leon” it is now known by that name.
Steinway Grand with Welte Red-Roll Vorsetzer: The Welte was the only company to offer a competing vorsetzer to the Hupfeld. The red-roll machines and the rolls are pretty rare now.
The Tel-Electric Piano Player: This machine is unusual in that is uses a brass roll (instead of paper), three thousandths of an inch thick. The roll The Wurlitzer Theatre Organ is encased in a cylinder 51/8 inches The showcase of the Nethercutt long. Collection is the beautiful Wurlitzer

Virtually every reproducing and 4/74 Theatre Organ. It’s the largest player piano system are represented theatre organ on the West Coast and in this collection. They are too numer-the third largest in the world. It has ous to mention here. 5,123 pipes and 74 ranks. The largest

Top photo: the Wurlitzer Theatre Organ console. Bottom photo: some of the 5,123 pipes the organ uses to produce music.
in the world is the Jasper Sanfilippo organ, a 5/80, which means five manu.als and 80 ranks. The second largest is the Organ Stop Pizza Organ in Mesa, AZ, with 4 manuals and 78 ranks.
The Nethercutts insist that every.thing on the showroom floor remain in pristine condition. The museum formerly employed eight or nine people in the music department, but now there’s just Kyle. It’s his respon.sibility to take care of everything, so he does all the restoration and main.tenance work except for any major piano tuning. A piano technician comes in to do that on a regular basis. Kyle tunes all the organ pipes himself.
Kyle says his main focus is to make sure the organ is always playable. There are enough instruments in the collection that one can be rotated off the floor if it needs to be serviced, but this one organ is unique and must play for every single tour.
Kyle said there was one day it didn’t play and he heard an earful about it. I asked about servicing the organ and suggested that there must be a million relays. He said there might originally have been that many, but now it’s all solid state. They use the Uniflex system because the organ is so big.
Kyle says the organ is an amazing instrument and notes it is thrilling to play. He fires it up every morning and plays for half an hour to an hour. He makes sure he plays every note, to see if there’s anything dead. The organ is 97 years old, so it’s common for things to quit working. Magnets can die or pneumatics blow out on a daily basis. Most of the organ was re-leathered in 1984 and then more of it was done in 1993.
The museum has a collection of thousands of LP records featuring organ music with Leon Berry (who played the Nethercutt organ), George Wright (who, unfortunately never played there), Rex Khoury, Tom Hazelton, Ron Rhodes and Lyn Larsen. Many of these people were like house organists.
Instrument Maintenance
I asked Kyle if he ever had to move machines into the shop to work on them. Kyle said there are special hoists built into the organ and into the workshop on the fifth floor. There is a freight elevator for the orchestrions. All the machines are on wheels. The wheels can be unlocked from their stationary position and then the machines can be wheeled into the freight elevator. I asked what happens if a gear or a metal part breaks. Kyle said he takes the part into the auto shop and the guys there make him a new one. If they can’t make a part, they send it out and have it done by a specialist. The machine shop guys have a cloth wire-wrapping machine so they can duplicate any part in any instrument or any part in any car as long as they have an original part or details of what the original cloth-wrapped wire measurement looked like.

I asked Kyle if he really has the dream job, and he said yes but added that it’s still a lot of work. Kyle said the keys to keeping it fun are to not take too many things apart, keep a level head and prioritize. He said if he gets bored or frustrated with one machine, he moves on to another because it gives him a fresh plate from which to work. All the maintenance and restoration work has to take place on Tuesdays and Wednesdays because Kyle gives tours on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. He takes Sundays and Mondays off.
Temperature and humidity in the museum buildings are kept constant. Many of these instruments came from a damp Europe to a dry California and there would be problems without regulation. The humidity is kept at 40 percent to 60 percent. If there were to be two or three hours without regu.lation, the instruments might start to misbehave, or there would be cyphers, and mistracking. Plus, the paper would change, too. The downside to keeping the humidity so high is that the relative dampness tends to rust the wires fastening the crystals in the chandeliers hanging from the ceilings.

I imagine, however, these wires can be replaced a lot more easily than repair.ing the mechanical music machines constantly. Remember that Sylmar, CA, is almost the desert, so conditions are very dry.
New Acquisitions and Donations
I asked about acquiring instru.ments. Kyle said the first thing they do is heavy research. For example, the Triphonola is in a very bizarre case. It looks simple from under the case, but when you start taking things apart, it’s a whole other story. Kyle hasn’t had much of a chance to work on it yet because it has an extremely low priority.
I asked how they decided what rolls to add to the collection. Kyle said they are generally not too picky about it, except for standard 88-note rolls because they already have so many. I found that funny because the player piano outlasted all of the other instruments as did the art of making rolls for them. You can get rolls for music written a few years ago. Reproducing rolls are very important and if someone offers these rolls, Kyle said he will absolutely take them regardless of whether they would be duplicates or not because they do need to be preserved. Duplicates are important because the probability that a roll might be ruined while playing is relatively high, Kyle said. Plus, “We are in earthquake country and things do happen, so you never know,” he added.
Kyle said they lost quite a few rolls in the 1994 earthquake, not because of the shaking but because one of the main water lines broke. It flooded the roll room and anything that was six inches to a foot off the floor was destroyed. The good thing was nobody was hurt and the machines in the collection were safe.
I mentioned that people might want to donate instruments to the museum. Kyle said he would dearly love to have a band organ. “That would be so much fun, to display near the train for special events,” he said. The Neth.ercutts are open to donations being made to the collection. I mentioned that when people donate instruments or rolls to the Smithsonian or similar organizations, they are generally just shelved or maybe even thrown out. In the Nethercutt Collection it is quite the opposite. When they get donations, Kyle said the machines and rolls will be used. They don’t want something that is just going to sit there. They get offers all the time for pump pianos, but they can’t take those. Kyle said that, lately, there has been a spate of square grands offered as donations.
He said that as beautiful as they were for furniture, they are useless as musi.cal instruments.
The spirit of the collection is so nice. It has a very warm feeling. J.B. Nethercutt said that the purpose of the collection would be to preserve and not to hoard. His collected cars are taken out and driven. His instru.ments are kept in pristine working condition and played on a daily basis. His collection lives on.
CEO Jack Nethercutt also loves the instruments. He’s the oldest son of the founder. He used to be a professional racer. When he hosts special guests, he often wants people to hear the “Phan.tom of the Opera” medley played by Lyn Larsen and Chris Gorsuch’s rendi.tion of “Chattanooga Choo-Choo.”
Plans for the future
The entire collection was converted into a foundation in 2003-2004, just prior to J.B Nethercutt’s passing, so it will be well protected for a long time. It cannot be sold off or liquidated, and any profits from any sale would have to go back into the foundation, not to the family. J.B. planned very well to protect his work and his son has been doing a very good job of taking it into the next generation. Jack’s wife has done a great job of assisting and adding her input to the collection as well. There will be more generations to come.
The website, www.nethercuttcol.lection.org features an equal balance between cars and music.
If you find yourself in the Los Ange.les area, the Nethercutt Collection should be on your must-see list. It’s an absolutely fabulous place to visit and words can’t do justice to the thrill of seeing all the instruments in action. Best of all, as mentioned before, all the tours are entirely free to the public.

Email Matt Jaro at mjaro@verizon. net if you would like any information about style “A”, “G”, “4X”, “H” or “O” rolls. Also, comments and suggestions for this column will be appreciated.
Reprinted with permission of the author and The Automatic Musical Instrument Collectors’ Association (AMICA). Originally printed in the January-February 2016 issue of The AMICA Bulletin.

A ‘Family Affair’
The Intriguing Tale of an Imhof & Mukle Flute Organ
By Henry Bennett

It was a rainy afternoon in the autumn of 1963 when, as a bored teenager, I accompanied my mother to collect something she remembered from her childhood home. We drove into a dark wood near the village of Eastleach in the Cotswolds that intrigued me as it was known as Macaroni Wood. I was further intrigued when we came to a rectangular clearing deep in the wood and a gloomy looking Nissen Hut left over from a secret World War II camp. My mother produced a key and inside was a verita.ble Aladdin’s cave of stuffy Victorian artefacts which had been hastily removed from nearby Hatherop Castle when it was requisitioned for wartime use by the military. Ignoring chandeliers and stuffed animal trophies galore, my eyes lit on a couple of wooden cases on the floor, one bulging with iron wheels and levers, the other stacked with strange looking wooden organ pipes. I was learning to play the organ at school and, typical for a boy, had become fasci.nated by their complicated mechanisms. But what on earth was this? All carefully packed up, but the pipes were not normal pipes and I could see a mass of lead tubing but no keyboard. “Oh, that’s the old Flute Organ” said my mother casually and continued rummaging around. But on the way home I quizzed her endlessly and begged to have another look. Thinking back, it reminds me now of Tutankhamun’s Tomb! We lived on a farm and had a large outhouse where we boys spent our days with games and gadgets. A plan rapidly developed in my head to approach the relevant uncle and my long-suffering parents and persuade them all that I was just the one to rescue the instrument, whatever it might turn out to be. I have no memory of who helped, for help was certainly needed, but a trailer was found and in due course an extremely heavy object found its way to our outhouse.
For a period of at least two years I was left entirely to myself on the project. I knew nothing myself and obviously my family knew even less, but they listened to my daily frustrations with great patience and helped where they could. At first it was just a matter of careful dismantling and observation. Then gradual replacement of worn mate.rials. Looking back on my youth and the marked isolation of our life on the farm, I have no idea how I was able to obtain leather of the right grade or master the art of mixing
Members attending the 2019 convention held in Rockville may have attended one of the workshops presented by British member, Alison Biden, featuring three unusual instruments in Britain with precarious futures. One is an orchestrion made by Imhof and Mukle, currently mouldering on the Scottish island of Rum, while a team of dedicated would-be-rescuers try to raise the funds to have it restored. As a consequence of their activity, there are a number of articles about this instrument posted on the internet. Sometime during the late Summer of 2020, MBSI Award-winning author Kevin McElhone, was contacted by a gentleman by the name of Henry Bennett, who had learned about Kevin and the Musical Box Society of Great Britain through his on-line research as he sought information about Imhof & Mukle, makers of a flute organ he had just taken possession of.
Henry was keen to meet others who might share his passion for similar instruments, so his request was passed to the Editor of the MBSGB’s magazine The Music Box. During their conversation it transpired that Henry’s flute organ had been in his family for generations, but had had a somewhat vagabond life since he had first seen it as a child. He had finally had it completely restored professionally – and on visiting the workshop of restorers Goetze & Gwynn had met the great-grandson of no lesser a person than Daniel Imhof himself.
This is music to an editor’s ears – what a story! Henry Bennett was persuaded to write an article about his flute organ. And what a story it turned out to be.
hot animal glue, though miraculously we already had the proper cast iron glue pot and we came to love the smell of the glue. The main feeder bellows were simply a matter of copying what was done before. There were three pairs of these, two pairs to supply the wind for the pipes and the third pair working in opposite mode to provide a vacuum for the playing mechanism. But that mechanism was far more delicate, a three-stage process where each note is triggered by a row of tiny needles popping up through holes punched in the paper music roll. These needles let air into two rows of “puffers,” about the size of a matchbox and lined with very thin leather. They in turn are connected to larger bellows, the size of fish fingers, which collapse under vacuum, and those are the fingers which play the notes. In

Joe Marsden, left, and Dominic Gwynn, one of the partners in the organ building firm of Goetz & Gwynn, coaxing the flute organ across the author’s garden to spend a year undergoing a complete professional restoration.
theory of course! I do remember the endless persistence and some major setbacks. How, for instance, to cover the little “puffers” which required some extremely thin and sensitive material. My mother “came up trumps” – she had a whole drawer full of ladies’ white kid gloves, a relic from the halcyon days of grand dinner parties and dances in the house where the organ used to play. She allowed me to cut them all up into 66 small squares and glue them in place. At last, everything was back in place for the great test, the first sounds in 50 years, and I pressed the button – but absolutely nothing – complete silence! That got me talking to a wider circle and I happened on an organ builder who sent me some Zephyr pigskin made from unborn piglets. I still remember it arriving and starting the laborious process all over again, and with much better results. Then the original 1905 electric motor was thought to be unusable so I bought something second-hand with my pocket money on Exchange & Mart. It was pale green and completely unsuitable, and the result was a scary rendition of the Corelli “Pastorale” played at least double speed! The orig.inal motor had a wonderful switch comprising two open pots of mercury into which prongs of a fork dipped in and out with blinding flashes (which had terrified my mother as a girl). Sadly, that switch has been lost but eventually I was able to adapt the original motor which still ran as good as new in perfect silence.
It was only when these first faltering steps progressed to some amazingly virtuoso, yet wholly unreliable, performances that anyone (besides me) took the slightest interest in the flute organ. Only at that point did my mother mention that my uncle still had the original organ case where it took pride of place in his house as a very splendid

Joe Marsden, of Goetze & Gwynn, was in charge of the restoration.
wardrobe. Nothing is ever complicated when one is young, but I can imagine now that she needed a great deal of tact in persuading her brother to give up his main wardrobe for his nephew’s white elephant project. But, it seemed to me quite normal that we should turn up at his house with a trailer and remove it. The instrument then came together properly for the first time in 50 years. It had probably not functioned since before the First World War. Its future was bound to be precarious. Initially, I loaned the instrument to a village museum in Bibury where it shared company with ancient water wheels and flour milling machinery, and there it languished while I went off to university.
Parental pressure then piled on, and a scheme was hatched whereby John Bailey, an organ builder friend from Bishops and Sons in Ipswich, undertook to restore the instrument to greater reliability and loan it to the Cotton Mechanical Music Museum in Stowmarket. Our family heirloom went out of my life entirely for some 40 years. I entered working life and this obsession of teenage years was forgotten entirely.
But not for ever.

Is this what they mean by second childhood? Approach.ing retirement, I looked back one day and suddenly wondered what had become of the old flute organ? I rang my long-lost friend. It was as if breaking a spell. The Cotton Museum had just reported to him that they could no longer house the instrument unless they owned it, so what should he do? By any standards this was still a white elephant of a musical box but could I really let it go? Surely, all problems are meant to be solved!
Our garden near Cambridge had a small barn which was nearly collapsed but the flint walls and tiled roof had been rebuilt. Cold in winter, cool in summer, it was much like a church, in fact, so why not have an organ in there? It was a real retirement project. Soon it became obvious that the flute organ’s decades in the museum had been far too peaceful. Its whole life had been a cycle of triumphs, doldrums and rescues, and my white elephant was clearly once again not functioning. Would it return to a peaceful slumber once more? Not yet. This lucky machine’s fortunes would turn anew as I was introduced to the firm of Goetze & Gwynn in Welbeck, Nottinghamshire. They were dedicated

Thomas Bazley, the author’s great-grandfather, on his Otto Dicycle in Cirencester.
to the restoration of historic pipe organs and to the manu.facture of new classical organs, including reconstructions of historic organs. My brother worked for the firm but, since a 19th century orchestrion was hardly typical of their normal work, I had never dreamt of involving them. To my surprise, Dominic Gwynn, one of the partners, heard about the project and was obviously intrigued. He contacted me. He had the perfect person, Joe Marsden, who loved complicated mechanisms to set to work on it. So the next thing I saw was Dominic and Joe coaxing my flute organ across our garden to spend a year under their tender care.
Meanwhile, a little history? The organ was built in 1862 in Vöhrenbach in the Black Forest, Germany. This is the region famous for its cuckoo clocks often built by farm.ing families to keep themselves busy during cold winter months. Vöhrenbach became the hub for more and more complex musical devices that appealed to rich customers throughout Europe and America before the advent of gramophones or radio. This one is signed by F. Heine, one of a large family in the orchestrion business, probably Fidel noted in the catalogue of the Black Forest trade exhibition in 1858, where it says, “Fidel Heine from Vöhrenbach – a lovely Viennese flute work with 2 rollers, in which the lovely flute tone is particularly praised.” The family traded with their friend Daniel Imhof (more on him later), who
Pipes on their way from the backyard barn to the restoration shop of Goetz & Gwynn.
also set up a base in London to serve the new market being fuelled by the industrial revolution.
My great-grandfather Thomas Bazley moved down to Gloucestershire in 1867 from Manchester where he had prospered in the cotton industry. He was a true Victorian polymath, educated at Trinity College, Cambridge, with wide ranging interests in every new development. He was a keen astronomer and one of his telescopes has just been restored to full use in Southport, Lancashire. He owned a Holtzappfel lathe and produced intricate engine turned works in ivory. He wrote the definitive book on the Geometric Chuck used to produce the complex patterns on bank notes designed to prevent forgery. He gave Glouces.ter Cathedral their new tower clock. He also had a Welte Mignon piano player with wooden keys to fit over a piano keyboard.
The flute organ was procured for him by Daniel Imhof in London. We don’t know the exact date, but we do have a letter from 1964 recalling the “Flute Instrument” in 1897, still with large wooden barrels 30 inches to 36 inches long and wound up with a tool like a car handle. Apparently, it did not stop itself, and there is a note stating, “I never hear the end of the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto without remembering the wild dash down the library to put it off lest it spoil the barrel.” I hope that Mendelssohn would

The collection of cassettes featuring classical music that are used to play the flute organ.
have been amused that such wonderful music could be pinned onto a wooden barrel!
The letter says that Thomas Bazley’s son had it “elec.trified,” or converted to a pneumatic system designed by Imhof & Mukle during the early years of the century, The letter writer adds that Imhof & Mukle were later asked to repair the flute organ when it no longer worked but was told “they no longer do that kind of thing – they only go in for wireless etc.” World War I dashed all hopes of repair, and in fact nothing is then heard of the instrument until I discovered it myself in 1963 carefully packed away. The house itself continued in full swing between the wars. One hears of parties and even motor rallies, but I suspect the flute organ, large though it was, simply languished.
Meanwhile, back in the workshop, the flute organ was now receiving proper treatment at last, bearing in mind that every stage was new and experimental. The original maker’s signature was discovered inside some wind trunking but all his work was found to be in generally good condition and superbly made. The Imhof & Mukle mechanism added later was more complex and required much more care and adjustment, including replacement of all leather work.
Naturally, something so different attracted much interest from the usual clientele and led by a happy coincidence to the appearance of Nicholas Frayling, retired Dean of Chichester Cathedral, for the very good reason that he was the great-grandson of Daniel Imhof. A special meeting was arranged in the workshop for him and myself, great-grand.sons of the maker and purchaser respectively, and we marked the completion of the restoration with a grand performance of Wagner’s overture from “Tannhäuser.”
The organ has 150 wooden pipes all with round mouths, commonly termed Viennese Flute and somewhat unusual in normal organ design. These are played from wooden cassettes of manila paper, 200 millimetres wide and extremely tough. Spring-loaded needles pop up through holes punched in the card and trigger a three-stage vacuum pneumatic mechanism. The pipes are arranged in three ranks, or ‘stops,’ of loud, medium and soft, controlled by needles at the edge of the roll to vary the volume, and another needle rewinds the music at the end and switches the motor off.

The original collection was 26 cassettes of classical music, Beethoven, Wagner, Tchaikovsky, etc. Sadly, during its itinerant history, a few of the rolls became separated and were lost. It would be lovely to trace them.
Their general character is very lively but sweet toned, very redolent of a bygone era before gramophones brought music in the home to a wider public.
And so this chequered history of over 150 years ends on a happy note, for the time being at least. But what of the future? It was always perhaps a rarity, many would say a White Elephant, but nonetheless a fascination. I would love to hear from anyone with interest in or knowledge of anything similar, or with ideas for its future. Obviously it would be sad for the family connection to be broken after so many years, but if this article results in any new connec.tions that would certainly be good.
Editor’s note: Please make contact with Henry in the first instance by emailing: editor@mbsgb.org.uk
Update on Imhof & Mukle Flute Organ
The original article by Henry Bennett featuring the story of his Imhof & Mukle flute organ appeared in Vol 29, No 7 (Autumn 2020) of The Music Box. At the end of the

The finished product safely installed back in the author’s backyard barn.
article there was a request from the author for anyone with relevant knowledge or interest to contact him. Nicholas Simons responded, and it is thanks to him that we have another piece in the history of this instrument.
“I am pleased to see your article in the latest Music Box magazine. I immediately recognised your organ as I had seen it a few times previously. I first saw it in the late 1980s (I think it was around then) when I visited Harold Smith of Saddington Hall. Harold was a very well-known collector in the early days of our society and lived in a ramshackle large house in Leicestershire. He had a large wide-ranging collection which included the famous 97-key Imhof barrel orchestrion, now at the Speyer museum. I became good friends with him up to his death in 2001. Your organ was sitting at the back of his large entrance hall, and Harold told me that he was looking after it for a friend, John Bailey. A few years later it had gone, to be replaced by a Model W Orchestrelle. Harold showed me a couple of music cassettes that he had liberated from the original collection, as payment for looking after the organ. I explained to him that he would probably never be able to sell these, as such were made specif.ically for each organ and were not standard scales. Harold was a law unto himself and it was best to never disagree with him, on pain of never being spoken to again. We continued to be friends with Harold and Nora up to his death in 2001 and Nora’s move to a much more comfortable house locally.
Harold’s collection was sold by Gildings on 28 May 2002 and I have checked my catalogue of the sale. It appears the two cassettes had disappeared before the sale, where to one cannot know.
I saw the organ again on my many visits to the Cotton museum, and was told it was owned by John Bailey. The organ was nonfunctional. I wrote to John expressing an interest to buy, but received no reply.
I am pleased that you have returned the organ to its right.ful place in your family, and have had it restored. I’m sure it will give much pleasure to you and your family for many generations to come.”
To which Henry replied:

“My copy of the magazine arrived yesterday and it is so
impressive! … the front cover is very striking – it teaches one
how powerful a picture can become in the right hands.
Wonderful too that extra glimpse of life in the hands of Harold Smith. My brother now recalls going there with John Bailey, but hadn’t told me, and would not have known about the missing cassettes (of which there are four) …”
Henry’s search for those missing cassettes continues. If anyone reading this thinks they can help locate them, please do get in touch via the editor of The Music Box (who incidentally was introduced to MBSGB by the very same Harold Smith). Henry’s organ is now in its permanent location at home, accompanied by a large portrait of his great-great grandfather, father of the original owner.
Latest on Imhof & Mukle Flute Organ Rolls
From Henry Bennett:
“You will recall the recent article in the Autumn edition of this publication. Documenting the history of this Imhof & Mukle instrument has been the perfect Lockdown Project. Starting with a family letter recalling it playing in 1897, I now have a much clearer idea of its more recent history. A photograph discovered only in December shows me restoring the organ in 1963/4 aged 18, but it needed a more secure plan for the future. Our friend John Bailey was to complete repairs and arrange a long-term loan to the Cotton Collec.tion in Stowmarket. It left our house in about 1978 bound for Ipswich, but found a temporary home with Harold Smith in Saddington near Leicester until Bishop and Sons, Organ Builders, were ready to take it for repair. It was then housed by the Cotton Collection for some twenty years before going to Bishop and Sons and then finally back to me in 2010.
“I was aware of four missing music rolls, but another of the photographs just discovered from the 1960’s shows that the full set (or at least those that survived the house parties of the inter-war period) totalled 29 music rolls, which indicated that somehow seven rolls had gone missing. I am delighted to report that the articles in The Music Box have led directly to the recovery of two of them. These were given to Richard Cole, for safe keeping, by Harold Smith before he died. Real.ising that such rolls were specific to just one instrument, Richard lodged them in the Musical Museum near Kew with a clear note of origin, and it was a very happy moment when he was able to match organ and music rolls and I was able to meet him and return them to the original set.
“(As an aside: I had no knowledge of the Saddington Hall episode or the Musical Museum involvement when I wrote the first article – all I knew was that the organ had been housed in the Cotton Collection sometime during its ‘absence.’ That, however, is no excuse for my jumping to the conclusion that four rolls had disappeared while in its care, and offer my apologies for having suggested this.)
“However, Sherlock Holmes would still be intrigued. Somehow, somewhere, in this short period of residence with Harold Smith, it seems seven rolls became separated from the collection. Of these, two have now been returned, another located, and there is a suggestion that a further two went to Germany. The final two may still be adorning the shelves of people uncertain of their true origin.
“I am a new member of the Society and can well imagine additional happy outcomes from this story. This is such an unusual instrument, being dedicated purely to classical music, and it would be wonderful if the publicity can some.how trace its remaining missing repertoire. Such a happy reunion might even lead to the “Flute Organ” eventually finding a good home. I am now retired and I will not be able to enjoy it and look after it for ever! So, if this jogs any memories or prompts any thoughts, please do not hesitate to contact the Editor.
“It would also be good to meet other people with similar interests, when this is permitted.”

A low-tech tuning lead repair
By Jamie Brewer
I so enjoy reading about the involved restorations documented in Mechan.ical Music. Many of these articles describe repairs that are way beyond the scope of the average hobbyist’s skill set. I have background training in watchmaking, so that greatly helps in problem solving of the mechanical stuff I collect. Unfortunately for me, I never have had the luxury of a high-tech workshop.
Looking back to 120-plus years ago, I see a world with a much different mechanical environment as compared to the electronics age we now live in. Maintaining a Ford Model T in the first quarter of the 20th century is an example of how a person with average skills could keep an internal combus.tion engine operational. Automotive repair tips were even given in popular songs. My favorite “Ford tip” is from “The Little Ford Rambled Right Along,” which advises, “If the power gets thick, just hit it with a brick!” This last verse can be found on the Edison issue of that song as the diamond disc and Blue Amberol cylinders had a longer playback time versus a 78 rpm record.
Well, back to my story. I needed
to do some soundboard repair to my Mermod Frères Sublime Harmonie Piccolo box. The inner workings had been restored a few years earlier and the work included installing new leads for the lower comb. In my collecting experience, those lower combs seem to be prone to what collectors call “lead disease.”
I’ve learned from restorers that when soldering a new block of lead to the comb to replace old corroding tuning weights, it can be a crap shoot for the entire block to fully bond.
When I lifted the works out of the case of my sublime harmonie box, I

A folded piece of copy paper coated with Scotch tape was used as a cradle to hold the lead in place while the epoxy cured.
was not happy to find a stray piece of lead resting on the soundboard instead of connected to the comb tooth where it had once been attached.
In my opinion, replacing a tuning lead should be a simple problem to remedy, even for a hobbyist. The last thing I wanted to do was to remove the comb and ship it away. I also did not want to have to send the entire box out to a restorer for repair to correct what seemed to me like a minor and solvable problem.
I should also mention that for decades I enjoyed the National Public Radio show called “Car Talk,” that was hosted by Tom and Ray Magliozzi. They will spend eternity known as “Click and Clack, the Tappet brothers.” The brothers spent their airtime giving car maintenance advice and bantering with each other. The Tappet brothers always offered two stock pieces of advice as last resort measures for two common vehicle problems.
The first advice covered the instance of an engine that might be worn out, making noise or burning oil. In this case, they advised adding any oil concoction with “Marvel,” “Mystery,” or “Electric” in the product descrip.tion. For years I carried a bottle of Marvel Mystery Oil that I added to my ticking engine that had started making noises after 200,000 miles. The second piece of advice from the Tappet broth.ers related to patching or gluing parts together. They always recommended “J B Weld” as their product of choice. They would always say, “We don’t know what it’s made with. All we know is that it works!”
I could write a book about how J B Weld has bailed me out of some night.mare repairs in many of the jobs I’ve done over the years. The following will be just a few short paragraphs explaining how J B Weld fixed my particular problem with a detached tuning lead.
To begin with, I knew I definitely didn’t want to risk messing up the temper of the comb or melting the tuning lead into a puddle by trying to solder this piece of lead back in place. I theorized that by utilizing a little bit of J B Weld instead I would lose nothing but a small amount of my own time if it didn’t work. The lead would just fall off again and I could then just remove the comb and send it off to a professional restorer to do the job.
Preparing for the task at hand, I figured the easiest way to clamp this repair in place would be to use an improvised cradle. I folded a piece of copy paper from my printer over and over so that it would be just thick enough to make a snug fit between each of the adjoining teeth of the comb. I covered this paper cradle in Scotch tape so any stray epoxy would not adhere to the paper and cause it to stick to the metal. I didn’t want to have to clean excess paper bits off the comb when I was done. I made a few dry runs sliding the lead into place before I mixed the epoxy.
I found it did not require much glue to be applied to both the tooth and tuning lead to achieve my goal. Once the lead was placed into the cradle, it was carefully snugged into place onto the comb tooth.
The hardest part was not touching the repair for 24 hours to allow for a full cure. Once fully cured, I took a thin razor blade and ran it between the tape-covered paper, the tooth, and the tuning lead. Only a tiny bit of glue had oozed onto the tape. Once the paper cradle was separated from the glue, it was carefully removed. Joyfully, I saw that the lead stayed in place.
The excess dried epoxy was shaved off the tooth sides with the razor blade. To be double sure of a good bond, I added a bit more epoxy to the entire perimeter of lead/tooth joint and allowed it to cure for another 24 hours. This was again smoothed over with the thin razor blade.
This low-tech repair was done nearly two years ago and is still hold.ing strong.

Let’s keep the music playing
Have you solved a problem while repairing, restoring or maintaining a mechanical music box?
Cylinder boxes, disc boxes, band organs, orchestrions and nickelodeons each have their own special needs.
Share your restoration or maintenance tips with other mechanical music enthusiasts.
Email editor@mbsi.org, call (253) 228-1634
or mail to: Mechanical Music 130 Coral Court Pismo Beach, CA 93449

In a screen grab from a video posted to YouTube, girls can be seen dancing in the streets of London while an organ grinder provides the music. The video was shot in 1896. Smartphone users can scan the QR code in the corner of the image to be taken directly to the video online.
The Italian Organ Grinder:
His Life Revealed
By Dr. Robert Penna
Over the years, much has been written about grinder instruments played in parks and on the streets in the 19th and early 20th centuries to entertain the masses. Several articles can be found describing the instru.ments and their manufacturers, but that is not the focus here. This article concentrates on the people turning the cranks. The people who played these instruments, called by different names in different localities, sought not only to make a living, but to also provide entertainment. Children and young people often danced to the tunes as the organ grinder turned a handle to activate the mechanism. An example of this behavior can be seen in a video from 1896 showing young girls dancing in the street on Drury Lane, London. Well worth the few minutes it takes to watch, the video can be found at https://www.youtube. com/watch?v=xFRdEGPr5zo.
Whether it was a street piano or grinder organ, the results of the music filling the air were often the same. Many people enjoyed, some tolerated and many hated the grinders and the music they played. Perhaps for those who disliked the grinders it was because of the repetition of songs or the squeaking and wheezing of a poorly-maintained instrument. Others may have loathed the music because it was a bit out-of-tune. There may have even been some who disliked the sounds because it attracted crowds of children who would laugh or sing along. Or, perhaps there were other more subtle reasons that this article will attempt to uncover.

Reasons detailed in previous arti.cles by this author and other writers have explained why this type of music disappeared from the streets over time. According to Arthur W.J.G. Ord-Hume, the disappearance of organ grinders from European streets was in large part due to the early application of national and interna.tional copyright laws. “At the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century, European publishers of sheet music and holders of copyrights to the most popular operatic tunes of the day banded together to enforce collection of performance duties from any musician playing their property in any venue. When faced with notaries and the hounding of legal representa.tives of the music industry of the time, organ grinders began to disappear.”1 Yet, this cannot be the sole reason as we know that in the case of the steinkjerpositives, Norwegian grinder organs, barrels were pinned with local music gleaned from songs the fiddlers played at weddings and celebratory gatherings and thus were not subject to similar legal issues.2
Another assumption put forth for the demise of organ grinders explains that the rise of the movie industry, radio and the phonograph brought about a decline in the number of organ grinders able to make a living.3 This is a logical theory, yet it does not explain why a vast number of restrictive laws were passed outlawing grinders in cities and towns across the United States and Great Britain. In fact, so many laws were passed in large cities and small towns declaring these auto.matic musical instruments and the practice of grinding them illegal that authorities often encouraged police.men to treat the grinders as beggars or public nuisances.4 The result of these laws and their over-enthusiastic enforcement was that barrel organ grinders were systematically hounded out of existence. In my opinion, this is truly a sad commentary on municipal governments.

Fewer organ grinders to play the instruments meant many instruments and barrels were destroyed or discarded as scrap. In some instances, those barrels contained the only record of the popular music of the day. The loss of a barrel meant there was no longer any trace of the songs recorded on it. Some music of the era was undoubtedly lost.5
But what if there might be another more insidious reason for these attacks on organ grinders? The indi.viduals who practiced this profession were not wealthy nor were they influential. Organ grinders tended to be marginalized members of society. There were some who were amputee veterans from the civil war, who, because of loss of a limb, could no longer do manual labor.6 A small number of African Americans tried to earn a living as organ grinders, but with no formal education and facing heavy racial discrimination not many succeeded in this venture. The vast majority of grinders were recent immigrants. In the late 19th century and early 20th century, Italian organ grinders flooded the United States. When cities became rife with husker grinders, these men would move to smaller and smaller towns always hoping to reap the benefits of being a novel entertainment.
Let us look at the lives of these individuals. Organ grinders were a hard-working group of men who either pushed a mechanism on a cart or carried it with a strap across their shoulders, often resting it upon a pole when cranking the instrument. They spent their days standing at one location or tiredly walking the streets for hours. Day by day, usually seven days a week, these men worked through any changes in weather. Cold bitter winds of winter, or a sudden shower, or hot summer days standing in a burning sun, did not deter these individuals. After all, if you and your family relied on small change from passersby or neighborhood children, likely you had to overcome all those hardships in order to survive.

Nowadays photos of these grinders are viewed with nostalgia. Who were these men? Photographs demonstrate that they filled every age group from children to old men. Yet, one wonders how did they get into this line of work? What were their backgrounds? Did they own and service their own instruments? Did they make a decent living? Where did they live? Why were they harassed?
Research shows that from the middle to late 1800s the large numbers of Italian immigrants came to the United States to escape poverty and the harsh conditions which followed the unifi.cation of Italy. True of all immigrants moving to a major city, they sought to live near others of their home country. That is why, even today, there are sections known as Little Italy, Greek Town, Chinatown and others. These special neighborhoods offered stores which carried goods with which the immigrants were familiar. People in their neighborhoods spoke the same language and their specific customs were recognized and not suspected.
A study of this era shows Italian immigrant organ grinders lived in appalling conditions. Low rents encouraged them to move to the poor.est, most rundown neighborhoods. Many old tenement houses in these areas were turned into basic boarding houses and most of these living spaces were squalid and unhygienic with no running water. Trying to survive in these miserable, damp, overcrowded conditions that were rife with disease and often infested with rats, the unwary immigrant could easily became a virtual slave to unscrupulous padrones.7 Padrone is an Italian term that originally meant an employer who provides living arrangements and controls common laborers.
Young Italian children were espe.cially targeted for exploitation. Agents of padrones would recruit youngsters from poor remote villages whose families had no idea they were sending their children into these conditions. The children would accompany the street musicians and beg for pennies. Sometimes, as they grew older, they would crank the barrel organs them.selves. Yet all their earnings had to be handed over to the padrone. If they did not earn enough, they would be

An artist’s sketch depicts the mob that gathered in New Orleans, LA, in 1891 to “avenge” the police chief’s murder. Photo courtesy Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group Editorial/UIG via Getty Images
beaten and sent to bed hungry and threatened with expulsion or death. Many suffered in the worst conditions and the mortality rate amongst these youngsters was high.8
Very few of these immigrants were fortunate enough to have their own street organs. The less fortunate wretches would have to hire a weighty contraption for the day, which they then had to transport by carrying it slung over their backs. Each man had his favorite haunt where he would set himself up, manually cranking the organ handle to produce the tunes, and hoping to earn some pennies. For those who couldn’t afford their own street organs and had to rent, rental costs were set at such a rate that many grinders did not produce enough of a profit to escape the life of poverty.9
To make matters so much worse, it was an era where extreme national.ism reigned in the United States. All immigrants faced prejudice. Not only did African Americans face intoler.ance, but so did any who were new

The caption for this photo reads: “An organ grinder. Here is a familiar street scene, no less entertaining and amusing because so often before our doors. It is a jolly Italian family and the donkey, it is pleasant to remark, looks as satisfied and happy as the baby. There is no case here for the attention of the Humane Society, which is more than can be said of all foreign families who come to our shores. The organ, prudently done up in a mackintosh, is one of hose melancholy instruments that drone forth selections from ‘Faust’ and the ‘Barber of Seville’ with a wheezy catch in its strings and a pause when the performer collects a nickel. Sometimes the handle goes around without making any tune until there is a little click inside and away it goes on ‘Wacht Am Rhein’ or the ‘Marseillaise.’ No fine discriminator is our organ grinder. He plays ‘The Dead March’ with a hop-skip-and-a-jump, and his liveliest waltz with slow ponderous measure that would make even the donkey go asleep. While the music of a street piano will perhaps fail to give the liveliest satisfaction to a cultivated ear, it certainly affords great entertainment for that portion of society known as the ‘street gamin,’ whose opportunities for hearing any kind of music are very limited, with a corresponding increase in his capacity for enjoying it. There is still an Old World flavor about the group which has not had time to get rubbed off against our American ways. When we note the expression on the faces, especially that of the little girl in her mother’s arms, there can be no question that the picture was taken directly from life.”
arrivals to this country. Signs appeared in windows cautioning newcomers with “Irish Need Not Apply,” or “We Do Not Serve Germans,” and “No Jobs for Italians.” According to Tony Hernandez on a blog post at the Immigrant Archive Project, “it’s worth noting that this anti-immigrant fervor usually subsides. And more often than not, the newcomer is eventually woven into the fabric of America.”10
But that didn’t happen until after many of the immigrants grinding organs had suffered and died. At the time that this jingoistic attitude perme.ated our society, the Italian immigrant organ grinder was an especially easy target. Working alone outside of the neighborhood in which he lived, he was often victimized by belligerent groups. Gangs and bullies extorted money and most police did not offer protection for the poor immigrant grinder. Lacking language skills to express himself, he was often blamed for crimes he did not commit.
A prime example of how the media of the time supported injustices appeared in an editorial found in Puck Magazine. Originally printed Apr. 15, 1891, it seems to justify attacks on Italian immigrants and Italian organ grinders. The article unsympathet.ically describes the plight of the average organ grinder and his monkey. If the article had stopped at this point, it would have been somewhat informative, even though it mocked the Italian’s language skills with such phrases as “nice-a-man,” “the lady who give-a ten cents,” and “Lady-who-seta da dog on.”
The article goes on to describe the politics between Italy and the United States at the time, claiming that the Italian government had overreacted to a “recent breach of the peace in New Orleans” and had withdrawn their diplomats. In the article, the “breach of the peace” was not described. Perhaps the audience was cognizant about what this “breach of the peace” was, perhaps not. As readers of this article some 130 years later, we likely would not know.
So why was the Italian government so provoked so as to withdraw its diplomat? What was this “breach of the peace” or “unpleasantness” to which this article refers? A quick review of history of the time shows that one month earlier, Italians were the victims of the largest mass lynch.ings in the history of the United States.

According to a story published in the The Washington Post, on Mar. 14, 1891, a crowd of 8,000 assembled on Canal Street in New Orleans and stormed a prison in which some Italians were held. The crowd was reacting to the acquittal of several Italians who had been accused of the murder of the New Orleans police chief. Although they were later found innocent, the anti-Italian sentiment in the city ran high and a sacrifice was demanded.11 The victims were hated simply because they were Italian immigrants. These 11 men were either shot point blank or dragged outside and hanged from lamp posts. According to Ryan Prior of CNN, “Ital.ians were regular victims of nativist hostility in the 1890s, and more than 20 were lynched in episodes around the country throughout the decade.”12
Instead of expressing compassion for the lives of the 11 men unjustly and cruelly murdered or trying to explain the outrage felt by the Italian government, the Washington Post arti.cle simply misrepresents the number of men killed and attacks the Italian government for recalling its minister. Think about how we, as Americans, feel today when our innocent civilians are attacked in foreign lands and their governments do little or nothing to bring the criminals to justice? How must those Italian immigrant organ grinders felt?
Most literature of the time demon.ized immigrants, especially Italian organ grinders. One example is an ordinary melodrama for the stage from the early 1900s entitled “The Mummy and the Hummingbird.” It describes the villain as a base Italian organ grinder, even though his background demonstrates that he is a supposedly intelligent author who has had to flee his homeland.13
Many more examples of this type of negativity can be found in political cartoons of the day. Attached to this article are several examples of the prejudice faced by immigrant Italian organ grinders gleaned from publi.cations of the time. Often appearing in weekly magazines, the Brother Jonathan cartoon character was used to represent the United States before the Uncle Sam caricature was created. In the attached cartoon, he is advising the Italian organ grinder to send his instrument referred to as a squeak machine to P.T. Barnum’s circus, take a weapon, and go back to Italy.

One drawing shows what an illus.trator drew as a typical Italian organ grinder, revealing him to look like the basest criminal. The drawing was sure to give small children nightmares. Another cartoon of the day calls the Italian organ grinder a “dago” which is an extremely disparaging and contemptuous term used to refer to a person of Italian origin.
A photo appearing in a local news.paper of the day shows an apparently well cared for grinder organ on a donkey-pulled cart with an Italian family. In comparison to an average street husker, this is an unbelievably prosperous grinder. The photo is likely staged, but the caption refers to the mechanism as “one of those melancholy instruments that drones forth selections … with a wheezy catch. … No fine discriminator is our organ grinder.” The caption goes on to state that the music will fail to give the cultivated listener satisfaction. The article does add, however, “it certainly affords great entertainment for that portion of society familiarly known as the ‘street gamins.’” Street gamins are defined as homeless children left to wander the neighborhood, or street urchins. So, according to this piece, only the uneducated homeless can enjoy the sounds of a cranked instru.ment played by this Italian family.
To many, the organ grinders brought joy and pleasure from their humdrum existences and were a wonderful part of their lives. They never knew of the suffering often borne by many of these men. Besides living in deplorable conditions, faced with prejudice and often undisguised hatred, their days consisted of push.ing or carrying a heavy instrument in all sorts of weather. Imagine standing continuously for long hours and monotonously turning a crank to hear the same few songs day after day. This assuredly took not only strength, but patience. Let us never forget what these individuals endured as they played their wonderful instruments that we enjoy to this day.
A poem (see Page 40) which appeared in an 1873 issue of Harp.er’s New Monthly Magazine shows the human cost of an organ grinder. It speculates on the history of the elderly organ grinder’s past and what he thinks as he repetitiously grinds his instrument.14

Footnotes

1.
Penna, Robert. “Organ Grinders, the Mayor and Cartoons of the 1930’s,” Mechanical Music, Music Box Society International, Volume 64, No. 1, January/February 2018, page 36

2.
Steinkjerpositiv. http://www.nostalgeek.no/barrel.htm

3.
Penna, Robert. “Cartoon Crankers,” Mechanical Music, Music Box Society International, Volume 65, No. 4, July/August 2019, page 38

4.
Penna, Robert. “Barrel Organs and Monkey Performers in Our Nation’s Capital,” Carousel Organ, Carousel Organ Association of America, Issue #83, April 2020, page 4.

5.
Ibid. page 4

6.
Penna, Robert. “Barrel Organs and the Disabled Civil War Veteran,” Mechanical Music, Music Box Society International, Volume 64, No. 3, May/June 2018, page 28

7.
Penna, Robert. “Joy and Suffering: The Organ Grinders of London and Manchester,” The Music Box, Musical Box Society of Great Brit.ain, Volume 29 No. 7, Autumn 2020, page 268.

8.
Ibid. page 268

9.
Ibid. page 271

10.
“A Brief History of Anti-Immigrant Propaganda.” Immigrant Archive Project. https://immigrantarchiveproject.org/brief-history-anti-immi.grant-propaganda/

11.
Italian-American One Voice Coalition. 2018. http://www.iaovc.org/lynching-of-italians/

12.
Prior, Ryan. CNN. Published 3:12 PM (EDT) Monday, April 1, 2019.

13.
Penna, Robert. “The Mummy, the Hummingbird, and the Italian Organ Grinder, Mechanical Music, Musical Box Society International, volume 63, No. 5, September/October 2017.

14.
Zucchi, John E. The Little Slaves of the Harp. Buffalo, NY: McGill’s-Queens University Press 1992.

An organ-grinder, meagre and sorrowful, Stops in the sun in the street below; The ragged street children come trooping about him,
Crowding and eager and glad, I know, Their bright eyes peering through tangled tresses With childish wonder and happy trust:
Even the boys stare, quiet a moment, Scraping their toes through the tawney dust.
But the organ-grinder is bent and weary; Nothing is new to him under the sun; The tinkling of notes of the old, old music Mean scanty crusts when the day is done. A waltz may come, or an Ave Maria; The children may listen or run away; The organ-grinder is old and weary, And he turns this handle the livelong day.
What is he thinking, our tired brother? What do these sorrowful gray eyes see? Vacantly gazing – at nothing about him – Is he looking in faces that used to be? Is he thinking of old, old times and people, Of days when the sun in truth was bright, When the sweet winds blew to him perfumed fancies, And sunset castles rose fair in his sight?
Does he hear, instead of the old, old music His brown, stiff fingers are grinding out, The dear wife’s laugh in the pleasant twilight, And the baby’s step and tiny shout? Does he feel the pressure of loving fingers .Deadly chill when he touched them last! .Biding the troubled dream of the present In the gracious glow from the real past?
Our worn-out brother! He is only weary; no fairy dreams are kissing his eyes; His life is sordid and narrow and sorrowful; The pennies fall rarely – for this he sighs No lovely phantoms are floating about him; No echoes are sounding within his breast From the voice divine of that love supernal Which shall surely somewhere give him rest. And the bruised spirit is mate with the body; He will hear with a stare that God is good. Silently add to the store of his pennies, And brighten his desolate solitude. Stifle the Pharisee pity that rises! Who links the merciless chain of fate? Through what dim cycles slow gather its atoms? In what fine junctions – while we wait?
Poem and cartoon from The Little Slaves of the Harp. Reprinted from Harper’s New Monthly Magazine, 1873.
The SEGA Grand Pianist
The following article was first published in German by Das Mechanische Musikinstrument (No. 141, August 2021) the magazine of the German Association for Self-playing Mechan.ical Instruments.
By Uwe Gernert
Original intro: In May 2021 I found some new entries in Jody and Robbie’s Mechanical Music Digest (MMD) about a piece of technology not familiar to me before, called the SEGA Grand Pianist, a toy piano in 1/6 scale. It is a fully electronic device with some features worthy enough to be pointed out in a collector’s magazine, which also counts as an audience a group of people who are interested in MIDI technology.
SEGA and SEGA Toys
To warm up, I would like to talk a little about the history of the SEGA Corporation. The company was founded in 1940 in Honolulu, HI, by Americans Martin Bromley, Irving Bromberg and James Humpert. It was then called Standard Games and it produced coin-operated amusement machines, including slot machines for military bases. In 1946 the name was changed to SErvice GAmes, shortened in marketing materials to SEGA, as it continued to focus selling its products mainly on military bases. The U.S. outlawed slot machines in its territories around 1952 and SEGA could foresee a decline in sales, so the founders moved their business to Tokyo in 1951. The name of the company was changed to SErvice GAmes of Japan. The main business of SEGA was still the import of coin-op.erated automatons for American forces stationed in Japan at the time. In 1965 SEGA fused with Rosen Enter.prises, also a Tokyo-based business. Rosen Enterprises imported all sorts of electromechanical devices ranging from photobooths to mechanical playing machines found in arcades. In 1966 SEGA developed a submarine simulator called “Periscope” which became a worldwide export success and brought the company a world.wide reputation. The company began to develop between eight and 10 new arcade games per year.

In 1969, Rosen Enterprises and other shareholders decided to sell SEGA to Gulf & Western Industry Inc., a company engaged in making cars, clothing, sugar and a lot of other prod.ucts. When SEGA debuted its arcade game titled “Heavyweight Champ,” it was the first commercially successful Japanese video game. The company’s name continues to be associated with profitable products in video games and game consoles. In 1982, worldwide sales reached $214 million. The following decades saw SEGA experience many changes because of new competitors like Atari, Sony and Nintendo. Despite some mergers and takeovers, technological and commercial successes like the 16-bit game console called Mega Drive in the 1990s, reestablished the company in international markets.
Yonezawa Toys, which was founded in the 1950s in Tokyo, was the biggest producer of toys in Japan after WWII. They specialized in the 1970s in the production of thousands of different battery-driven mechanical toys. In the 1980s they began producing radio-controlled toys. In 1991 that company was bought by SEGA and the new trademark of the company was Sega-Yonezawa. In April 1998 the name of the founder was deleted from the company’s name and a new trade.mark, SEGA Toys, was established.
Further development saw the parent company SEGA as a supplier of software for the consoles of former competitors, for which games and simulations were and are still developed. On Sept. 9, 2003, SEGA announced to the press a new corpo.rate strategy of entering into more partnerships, including with Chunsoft, Vivarium, and THQ, for whom SEGA distributed games in Japan. The corpo.rate strategy included supporting next generation consoles such as the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Nintendo’s Wii with new video game software. SEGA also bought up several animation and game development studios in the 2000s and later, thus ensuring success in that market segment.

On Dec. 8, 2003, Sammy, one of Japan’s largest slot machine manufac.turers, bought 22.4 percent of SEGA’s stock and with that buy became the largest shareholder of the company after a failed attempt to merge with SEGA in the same year. On May 18, 2004, Sammy and SEGA declared they would fully merge in October to form a joint group called “Sega Sammy Holdings.” After this merger, SEGA Toys was also reorganized, becoming a division of SEGA entertainment. Sega Toys, however, continued to market itself completely independently of the parent company, even though there was cooperation between the two.
The Grand Pianist
As stated in the short introduction, the SEGA Grand Pianist came to my attention due to some short articles in MMD in May 2021. After watching videos at some of the links provided on YouTube, I knew I must have one of these machines and I began to search the web to find one for sale. I found some offered on eBay by international sellers from Japan who wanted $200 or so for them. Some of the offers from U.S. sellers were a lot more expensive so I decided to buy from a Japanese seller for the first time ever. I must say, I was not disappointed. The seller’s communication was excellent, and the instrument was sent on its way to me extremely fast.
Most Japanese sellers on eBay ship their goods free via FedEx worldwide. This is a very convenient way to obtain goods in Europe. FedEx handles all that customs stuff and sends you a bill for the costs about 14 days after deliv.ery. For those who are keen on getting original packaging and the manual (only available in Japanese) for the toy piano, you will have to pay a higher price and only likely deal with sellers from Japan. I wasn’t worried about missing those pieces because I was mainly interested in the completeness and condition of the instrument.
The SEGA Grand Pianist was produced in a white version, but they are rarely offered for sale nowadays and they are more expensive. I would say you might have to add $500 or more to the cost compared to a black version, but if white better fits with your furniture, I could see you saying, “so what?” There are also some editions, I call them “Cinderella-Edi.tions,” that were produced for an even smaller buyer’s market. Mostly, these were white instruments that had printings on the piano’s cover. In my opinion, these would only impress some Japanese or American buyers who might buy the instrument for a child’s room.
The SEGA Grand Pianist is a replica of an 88-key YAMAHA Grand piano. I think it is one of the famous YAMA-HA-series Type C2 pianos, which was also offered as a “Disklavier.” In the display panel of the toy, you might recognize the “Deja-vus.” The Deja.vus is a concept of sorting the files of different genres of music into differ.ent folders labeled A through F. The instrument in its 1/6 scale is practically identical to a reproduced YAMAHA, right down to the music holder. It was originally offered to the public in Japan in the first quarter of 2007.
The instrument’s 88 keys (white ones measuring 4 millimeters while black ones measure 3 millimeters in width) are actuated by small electro solenoids which will be moved according to the song being played. In manual mode the piano keys can be actuated by hand (perhaps even better with a matchstick). The instrument comes with 100 pieces of different music pre-programmed, ranging from classic to popular music, pop classics and of course “Happy Birthday” and “Silent Night.”

The repertoire was chosen by an internationally known Japanese composer and violinist named Taro Hakase. You may recognize his name, as he accompanied Celine Dion from the 1990s on her world tours as a violinist. The playlist can be extended by inserting an SD card into the inte.grated card reader slot. The machine is able to read cards up to a capacity of 2 GB. The dimensions of the piano are 250 millimeters wide, 180 milli.meters high and 330 millimeters long. The weight is about 3.6 kilograms. The Japanese obviously thought about a worldwide distribution for the instrument. The AC/DC adapter is a universal part which covers an AC input from 100 volts (at 100 volts the Japanese current is the worldwide lowest) to 240 volts. When buying an instrument from Japan you should always confirm that the adapter is original and not changed. Even the difference between 100 volts AC and the American voltage of 110/120 volts AC can do irreparable damage to the adapter and the instrument. The power plug on the adapter is NEMA-standard (National Electrical Manufacturers Association), so you don’t even need an adapter.
It is not hard to understand why this instrument found no interna.tional market. SEGA trademarked the instrument in the U.S. but never came up with any kind of marketing campaign to attract people to this product. Another problem was the price tag, which was $400. Delivery could be made only directly from Japan. Robbie Rhodes, in MMD of May 15, 2007, found a “Buy it now price” of $637 on eBay, which was far too much to make this product an economical success abroad.
It also wasn’t helpful at all that the instruction manual and display on the instrument were available only in Japanese. To completely detail all the failures of the marketing strategy for this piano, it would take an expert on the SEGA firm’s history who has a better knowledge of the Japanese language than me. Also regarding the level of commercial success, I only can speculate since I couldn’t obtain any information about how many of these pianos were produced versus how many were sold.
As a children’s toy, the SEGA Grand Pianist was not only too expensive, but also certainly not suitable for youngsters. Operating the instrument requires a high level of technical skill and there are simply too many parts that can break when it is used as a toy. It was also unsuitable for the broader Japanese population, partly because of a lack of living space in Japanese cities, but also contributing to the problem was the hefty price of 47,000 yen. Americans might call something like the SEGA Grand Pianist an “exec.utive desk toy.” As a collector’s item, there probably isn’t much money to be made with it either. I personally can’t see any real target group for marketing this instrument to. It seems to me that 14-year-olds to 16-year-olds certainly had (and still have) other needs greater than a miniature piano.
The instrument’s speaker is another weak point. The electromechanics that operate the keys are loud, only

When turning the piano on, you may see the keys move as part of a testing program.
drowned out when playing songs at full volume but then the quality of the sound isn’t great either. I esti.mated it at a maximum of 2.5 watts on the built-in speaker. According to the manufacturer, it can produce 3 watts of power. You can remedy this shortfall if you use the output jack available on the instrument and employ an external speaker option. I would advise you to look for devices made around the same time as this instrument. For example, you might try the speaker cube NX-A01 that was offered by YAMAHA about that time. Currently on the second-hand market you won’t find any of these speakers in black, only white are available. As collectors, however, we all know that hope always dies last! Maybe one day I’ll find a way to acquire a white version of the SEGA Grand Pianist, then buy a YAMAHA speaker in white also for less than $100. Of course, a Bluetooth TX-adapter together with a corresponding speaker can also offer an alternative to this collector’s dream combination. This Bluetooth option works wirelessly and can also be purchased for less than $100. I thought I might be able to turn off the key action in the original instrument to reduce the noise they make, but it turns out this would require software and possibly hardware hacks that not easily done unless you are an expert computer builder and programmer. With the external speaker attached, however, it is possible to obtain 6 to 10 watts of speaker volume which is quite suitable to overcome the back.ground noises produced by the piano.

When it comes to expanding the playlist for the piano, I have already mentioned that you can use a 2 GB SD card. You can even find some for sale that come with ready-recorded music, but even on eBay these cards are rarely available. Plus, sellers of these cards charge quite high prices and it is even more disappointing when you realize these cards only make a small number of additional tracks available.
There is a bit of software, called Musicbox, from a third-party-pro.ducer that is available and can be

Two SEGA Grand Pianists on top of a Steck Aeolian Pianola in the author’s home.
downloaded from the internet making it possible for you to convert MIDI-files to the format needed to save them on SD cards that are compatible with the toy piano. (Filenames after conversion end with *.FEM)
I was astonished that this software that dates back to 2010 (the version is 1.0.0.1, and is copyrighted in 2004) doesn’t have any problems running on Windows 10.
Don’t listen if somebody tells you to just change a filename extension from *.MID to *.FEM This will not work. Make all changes to your MIDI files with a program designed to work with those types of files before running the conversion through the Musicbox software. If you simply try to edit a MIDI file with a standard code-editor it will result in a corruption of that MIDI file.
Use of the Musicbox software is quite simple even if the export for the toy piano is hidden in a submenu called “List” as a button labeled . In that submenu you will find the choice for saving as . Please make sure to save the files in the root of the SD card since the piano can’t read file structures. Also be sure not to use SD cards with a capacity of more than 2 GB, otherwise the piano can’t read them. Also, not all brands of SD cards available can be read by the piano. I recommend you experiment with some of your old cards first. The usual formatting for the cards is the FAT32-formatting.

The SEGA Grand Pianist comes with a very simple menu structure. You can only choose between playing from media or manual playing. Starting up the piano with an SD card in the slot will provide you with a submenu. The first choice is playing from media. You may choose between SD and the onboard music. The first choice is to play from SD and you don’t even have to know Japanese because the term SD can be clearly identified in the menu.
Press the enter key in the menu three times and the music from the external SD card will start. Quality and range will depend on the MIDIs you use. It does seem, however, that there are many possibilities when playing around with MIDIs using the SEGA Grand Pianist since there are thousands of files available to convert.

Some YouTube videos assert that the toy piano’s keys are actuated at random while playing from self-made SD cards. This tells me that most of the makers of these videos had no knowledge that the Musicbox conver.sion software exists. In my opinion, the piano’s keys are actuated in total congruence with the notes played from the SD card. For those who are curious about the inner workings of the piano, I have included a picture of the inside. If something were to go wrong in there, I’m quite sure it would be easier to buy a new toy than to repair it. Or, maybe you have as much technical insight as the Japanese friend from the internet who sent me the picture that appears on Page 45.

Seeking your stories for ….
Did you once spend time finding the perfect musical
The Hunt
antique to round out your collection? What was it? How did you find it? Was it in ruins, or in perfect condition?
Was there a time you randomly ran across a unique instrument then found a way to acquire it and restore it so that you might display it and tell the story to all who of others. visit your home? We look forward to hearing
Answer these questions and you will have the perfect from you. story for “The Hunt” column in Mechanical Music.
Every mechanical music instrument has a story Email your story to editor Russell Kasselman at behind it and the readers of Mechanical Music love to editor@mbsi.org or mail a copy to: read them all.
Editing help is available if you have a story, but you are MBSI Editorial Offices not sure how to organize it or present it. The important 130 Coral Court thing is to get it down and pass it on for the enjoyment Pismo Beach, CA 93449

A fortunate find
The story of how a Crown Style 16 20.-inch upright disc music box came into my collection

One of the original discs purchased by the author. Note that the label spells Pittsburg without an “h.”
By Harold Wade

Crown 20.-inch disc music box to play Pa.” At the time these discs were
them on since I knew that the discs produced, Pittsburg (without the “h”)
In 2018, sometime in Spring, I would play perfectly on my Olympia was the correct spelling of the name unexpectedly found and bought four 20.-inch (serial No. 11037) table of the city until it was changed on original Crown 20.-inch discs at a model music box. I was happy with Jul. 11, 1911. It would be interesting Stanton’s Auctioneers auction in Hast-that. As mentioned, all the discs are in to hear from other Crown disc music ing, MI. They were in perfect condition excellent condition and each disc has box owners whether their discs have and, in my opinion, reasonably priced. printed on it the words “Crown Music the “h” or no “h” on their Crown disc I never worried that I didn’t have Box–H. Kleber and Bro. Co–Pittsburg, labels.

This image shows the repaired soundboard. Note, also, the small, white instruction label just below the bedplate.
Disc numbers, song titles and composers from the four discs I purchased are listed at top of Page 49.
A year or so later, while searching eBay, I found a music box described as a Regina upright disc music box, but I could tell from the pictures that it looked like an F. G. Otto 20.-inch disc music box. When I called the seller, Dennis Warren from Albany, NY, he told me that an antique music box dealer in New York state told him it was not a Regina but an F. G. Otto disc music box. I requested pictures of the music box and the discs. I was pretty sure it was a Crown 20.-inch disc music box that was manufactured by F. G. Otto and Sons in Jersey City, NJ. The pictures arrived and all nine discs had Crown Music Box labels on them. This convinced me it was worth looking at this item with some

No. Song Title
5065 Marching Through Georgia,
Song 1865
5070 Listen to the Mocking Bird,
March, (Horen Sie den Spottischen Vogel) 1856
Good
5128 Tis the Last Rose of Sum.
mer, from Martha, (Letzte
Rose, Lied) 1847
5281 Il Trovatore, Anvil Chorus
Music from Act 2 Scene 1
1853

Music Box Company in Randolph, VT.
“Pat. May 20, 1902 No: 700550.” The simply, Music Box. It was filed Dec.
boxes of every size
same label on almost all F.

short bedplate installations. The base
The author’s restored Crown 201/2-inch disc music box.
boxes with original base cabinets. MBSI members Mike Perry, who owns a Criterion serial No. 6373 in Ohio, and Alvin Zamba, who owns a Criterion serial No. 8506 in Pennsylvania, have the same cabinet for their machines.
The sole distributor of Crown disc music boxes made by F. G. Otto was Henry Kleber and Brothers, originally located at 1st 501 Wood Street and then at 221-223 Fifth Avenue in Pittsburg, PA, between 1903 and 1904. Kleber, born in Darmstadt, Germany, was an active participant in the city’s musical affairs for years. He had a music store in Pittsburgh for many years selling Knabe, Henry F Miller, Crown Orches.tra, Straube and Opera Pianos, plus many other musical items including Imperial Symphonion disc music boxes, Washington Mandolins, guitars, banjos, zithers and Peerless Piano Players. An interesting side note, I own an Imperial Symphonion 20-inch disc music box with a label inside reading, “H. Kleber & Bro. 221-223 Fifth Ave. Pittsburg—Everything in the music line– Baldwin & Gleason Company, N.Y.” I purchased that box in Pittsburgh some years ago.
The Crown disc music boxes were exact copies of Criterion or Olym.pia or Euphonia music boxes, and possibly even the same as Sterling music boxes though I’ve never seen one of those. I found that the discs are interchangeable since they all have a 3/8-inch diameter center hole and edge drive. The Crown 20.-inch disc numbers (5XXX) are the same numbers as Criterion and Olympia 20.-inch disc boxes. This information comes from an article by Al Choffnes printed in the MBSI journal that is dated Winter 1983 (Vol. 29, No. 3).
The Crown music boxes I’ve seen are plain with no markings. MBSI member Bob Yates has a small Crown disc music box, size 8.-inches with 44 teeth, that has 16 (2XXX) discs. Also Bob’s music box has a label reading “Number 1,” which I believe is the model (looking at Q. David Bowers’ “Encyclopedia of Disc Music Boxes” on page 299). Bob purchased his Crown disc music box from an antique dealer in Pittsburgh who bought the Henry Kleber store when it went out of business some 40 years ago. MBSI member Colson Conn had a 14-inch or 15.-inch Crown disc music box that he bought on eBay from a small town just east of Pittsburgh some years back. Also, the Morris Museum in Morristown, NJ, has on display a Crown 15.-inch disc music box that is on loan from Jane A. George and is pictured in Mechanical Music (Vol. 63, No. 3, May/June 2017, Page 20). I think it would be interesting to know how this Crown 20.-inch disc music box made its way to upstate New York from Pittsburgh, PA.

Ron Connolly, at the Porter Music Box Company, started restoring my Crown music box on Sept. 28, 2020. Ron said the combs were not badly worn and cleaned up nicely. He reported that the number one star wheel on the bass end of the combs was badly worn because the first bass teeth in both the upper and lower comb were too heavy. He added that the spring barrel and drive spring both contained dried-up grease from more than 116 years of use, but they also cleaned up nicely. The drive gear on the shaft was pinned over, instead of using a set screw, to hold it to the shaft, Ron said. He drilled it out and corrected it. Next, he noted that the speed lever and assembly for

The front and back side of a Liberty V nickel, found in the base cabinet of the author’s Crown disc box during restoration.
controlling disc speed was missing, so he made a copy using Jim Farr’s Criterion 15.-inch disc music box which happened to be in Porter’s shop for restoration at the same time. Thank you Jim. The sound board in my Crown music box had shrunken slightly so it was moved over slightly and a Sitka spruce piece was glued in to fill the space and prevent rattles, then sanded to a smooth surface and stained to color match the original. The back board of the music box had shrunken also so the panels were loose causing a rattle. The back panel was taken apart, cleaned up and glued back together to solve this problem. The restoration of my music box was completed in early 2021. The box was delivered to Alvin Zamba’s residence on May 11, 2021. Alvin made a copy of the beautiful gallery from his Criterion 20.-inch box to replace the missing gallery on mine. This made the music box look complete.
Another interesting side note is that Ron found a 1900 Liberty V Nickel in the base cabinet of my music box. It was dirty, but in perfect condition. My guess is that the coin had been laying in the bottom of the base cabinet for more than 110 years.

No. Song Title Composer
5038 Adeste Fideles Portuguese Chapel Hymn (O Come, All Ye Faithful) 1743 Tr. J. R. Beste
5048 The Palms, Scared Song 1872 Jean-Baptiste Faure
5070 Listen to The Mocking Bird, March, (Horen Sie den Spottischen Vogel) 1856 Good Alice Hawthorne
5088 The Holy City, Sacred Song 1892 Stephen Adams
5141 Jesus, Lover of My Soul, Hymn 1862 Joseph P Holbrook
5251 Wizard of the Nile, Star Light, Star Bright Waltz, Song Burlesque Operetta 1895 Victor Herbert
5281 Il Trovatore, Anvil Chorus Music from Act 2 Scene 1 1853 Excellent Giuseppe Verdi
5450 Blaze Away, March and Two Step 1901 Abraham Abe Holzmann
5510 Bedelia Song (A Irish Serenade),(I Want to Steal Ye, Bedelia, I Love You So) 1903 Jean Schwartz & William Jerome

On this page is a table showing the nine discs that came with my Crown 20.-inch disc music box.
It has been an enjoyable journey acquiring this unusual disc music box, having it restored and now enjoying the beautiful music which it can produce. I must thank Dwight Porter and Ron Connolly once again for the excellent restoration. Also, many thanks to Alvin Zamba for the beauti.ful gallery on the top of the music box that he made. Thanks also go to Mary Zamba for taking some photos and assisting with this article.

WE WANT YOUR STORY!
Every mechanical musical instrument has a tale to tell. Share the history of people who owned your instrument before you, or the story of its restoration, or just what makes it an interesting piece. Send stories via email to editor@mbsi.org or mail your story to Iron Dog Media, 130 Coral Court, Pismo Beach, CA 93449

Interesting Tidbits

H.O. Studley, Veteran Piano Maker, at His Bench in the Poole Factory.
The small article accompanying this photo, found in the March 30, 1890, issue of The Music Trade Review, reads:
“In the accompanying picture, taken in the Poole Piano Co.’s factory, Boston, the portrait of H.O. Studley, who is one of the trade’s most interesting characters, will be noted. Mr. Studley has been a piano man for forty-six years, and has been with the Poole Piano Co. for over twenty, and is still in active harness with this well-known Boston piano manufacturing institution. The tool set also shown in this picture represents the collection of a lifetime, and the handsome case as well as a number of the tools were made by Mr. Studley, who is a veteran of the Civil War, and a staunch American.”
Several articles are available online providing more detail about the man and his tool chest, which is now on display at the Smithsonian Institution. Read more at:
•

19th-Century Tool Box Is Meticulously Designed to Hold 300 Tools

•
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_O._Studley

•
http://ggober.com/shop/documents/FW_Stud.ley_Smithsonian.pdf

•
https://lostartpress.com/collections/books/products/ virtuoso

Margie Epstein — 1935-2021
By Paul Senger
I am sad to announce the passing
of Margery “Margie” Epstein on Jun.
2, 2021, at the age of 85 after a long
illness. She was born in Trenton, NJ,
and was a resident of Silver Spring,
MD, for more than 40 years. After
raising three children, she started
a successful tutoring business that
she ran for nearly 20 years. She was
predeceased by her husband of 62
years, Seymour “Sy” Epstein, in 2018.
Together they were able to pursue
many passions including travel,
game collection and appreciation for
antique music boxes. They also loved
to go to musical shows including
the annual John Philip Sousa tribute
concerts by the Marine Band, and live
performances at local venues. She
loved to talk to the musicians and
performers after shows. Margie was
also enthusiastic in her participation
in the League of Women Voters. Sy
and Margie had been members of the
National Capital Chapter for over 15
years and enthusiastic contributors

to our chapter including our Annual daughter, Sharon Ross (Greg); flowers, donations can be made to the
Convention in 2011. grandchildren, Ericka and Neil, sister, League of Women Voters, American Margie will be greatly missed. Our Barbara Waksler; and brother, Roger Cancer Society and American Heart
condolences go out to the family. Pitasky. Association. She is survived by sons, Bruce A memorial service was held Read more at www.sagelbloomfield.
(Rachael) and Jeff (Virginia); Jul.j 11 in Rockville, MD. In lieu of com/obituary/Margery-Epstein

Lelland Fletcher — 1926-2021
The Southern California Chapter is collector who attended many chapter sorry to have to announce that our meetings as well as national mechan.dear friend, Lelland Fletcher, passed ical musical enthusiast meetings in away on Jul. 21, 2021, at a care center. the U.S., Japan and Europe. He will be
July 28 would have been his 95th sorely missed. birthday. “Fletcher” was a gentle man A memorial service in San Diego, and a long-term MBSI member and CA, was held Aug. 6.

Advertise in The Mart

Have some spare parts or extra rolls taking up the space where you should be installing your next acquisition? Ready to trade up, but need to sell one of your current pieces first? Get the word out to other collectors by advertising in The Mart, an effective advertising tool at an inexpensive price.
Go online to place your advertisement at www.mbsi.org, fill out the form in the Mart section, or contact Russell Kasselman at (253) 228-1634 to get started. You may also email advertisements to editor@mbsi.org

A Lasting Legacy

Throughout its history, MBSI has fostered an interest in and preservation of automatic musical instruments. Your gift to the Endowment Fund will support programs that will help future generations appreciate these achievements of man’s creative genius. Visit www.mbsi.org to learn more.

In order for anything once alive to have meaning, its effect must remain alive in eternity in some way
– Ernest Becker, Philosopher

The Musical Box Society International is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. All donations to the Endowment Fund are tax deductible. A gift of any size is welcome.
Aug. 31 – Sept. 5, 2022
72nd Annual Meeting of the Musical Box Society International & 58th Annual Meeting of the

and the MBSI Golden Gate Chapter Location: San Mateo Marriott San Francisco Airport in San Mateo, California

Stanton’s Auctioneers,
Vermontville, MI 49096 Phone: (517) 726-0181 Michael C. Bleisch Fax: (517) 726-0060 (517) 231-0868 cellular E-mail: stantonsauctions@sbcglobal.net E-mail – mcbleisch@gmail.com Website: www.stantons-auctions.com

Music Box Company, Inc.
We restore Swiss cylinder and disc music boxes.
•
Cylinders are repinned if necessary and all worn parts are rebuilt to original specifications or better.

•
Combs are repaired and tuned. Nickel plated parts are replated as needed.

Trust your prized music box to the finest quality restoration available. We have been accused of over restoring! Better over than under I say!
We will pick up your music box anywhere east of the Mississippi River, and transport it to our shop in Randolph, Vermont, where it will be stored in a climate-controlled area until it’s finished and returned.
We have a complete machine shop where we build Porter Music Boxes, more than 3,000 so far. We are unique in the industry in that we are capable of manufacturing any part needed to restore any music box.
See our website, www.PorterMusicBox.com, to read letters of recommendation and browse a selection of the finest disc boxes currently being manufactured anywhere in the world. We have twin disc models, single disc models with 121/4” or15 1/
“ discs, and table models with beautiful cabinets created for us in Italy. Also we can
occasions.
P.O Box 424 Randolph, VT 05060

support.

Call (802) 728-9694 or email maryP@portermusicbox.com

The Musical Box Society of Great Britain announces the publication of two new books Published in September 2018

100pp Hard Back ISO A4 format [8.27” . 11.70”; Profusely illustrated in
Supplement to

colour throughout with Additional Illustrations of Models, 89 Additional Lid The Disc Musical Box Pictures Additions to Lists of Models, Patents, Tune Lists & Serial Numbers; Combined Index of Images in the original book and its Supplement.
Compiled and Edited by Kevin McElhone Originally published in 2012 and still available The Disc Musical Box
ISBN 978-0-9557869-6-9
is a compendium of information about Disc Musical Boxes, their Makers and their Music; profusely illustrated in colour throughout with Illustrations of each Disk Musical Box Model, and with Catalogue Scans, Lists of Models, Patents & Tune Lists.
Supplement to
Compiled and Edited by Kevin McElhone
100pp Hard Back ISO A4 format [8.27” . 11.70”; Profusely illustrated in
Patents, Tune Lists & Tuning Scales; A New Section on Trade Cards; Combined Index of Images in the original book and its Supplement.
The Organette Book is a compendium of information about Organettes, their Makers and their Music. Originally published in 2000 but now out of print although second-hand copies are occasionally available in online auctions.
************************************************************************************************************************ For all MBSGB Publications, please refer to the Musical Box Society of Great Britain website for further details including latest availability, discounted prices and information on how to order. -www.mbsgb.org.uk

MECHANICAL MUSIC
Journal of the Musical Box Society International
MECHANICAL MUSIC
Journal of the Musical Box Society International Devoted to All Automatic Musical Instruments
Volume 63, No. 3 May/June 2017
MECHANICAL MUSIC
Journal of the Musical Box Society International Devoted to All Automatic Musical Instruments
Volume 63, No. 1 January/February 2017

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Style “C” with spiral
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Non-members may advertise at the rates listed plus a 10% surcharge

PLEASE NOTE:
The first two words (or more at your choice) and the member’s name will be printed in all caps/bold and charged at 60¢ per word.
Mechanical Music
Mechanical Music is mailed to all members at the beginning of every odd month — January, March, May, July, September and November.
MBSI Advertising Statement
It is to be hereby understood that the placing of advertisements by members of the Society in this publication does not constitute nor shall be deemed to constitute any endorsement or approval of the busi.ness practices of advertisers. The Musical Box Society International accepts no liability in connection with any business dealings between members and such advertisers.
It is to be further understood that members are to rely on their own investigation and opinion regarding the reputation and integrity of advertisers in conducting such busi.ness dealings with said advertisers.
variety of antique musical boxes, discs, orphan cylinders, reproducing piano rolls & out of print books about mechanical music. BILL WINEBURGH 973-927-0484 Web: antiquemusicbox.us
THE GOLDEN AGE of AUTOMATIC MUSI.CAL INSTRUMENTS By ART REBLITZ. Award-winning classic that brings historical, musical, and technical information to life with hundreds of large, vivid color photos. We guarantee you’ll find it to be one of the most interesting, inspiring, informative books you have in your library–or your money back. Everyone has been delighted, and some readers have ordered several copies. Get your copy today for $99 plus S/H. MECHANI.CAL MUSIC PRESS-M, 70 Wild Ammonoosuc Rd., Woodsville, NH 03785. (603) 747-2636.
http://www.mechanicalmusicpress.com

installed. Plays as it should. New top repro.duced. Have receipts for work and parts. $2,100.00. Call JON GULBRANDSON, at (763) 923 5748
MILLS VIOLANO #3931 purchased from Mills Novelty Co. in 2003. 100-point restoration done by the most well-known and respected Violano technician in the country. Flawless brown mahogany case. Instrument plays and sounds great. It has been serviced regularly. Plays from collection of 12 recut rolls or MIDI system with over 300 songs on hard drive. Retired, moving, need to sell. Will accept any reasonable offer. Contact RON SCHULTZ, at rpsdds@hvc.rr.com or (845) 386-2773
MARVELS OF MECHANICAL MUSIC -MBSI Video. Fascinating and beautifully-made film which explains the origins of automatic
SUBMIT ADS TO:
MBSI Ads 130 Coral Court Pismo Beach, CA 93449 (253) 228-1634 Email: editor@mbsi.org

musical instruments, how they are collected and preserved today, and their historic importance, MBSI members and collections are featured. $20 USD. Free shipping in the continental U.S. Additional postage charges apply for other locations. Purchase now at www.mbsi.org

SEEKING PLANS or measurement for a Polyphon lower cabinet for 19.5 size disc. Contact ROD MOORE, rodcrna4u@gmail. com or (336) 337-1165 North Carolina

REPRODUCTION POLYPHON discs; Cata.logs available for 19 5/8”, 22 1/8”, and 24 1/2”. DAVID CORKRUM 5826 Roberts Ave, Oakland, CA 94605-1156, 510-569-3110, www.polyphonmusic.com

Display Advertisers
SAVE $’s on REUGE & THORENS MUSIC BOX REPAIR & RESTORATION – MBSI MEMBERS RECEIVE WHOLESALE PRICING.
40 + Years experience servicing all makes & models of cylinder and disc music boxes, bird boxes, bird cages, musical watches, Anri musical figurines, et al. All work guaranteed. We’re the only REUGE FACTORY AUTHORIZED Parts & Repair Service Center for all of North America. Contact: DON CAINE -The Music Box Repair Center Unlimited, 24703 Pennsyl.vania Ave., Lomita, CA 90717-1516. Phone:
(310) 534-1557 Email: MBRCU@AOL.COM. On the Web: www.musicboxrepaircenter.com
Advertise in The Mart
Have some spare parts or extra rolls taking up the space where you should be installing your next acquisition? Ready to trade up, but need to sell one of your current pieces first? Get the word out to other collectors by advertising in The Mart, an effective advertising tool at an inexpensive price.
Fill out the form below and mail to MBSI at 130 Coral Court, Pismo Beach, CA 93449. Call (253) 228.1634 with questions.
3………. Renaissance Antiques 54…….. Music Box Restorations 54…….. Miller Organ Clock 55…….. Golden Gate Chapter 56…….. Stanton Auctions 57…….. Porter Music Box Company 58…….. MBSGB 58…….. American Treasure Tour 59…….. Reeder Pianos 59…….. Cottone Auctions 59…….. Ben’s Player Piano Service 59…….. 4-4Time.com 61…….. Nancy Fratti Music Boxes 66…….. Marty Persky Music Boxes 67…….. Morphy Auctions 68…….. Auction Team Breker

Name Phone Email Text of ad

ORDER EXTRA COPIES
Call MBSI Administrator Jacque Beeman at
(417) 886-8839 or send a check to: Musical Box Society International P.O. Box 10196 Springfield, MO 65808-0196

OFFICERS, TRUSTEES & COMMITTEES of the MUSICAL BOX SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL®
OFFICERS President
Tom Kuehn 4 Williams Woods Mahtomedi, MN 55115 kuehn001@umn.edu
Vice President
David Corkrum 5826 Roberts Avenue Oakland, CA 94605 musikwerke@att.net
Recording Secretary
Linda Birkitt PO Box 541 San Juan Capistrano, CA 92693 scarletpimpernel28@yahoo.com
Treasurer
Edward Kozak 3615 North Campbell Avenue Chicago, IL 60618 ekozak1970@gmail.com
TRUSTEES
Dave Calendine Bob Caletti Ed Cooley Dave Corkrum
G.Wayne Finger Matt Jaro Tom Kuehn Mary Ellen Myers
MBSI FUNDS

COMMITTEES Audit
Edward Cooley, Chair, Trustee Dave Calendine, Trustee Matt Jaro, Trustee
Endowment Committee
Edward Kozak, Treasurer, Chair Edward Cooley, Trustee Dave Calendine, Trustee B Bronson Wayne Wolf
Executive Committee
Tom Kuehn, Chair, President David Corkrum, Vice President Clay Witt, Immediate Past Pres.
G.Wayne Finger, Trustee Mary Ellen Myers, Trustee
Finance Committee
Edward Kozak, Chair, Treasurer Wayne Wolf, Vice Chair David Corkrum, Vice President Edward Cooley, Trustee Peter Both
Marketing Committee
Bob Smith, Chair Dave Calendine, Trustee
G.Wayne Finger, Trustee Judy Caletti
Meetings Committee
Matt Jaro, Chair, Trustee Judy Caletti Tom Chase Cotton Morlock Rich Poppe
Membership Committee
Chair, TBD Mary Ellen Myers, Trustee,
Southeast Linda Birkitt, Southern California Gary Goldsmith, Snowbelt Christine Hopwood, Golden Gate Julie Morlock, Southeast Rob Pollock, Mid-America Dan Wilson, Piedmont Gerald Yorioka, Northwest Int’l TBD, East Coast TBD, Great Lakes TBD, National Capital TBD, Sunbelt
Museum Committee
Sally Craig, Chair Clay Witt, Immediate Past Pres. Glenn Crater, National Capital Ken Envall, Southern California Julian Grace, Sunbelt Matt Jaro, National Capital Rob Pollock, Mid-America Richard Simpson, East Coast
Museum Sub-Committees
Ohio Operations Rob Pollock

SPECIAL ACTIVITIES Publications Back Issues:
Jacque Beeman

Regina Certificates:
B Bronson

MBSI Pins and Seals:
Jacque Beeman
Librarian:
Jerry Maler
Historian:
Bob Yates
Nominating Committee
Dan Wilson, Chair Clay Witt, Immediate Past Pres. Bob Caletti, Golden Gate, Trustee Mary Ellen Myers, Trustee,
Southeast Jonathan Hoyt, Golden Gate Robin Biggins, Southern California Aaron Muller, Lake Michigan
Publications Committee
Bob Caletti, Chair, Trustee Steve Boehck Dave Corkrum, Vice President Christian Eric Kathleen Eric Terry Smythe
Publications Sub-Committee
Website Committee Rick Swaney, Chair B Bronson Don Henry Knowles Little, Web Secretary
Special Exhibits Committee
Chair Mary Ellen Myers, Trustee, Southeast David Corkrum, Vice President,
Golden Gate Donald Caine, Southern California Jack Hostetler, Southeast Knowles Little, National Capital Judy Miller, Piedmont Aaron Muller, Lake Michigan Wayne Myers, Southeast Rick Swaney, Northwest Int’l
MBSI Editorial Office:
Iron Dog Media 130 Coral Court Pismo Beach, CA 93449 editor@mbsi.org

Members can donate to these funds at any time.
Send donations to: General Fund (unrestricted)
MBSI Administrator, Endowment Fund (promotes the purposes of MBSI, restricted)
PO Box 10196, Ralph Heintz Publications Fund (special literary projects)
Springfield, MO 65808-0196. Museum Fund (supports museum operations)

All manuscripts will be subject to editorial review. Committee and the Editorial Staff. are considered to be the author’s personal opinion. Articles submitted for publication may be edited The article will not be published with significant The author may be asked to substantiate his/her or rejected at the discretion of the Publications changes without the author’s approval. All articles statements.
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
Date Event Location Sponsor
Aug. 31-Sept. 5, 2022 Joint MBSI / AMICA Annual Meeting San Mateo, CA Golden Gate Chapter/ AMICA Founding Chapter

When will your chapter meet next? Holding a “virtual meeting?” Let us know! Send in your information by Oct. 1, 2021, for the November/December issue. Don’t hold your questions until the next chapter meeting. Ask them today on our Facebook discussion group
-the Music Box Society Forum.

Please send dates for the Calendar of Events to Russell Kasselman (editor@mbsi.org)
CONTACTS

Administrator Jacque Beeman handles back issues (if available) $6; damaged or issues not received, address changes, MBSI Directory listing changes, credit card charge questions, book orders, status of your membership, membership renewal, membership application, and MBSI Membership Brochures. P.O. Box 10196 Springfield, MO 65808-0196 Phone/Fax (417) 886-8839 jbeeman.mbsi@att.net
Traveling MBSI Display Bill Endlein 21547 NW 154th Pl. High Springs, FL 32643-4519 Phone (386) 454-8359 sembsi@yahoo.com
Regina Certificates: Cost $5. B Bronson Box 154 Dundee, MI 48131 Phone (734) 529-2087 art@d-pcomm.net
Advertising for Mechanical Music Russell Kasselman Iron Dog Media 130 Coral Court Pismo Beach, CA 93449 Phone (253) 228-1634 editor@mbsi.org
CHAPTERS
Snowbelt

Chair: Tracy Tolzmann (651) 674-5149 Dues $10 to Gary Goldsmith 17160 – 245th Avenue Big Lake, MN 55309
Southeast

Chair: Jack Hostetler (352) 633-1942 Dues $5 to Clay Witt 820 Del Rio Way Unit 203 Merritt Island, FL 32953
Museum Donations Sally Craig, 2720 Old Orchard Road Lancaster, PA 17601 Phone (717) 295-9188 rosebud441@juno.com
MBSI website Rick Swaney, 4302 209th Avenue NE Sammamish, WA 98074 Phone (425) 836-3586 r_swaney@msn.com
Web Secretary Knowles Little 9109 Scott Dr. Rockville, MD 20850 Phone (301) 762-6253 kglittle@verizon.net
CHAPTERS
East Coast
Chair: Elise Low (203) 457-9888 Dues $5 to Roger Wiegand 281 Concord Road Wayland, MA 01778 or pay via PayPal, send to treasurereccmbsi@gmail.com
Golden Gate
Chair: Jonathan Hoyt jenjenhoyt@yahoo.com Dues $5 to Dave Corkrum 5826 Roberts Ave. Oakland, CA 94605
Japan
Chair: Naoki Shibata 81-72986-1169 naotabibito396amb@salsa.ocn.ne.jp Treasurer: Makiko Watanabe makikomakiko62@yahoo.co.jp
Lake Michigan
Chair: Aaron Muller (847) 962-2330 Dues $5 to James Huffer 7930 N. Kildare Skokie, Illinois 60076

Mid-America
Chair: Rob Pollock (937) 508-4984 Dues $10 to Harold Wade 4616 Boneta Road Medina, OH 44256
National Capital
Chair: Matthew Jaro (301) 482-2008 Dues $5 to Florie Hirsch 8917 Wooden Bridge Road Potomac, MD 20854
Northwest International
Chair: Rick Swaney (425) 836-3586 Dues $7.50/person to Kathy Baer 8210 Comox Road Blaine, WA 98230
Piedmont
Temp Chair: Dan Wilson (919) 740-6579 musicboxmac@mac.com Dues $10 to Dan Wilson 4804 Latimer Road Raleigh, NC. 276099
Southern California
Chair: Robin Biggins (310) 377-1472 Dues $10 to Diane Lloyd 1201 Edgeview Drive Cowan Hgts, CA 92705
Sunbelt
Chair: Ray Dickey (713) 467-0349 Dues $10 to Diane Caudill 4585 Felder Road Washington, TX 77880

Copyright 2021 the Musical Box Society International, all rights reserved. Permission to reproduce by any means, in whole or in part, must be obtained in writing from the MBSI Executive Committee and the Editor. Mechanical Music is published in the even months. ISSN 1045-795X
7

Mechanical Music at its Best -Visit www.Mechmusic.com
Instrument Brokering & Locating / Appraisals / Inspections / Free Consultation

Welte 4 Concert Violina Orchestra Wurlitzer CX with Bells Hupfeld Helios II/25 Welte Brisgovia C Luxus

Weber Unika Weber Maesto Weber Otero Seeburg KT Special Bowfront Violano

Regina 35 w Clock Nelson Wiggen Style 8 Symphonion 25st

Call Marty Persky 847-675-6144 or email: Marty@Mechmusic.com for further information on these and other fine instruments.

Bacigalupo violinopan barrel 2-seater elephant sofa in theorgan, Model 9, c. 1895 fairground style, c. 1980
Estimate: 5.000 – 7.000 ˜ / Estimate: 2.000 – 2.500 ˜ /$ 5.900 – 8.260
$ 2.360 – 2.950

“Princess”, 2-inch scale model of a Fowler showman’s engine Estimate: 5.000 – 8.000 ˜ / $ 5.900 – 9.440
World’s Leading Specialty Auctions

»Mechanical Music & Carousel«
24 + 25 September 2021 5 + 6 November 2021

Galloper carousel horse, Arthur E. Anderson, Designer & Wood Carver, Bristol, c. 1920 Estimate: 7.000 – 9.000 ˜ / $ 8.260 – 10.620
“Bimbo Box” with mechanical monkeys, Automatenfabrik Bk, Betlinghausen Estimate: 2.500 – 2.500 ˜ / $ 2.950 – 2.950
Fairground working model of a gondola switchback Estimate: 1.200 – 1.800 ˜ / $ 1.415 – 2.120 Unusual horn gramophone Estimate: 1.200 – 1.800 ˜ / $ 1.415 – 2.120
Hupfeld Clavitist electric piano, c. 1910
Estimate: 2.500 – 3.500 ˜ / $ 2.950 – 4.130

Friedrich Heyn Carousel Horse, Caroussel-Pferde und Kunstfiguren Fabrik, Neustadt an der Orla, c 1900 Estimate: 5.000 – 7.000 ˜ / $ 5.900 – 8.260
Book-playing fairground organ by Alfred Bruder, Waldkirch, c. 1928 Estimate: 20.000 – 30.000 ˜ / $ 23.600 – 35.400
…and many more!

For more information and large colour photographs of some more of the upcoming Highlights please visit our website at: www.Breker.com / New Highlights and youtube.com/auctionteambreker Fully-illustrated bilingual (Engl.-German) COLOUR Catalogue available against prepayment only:
Euro 28.– (Europe) or elsewhere Euro 37.– (approx. US$ 44.– / Overseas)
. Consignments are welcome at any time!
Polyphon Style 104 disc musical box, Polyphon Musikwerke, Leipzig, c. 1899“Buffalo Bill” smoking automaton

Estimate: 6.000 – 8.000 ˜ /

by Gustave Vichy, c. 1890 – The Specialists in »Technical Antiques« –
$ 7.080 – 9.440 Estimate: 7.000 – 9.000 ˜ / P. O. Box 50 11 19, 50971 Koeln/Germany · Tel.: +49 / 2236 / 38 43 40 · Fax: +49 / 2236 / 38 43 430 $ 8.260 – 10.620

Otto-Hahn-Str. 10, 50997 Koeln (Godorf)/Germanye-mail: Auction@Breker.com · www.breker.com · Business Hours: Tue – Fri 9 am – 5 pm
.

PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT OUR INTERNATIONAL REPRESENTATIVES: Japan: Murakami Taizou, Tel./Fax (06) 68 45 86 28 * murakami@ops.dti.ne.jp · China: Jiang Feng, Tel. 138 620 620 75 * jiangfengde@gmail.com Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore: Alex Shih-Chieh Lin, (HK), Tel. (+852) 94 90 41 13 * alexsclin@gmail.com England: Tel. +49 (0) 176 991 40593 * AuctionTeamBrekerUK@outlook.de · France: Pierre J. Bickart, Tel. (01) 43 33 86 71 * AuctionTeamKoln@aol.com
Russia: Maksim Suravegin, Tel. +7 903 558 02 50 * Maksim-ATB.ru@gmx.net U.S.A.: Andrew Truman, Tel. (207) 485 8343 * AndrewAuctionTeamBreker@gmail.com · Australia & New Zealand: P. Bardenheier, (NZ), Tel./Fax (+64) (0)9 817 72 68 * dbarden@orcon.net.nz

Mechanical Music

Journal of the Musical Box Society International
Devoted to All Automatic Musical Instruments

Volume 67, No. 4 July/August 2021

PuRchAse • sAles • consignment

of Quality Cylinder & Disc Music Boxes, Musical Clocks & Automata

For over forty years we’ve placed fine antiques in collections around the world.
Our reputation has been built upon appreciative buyers and satisfied sellers.
Pictured are a few of the musical antiques in our current and recent inventories.

496 First Street, California 93463 • Ron & Julie Palladino
Open Seven Days a Week 10-6 • 805-452-5700
www.renantiques.com

Visit the charming Danish Village of Solvang, half an hour above Santa Barbara in the beautiful Central Coast Wine Country
RENAISSANCE ANTIQUE S

Renaissance Antiques of solvang

Editor/Publisher

Russell Kasselman

(253) 228-1634

editor@mbsi.org

MBSI Editorial Office:

Iron Dog Media

130 Coral Court

Pismo Beach, CA 93449

editor@mbsi.org

Publications Chair

Bob Caletti

All manuscripts will be subject to editorial
review. Articles submitted for publication may
be edited or rejected at the discretion of the
Publications Committee and the Editorial
Staff. The article will not be published with
significant changes without the author’s
approval. All articles are considered to be the
author’s personal opinion. The author may be
asked to substantiate his/her statements.

Mechanical Music (ISSN 1045-795X) is published by
the Musical Box Society International, 130 Coral Court,
Pismo Beach, CA 93449 six times per year. A Directory
of Members, Museums and Dealers is published
biennially. Domestic subscription rate, $60. Periodicals
postage paid at San Luis Obispo, CA and additional
mailing offices.

Copyright 2021. The Musical Box Society International,
all rights reserved. Mechanical Music
cannot be copied, reproduced or transmitted in
whole or in part in any form whatsoever without
written consent of the Editor and the Executive
Committee.

MEMBERS: SEND ADDRESS CORRECTIONS TO:
MBSI, PO Box 10196,
Springfield, MO 65808-0196
Or, make corrections on the website at www.mbsi.org.

POSTMASTER: SEND ADDRESS CHANGES TO

MBSI, PO Box 10196,
Springfield, MO 65808-0196

Mechanical Music

Journal of the Musical Box Society International

Devoted to All Automatic Musical Instruments

Volume 67, No. 4 July/August 2021

MBSI NEWS
5 President’s Message
7 Outreach Corner

51 In Memoriam

Features

10 Nickel Notes
by Matt Jaro

16 The Braamcamp Clock

29 History of the
Steinkjerpositives

35 Building a Bird Box

39 An Unforgettable Buying
Trip

43 Treasured Memories

48 Bob’s Symphonion

On the Cover

The Braamcamp Clock, restored
and displayed in Museum
Speelklok. Read the story of the
restoration starting on Page 16.

Steinkjerpositives

Strange name, interesting history.
Page 29.

MBSI has replanted
146 trees so far as
part of the Print
ReLeaf program.

Bob’s Symphonion

Sometimes you find “The One” and
simply marvel that it makes its way
to your collection. Page 48.

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 3

MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION
M
M
echanical music is a fascinating hobby! It
appeals to the artist, historian, craftsman, and

musician all at the same time. Play an automatic

musical instrument in a room full of people and all else

will stop as the machine enraptures the audience with the

sparkling melodies of yesteryear!

Mechanical music instruments are any sort of auto

matically-played machine that produces melodic sound

including discs and cylinder music boxes that pluck a steel

comb; orchestrions and organs that engage many instru

ments at once using vacuum and air pressure; player and

reproducing pianos that use variable vacuum to strike piano

wires; phonographs; and self-playing stringed, wind, and

percussion instruments of any kind.

The Musical Box Society International, chartered by the

New York State Board of Regents, is a nonprofit society

dedicated to the enjoyment, study, and preservation of

automatic musical instruments. Founded in 1949, it now

has members around the world, and supports various

educational projects.

Regional chapters and an Annual Meeting held each year
in different cities within the United States enable members
to visit collections, exchange ideas, and attend educational
workshops. Members receive six issues of the journal,
Mechanical Music, which also contains advertising space
for members who wish to buy, sell, and restore mechanical
musical instruments and related items. Members also
receive the biennial MBSI Directory of Members, Museums,
and Dealers.

The only requirements for membership are an interest in
automatic music machines and the desire to share information
about them. And you’ll take pride in knowing you
are contributing to the preservation of these marvelous
examples of bygone craftsmanship.

More Information online at www.MBSI.org, or

Call: (417) 886-8839, or

Email: jbeeman.mbsi@att.net

Copy this page, and give it to a potential new member. Spread the word about MBSI.

Last name First Name Initial

Last Name First Name Initial

Address

City State / Zip Postal Code / Country

Phone Fax E-mail

Sponsor (optional)

Membership Dues

US members (per household)……………………………………….$60
Student Membership $20

(online journal access only)

Canada…………………………………………………………………………$70
Other International………………………………………………………$75

(Add $20 for International air mail.)

Join online: www.mbsi.org/join-mbsi

Check or Money Order Payable to: MBSI Treasurer (US Funds Only)
Mail to: New Member Registration – MBSI
PO Box 10196
Springfield, MO 65808-0196

Visa/MasterCard

Exp. Date CCV

Signature

4 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

By Tom Kuehn

MBSI President

The President’s desk has been
relatively quiet the past two months,
a welcome respite from all the additional
activity necessitated by the
pandemic during the past year and a
half. So, I will be brief.

My family has made arrangements
to attend the 2021 MBSI Annual Meeting
in Ft. Myers, FL. Members of the
Southeast Chapter have been working
diligently over the past several years
to make this year’s meeting really
special. Those of you who have never
attended an annual meeting should
know you may be missing one of the
best benefits of membership in this
society. The meetings are fun, informative,
part holiday and part reunion
with an opportunity to make and
renew friendships. If you have not
had an occasion to smile for a while,
plan to attend the meeting. I assure
you, it will not disappoint.

Those of us in the U.S. are experiencing
what should be the end of the
COVID pandemic in our country. I
realize this is not the case everywhere.
Travel restrictions and other impediments
may prevent many of our
international members who routinely
attend our meetings from participating
this year. Hopefully this will be the
last year those hurdles exist.

I hope all of you are having a look forward to seeing many of you in
relaxed and enjoyable summer and I person in Ft. Myers.

Welcome new members!
Steve & Diane EpsteinApril 2021
Columbia, MO
James & Angela Mayer Dennis Tynes
St Louis, MO San Diego, CA
May 2021 Dave Menna
Scarsdale, NY
Lynn Meyer Sponsor: Joe Moffitt
Macomb, MI
Matthew Bjork & Lisa Voth
Davis, CA
Richard & Kaye Moyer
Anaheim, CA
Richard Parker
Walla Walla, WA
Andrew Warner
Harvard, MA

MBSI MEMBERSHIP DRIVE
EACH ONE/REACH ONE NEW MEMBER

MBSI is always interested in increasing its membership and is pleased to offer new members a $15
discount off their rst year’s membership. You are considered a new member if you have not been a
member in the past three years. This discount is also available on our website, www.mbsi.org.

Current MBSI members who sponsor a new member will receive a $5 discount off their next year’s
MBSI membership renewal for each sponsorship. Attach a copy of the discount voucher below to a
copy of the membership application form on Page 4 of this issue of Mechanical Music. Place your
name as “sponsor” on the application form.

Please make copies of these forms as needed and send the completed forms with checks to the MBSI
administrator at the address listed below.

★
★
★★
®
(INTERNATIONAL)
ORGANIZED IN 1949
DEVOTED TO ALL MECHANICAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
★
★
★★
®
(INTERNATIONAL)
ORGANIZED IN 1949
DEVOTED TO ALL MECHANICAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
Musical Box Society International
P.O. Box 10196
Springeld, MO 65808-0196
Phone/Fax: (417) 886-8839
Musical Box Society International
P.O. Box 10196
Springeld, MO 65808-0196
Phone/Fax: (417) 886-8839
Dues Voucher –$15
New U.S. members may join MBSI for one year at $45 (instead
of $60); Canadians $55 (instead of $70; and, other International
members at $60 (instead of $75). This certicate must accom-
pany payment and a copy of the completed membership
application from page 4 of this issue of Mechanical Music.
New Member Name(s):
Authorized by MBSI Administrator
NEW MEMBER
GIFT CERTIFICATE
New members are those who have never been members of MBSI
or those who have not been members for three years prior to
submission of this voucher.
New members are those who have never
been members of MBSI or those who have
not been members for three years prior to
submission of this certicate.

Gift Membership Name

Address, City, State, ZIP
Phone Email
Sponsor

SPECIAL OFFER: Purchase one or more rst-year MBSI gift
memberships at $45 each U.S., $55 Canadian, or $60 other International
and you will receive $5 off your next year’s MBSI membership
renewal for each “New Member” gift.

Please mail this form together with your check made payable to “MBSI” to the MBSI Administrator at the address listed
above. Memberships are $45 for U.S. residents, $55 for Canadian residents, and $60 for other International residents.

Outreach Corner Outreach Corner
A Special Exhibit . . . during COVID

If you can’t go to the show, bring it to you!

By Mary Ellen Myers

Special Exhibits Committee Chair

Year 2020 dragged on at a snail’s
pace. Folks (especially those sharing
our condo address) were desirous
of interesting, enjoyable yet safe,
live entertainment during this time
of social isolation. Neighbors and
friends talked of interests and hobbies
and how they missed the normalcy of
engaging in these. Could this be an
opportune time to introduce folks to
mechanical music?

As a background, our second home
(hopefully to eventually become our
primary home), in Sarasota, FL, is
center stage to many professional
artistic venues, including productions
of the Ringling School of Art,
the Sarasota Ballet Company, the
Sarasota Orchestra, the Sarasota
Opera Company, many museums,
live theater arts, and, of course, the
Circus. Area colleges also focus on
the arts and provide student entertainment.
Many retirees, especially those
from the north, have chosen this area
for continued enrichment. The onset
and intensity of the COVID Pandemic
canceled all public performances and
proclaimed an indefinite furlough
pending the status of the pandemic. As
a result, area residents became hungry
for entertainment of an artistic nature,
while being extremely cautious in
all health and safety matters. Some
programs were privately streamed
over the internet but it was just not
the same as being there amongst a live
audience. What was needed was live,
in-person programs.

Creativity was needed to provide
social yet safe activities in our 69-unit
condo community. We all seemed to
be craving something stimulating,
interesting yet free of concern. As a

A promotional table set up in the condo common area to advertise the show.

A cylinder music box from Wayne and Mary Ellen Myers’ collection demonstrated
during the show.

Condo Social Committee planner, I pandemic imposed social restrictions.
had considered a mechanical music I floated the idea around a bit, without
exhibit in our newly-renovated condo much interest. (The community is an
common-area in compliance with over-fifty group, very conscious of

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 7

Advertising is important. A simple sign in the condo lobby Flyers were made available to residents of the condo to gauge
attracted attention when it was clear seating would be limited. interest and control the number of attendees.

everything and anything safety.) Being
a retired healthcare professional, safety
was my primary objective as well.

I sent out flyers of introduction and
questionnaires regarding interests,
specifying that events would only
happen if we could guarantee compliance
with COVID mandates. Still, I
received mediocre interest in return.
Lastly, I sent out specifics about
exactly how an event like this would
be accomplished, displaying sign-ups
and charts for limited seating. Something
about the word limited proved
enticing to those reading my advertisements.
A few days later, every spot
was filled! I set the show date close to
St. Paddy’s Day, so green refreshments

were also offered in a safe manner.

Food does draw interest!

On Mar. 14, 2021, the show did go on.

The history and science of
mechanical music and instrument
demonstrations were presented five
times during the day, each session
lasting about one hour. We coined
the phrase “Home Entertainment of
bygone years — from Inside to Out.”
Instruments demonstrated included
a cylinder box, and two kinds of disc
players for the in-home part. A roller
organ (aka preacher’s organ) and a
Taylor street organ brought mechanical
music out of the home. A table of
other curiosities, including past MBSI
table favors, was also on display.

Wayne Myers, Sally Craig and I
were the presenters explaining and
demonstrating each instrument.
Audience members were invited to
be organ grinders for a few minutes.
MBSI brochures were made available.
Two prizes (orphan music boxes from
a bygone convention) were awarded
at the end of the day.

This was a fun and satisfying experience
for the presenters and audience.
Hopefully there will never be a need
to take such rigid safety precautions
again. I do apologize that no photos of
the actual presentation are available.
We were all too busy conducting the
show that day! The best news to come
out of all of this? No one got COVID!

Music is nothing unless it is shared

8 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

Participants were invited to become organ crankers on this
Taylor street organ. A roller organ demonstrated during the show.

A Molinari monkey organ that became part of the show. Visitors saw and heard this disc box during the presentation.

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 9

Nickel Notes

By Matthew Jaro

The restoration of Seeburg K #57046

It was a little over six years ago
when I thought I could squeeze one
more nickelodeon into my music
room. The question was, what should
I get? I already had a Seeburg K
with xylophone, a Nelson-Wiggen
4X restored by David Ramey, Jr.
(see Mechanical Music, November/
December 2019, or Vol. 50, No. 5 of
the AMICA Bulletin), a Seeburg G, a
Seeburg H (see Mechanical Music,
July/August 2016, or Vol. 47, No. 3 of
the AMICA Bulletin), a Wurlitzer 153
Band Organ and a Chickering Ampico
A piano.

Remember, I really like the music,
so a plentiful supply of rolls was
important to me. The Link machines
have wonderful arrangements, but
changing rolls is difficult and I change
rolls all the time. Cremona machines
are wonderful, but M rolls are relatively
hard to obtain.

I’ve always loved the Wurlitzer
CX which uses five-tune APP rolls. I
thought seriously about this machine,
but then I realized that I would have
to get all available rolls, since I’m a
real roll addict. My house is already
overflowing with rolls, and I really
don’t have room for another large set
of rolls. I think there are thousands of
APP rolls. For the same reason an O
machine, like the Coinola SO, would
be impractical.

Then I hit upon the idea of getting
a Seeburg K machine with pipes. I
already have a large A roll collection,
so I wouldn’t have to buy a bunch of
rolls, and it would be a completely

different sound from my K with
xylophone.

As luck would have it, Dave Ramey,
Jr.’s mother had such a machine. It
originally belonged to Dave Ramey,
Sr. who bought it years ago for his
personal collection. It had a set of
flute pipes, but Dave, Sr. had a set of
violin pipes made by Bruce Newman.
So here I am presented with the idea
of owning a machine with two sets of
interchangeable pipes. I could choose
the sound I liked!! Unfortunately for
us all, Dave, Sr. died before he could
restore this machine.

I bought the machine from Dave,
Jr.’s mother and since it was already
in Dave, Jr.’s shop, I got on his list

of projects to do. Dave, Jr.’s work on
my Nelson-Wiggen 4-X machine was
so incredibly great, that I was more
than happy to have him restore this
machine, too.

So here I am, embarking on another
adventure!

Again, there was a lot to do in
order to restore a machine. I like my
machines to look like they just came
out of the Seeburg factory. The case
should look new, and the parts should
be shiny. The machine should sound
like it was brand new.

This machine dates from 1914 and
has the rare Dancing Girl art glass and
the old gate-post coin accumulator.
The stained glass did not have the

Decals used to restore the faces of the dancing girls in the art glass.

10 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 11

The piano action before restoration. The piano action after restoration.

The gatepost coin accumulator before restoration.

The gatepost coin accumulator after restoration.

faces on the dancing girls (they were Restore Cabinet • Replace plating or clean and age
just blank) and several pieces were • Patch veneer on sides and lid hardware
the wrong color. Decals had to be • Replace veneer on toes and • Restore art glass with decals
made in order to restore the faces. In bottom stringer
addition, work needed to be done on • Fabricate new bottom to replace Restore Piano
the trim. splintered/warped original • Patch and refinish soundboard

The following is a list of the tasks • Supply lock and key • Install new tuning pins
performed (other than the stained • Install new casters • Install new strings
glass): • Refinish cabinet • Refinish piano plate

12 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

• Replace plating on hardware
• Clean and rebuild action wippens
• Install new butts and hammers
• Install new damper felts
• Fabricate and install original style
mandolin rail and mechanism
Restore Electric Components

• Restore coin mechanism
• Fabricate coin collection box and
housing
• Replace plating on hardware
• Install relay and cover (lessens
wear on coin mech contacts)
• Fabricate spring motor base
• Replace wiring of hanging socket
Restore Pipe chest

• Replace all gaskets
• Replace all coverings
• Fabricate new pneumatic boards
• Refinish components
• Clean pipes
Restore Piano Stack

• Replace all valve pouches and
valve face leathers
• Replace all gaskets
• Fabricate new pneumatic boards
• Replace all coverings
• Refinish components
Restore Vacuum/Pressure Pump

• Replace outer coverings with
laminated leather
• Make and install new inner and
outer flap valves
• Refinish pump body
• Replace plating of hardware
• Install new friction drive tire
• Change how pump mounts to
channel deck for easy removal
Restore Music Roll Frame

• Clean mechanism
• Clean and polish tracker bar
• Restore rewind/play unit
• Replace rubber tubing
• Make and install missing tubing
cover
Restore other Pneumatic
Components

• Replace all valve pouches and
valve face leathers
• Replace all gaskets
• Replace all coverings
• Make and install missing pedal
The interior of the machine before restoration.

The interior after restoration.

hardware collection at Svoboda’s Nickelodeon

• Supply original coin slide entry Tavern and Museum. Around 1970,
• Replace rubber tubing Dave, Sr. began a full-time restoration
business. Dave trained a number of
Dave Ramey, Sr. started receiving skilled craftsmen. He introduced the
his automatic music education in 1955 Banjo-Orchestra in 1994 and the D.C.
while maintaining the nickelodeon Ramey Piano Company has since sold

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 13

The pump before restoration.

The template for new pump leather with stiffeners.

many units. Dave Ramey, Sr. passed away in July 2006. His
son started in the family business full time in 1986 after
years of working after school and summers alongside his
father. Dustin Hott worked with Dave and he did much of
the piano work for the restoration project.

One fine day, Dave, Jr. pulled up to my house with
my brand-new (old) Seeburg K. If I ordered one from
Seeburg, it couldn’t have looked better. Can you imagine
taking a wreck of a machine and creating something truly
wonderful?

It’s been several years now, and I can’t stop playing it. I’m
sticking to the violin pipes for now since I like the sound
better than that of the flute, but I can always change.

Dave Ramey, Jr. can be reached at dcramey@dcramey.
com and his phone is (708) 602-3961. Visit his website
dcramey.com.

The spool frame before (top photo) and restored to a like-new
condition (bottom photo).

Email Matt Jaro at mjaro@verizon.net if you would like any
information about style “A”, “G”, “4X”, “H” or “O” rolls. Also,
comments and suggestions for this column will be appreciated.

Reprinted with permission of the author and The Automatic
Musical Instrument Collectors’ Association (AMICA). Originally
printed in the November-December 2015 issue of The
AMICA Bulletin.

14 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

Many, many valves were cleaned and
restored during the process of renewing
the Seeburg K.

WE WANT YOUR
STORY!
Every mechanical musical
instrument has a tale to tell.
Share the history of people
who owned your instrument
before you, or the story of its
restoration, or just what makes
it an interesting piece. Send
stories via email to
editor@mbsi.org, or
mail your story to:
130 Coral Court,
Pismo Beach, CA 93449
New strings help make the piano sound like it just came off the factory floor.

More of the valve work in progress.

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 15

The

16 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

Braamcamp Clock

In September 2016, a long-
cherished wish came true for
the Dutch Museum Speelklok
in Utrecht, Netherlands. With
the help of some donations and
foundations, the director of
Speelklok, Marian van Dijk, and
the head of the collection, Anne-
Sophie van Leeuwen, were able to
acquire the so-called “Braamcamp
clock” at a Sotheby’s auction in
Paris, France. The purchase of this
prestigious flute clock also marked
its return to Holland, where it
had once been part of the rich
collection of fine and applied arts
of the merchant Gerrit Braamcamp
(1699–1771) in the late 18th century.

Reprinted with permission of Das Mechanische
Musikinstrument and the Gesellschaft für Selbstspielende
Musikinstrumente e.V. (German Society for Self-Playing
Musical Instruments)

Editor’s note from Das Mechanische Musikinstrument:

In the newsletter of Museum Speelklok
I read the account of an employee of
the Rijksmuseum, in Amsterdam, which
concerned the restoration of the so-called
“Braamcamp Clock.” The article was available
in English, but it was so exciting that I asked
the author, Tirza Mol, if I could translate it into
German and publish it in Das Mechanische
Musikinstrument. Tirza emailed me back that
she wanted to discuss it first with her boss, the
head of the furniture restoration department at
the Rijksmuseum. I then received the following
report on the restoration, which I have
transcribed from English in consultation with
those involved. First, a word about Charles
Clay and the clock, whose purchase was by no
means as unspectacular as our authors’ text
suggests. The clock was sold at auction on
Sept. 28, 2016, at the Sotheby’s auction house
in Paris, France, and came from the collection
of a well-known French collector, Robert de
Balkany. It was bought by Museum Speelklok
for the remarkable price of 867,000 euros. This
set a world record for the price of a clock made
by Charles Clay. At the time the clock was
made, England, and London in particular, was
the center of the clockmaking world. Clay was
a purveyor to the court of the English crown
and a contemporary of Thomas Tompion and
George Graham, the absolute grand masters of
English clockmaking.

Thanks to the Authors’ collective which
consisted of Tirza Mol, Paul van Duin, Duncan
Bull from Rijksmuseum Amsterdam and
Anne-Sophie van Leeuwen, Marieke Lefeber-
Morsman, Erwin Roubal and Tristan Budel
from Museum Speelklok, Utrecht.

All photographs are courtesy of Museum
Speelklok, Utrecht, Netherlands.

— Uwe Gernert
July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 17

The clock was probably made in the
late 1730s by Charles Clay, a London
master clockmaker who was at the
time a member of His Majesty’s Board
of Works as a court clockmaker. He
held that position until a few years
before his death in 1740. Because of
its sophisticated musical mechanism,
the acquisition of the Braamcamp
clock had always been a heartfelt wish
of Jan Jaap Haspels during his time as
director of Museum Speelklok from
1970 to 2006. When the museum celebrated
its 50th anniversary in 2006, the
monumental clock was the highlight
of the anniversary exhibition titled
Royal Music Machines.

Made of oak, the overman-high
furniture of the Braamcamp clock is
veneered with mahogany in the lower
part and ebony in the upper part. The
case houses a clockwork, a weight-
driven organ movement, and a large
musical cylinder 340 millimeters in
diameter. When the clock and organ
movement were originally assembled
into the case, it must have been
discovered that the two parts did not
really fit together. At different places
in the clock and organ movement,
it’s obvious that interventions took
place to remedy this situation. These
interventions do not all seem to have
been really optimal and significantly
affected the clock’s construction.
The ornaments consist of fire-gilded
bronze decorations and cast brass
elements. The side and the rear arched
windows of the upper part are also
filled with “ajour” work made of fire-
gilded bronze, the openings of which
are covered with red fabric from the
back.

The movement

The first thing restorers noticed
were two small, closed openings on
the clock dial. These were probably
intended as holes for winding the
clock, but when the clock came into the
possession of Museum Speelklok, the
movement was being wound through
openings in the side parts of the case.
It was surmised that the reason the
openings in the dial were closed had
to do with the enormous effort necessary
to wind the clock through the
dial. In order to do this, it would have

A drawing of Gerrit Braamcamp.

required the entire, huge upper part
of the case to be pushed completely
upwards and held there while the
clock was wound. Someone may once
have considered putting a door in the
upper part of the case to assist with
the winding, but had such a door been
installed, it would have hidden part
of the magnificent ornamentation
from view, and that would have been
highly undesirable. Putting smaller
openings on the sides of the upper
part of the case and employing angular
gears attached to the shafts of the
movement so that the clock could be
wound without removing the case was
clearly a better solution for the person
responsible for the modification. The
angular winding gears, however, put
a different load on the movement’s
bearings than the original mechanism
could tolerate and ended up causing
some corresponding damage. After a
thorough examination, it was decided
that the movement and its winding
method should be restored to the
original condition. For this purpose,
the original winding holes on the dial
were reopened, the added parts of the
winding system were removed, and
thus the complete winding system
was restored to its original form.

Also, of course, the damage
caused to the movement itself had
to be repaired. The forces applied
by the angular gears in the winding

The two padded wooden blocks used to
hold the clock casing high enough to be
able to wind the mechanism.

mechanism had caused a crack in one
of the axles. This crack was milled
out and refilled with iron. Holes
were drilled in the front plate of the
movement and in the corresponding
shafts to be able to attach the earlier
modification. All of these holes were
also resealed. The worn, out-of-round
bearing bores were replaced, the
shafts were re-turned to size, and the
cones were polished. The contact
patterns of the gears were no longer
suitable due to the changed positions
of the winding mechanism, and the
meshing of the gears was thus no
longer guaranteed. This was remedied
by concavely re-milling the teeth of
the corresponding gears, thus restoring
a suitable contact pattern.

The sliding case/cover was also
restored to its original state. Now, to
wind the movement, the entire upper
part of the case has to be pushed up
about 30 centimeters. The original
owner likely had servants and therefore
could marshal enough manpower
to do this regularly, but today it is
much harder to find people willing
to assist with this, not only for the

18 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

The drawing for the restoration
of the drive mechanism
July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 19

physical labor involved but also they
fear dropping the case, or otherwise
damaging anything in the clock. There
is no fixture in the case that holds the
top in this position, so we now make
use of two padded wooden blocks,
which are slid under the top to hold
it in place while the clock is wound.
In the base cabinet under the clock,
there is enough storage space to hold
these blocks and the winding keys.

The dial is housed in the front round
arch but is relatively small with a
diameter of 15 centimeters. This dial
is embedded in a large copper plate,
artfully decorated with sculptural
elements in front of an oil painting
of Apollo and the Muses on Mount
Parnassus with Minerva. The painting
can almost certainly be attributed to
the Venetian painter Jacopo Amigoni
(ca. 1685–1752). The front of the clock
is framed by a bas-relief of fire-gilded
bronze, intended to create the impression
of three-dimensional architecture
and consisting of two obelisks, each
crowned with a vase, and two other
ornate vases. In high relief are the
figures of Apollo and Diana in cast
silver. These were made by John
Michael Rysbrack (1694–1770).
Rysbrack is also responsible for the
vividly depicted group representing
the “Four Arts” below the figures,
which are also cast in silver as high
reliefs.

We encounter Rysbrack’s reliefs on a
whole series of Clay’s musical clocks,
while Amigoni is also responsible for
painting all four sides of Clay’s probably
most accomplished clock on the
theme of “The Four Great Monarchies
of the World,” now part of the British
Royal Collection and on display at
Kensington Palace. Rysbrack and
Amigoni, as leading artistic figures
of the time, were naturally at home
in London’s musical world, so Clay’s
choice to commission them to design
it to complement Handel’s music is
not surprising.

Repertoire

The music automaton consists of
an organ that plays 10 different melodies,
probably all by George Frideric
Handel (1685–1759). Handel (from
Halle), Amigoni (from Naples) and

Detail of the dial face of the
Braamcamp Clock showing the
bronze sculptures on either corner,
cast-silver figures inset and finally
an oil painting of Apollo and the
Muses on Mount Parnassus with
Minerva in the background that
creates a three-dimensional artwork
effect.

At right and facing page: Details of
the bellows section and the flute
ranks with pinned cylinder featuring
10 tunes.

20 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 21

Rysbrack (from Antwerp) were the
three main figures of London’s cultural
life in the first half of the 18th century
and as such were familiar with the
most popular and fashionable art form
of the time, Italian opera. As the most
famous musician of the time, Handel
was naturally the first choice to create
the music for such an extravagant
and expensive piece as Clay’s clock,
and it could be possible that he was
responsible for arranging his melodies
specifically for this work, but equally
for Clay’s other organ clocks.

The range of the flute organ is quite
extensive:

c’-d-e-f-fis-g-a-bes-b-c”-cis-d-dis-ef-
fis-g-gis-a-bes-b-c’’’

Every three hours the organ plays a
melody. The first piece on the cylinder
is the “Minuet from the Overture to
Arianna.” The opera “Arianna” was
first performed in 1734. In order to
make this minuet playable for the
organ work of the clock, the arranger
shortened it and omitted the middle
register. Five of the other melodies
in the repertoire have not (yet)
been identified. There is a distinct
possibility that one or the other of
these melodies may have originally
belonged to another organ clock
repertoire. Three of these five pieces
are also found on another clock by
Charles Clay, which is preserved in
Windsor Castle and dated to a year of
construction around 1739.

To make minor adjustments to the
keys of the organ movement means
simply removing a smaller part of
the upper section. To tune the organ
movement, however, the upper case
must be removed completely.

This is a time-consuming operation.
In order to get the case to a reasonable
working height, formwork panels
must be set up on scaffolding around
the clock and even then, lifting the
case is difficult because the lower
cabinet is still quite wide and anyone
recruited for the work would have to
lean their upper bodies over the clock
as they lifted. To solve this problem, a
supporting frame of four additionally
clad and interconnected wooden
beams was constructed. Probably

These photos show the scale of the clock plus the scaffolding and padded crossbar
mechanism that are used to remove the case when the instrument must be tuned.

22 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

The top photo shows a cast silver figurine
before restoration and the photo
below is after. The third photo shows
the silver cast image of Diana with her
quiver that had been missing when the
museum took possession of the clock.
The quiver was reconstructed using old
photos of the Braamcamp clock. The
bottom photo shows the scale of the
quiver compared to a human hand. The
attention to detail during the restoration
was a high priority.

The organ work undergoing restoration at Museum Speelklok.

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 23

a similar construction was used in
earlier times.

In front of and behind the organ
movement, there are two solid brass
arches that serve as guides for the
upper part and ensure that it remains
in position and does not collide with
the organ movement. Additionally,
these arches support the dial and give
the movement some rigidity. Similar
construction has not yet been found
on other Clay movements, so it seems
to be a design specifically done for
this clock.

The first owner of the clock is
unknown, it probably came into the
possession of Gerrit Braamcamp in
Amsterdam in 1759. After his death,
the clock was sold at auction and
acquired by members of a branch of
the Braamcamp family that had settled
in Portugal. The clock was passed
through several collections there,
including that of the Infanta Maria
Isabel, and remained in Portugal until
the 20th century. Around 1972, the
clock was purchased by the Parisian
collector Robert de Balkany and then
it passed into the hands of Museum
Speelklok in 2016.

The restoration of the case and
its base, as well as the ornamental
elements, was supervised by
the restoration workshops of the
Rijksmuseum shortly after it was
purchased. Rijksmuseum employees
possessed the necessary experience
and restoration expertise not only in
the field of woodwork, but also for the
metalwork and oil painting. Although
at first glance the furniture appeared
to be in quite good condition, a closer
look revealed some major challenges.

Closer inspection revealed that not
only was the mahogany veneer loose
and standing out from the wooden
base, but there were also cracks
and dents in both the veneer and the
carved mahogany elements. The solid
wood of both the side panels and the
base had cracks, and in these cracked
areas the veneer had also cracked and
was blistering. Color changes were
also discovered in the veneer along
these cracks.

The fire-gilded bronzes and silver
and brass decorations were dirty and
partially corroded. Diana’s quiver cast

A detail shot of the base showing the veneer pulling away from the wood.

in silver, a characteristic attribute
of the goddess of the hunt, had been
lost, and the red fabric behind the
openwork of the upper part was loose,
faded and damaged. The surface of the
painting was dirty and also showed
damage caused by the peeling of oil
paint from the copper background.

Although the lacquer coating on
the base was in reasonably good
condition, the high gloss and reddish
tint were both found to be distracting.
Light reflections caused by the high-
gloss finish prevented the enjoyment
of seeing the subtle nuances of the
mahogany veneer’s grain. Due to
the thick application of the varnish,
the carvings also suffered, their
edges looking far too soft as a result.
Examination with ultraviolet light in
conjunction with pyrolysis gas chromatography
analysis revealed that the
high gloss varnish was a shellac that
had been applied after the original
finish which was a mixture of different
resins such as pine, limb cypress, shellac
and larch dissolved in turpentine
had been removed. In the areas of
the corpus that are more difficult to
reach, there were still remnants of this
mixture first used, which fluoresced
greenish under ultraviolet irradiation.
Scrape marks on the veneer proved
that the turpentine resins had been
mechanically removed.

Museum Speelklok wanted to have
the case restored to a condition that
matched the original, so that the original
condition would be visible again
and the high quality of the materials
and craftsmanship would be evident.
The high-gloss varnish on the base
was thus completely removed with

solvents. Several layers of beeswax
were then applied. The silky patina
of the beeswax, the use of which was
common practice in the first half of the
18th century, now allows one to experience
the three-dimensional effects
of the grain of the mahogany. Cracks
and depressions in the veneer and the
solid wood body were filled and loose
parts were glued back in place.

After consultations with the
Rijksmuseum’s metal conservation
department, it was decided to clean
all metal decorations and polish the
pieces to a soft shine. The fire-gilded
bronzes were cleaned and given a
transparent varnish to protect them
from corrosion in the future.

A replacement was created in silver
casting for Diana’s lost quiver, using
old photographs of the Braamcamp
clock as a pattern.

The painting restoration workshop
of the Rijksmuseum examined the
painted dial with infrared and ultraviolet
light. The surface of the painting
was cleaned and damaged areas were
repaired.

The fabric, which the textile
conservation conservators at the
Rijksmuseum identified as a modern
synthetic fabric, was removed and
replaced with a silk fabric dyed to the
appropriate red hue.

The restoration of the Braamcamp
clock is an outstanding example of
interdisciplinary collaboration. On
behalf of the case, Paul van Duin,
head of furniture restoration at the
Rijksmuseum, coordinated the work
and supervised the project. Furniture
restorer Tirza Mol was commissioned
to carry out the necessary restoration

24 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

Restorers replace synthetic fabric with dyed silk.

Photos showing various pieces of
the wind chest during the restoration
The channels of the wind chest, some of which had to be delicately repaired. process.

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 25

work. A freelance textile restorer,
Anja Semts, dyed and mounted the
silk fabric. The painting was worked
on by painting conservator Giulia De
Vivo, while metal conservator Arie
Pappot worked with Tirza Mol on the
reconstruction of Diana’s quiver. The
high level of art historical expertise of
the Rijksmuseum curator Duncan Bull
and Anne-Sophie van Leeuwen helped
to provide a better understanding of
the context in which the clock was
created in London in the 18th century.

The organ work

On the sides of the organ work it is
easy to see that the original plan for
installation was changed. There are
holes in the wood, which are unusable
because the pumping mechanism for
the bellows is now placed there. In
the lowest part of the organ work is
the bellows system. This part was in
an extremely bad condition. After the
entire bellows system was incorporated
into the sides of the wood, it had
become very thin and compromised
in structure. Since this part was actually
impossible to restore, Museum
Speelklok restoration experts copied
and refinished this piece. The part of
the air supply to the windchest and
the fastening of the bolts, on the other
hand, was preserved.

The scoops on the bellows clearly
show that the intake valves were
probably mounted close to the hinge
point of the bellows in the past. These
wooden valves are glued onto a frame
and thus lie somewhat elevated above
the respective scoop bellows. The
result was that they hit the upper
bearing of the bellows and thus could
only function poorly. The cracks have
been eliminated and the bellows have
also been restored. Paper was glued
to the outer and inner sides to ensure
optimal tightness of the scoops. Bone
glue was used for bonding so that
the joints can be separated again if
necessary.

In the middle part of the organ
movement is the wind chest. The
board on which the wind chest is
fixed, and where the air supply of the
magazine bellows is also located, was
broken in two places. This board was
restored and sealed. It was noticeable

A side view of the clock showing the base that houses the pumping mechanism and
gears that drive the cylinder.

that the air supply was not accomplished
through a large opening, as
was common and usual, but through
a grating with several slits that could
be interrupted by a pull. Museum
staff wondered what could have been
the function of this draught. Might
it have been to interrupt the music?
After all, this could be done in other,
simpler ways, such as shutting off
all the stops or blocking the impeller
on the centrifugal governor. Another
idea for the arrangement was that
the intended effect of this pull was to
cause a tremolo in the tone, although

a tremulant for a mechanical organ
of that time is highly unlikely. In any
case, this pull never worked, mainly
because of the lack of space when the
organ was made.

The windchest itself was in good
condition and was glued out with bone
glue on the inside as a precaution to
prevent it from blowing through into
other channels or chambers in each
case. The old leather of the valves
was renewed and the valves were
readjusted in their old place.

The top part houses the organ pipes
and the gear train for the organ and

26 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

An unusual brass strip found
on the cylinder to ensure all

keys are briefly lifted before the
mechanism is set in motion. It
is thought that this allows air
to fill the pipes of the organ
and helps to ensure that the
wind-pressure is correct before
play starts.

At far right is another view of
the cylinder with all keys in
place and ready to play.

Smartphone users can scan the QR code to watch a video

about the restoration on YouTube.

clockwork. The arrangement of the
pipes was changed at the time of origin
to make room for the clockwork. This
can be clearly seen in the channels in
the board on which the organ pipes
are placed; this was actually longer.
The board itself was in quite good
condition, but the channels had to be
worked on. Because some of the ducts
cross each other, they were sealed
against each other with leather in an
earlier restoration. This leather had
disintegrated over the years, allowing
air to cross between these channels.
With steam and a lot of patience, we
replaced this leather. The holes were
again sealed with bone glue. By using
the bone glue, this intervention in the
original substance can also be easily
reversed.

This was also true for the thin and
long channels that supply the pipes of
the 4-inch reed stop with air. The wood
between these channels is extremely
thin and probably wood has already
broken out of these channels during

manufacturing. In addition, due to
the aforementioned lack of space in
the organ, these pipes were placed
in a different position than originally
intended. Therefore, the channels
were lengthened, and in the process,
more parts of the wood broke away.
The missing parts were replaced, and
thin leather was inserted over the
cracks with bone glue.

The organ clock has four pipe
registers whose state of preservation
varied greatly. The small pipes in the
4-inch reed flute stop were almost
all clogged with dirt, and many of
the glue joints in the pipework were
no longer tight. The 8-inch reed flute
stop was in reasonably good condition,
only the stoppers needed to be
re-leathered, and the pipes needed
tuning. The formerly open 8-inch
pipe stop had been dacked and was
in exceedingly poor condition. In a
previous restoration, the pipes of this
stop were sawed off to make a dacked
stop. We removed the stoppers and

made extensions for each of the pipes.
Then the pipes were sawed to the
correct length at the extensions and
tuned. Now this stop is again a stop
with open pipes. The fourth register
again consisted of a row of 8-inch
dacked pipes. It was noticeable that
these were made of a different wood
than the rest of the pipes. The pipes
were restored, and all the stoppers
were re-leathered.

The barrel/cylinder, keys,
and stickers

The large brass barrel is located
above the movement. In the course
of its life, it was probably polished
several times with brass polish. Thus,
quite a lot of polish got left between
the large number of pins and bridges.
Unfortunately, polish has an abrasive
effect because it consists largely of
chalk. This chalk, accumulated over
the centuries, caused abrasion on the
keys as well as the pins and bridges.
Now and then, the chalk then also fell

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 27

into the movement to cause further
damage. Restorers used benzine,
paintbrushes and brushes to remove
the remains of the cleaning agent.

One unusual feature found during
the restoration was a brass strip in
the lane of the barrel. This brass strip
ensures that, shortly before the entire
playing mechanism is set in motion,
all keys are briefly lifted. This makes
it possible to adjust all keys at the
same time. This could be intended to
ensure that the music won’t play too
legato, but also not too staccato. The
fine-tuning doesn’t have to be done on
the basis of the pins and bridges on
the barrel anymore.

Another, additional explanation for
this device could be that it helped
the flywheel and thus the rest of the
mechanics to come up to the necessary
circulation speed. When the flywheel
starts to rotate, the bellows coupled to
it are also set in motion, thus building
up the necessary wind in the organ. So,
in order to get the flywheel going from
a standstill, it makes perfect sense to
let the air supply to the valves of the
pipework “run into the void.” After
all the keys are opened by the lifting,
the air flows through all the pipes
without resistance, without reaching
a wind pressure that makes the pipes
respond. This, in turn, ensures that
the action can start moving without
further stress from the buildup of
wind for the pipes.

Four “protrusions” had appeared
on the brass strip. This meant that
keys could get caught on these raised
areas when the pin roller was moved
sideways. Restorers compensated
for these flaws in the brass strip
with appropriate dovetail joints.
Originally, the stickers were made of
steel, but these stickers were later
replaced with wooden stickers in an
earlier restoration. The stickers were

The Braamcamp Clock is now on permanent display in Museum Speelklok.

returned to an original state. The which helped with establishing their
order of the keys, which had been orientation.
changed at some point, was restored The Braamcamp clock is on display
to the best condition possible. Some in the permanent exhibition of
of the keys were still marked with Museum Speelklok from December
the corresponding inscriptions, 2019.

28 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

The history of the Steinkjerpositive

By Dr. Robert Penna

In the mid to late 19th century, the
small Norwegian town of Steinkjer
became known for the manufacture of
quality barrel organs. It is surprising
that one small town and its environs
produced more than 500 hand-cranked
instruments. Certainly, this was
many more than organ enthusiasts
locally would ever need. So, why did
this location become such a hub of
production? Who were these Norse
craftsmen? How could there be such
a demand? How did these instruments
spread throughout the region? How
did it all start and why are these barrel
organs known as “positives”?

A barrel organ is known by many
names. In different locations, one can
hear the term street organ, monkey
organ, grinder organ, roll organ, crank
organ, hand organ, cylinder organ and
even incorrectly, hurdy gurdy.1 Yet, in
one location, they are called positives.

Throughout Norway, the Steinkjerpositive
was a well-known local brand
of barrel organ. Other European barrel
organs from the same period were
usually more lightweight and easier to
carry. The ones produced in Steinkjer,
especially the two larger versions,
were more like portable organs by
comparison. Though heavier and
harder to move from place to place,
the machines were well built and the
sound quality excellent. Further, what
set them apart was the fact that the
music was taken from the traditional
local tunes used by fiddlers throughout
the district. Because of these
reasons, you could be “positive” they
were from Steinkjer.

Some 40 kilometers south of Steinkjer,
the town of Levanger hosted a
market each December and March.
Begun in 1829, farmers, tradespeople
and families visited to sell their goods,
shop, catch up on the news and find
entertainment for the children. The
market also attracted visitors from
foreign lands including barrel organ

grinders. One can imagine the novelty
of the instrument caught many a
person’s attention.

Among those fascinated by the
barrel organ was Thomas Fosnaes
(1813–1870), an instrument maker,
clockmaker and musician from
Steinkjer. Fosnaes began building
barrel organs before 1849 as several
of his instruments have been found
which precede this date. It is likely

Photograph of a Norwegian organ grinder. Photo from the Nordlandsmuseet’s
collection

that he earned some business from
itinerant grinders who sought his
assistance to repair or retune their
instruments as they passed through
his area. Then, an incident in about
1850 ignited Fosnaes’s passion and he
began manufacturing barrel organs
on a larger scale. The catalyst for this
change was the reported death of an
Italian barrel organ player who had
lived in the town of Beitstad some 16

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 29

kilometers northwest of Steinkjer. It
is thought that because of Fosnaes’s
reputation as a violinist, the Italian’s
unclaimed mechanical device was
given to him.

After taking the instrument apart,
Fosnaes decided he would continue to
make his own instruments and improve
on their construction based on what he
learned from the Italian’s instrument.
One of his early decisions was to
contact two brothers who were well
known locally for casting fine quality
brass objects. Christian (1839–1922)
and Torris Tharaldsen (born 1848) not
only excelled in brass work but were
also talented carpenters. At first, they
cast parts for the organs built by Fosnaes,
but as the need for more positives
grew, the Tharaldsen brothers began to
build their own barrel organs. Christian
made the internal parts and some of
the decoration, while Torris made the
cases.

The ability to pin the music to the
barrels is a difficult task, far beyond
the ability of most carpenters or metal
workers. Fosnaes was a celebrated
local violinist, well known for playing
at concerts and weddings. He also
gave lessons to aspiring violinists.
One of his most talented students
was Jacob Schjefte (born 1841). The
increasing demand for positives and
the public desire for more and varied
tunes inspired Fosnaes to recruit and
train Schjefte to prepare barrels for
the positives as regular employment.
Although by trade a shoemaker, Jacob
became known as a master at pinning
barrels for these instruments. He is
known to have pinned the barrels for
the organs made by Christian Tharaldsen
as well as for those made by Ola
Fjeldhaug (born 1829) and others.

Over a period of 50 years, others from
the area joined the group constructing
positives, either making important
parts or building an entire instrument.
Among them were Ola Fjeldhaug,
Theodor Bentzen, Ole Ramstad, Paul
Landsem, Mathias Klaebo, brothers
Peter and Odin Tveras, Nils Opdahl
and Jacob Bredesmo.

Ola Fjeldhaug spent his free time
making furniture and violins. In the
summer, Fjeldhaug worked in the local
brick factory and in the winter at his

A Steinkjerpositive barrel cylinder.

Christian (Kristian) Tharaldsen, maker of the majority of the Steinkjerpositives. He
was an excellent brazier (maker of brass objects), a trade he learned from his father.
Photo courtesy Digital Museum For The Steinkjerpositives.

local croft in the forest. Any free time
was spent assisting Schjefte building
positives or pinning the music into
the barrels of the positives he made.
Another individual who assisted in
pinning the barrels was Theodor
Bentzen (born 1843), a local violin

maker and brick layer who became
involved in the effort. Although the
majority of the instruments made in
Steinkjer bear the name of Christian
Tharaldsen, he often had others make
parts and his workshop assembled
them into the positives.

30 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

A restored Tharaldsen positive from 1893.

This group of local craftsmen often
worked in small workshops at their
homes. Residents of the town built
more than 500 barrel organs in a span
of slightly more than 50 years. Most of
the Steinkjerpositives (400-plus) carry
Christian Tharaldsen’s name. Those
signed by Jacob Schjefte or Thomas
Fosnaes are not significantly different
from those sporting the name of
Christian. No instruments have been
located which carry the name of
Teodor Bentzen, but it is understood
he manufactured several and a large
number of the barrels.

At least 13 men contributed to the
manufacture of these barrel organs in
the Steinkjer area. The manufacture of
the Steinkjerpositive was of significant
importance to the community. The
money made from the sale of these
instruments had a profound impact on
their lives. Several of these men were

Photo of the south side of Steinkjer. Photo courtesy Digital Museum For The
Steinkjerpositives.

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 31

poor tenant farmers who worked
long hours for little pay. In making
positives, they found a life changing
opportunity. The barrel organ manufacturing
business provided enough
income for them to leave some of
their financial woes behind. Several
used their money to leave their tenant
farmer status behind and purchase
land of their own. In an area that had
had limited manufacture of goods, this
was a significant boost to the local
economy.2

Considering that more than 500
positives were built in Steinkjer
and neighboring villages, one has
to wonder where they were used.
Obviously, the local market would
have been saturated many times
over. The production of these instruments,
however, coincided with the
growth of trade throughout Norway.
Innhrredjekt, or jekts, were being
produced at this time. The jekts, a
type of windjammer sailing boat,
sailed the coastal waters and opened
a market for the large-scale export of
the Steinkjerpositives. The merchants
aboard the jekts first sailed north with
timber and farmers’ produce which
was exchanged for fish and then south
to trade the fish for other goods and
back to their home ports. This triangular
trade route gave the barrel organ
makers a relatively large market in
which to operate.

It is reported that when a jekt was
launched, it was necessary to play
celebratory music from a Steinkjerpositive.
The belief was “if not, then
things at sea could go wrong.”3

Whether a foolish superstition or
a brilliant marketing ploy, tradition
dictated that there would be three
parties before a jekt could be placed
in the water. Positives were often used
for the music at the prelaunch parties.
In addition, in order to maintain a
good atmosphere during the maiden
voyage, the instrument continued to
be played on board. Positives were
also played when entering a harbor or
to greet one as it returned, ensuring
a party on the docks. In this manner,
the Steinkjerpositive spread along the
Norwegian coast and to other ports as
well. As these well-respected instruments
spread, the need for increased

A view along Kongens gate in the north side of Steinkjer. Photo courtesy Digital
Museum For The Steinkjerpositives.

A restored Tharaldsen positive from 1871.

production was met by the crafts-it not uncommon to find these barrel
men of Steinkjer. Also, it should be organs in unexpected places.
mentioned that as some Norwegians Known for their colorful tunes, the
emigrated to new lands, they took Steinkjerpositives played the local
their instruments with them, making music used by the fiddlers throughout

32 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

the district. At first, waltzes, polkas,
reinlenders, galops, marches and
mazurkas were the initial tunes placed
on the barrel. It is fascinating to note
that this is the only source of the
music of the region during this time
period. The music of the fiddlers was
merely passed down and memorized
by the musicians; none was ever
written down to be preserved. Without
the barrels, these tunes would
have been lost forever. It is because
of these barrel organs that the music
that reflects the culture and musical
history of the region at this time has
been preserved. Sadly, the titles of
many of the tunes have been lost as
the builders did not list the tunes on
the barrels nor in the boxes.

As the Steinkjerpositives became
ever more popular and spread to new
areas, a demand arose for a greater
repertoire of tunes. To meet that
need, more music was borrowed from
German dance tunes. To date, around
1,200 tunes have been recorded from
the surviving positives. To hear many
of the tunes that have been recorded
from surviving Steinkjerpositives,
visit steinkjerpositiv.com/music.html.
The tunes are listed according to
type and year of issue. To date, only
one barrel has been discovered with
religious hymns used in the churches
of that era.

The three sizes most commonly
found in these barrel organs are 22
keys (known as the little), 25 keys
(known as the middle) and 28 keys
(known as the large). Because there
were several builders of these instruments
over a long period of time,
variations exist. So, it is not uncommon
to find Steinkjerpositives with
23 and 24 keys. They were, however,
all built in the same pattern and are
relatively similar in design.4

The earliest machines were built
entirely of pine. But craftsmen like
Christian Tharaldsen built his in the
finest quality using mahogany and
decorative moldings. Goat hide was
used for bellows. The pipes and many
internal parts were still made from
pine, but parts of the pipes that needed
a harder wood used material from fruit
and nut trees. Some Steinkjerpositives
have mechanical parts made of iron,

A restored Schjefte positive from 1891.

A jekt or typical windjammer from Steinkjer, Norway. Tradition stated that it was
an absolute necessity to play music from a Steinkjerpositive before launching.
Otherwise, “if not, things at sea could go wrong.” Pictured is one of the last remain-
ing Steinkjer jekts, the Pauline from the 1800s. Photo courtesy Digital Museum For
The Steinkjerpositives.

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 33

but those made by Christian Tharaldsen
were made almost entirely of
brass. Barrels were made of wooden
staves glued together to form a tube.
End caps were then placed on the
tube so that the interior of the barrel
was hollow. This reduced the weight
and eliminated cracking. Often a light
brown or green paper was glued on to
the barrel to make it smooth and even.
The pins and bridges were made of
brass.

After many decades of service, one
by one these magnificent machines fell
silent. Some were forgotten in attics
or barns, others simply destroyed.
Finally, in the 1970s, Otto Nielsen, an
employee of the Norwegian Broadcasting
Company and a local historian
named Charles Karlsen investigated
the history of the Steinkjerpositives.
Others soon joined the effort, and
the background of these historic
machines was rediscovered.5

Additional details on the manufacture
of the Steinkjerpositives, their
makers, music and internal workings
can be found on websites developed
by Harald Sakshaug, referred to in
the footnotes of this article. Much of
the materials and photographs were
supplied with his gracious consent.

Examples of music and traditional
dancing can be found at: www.
nostalgeek.no/barrel.htm. Additional
examples of Steinkjerpositive music
can be found at /www.steinkjerpositiv.
no/en/music.html.

Theodor Nilsen Bentzen likely made some instruments but was well known for the
pegging of barrels. Photo courtesy Digital Museum For The Steinkjerpositives.

In this resource, the music is
organized by different types: waltz,
reinlender, galop, march, mazurka,
pol (Nowegian folk dance), polka, and
hymns.

Footnotes

1. “Barrel Organ,” Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.
org/wiki/Barrel_organ
2. “The Instrument Makers,” Steinkjerpositives.
http://www.steinkjerpositiv.
com/makers.html
3. “The Story of a Barrel Organ”
Busker Organ Forum. www.
tapatalk.com/groups/buskerorgan/
the-story-and-journey-of-a-barrel-organ-
which-was–t774.html
4. “The Positives,” Steinkjerpositives.
www.steinkjerpositiv.no/en/instruments.
html
5. Steinkjerpositiv. www.nostalgeek.no/
barrel.htm
Two photos of an unrestored Steinkjerpositive. Positives were
made from approximately 1848 to 1900. They often spent long
hours entertaining on land and sea, so heavy wear and use
have taken their toll. This one is ready for restoration.

34 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

A Singing Bird Box

How modern technology helped recreate an ‘old’ Objet d’Art

By Mike Chalifoux

My previous life was in flight
testing in the U.S. Air Force. After
I retired, I did some woodworking
and made some puzzle boxes. These
required some precision work which
led to outfitting my workshop with
CNC (Computer Numerical Control)
mills and the building of a CNC Rose
engine lathe. I have built my own CNC
version of a Rose engine. While a

CNC machine is run by a computer, an
often-overlooked fact is that a person
first has to tell the computer what to
do. That is where the artist can come
into play.

The need for precision also attracted
me to the clock/watch making world.
I crossed paths with Brittany Cox,
who works on restoration of various
mechanical devices and that led me to
singing bird boxes.

The construction of these devices

can encompass a lifetime’s worth
of work. Just making the parts has
taken me years (pretty much self-
taught). I had to learn about metal
working in jewelry classes, and take
classes in enameling and painting so
I could decorate the containers for
the works. I also studied the history
of Fabergé works, which have decorations
applied.

Singing bird boxes first came to
my attention in 2014. Brittany, an

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 35

antiquarian horologist, was doing a
restoration on one of the amazing
devices. I thought, how could these
devices operate in such a small space?
How could the craftsmen of the 1780s
have made them? Many YouTube
videos exist showing the inner workings,
which only increased my interest.

A bit of research turned up two
works, one by Geoffrey T. Mayson,
“Mechanical Singing-Bird Tabatières”
printed in 2000 and one by Sharon
and Christian Bailly, “Flights of Fancy

-Mechanical Singing Birds” printed in
2001.
The work by the Baillys seemed
to be more about the artistry of the
boxes. For technical information
Mayson’s book is recommended.

My local library was able to secure
me a copy of Mayson’s book for me
via an interlibrary loan. The text is
fascinating, with chapters on the inner
workings such as the air cams, the
bellows and the miniature bird itself.
I wondered: would it be possible to
make a miniature bird? I knew it would
definitely stretch my capabilities. The
small size of the bird, the whistle, the
bellows, the mechanism, the box that
it would ultimately reside in, would all
be new to me and serve to grow my
skills.

A reference would be needed as
a guide, and it was quickly obvious
that the work of Mayson was the best
to begin with. This book is relatively
rare and rather expensive. There were
approximately 30 libraries around the
world that had copies and about as
many book sellers had them for sale.
“Flights of Fancy – Mechanical Singing
Birds” was even more difficult to find
with only five copies in libraries and
one bookseller offering it for sale.

It seemed that this work was slowly
disappearing, so I set out to see how
it could be preserved. I learned that
individuals wanting to duplicate an
out-of-print book must contact the
authors to ask permission. Unfortunately
for me, Mayson had passed
on in 1996 and attempts to contact
his widow were unsuccessful. His
publisher has also passed on and the
publishing house was acquired by
another publisher. That publisher did
not acquire the rights to the book and

An image from Geoffrey Mayson’s book showing a complete bellows and whistle for
a singing bird box.

Another image from Geoffrey Mayson’s book showing the movement with bird and
bellows attached. Below is the cover of Mayson’s book.

could not provide any information
about the Maysons.

I then set about a lengthy and
convoluted process to get an Orphan
Works license (N. 127). It took about
six months of work and following
due diligence checklists. This license
is for non-commercial use only. Any
commercial use would require a
further application to be made. The
British Library, as the national library
of the United Kingdom, has this work
and could provide a digital copy. They
reviewed the license and provided a
high-definition copy in PDF format.
They also provided the images in .tif
format (which means that there is no
data loss due to file compression).

Once I had successfully obtained

36 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

A drawing of bird whistle workings that was printed in Mechanical Music, Vol. 54, No. 6, November/December 2008.

the necessary license, I was ready
to release copies of the book to the
public. My original plans were to travel
to Britain and attend an annual general
meeting of the Society of Ornamental
Turners to announce the availability
of the book, but the COVID Pandemic
prevented travel.

What I discovered while working
on this musical item is that there are
areas that would-be potential challenges.
Among these are:

• Bellows
• Whistle
• Feathering a bird
• Working on small parts
Each of these points presents difficulties.
The type of glue used in the
bellows was said to be rubber cement
and a specific type of thinner was
noted. I did run into a bit of a language
issue here as the item Mayson called
rubber cement would be known to me

The tail lever. A computer-aided model of a frame.

as contact cement. These are quite
different materials. Also, Zephyr skin
(a very thin leather made from animal
intestines) is not readily available
in the U.S., so other materials were
tried. Thin rubber is quite airtight, but
I knew it could deteriorate over time.
Polyethylene film is difficult to glue,
but with the appropriate primers it
could make a good seal. I thought a
replacement material used in cuckoo
clock bellows might be acceptable.
It is a nonwoven synthetic material

known in the U.S. as Tyvek and is
about .005 inches thick. It needs to be
softened but seems to work well with
regular hide glue.

The whistle was a major problem.
Examining the pictures in the book
as carefully as possible led to experiments
with several whistles, none of
which were satisfactory. They did not
have the range needed, or the amplitude
and did not seem to “start quickly
enough.” The pictures provided some
information, but I was still having

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 37

problems. Fortunately, I came across an article published
by the Music Box Society International about Karl Griesbaum.
One of the pictures in the article contained detailed
drawings of a whistle! A satisfactory whistle was made
very shortly thereafter.

The original birds were feathered with hummingbird
feathers. The Migratory Bird Protection Act of 1918 made
that illegal but there are acceptable alternatives. There is
an artist, Kerri Pajutee, who is able to feather small birds
quite nicely, with two tutorials on dyeing the feathers and
feathering a bird.

Learning how to work on a small scale has its challenges.
Trying to lay out, mark, and drill parts and then fit them
to work together was almost impossible. The components
of a bird have been modeled and a small CNC system is
used to scribe the lines on small brass stock. The parts are
cut out using a jeweler’s saw under a stereo microscope.
A high-speed dental drill and fine, No. 6 files were used to
finish a part.

Future plans

A repository of information regarding singing birds
would be useful. This repository could also store additional
information that may be useful to other creators of these
little jewels.

Sources & Acknowledgments

I have graciously been given permission from several
sources to reprint their works:

• “Singing Birds” Chapter XVIII, Vol. II, from the book
Le Monde des Automates (The World of Automata),
written by Alfred Chapuis and Edouard Gelis, translated
by Wade Jenkins Mechanical Music, Vol. 42, No.
2, Autumn 1996,
• “The Karl Griesbaum Singing Bird Workshop in
Triberg,” translated by George Coade, Mechanical
Music, Vol. 54 No. 6, November/December 2008
• Die Karl-Griesbaum-Singvogelwerkstätten in Triberg’
by Siegfried Wendel, Das Mechanische Musikinstrument,
No. 87, August 2003
From Kerri Pajutee (www.kerripajutee.com):

• Tutorial for feathering a small bird
• Tutorial for dyeing the feathers
I do hope that this article will encourage others to work
on such devices and share the results of their efforts.

Finally, please visit the Facebook group “Mechanical
Singing Birds” at facebook.com/groups/712717722847011

Editor’s Note: This site has the copies of the works mentioned above,
Geoffrey T. Mayson’s work, and author Mike Chalifoux CAD files of a
bird.

The files are also available on Dropbox at: https://www.dropbox.com/
sh/0tjunm7kdqitw8g/AADxPeI19UBj25Nv26RiPH1La?dl=0

This photo gives a sense of the scale of the parts used in lay-
ing out the frame on the previous page.

Mike Chalifoux, from Massachusetts, became fascinated by singing
bird boxes, which set him off on a mission to produce his own. He
shares with us here a brief account of how he achieved his aim after
many years. So enthused, he has set up a Facebook page where he shares
the various resources he drew on.

As virtually self-taught, this project presented a number of challenges,
including the ‘common language which divides us’ – terms in common
use in one country are not necessarily the same in another Anglophone
country.

Portions of this article were previously published by the Musical Box
Society of Great Britain in The Music Box, Vol. 29 No 8.

Anyone with further advice to offer, is welcome to contact the editor
of this publication who will pass along the information.

38 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

The gleaming cylinder from a David Langdorff overture music box purchased during the author’s memorable trip to California.

A buying trip I will never forget

By James Kracht

It was a Saturday morning in early
January 2019. I’m an early riser
and went to my PDA to look for the
night’s email. There was one from my
friend and restorer Reg Smith which
always starts my day off with a good
beginning. This one was no exception.
It alerted me to a huge liquidation of
mechanical musical instruments in
Southern California, with a website
address and phone number. But
for this email, I never would have
learned of this extraordinary buying
opportunity.

The website, albeit extremely
well done, was not accessible to me
as a blind music box collector, so I
had to wait until the hour was more
reasonable and I could call the seller
to discuss his collection. It didn’t take
me more than five minutes on that call
to know that I wanted to hear more.

For the next hour or so, Howie
Schack, the son of the late Ralph
Schack (MBSI President 2004-2005),
and Ralph’s wife, Gloria, were liquidating
what I was soon to learn was
an expansive, all-inclusive collection
of more than a hundred mechanical
musical instruments of all types and

ages, some very large. Howie’s descriptions
were very detailed, and that,
coupled with some time that I later
spent with Reg looking at the website
led me to understand that I needed to
have a serious conversation with my
wife, Pat. Rather than put that off, we
sat down by 1 p.m. and I informed her
that I very much wanted to go out to
California to look at this collection. I
wanted to buy some prized pieces to
add to our collection, and because
some of my prior buying experiences
were less than favorable, I wanted to
take Reg with me to examine prospective
purchases. After much back and

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 39

The lid of the David Langdorff four-overture music box.

The lid, case front and cylinder of the B.A. Bremond overture
box from the Schack collection.

forth, Pat was on board, but she did tell me that if I was
going to go to California, I had to agree to first visit my two
sisters in Western Washington state. For a Florida boy that
particular condition turned out to be a very cold endeavor,
but I was glad to start this trip visiting my siblings.

The wheels were in motion and the trip plans began to
unfold. Reg agreed to meet me in Los Angeles, CA, and a
very good friend agreed to meet us at the airport and host
us for a few days. Little did I know then that I would also
be making a huge dent in his champagne stash, just to get
through the whole experience. We had a great four days
together which made the trip to Los Angeles even more
memorable.

We were set to meet Howie Schack at his parents’
beautiful home in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, at 10 a.m. on

40 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

The cylinder from the Rzebitschek music box.

a Friday morning. I don’t remember
getting much sleep the night before.
Reg and I had spent many hours on
the phone reviewing the website and
I had narrowed it down to 16 to 18
music boxes that I wanted to look at
and listen to.

We arrived at the Schack home on
schedule, and I immediately stopped
to look at a large piece in the entry hall
and got better acquainted with Howie
Schack. He was every bit as kind and
thoughtful as I had expected him
to be and is a wonderful individual.
The Schack home is quite lovely. The
tasks of examination, selection and
acquisition was underway, all to be
completed before 3 p.m.

Having passed on a beautiful overture
box at a recent auction, one of my
first tasks, after looking at a beautiful
little Rzebitschek sample not unlike
one that I had unsuccessfully bid on at
a Breker auction the prior November,
was to audition any overture boxes in
Schack collection. There were several.
I quickly narrowed it down to two that

I was seriously interested in. My first
choice was a fantastic David Langdorff
overture box, and the second was a

B.A. Bremond overture box. We went
through the rest of the collection and
Reg and I decided what we wanted to
try for and determine how far I could
stretch my available funds.
Howie and I quickly came to terms
on the Langdorff and the Rzebitschek.
Then we completed examination,
discussion and deals on four other
music boxes. These included a Frères
Nicole, a Metert, a Lawater, and an
1827 Lecoultre. That gave me six
priceless additions to my collection.
Howie had pushed to the end our
negotiations on his parents’ beautiful
Polyphon Emerald, a machine which
I desperately wanted to have. So, with
deals concluded on six machines we
started to trade ideas about it. Thanks
to Howie’s persuasive ways and my
determination, I ended up with the
16-bell Polyphon Emerald. I truly love
this music box.

Needless to say, the day was an

overwhelming success in my opinion.
I came back to our friend’s home on a
total high and to celebrate, our host,
Reg and I enjoyed an incredible steak
dinner at Mastriani’s Steakhouse in
Beverly Hills, CA.

My friend, Tom, kindly arranged to
pick up the music boxes after Howie
and his son and lady friend packed
them. Tom would store them until I
figured out shipping. As many of you
know, that can be a real challenge. I
finally settled on shipping them with
Metropolitan White Glove Services,
also known as Metropolitan Warehouse.
Although expensive, seven
music boxes arrived at our Miami, FL,
home without damage and they were
quickly absorbed into our collection
to play on for many years to come.

Fast forward to early December.
Howie was arranging to send the bulk
of his remaining unsold collection
to auction. I asked him about two
machines. One was a Ducommun-Girod
box that had already gone to
the auction house, but I was not a

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 41

The two snuff boxes that became part of the author’s collection after an interest was sparked from another auction.

successful bidder thereon. The other
coincidently was the B.A. Bremond
overture box which I had starred on
my list as really wanting, but I had
stopped at seven purchases during
my February visit. Howie still had the

B.A. Bremond box, and it was one of
two remaining boxes he offered me,
as he wanted to keep the other one for
himself. I thought, how unbelievable,
and then based on our prior dealings
he was willing to let it go for a very
reasonable price. Hence, I now have
eight music boxes from the Schack
collection in mine.
But the story does not end there.
At the music box convention in
Rockville, MD, in September 2019, I
almost looked at two snuff boxes for

sale. Not wanting to be tempted by the
excitement of the Mart, however, I left
the hotel. Then I had another opportunity
to see both of the snuff boxes at
an upcoming chapter meeting. Alas, I
never knew I wanted a snuff box, but
I was totally infatuated. I came home
and was writing Howie Schack again
as part of my now established relationship
with him. It so happened that
he had two snuff boxes he didn’t want,
but the auction house would not take
them. Yes, they are now mine, as is a
third 1810 sectional comb miniature
that I bought from Reg.

So ends the story of a wonderful
buying trip to Southern California. I
greatly cherish and totally love all of
these boxes. They are all in impeccable

condition. Such is no surprise, as the
Schacks bought and kept only the very
best.

As with other music boxes that I
have written about, I cannot let this
story end without commenting about
my friendship with Howie. He is a
truly great person, with the utmost
integrity, and he did his parents proud
in liquidating their vast collection.
None of this would have been possible
had it not been for that early Saturday
morning email from my good friend
and restorer Reg Smith. Thank you
Howie and Reg.

I think of you both every time I
play one of the 11 music boxes which
are now such a central part of my
collection.

42 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

Treasured Memories

By Jamie Brewer

Murray Savauge was an early music box
collector. He and his family were great friends
with Barclay Holmes, who was a high-end
antique dealer in Vineland, Ontario, Canada.
Barclay and Murtogh Guinness were very
close friends back in the day.
I first met Barclay in the early 1980s. How
I wish I had kept a journal
back then. It drives me crazy
to not have the resources
to fact check. I was still
driving my 1975 Duster
when I would make those
early trips crossing the
Canadian border to visit
Vineland. Barclay was
only some 40 miles from
my house in Lockport,
NY. Many Sunday
afternoons were spent
making spur-of-themoment
trips to his shop.

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 43

One visit to Barclay’s I hold particularly
close was when I was living with
my best friend, Joe, in 1998 waiting
for a job transfer to Tuscaloosa, AL. It
was a warm sunny day in spring and
I just wanted to get away for a while.
I decided to drive to Barclay’s on the
back way over country roads to the
Lewiston Bridge. On the way I found
my friend John Cornelius walking on
the side of the road not far from where
his parents lived. I pulled over and told
John to get in the truck, we are going
to Canada. To better understand this,
you really have to have known John:
he was very quiet and soft spoken. He
was truly one of the kindest people
I have ever met. He tried to put up a
fight but I just told him to “Hush up
and get in this truck!” We ended up
at Barclay’s having the best time. We
came home the long way through
Buffalo and caught “Happy Hour” at
Buddies. John always related how he
had never done anything so spur of the
moment and how much fun he had.
John succumbed to throat cancer. It
is bittersweet to remember but I’m so
glad we had that afternoon together.

Back when I had my Plymouth
Duster, I was a “mule” bringing
treasures over the border to deliver
to Murtogh from Barclay. I made
frequent trips to New York City in
those days. My Duster had a lockable
trunk that was never inspected at the
border. That old car was totaled out in
December 1981. My next vehicle was
a hatchback so the luxury of having
things totally out of view was gone.
The things you do when you are young
and dumb! Today I would be petrified
to sneak items over the border, given
the way the inspection checks have
evolved and intensified.

Barclay had a beautiful historic
brick farmhouse furnished with
period antiques. One big room at the
end served as his shop. Barclay loved
his coffee as much as I do. We always
shared a few cups in his kitchen. He
was “old school” so the coffee was
always served in a china cup on a
saucer.

Barclay was born and raised in
Lexington, KY. He taught me a lot
on what to expect when I moved
south. How he laughed when I said

innocently one visit, “I don’t understand
it. All the people I’ve met in the
south say they have never met anyone
like me before!” Talk about a loaded
statement! We were sitting on the
porch to his shop in the evening when
I told him that. The porch is small with
a bench along the side of each railing.
We sat watching the red sun descend
in the west over the fields and vineyards
of the Niagara Peninsula. It was
one of those times to be treasured, you
just knew when it was happening that
it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

The stories Barclay regaled me
with. He and Murtogh did quite a bit of
traveling overseas together. Murtogh
always booked first class on sailings
and hotels. They were very involved
with the “old school” of the Musical
Box Society International. How I treasure
the time we spent trading stories.

When Murray died, Barclay worked
with Murray’s daughter Judy to sell
off his collection. This was done over
an extended period of time. The last
music box remaining in Judy’s possession
was the Mermod Frères Sublime
Harmony Piccolo box. I have a letter
going back to Oct. 6, 1960, linking this
music box to the Savauge family. Judy
loved this music box as did Barclay.

Over the years I was able to do some
minor basic repairs for Judy to keep
this beautiful box running.

Barclay was able to buy this music
box from Judy in 2001. Barclay had
a legal paper signed whereby if he
predeceased Judy the music box
would revert back to her. Barclay was
so thrilled to finally possess this music
box. I have correspondence covering
the purchase and minute details of the
box Barclay sent me over the years.

It was Nov. 30, 2005, when Judy sent
me an email informing me of Barclay’s
death. Barclay lived alone and was
pretty much estranged from his immediate
family. Judy told me he was so
afraid of dying and not being found for
days. Unfortunately, that is just what
occurred. The family arranged a short
memorial service figuring that nobody
would attend. This family was shocked
when people from all over the region
showed up. Those in attendance were
asked to say a few words about their
relationship with Barclay. Judy gave

a short speech and then read this
portion of an email I had sent her:

“I just think of the happy hours
spent at the long table in the kitchen
enjoying coffee and cookies. His
clocks were always on time and ticking.
Barclay always saved a fruitcake
made by a special friend for me. I
will treasure the remains of the last
fruitcake I have in the freezer that he
gave me in September.”

Barclay’s family descended upon

his estate like a plague of locusts.

They had no intentions of honoring

his requests of bequests to his friends

and extended family. Judy, however, is

a fighter and she took off the gloves

to regain possession of the music box.

The end result was it was returned to

her.
It was in June 2010, Judy sent me an

email which contained the following:

The initial reason I contacted you
is because I’m updating my will, and
if you’re around when I’m not, I’d
like you to have the ‘Mermod Freres
Ideal Sublime’ as well as a very odd
painting connected with it (about
which more at another time). To that
end, I need your full name, address,
phone #, email. I wasn’t going to tell
you any of this, but when Facebook
indicated you lived in Birmingham,
I got nervous, and emailed.

OK. Why you? Many reasons.
You’ve had an association with the
box over the years. You’ve repaired
bits & pieces of it a couple of times.
The box is important to me, was
important to Barclay. And Barclay
was very fond of you. (Me too). I also
believe that you were ‘fond’ of the box!
But I suppose the main reason is that
you certainly appreciate the box, and
frankly, I don’t know anyone else
who does, in the same way. It would
make me feel good to know that it has
another good home: first my father,
then me, then Barclay, me again, and
then you.

Five years later, in February 2015,
Judy contacted me via Facebook to
tell me I could pick up the music box
from her home in Canada, but I had

44 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

The Mermod Frères Sublime Harmony Piccolo music box and the painting connected to it, in the author’s home.

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 45

to come as soon as I possibly could.
This meant renewing my passport for
starters.

It took a great deal of preparation
to build a crate to hold the box as it
would have to travel in the bed of my
truck and also be easily accessible in
case customs needed to do an inspection.
I departed Tuscaloosa, AL, on
May 10 and arrived in Lockport, NY,
on the 11th.

Tuesday, May 12, 2015, I slept in till

7:30 a.m. Then I took a hot shower and
did a last-minute double check of the
moving and packing supplies. Joe was
up at 8:30 a.m. and made coffee.
I took a to-go cup and tried my old
“autopilot” to get to the Lewiston
Bridge to Canada. My GPS does not
work in Canada. I had a detailed
Google map.

It had been many years since I
crossed the Canadian border. Lucky
for me, the border guard crossing into
Canada was laid back. There was no
traffic on the bridge. I had timed it just
right. I can’t lie to save my life so I had
my story all worked out.

These border guards must hear
every story in the book. When he questioned
me as to the reason for my trip
to Canada and then wondered further
why anyone not related to me would
gift me such a valuable music box, I
replied, “It’s a long-involved story.” He
smiled and said, “I’ve got lots of time!”

I explained the entire story of how
my good friend Barclay was a prestigious
antique dealer in Vineland,
Ontario, who was good friends with
Judy’s family. I went on how Barclay
brokered sales of music boxes from
Judy’s family over the years and how
he coveted this particular music box.
Judy sold Barclay the music box under
the condition, if he predeceased her,
she would get it back. Sadly, Barclay
died some six years ago. Barclay was
ostracized from his family, but they
sure scooped in to “pick the bones
clean.” Things got really ugly and this
family was not going to honor the
paperwork returning this box to Judy.

By the time I finished up my story
this guard was leaning back in his
chair and I had my arms folded on
the truck window sill. I had the guard
shaking his head at all this! I asked if

he needed to check over any of the
packing supplies I was bringing in. He
said I was fine and to just go on.

I got the music box and cabinet all
packed up. This was not the final packing
as there was a chance of a border
inspection and then I had to unload
the thing at Joe’s house. I was amazed
how I was just waved on through U.S.
customs on my return trip.

Once I got the music box set up
here in Tuscaloosa, AL, I contacted
Dave and Carol Beck about doing a
restoration. There was some comb
work that needed to be done to make
it right. They agreed to take on the job.

In early June the box was again
packed up and this time I transported
it to Atlanta, GA. It is only about a
four-hour drive but due to the traffic
and congestion it is a drive I detest.
Dave and Carol were very impressed
with the music box. They said there
should not be any surprises as it was
in good condition overall.

It only took a month for Dave and
Carol to do the restoration work on
the music box and cylinders. They did
a road trip to Tuscaloosa to drop it off
and sightsee a bit. I am thrilled at the
work that was done on it.

This music box has such a special
place in my life. I play this pretty
much daily. When I listen to this, it is
much more than just hearing beautiful
music. In my mind I can travel to so
many places and situations associated
with this instrument. On warm, quiet
summer nights I can hear this while in
my front porch swing. To daydream to
the sweet tones of this box watching
the sunset in a brilliant orange and
Tiffany blue sky is magic.

I can never thank Judy enough for
her gift of this to me. My life has been
so enriched.

Judy was a teacher before her
illness. One student she had such an
impact upon, gifted her the painting
that hangs just above the music box in
my home. It is fitting these two pieces
stay together.

On a sad note. I got a mail from Judy
on Facebook on Oct. 18, 2019.

Jamie – things happen at an unexpected
pace. Federal Govt. passed
the MAiD option in 2015 (Medical

Assistance in Dying). I qualify with
Terminal cancer & a bunch of other
things. I wanted to wait until the

U.S. election but in the last few days
things have happened and I am using
the option on Sunday. There’s no good
way to say it all. I’ve enjoyed you from
a far – so much, and wish we
had more time. Enjoy all things -and
cats! I will miss my polydactyl big
boy Jack who is a treat; however my
friend Joan is adopting him. Enjoy
all things.
After reading this the pieces fell into
place as to why Judy wanted me to do
the pick-up in 2015. She had suffered
so. Her quality of life had been pretty
grim.

I was able to get this written history
to her. She replied:

What a thrill to read this wonderful
piece, Jamie. I always thought you
should be a famous writer: your
writing is magnificent. Thank you for
all this. You have made the few days
I have left so special & meaningful.
As I said, I love the piece, the history,
the photos – all. And I will forward
this to my friend & former student,
Norm Edwards, now living in British
Columbia on his tiny boat, who
gave me the painting to go with the
box. I actually am ‘doing the deed’
on Tuesday rather than tomorrow. I
needed more time. I don’t know what
to expect, if anything, but for the most
part it’s been a good ride. Oops. Put
the emoji in the wrong place. I still
can’t do Facebook. Actually – is it
possible to send your wonderful piece
to my email so it is easier to print
out? Or is there something I don’t
know re how to do that.

I answered her back. Judy was
never one to navigate the world of
computers or the internet. This was
my final communication with Judy.

I’ve been in contact with Norm
Edwards who was so close to Judy
as a student and who gifted her the
painting.

Norm related via email the story
how he found this painting to gift to
Judy.

46 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

“The painting I found in the Thirroul
Antique Centre in New South
Wales. Owned by Mark Rose, who’s
family were amongst the first “free
settlers” to arrive in Oz – a fact the
family were quick to inform me of.
“Not convicts”!

Mark carried on as if he were an
English gentleman who had just
stepped off the ship. The shop was his
cocoon full of fine furniture, clocks,
scientific instruments and a couple of
the music boxes, the style with the big
metal discs.

This “odd” painting was in the
shop, tucked in a corner, it wasn’t one
of his better paintings, but it spoke
to me as it was around the time that
Judy was having to battle the family
to have her father’s box returned and
there was Judy in the painting with
a music box!

The link you include is wonderful
thank you! I hadn’t seen the family
music box when I found the painting
and to now see what sort of box
“inspired” the painting completes the
picture. It seems perfect to have over
the box! Thanks for hanging it in
your home.

We will have to go antiquing
together one day! I pop into the
secondhand shops daily here in
Sidney BC – you never know what you
might find! Living on the boat limits
my collection size, most “finds” I give
to friends who I hope will appreciate
them.”

I had explained to Norm how the

music box in the painting is a repre

sentation of a “Station Box” with the

dancing dolls.
To have this kind of documentation

makes any piece special in my book.
The upside of keeping a journal is

it is not hard to research. Here is my

journal entry in regards to this music

box from Oct. 18, 2019:

Talk about “ying” and “yang” in
your life. After the drama I had

concerning the death of my friend
Bill’s dad last weekend I opened this
E-mail first thing this a.m. from my
friend Judy S who lives in St. Catherines,
Ontario.

“Quick info – Fed Govt 2015 passed
MAiD option (Medical Assistance in
Dying). I qualify but was waiting
til after US election. Sudden change,
decision yesterday – I will be dying
this Sunday. I very much treasure
you and all you are. Thank you
for taking the Mermod Freres!. Too
rushed & ill to say anything profound.
Enjoy all things.”

Judy has an autoimmune disease
which has left her in declining health
for too many years. Her quality of life
has been so horrible as of late.

I sent Judy the following reply:

Good morning Judy,

I understand your decision and
back you 100%. Have been thinking
so much of you and Barclay as of
late. Next weekend I will be acquiring
two more cylinders for the music
box which I believe were used in the
factory where they were produced. I
have coveted those cylinders since I
first heard them play over 30 years
ago. One has excerpts of Beethoven’s
7th Symphony and the other has runs
and trills of no tunes in particular. I
believe it was used as a “test cylinder”
for calibrating in the factory.

I plan to write up a detailed history
of the music box and wanted to get
permission to use you and your
family’s name in it. The Musical Box
Society has a feature in their publication
where they solicit submissions
for how you discovered different
instruments in your collection. I’ve
done up a couple of submissions. The
story of your family and friendship
with Barclay should be shared. There
are few members of the society left
who had associations with Barclay.
At 67 I’m one of the “old timers” now.

I play that box pretty much daily.
On quiet nights you can clearly hear
it on my front porch. It is such a part

of my life now. I have shared the story
behind it to many people.

I am going to get to work on that
writing today and hopefully will have
a rough draft to send off to you by this
afternoon.

You are a brave woman Judy… you
deserve peace…

One of the most profound statements
of life I’ve ever read was said
by an elderly woman in an interview
for the book, “Let Us Build Us A City,
11 Lost Towns of Arkansas.” This
woman simply said, “I like to think
in later years you will think of me.”
In the long haul that is all we can hope
for is to be remembered. You, your
family, and Barclay are remembered
whenever I play the music box. It is
one of my most treasured possessions.

I can’t thank you enough for gifting
it to me.

Know you are loved and remembered
for as long as I’m on this earth…

Love… Jamie

On a happy note the clock has been
running like gangbusters and is right
on time. Holly gave me another scare.
If I don’t see her every few hours, I
like to do a check up on her. I had not
seen her all afternoon. She was not in
any of her “usual spots.” This is when
I do a closet check. My little girl was
on the closet shelf sacked out on my
ancient rag wool sweater!

Going to get started on the Music
Box history. I’d like Judy to be able to
read at least a rough draft before she
passes on…my day has been decided
for me… so glad I have this kind of
latitude in my life to live each day as
it comes…

When I play this music box my
mind takes me to so many places to
interact with so many memories. It
is so much more than just hearing
musical sounds.

I like to think sharing the back
story of this music box it will be
appreciated more as time goes on….

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 47

Bob’s Symphonion

By Mark Singleton

Back in the early days of my
collecting, by a pure mix of chance
and circumstance, I was introduced to
mechanical music enthusiast and true
master of disc box restoration, Bob
Minney.

Little did I know that for the next 25
years I would be a regular visitor to
his home, which entailed a four to five
hours drive in each direction.

Bob was recently retired from
his profession as a design engineer
at Vauxhall (GM) motors in Luton,
Bedfordshire, a career which obviously
stood him in good stead for what was
one of his great pleasures: mechanical
music. He had a brusque, no nonsense
demeanor, which commanded immediate
respect. So, you knew from the
off exactly where you stood, and woe
betide anyone who didn’t play to these
old school rules.

It didn’t take long for me to realize
that behind this hard man’s exterior,
lay an extremely helpful and willing
soul, a man who would strive hard to
help, with expert restoration, knowledgeable
advice, interspersed with
relevant tales from past encounters
with both man and machine. Bob was
a recognized authority/guru/genius on
all matters relating to disc boxes, and
I lived and breathed for them (still do).
He had a great collection, and I was
trying to build one (still am): so I’m
sure you get the picture.

In the corner of Bob’s lounge/
workshop sat a big impressive-looking
Symphonion. I was so nervous on my
first visit, I hardly dared to look at it.
On my return home I quickly consulted
the Q. David Bowers “Encyclopedia of
Automatic Musical Instruments” and
looked it up. It was a Grand Monster
Automat 192. The number referred
to the number of teeth on the combs,
set in duplex fashion. It plays discs of
25¼-inch in diameter.

Upon my return to Bob’s shop some
three months later to collect a small
job he had agreed to help me with, I

plucked up my courage, cleared my
throat and said, “Excuse me, but I
couldn’t help notice that wonderful
looking machine last time I called and
wondered if I may hear it play?”

Bob gestured towards the instrument,
and I literally tripped over my
own feet as I made my way to this
machine. Looking feverishly around
for a penny, he pointed out it had a
push/pull start behind the winding
handle. With bated breath, mouth agog,
and a huge adrenalin rush, I started it,
not knowing what to actually expect.
I stood back and was blown away
by its ethereal performance. It was
soft, mellow, sonorous, with a deep
fully rounded, yet gentle bass, liquid
mid-range and a silver bells treble.

Wow! I looked over at Bob, who
gave a gentle, all knowing “What about
that then!“ type nod. I inquired if this
was the same machine credited to him
in Graham Webb’s “The Disc Musical
Box Handbook”?

“Good gracious, no!” was his swift
reply. “That was a dreadful machine.
Actually, this machine came from up
North where you live!”

“Oh?” I said encouragingly and he
proceeded to tell me the following
story.

Back in 1958, two young lads,
the Moss bothers, traveled by train
to Blackpool for a weekend trip.
Blackpool is a somewhat frothy and
often bracing seaside resort, home
to England’s answer to New York’s
Coney Island.

On alighting from the train, the
brothers set off to find accommodation
and within minutes they heard a
music box playing in a guest house.
They knocked on the door and upon
it being answered by the landlady of
the establishment, one brother simply
stated, “Excuse me, but you have a
music box playing.”

She answered that yes, she did.

“May we come in and listen?” asked
the brothers.

Again, the answer was yes. It
was rather normal in days gone by

to knock on a boarding house and
inspect the premises to be sure they
were to your suiting before handing
over any money.

After listening, and obviously
impressed, the brothers asked if it
might be for sale. It was, and after a
little haggle they agreed on the then
princely sum of 11 pounds.

At this point the Moss brothers
returned to the train station, armed
themselves with a sack truck apiece,
and forwent their planned weekend of
wine, women and song. They split the
machine in two and returned home
carrying the Symphonion a couple of
hundred miles South.

Some 5 years later, in 1963, a young
Bob Minney had to part with 40
pounds to acquire this same piece. It
was a considerable sum, I guess, back
then.

So began my quest to find a
Symphonion for myself. Along the
way, I asked just about everyone I
met within the Musical Box Society of
Great Britain. Back then it was a very
friendly society, full of old boys, happy
and willing to share their knowledge.
Many knew this type of machine and
referred to it as “The One.” It soon
became apparent to me that not only
was this case style rare, but this
particular machine was held in high
regard by all that knew her.

Many years passed before one
surfaced. It was an incredible survivor,
having sat in a small house in
the midlands where it was sent for
repair in 1926. The mainspring was
broken, as was the endless screw. It
was repaired alright, by myself, about
75 years later, and fortunately due to
its early commercial retirement all
was shipshape on the bedplate, and
it played beautifully. What was not to
like? So, I acquired it. Well, I found out
after some time that it just could not
compare to “The One!”

Upon my next visit to Bob, collecting
a job for myself, and leaving a
Polyphon bedplate for an acquaintance,
I told him of my eventual good

48 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

Bob’s Symphonion in the author’s home where he always wanted to see it.

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 49

fortune in finding a Symphonion, but
explained how it just didn’t compare
to his. “Well, what did you expect?”
was his very matter of fact response.
Right then I was inspired to throw
caution to the wind, not knowing if
I would be thrown out on my ear, or
what, for that sort of thing had been
known to happen in Bob’s shop.

“It’s like this Bob, I have never
coveted anything belonging to any
man in my life, but barely a week
passes without me thinking of that
machine! I was wondering if you were
to ever consider parting with it, would
you please consider me as the next
keeper?”

He looked at me and quick on
the uptake, he cut to the quick and
replied, “Sorry. You are out of luck;
when anything happens to me, the
Moss brothers want it back. OK?”

Well, that was that!

Sometime later, out of the blue, Bob
rang me, seething, spitting feathers
and raised merry Hell with me! “What’s
this you told that chap who came to
collect the bedplate that the Symph is
yours one day! I told you . . . Etc. Etc.”
came spilling out over the phone line.

Naturally, I was shocked. I felt physically
sick, for I had said no such thing,
and told him I had merely advised this
chap to listen if the opportunity arose,
adding that I would have loved the
chance one day, but it was not to be.
A five-second eternal silence ensued.
Then he said, “OK, as long as we are
clear, I suppose that’s that then!”

I said, “Crystal, Bob, you suppose
right, and that is that!” We both hung
up with one thing evident, emotions
were running high.

Sometime later in the mid 2000s, I
called in to Bob on a social visit while
passing by, for he lived no more than
two minutes from an arterial freeway
serving London. After a little chit chat,
and quite out of the blue, his tone
changed to something more serious.

“Had the Moss brothers ’round
yesterday,” he said, nodding in the
direction of the Symphonion. “Gave

her a good thrashing, we had a most
pleasurable afternoon.”

“Oh wow, that’s great” I started to
reply, but was cut off mid-sentence.

“No, listen!” Bob said. “We had a
good chat. We are all getting old, and
they agreed they had their enjoyment
of the machine. I’ve had mine, so it’s
your machine!”

With my forehead sweating, throat
dry and mind trying to take it in,
Bob added, with a genuinely humble
request, “But do you mind if it stays
there for now.?

Well, obviously I did not mind at
all. After all he was keeper of this
machine, and I felt truly honored to be
next in line.

Later that year, I was visiting a
collection in Germany, accompanied
by a friend, John Harold, who
happened to know Bob as well. Both
of us were intrigued to hear the same
Symphonion model, that we were
assured by the owner, speaking with
great pride, was something special.
Indeed, it was a fine box, but John
took the words out of my mind when
he later turned to me with a wry smile
and said, “Obviously they never heard
Bob’s then!”

Around 2010, a couple of days before
a long-planned family trip to the U.S.,
Bob’s daughter, Marilyn, rang to inform
me of his passing. After offering my
condolences, I apologized in advance
for my inevitable non-attendance at
his memorial. She understood fully,
of course, but before hanging up she
added that the agreement I had with
her father about the Symphonion still
stood.

Of course, I would have preferred
Bob had remained on this earth longer,
but I was happy that the Symphonion
was headed back to the Blackpool
area after a 50-plus year hiatus.

Once home, out went my Symphonion
and in went Bob’s Symphonion
to much shaking of heads by family
members who thought I had lost the
plot.

Now, this machine had sat on a

carpet in Bob’s home, with a curtain
to one side, and a fabric sofa with soft
cushions immediately to the front. I
had seriously underestimated how
this altered its acoustic properties.
In my home, it sat on a traditional
suspended bare hardwood floor, quite
spartan in comparison, that acted
like a soundboard. Out went the
super smooth, mellow machine that
we all knew and loved and in came a
powerful voice akin to Pavarotti in his
heyday.

It was different again, but retained
its unique colors, tonal qualities, musical
ability and true soul.

A German collector/dealer friend
called to see me at my then place of
business to collect a large Polyphon
disc player one day and after loading
he asked, ‘“Mark, is it true you have
this machine they called The One?”

He must have spoken to a really Old
Boy along the line, because most still
alive now, know it by its current name,
Bob’s Symphonion.

After a brief discussion, he followed
me to my home and cast his “disc box
man” eye over it. Ten seconds into the
performance, with finger in the air, he
declared “Now I do understand!”

Of course, we all have our own
favorites, and one man’s meat and all
that, but at youtu.be/OmFFwT4VhYY,
you may hear Bob’s Symphonion play,
or just search for Silvertone Music
Boxes in your web browser to find this
article.

Note that the video only gives a
fair representation of the real thing
as the microphone struggles with
the complex frequencies and creates
much distortion, even from outside
the room. Anyone reading this,
however, is more than welcome to
listen to Bob’s Symphonion in person
should they find themselves in the
Blackpool area.

This article originally appeared on the
author’s website, silvertonemusicboxes.co.uk/
Please visit the website to see more content
from this author.

50 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

In Memoriam In Memoriam
Herbert Singe, Sr. — 1926-2020

Compiled from internet sources

The family of Herbert J. “Herb”
Singe, collector, restorer, mechanic
and driver of antique cars has
announced his passing after a brief
illness in December 2020.

Herb was interested in most
anything mechanical, electrical or
the combination of the two as long as
it was more than 100 years old. This
included mechanical musical devices,
flashlights and other battery operated
lighted items, model airplane motors
and the miniature race cars that they
powered. He was a lifelong resident
of Hillside, NJ. He served in the U.S.
Navy from 1944-46.

Herb was a 70-year member of the
Horseless Carriage Club of America
(HCCA), the Antique Automobile Club
of America (AACA), and the Vintage
Motor Car Club of America. He was
a 50-year Rotarian, a Mason and
belonged to the Early Ford V-8 Club.
He was an MBSI member for many
years. Herb loved attending antique car
shows, tours and flea markets throughout
the U.S., England and France. He
participated in more than 70 AACA
Eastern Fall National Meets, beginning
with Devon, PA, in 1949 through
Gettysburg, PA, in 2020. Herb visited
all 66 Hershey Fall Car Meets. He
was eminently proud of this accomplishment.
He loved walking and later
“scootering” around old car swap
meets where he purchased mechanical
and electrical treasures from the
past 125 years.

Herb and his late wife, Margaret,
traveled extensively around America,
the Caribbean and Europe. They spent
time at their summer home at the
Jersey Shore. Herb loved to cruise

Herb Singe with his Wurlitzer 150 Band Organ in 2010.

with his family in Barnegat Bay in his
Chris Craft convertible cruiser, the
Wiki Wiki. They enjoyed meeting and
talking to their many friends over the
years. Herb was especially at home
working with his hands and tools in
his garage and driving 110-year-old
automobiles.

Herb and Margaret (and later,
their son, Herb) built the Addressing
Machine & Supply Co., which began
with Herb carrying a tool bag. They
built it into one of the most successful
companies that sold, serviced,
and rebuilt mailing machinery and
equipment. Herb’s family and his
friends were most important to
him. Herb was predeceased by his
mother, Lottie Mae; father, Herb,

a true craftsman who taught him
much about metal and woodworking
and who also made it to age 94; his
younger sister, Marilyn, and his
beloved wife and partner of 61 years,
Margaret.

Herb is survived by his loving children,
daughter Peggysue and son Herb
R. (note: subsequent to the writing of
this obituary Herb R. sadly passed
away); Herb R.’s wife, Belinda, and
Herb R. and Belinda’s children, Herb
William and Heidi, as well as many
friends and colleagues too numerous
to mention.

Herb hoped you would take to heart
what he believed: Life is for the living.
Most importantly, make the most of
your time here on Earth.

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 51

In Memoriam In Memoriam
Bill Harris — 1932-2021

The story of a collector and lover of mechanical music

By Kathleen and Christian Eric

William “Bill” Harris was born in
Des Lacs, ND, the oldest son of Max
and Sophie Harris. Bill was of Norwegian
descent and proud of it. He did
not have a typical carefree childhood,
but it is unlikely that he looked at it
as anything but idyllic. He lived with
his grandparents from a young age
and attended school in Des Lacs. Bill
moved with his grandparents from
Des Lacs to Baudette, MN, in the Fall
of 1941 after the crops were harvested
(which was an important consideration
in a rural community). He loved
living with his grandparents, and he
loved living in Minnesota. His grandparents
had purchased a streetcar
from the city of Duluth, MN, and made
it into their home. They placed this
home on the banks of the Rainy River.
His Grandpa, Fred, passed away when
Bill was 11 years old. A little over a
year later his Grandma died too and
Bill moved in with his father and
stepmother. This didn’t last long and
he struck out on his own. He headed
to Minnesota where he cut pulp wood
and kept up with the seasoned adult
lumber workers. This is no small
thing, as anyone connected with the
lumber industry will tell you. As a
former Oregonian, myself, I’m familiar
with the “old time” lumber trade skills
and I know that you counted yourself
lucky if you had all of your fingers at
the end of any given day.

Bill was 16 when he earned his pilot’s
license. He was a natural fit for the
Air Force, joining in 1950. Stationed
at Hamilton Air Force Base in San
Francisco, CA, he enjoyed a few warm

Bill Harris Bill and Rosanna Harris

California winters away from the frigid
temperatures of North Dakota. He kept
his pilot’s license for 72 years.

Bill was a man of many occupations.
After his military service, he returned
to North Dakota and worked for 11
years as a telegrapher for the Great
Northern Railroad. He bought and
sold agricultural steam tractors. Next,
he published a daily sheet called the
“Noon News” which was delivered
daily to a variety of restaurants in
Minot, ND. He also published a collector’s
magazine and various books,
one focused on the details of early
Winchester rifles. The printing press
for this publication was in the basement
of his family home. His young
pre-teen son, Fred, ran the press.

Bill was a collector of top-of-theline
Winchester rifles. He eventually
sold his collection to finance another
venture, a gun shop called Dakota
Firearms.

A major flood, and the additional
sadness of a divorce, prompted a
move to Denver, CO. He had intended
to make his way to Phoenix, AZ, but
his traveling money ran low before
he could get all the way to his destination.
Since he enjoyed skiing, hiking
and fishing, and Colorado had all of
these amenities, he felt like it wasn’t
a bad rest stop. While “resting” in
Denver, Bill also found himself the
fortunate winner of the Lotto. Well,
the “marital Lotto” that is. He met his
future wife, Rosanna, and as they say,
the rest is history. Those who knew
Bill know Rosanna was the love of his
life. While remaining absolute individuals,
Bill and Rosanna complimented
and supported one another in every
way. They married in 1979 and in the
ensuing years they were seldom apart.
Hollywood could not have cast a more
perfect script than when “Bill met
Rosanna.”

52 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

Bill’s many interests led him to
finding new occupations in Colorado.
He published several magazines and a
variety of books. He bought and sold
vintage slot machines and restored
them for use in collectors’ homes. He
and his able crew of carvers produced
“slot statues” in the shape/form of a
full-size man. These statues held a
working slot machine as part of the
body form.

In addition to rifles and slot
machines, Bill had a growing collection
of nickelodeons, pianos, and
orchestrions. There came a point,
however, when, in order to grow his
burgeoning vintage slot machine
business, he and Rosanna found it
necessary to sell the piano collection.
Their Seeburg G was the prize of the
collection. Once sold, Bill thought he
would never see the machine again. In
this way, Bill and Rosanna found out
that collecting can sometimes be a
hellish pursuit, but a little of the sting
of having to sell his Seeburg G was
taken out of this transaction when the
machine was purchased by premier
restorer and collector Art Reblitz. It
always makes a collector happy to see
a cherished piece go to the right home.
Later in life, as fate would have it, while
trading one thing for another, Bill was
able to acquire another Seeburg G. His
new Seeburg was a top-notch machine
that he bought from an original owner
through a broker. Of the five pianos
in Bill’s collection this one was his
favorite.

In the late 1970s Bill began enjoying
trips to a large event in England, the
Great Dorset Steam Fair, founded in
1969. There, Bill met a 100-key Mortier
dance organ. It was 17-feet-6-inches
tall and needed a bit of open space to
perform. In 1981, while Rosanna and
Bill were attending this event together,
Bill told Rosanna he would like to own
an organ just like that Mortier. They
both knew it wouldn’t happen overnight
as they were still in the process
of growing their slot machine and
publishing businesses. As previously
mentioned, collectors always face a
choice, sometimes painful, especially
for passionate lovers of mechanical
music: do you make a living, or do you
collect yourselves into oblivion?

In 1996, Bill and Rosanna moved to
the hills of South Dakota where Bill
designed a log home, drawing from
his past experience in the multiple
trades and skills he had acquired since
living, surviving and thriving with his
beloved grandparents. He still had
the dream of owning a Mortier and
he was no spring chicken, but that
made no impact on his decisions.
He contracted with a young man
named Mark Hartman to build Bill
and Rosanna’s dream log home, one
that would also become home to their
expanding collection of European
dance organs, fairground organs, cafe
organs and orchestrions. A 90-footby-
40-foot building was constructed
with an inside ceiling height of 18
feet. It was just tall enough to fit the
Mortier dance organ with the facade
fully assembled. Bill and Rosanna
then went on a serious search to find
a Mortier. Bill, ever the overachiever,
found two and bought both of them.
To own even one of these physically
massive and musically monumental
machines would have been more than
enough for almost anyone, but as
many of the collectors in our society
know, that isn’t how collecting works.

For those of you who knew Bill, or
have enjoyed the Harris hospitality, as
well as their stunning collection, the
idea that this is the end of an era will
likely come to mind.

As Rosanna put it, “Bill was a writer,
a publisher, a salesman, a carpenter,

Rosanna and Bill Harris riding the Parker Carousel in Abilene, KS, in 2013.

a railroad man, a talker (oh yeah), a
font of knowledge and information,
restorer, collector and a seeker. He
was always interested in learning
more.”

Bill Harris passed away while
Rosanna played his favorite organs,
talking to him and recounting the
adventures they enjoyed acquiring
each of their treasures. He passed on
while listening to this music and we
assume, he now has a Mortier cranked
up playing his own particular favorites
while enjoying some beer and brats.
He’s probably wishing he had a bit
more time with his Rose.

Rest in peace you hard-headed
Norwegian.

Thank you to Rosanna Harris for
allowing me to crib from her formal
memorial, and as we both know, there
are so many more tales to tell. Perhaps
one day we will get the chance to do so.

Bill joined MBSI in 1968 when
Harvey Roehl was president of the
society so that he could attend the
convention in Binghamton, NY, that
year. Just as I was completing this
article, I heard from Rosanna who
assured us that, just as Bill would
have wanted it, she will continue to
invite interested people to see, hear
and appreciate the collection she
and Bill acquired. In fact, she said, if
one of the instruments still on their
want list comes on the market, she’ll
most likely acquire it and add to their
collection!

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 53

In Memoriam In Memoriam
Emery Prior — 1936-2021

By Carl and Joyce Mueller

It is with deep sadness that I
announce the passing of my friend
Emery “Driz” Prior on Apr. 9, 2021, at
home surrounded by his family. Emery
was born in Chagrin Falls, OH, in 1936
and spent his entire life in Northeast
Ohio. As a longtime member of MBSI
and the Automatic Musical Instrument
Collectors’ Association (AMICA),
Emery was an avid collector and
supporter of mechanical music,
amassing a sizable and unique collection
of outstanding pieces over the
years. He chaired various MBSI events
in Ohio and was in charge of the MBSI
Museum Committee Ohio Operation
in Northeast Ohio. He was a recipient
of numerous awards for his support
and dedication to many cultural and
civic organizations, including MBSI.

Emery spoke on numerous occasions
to these organizations about
mechanical music. He especially
enjoyed talking to school children
about mechanical music. He would
say he felt it was important to engage
young people in this hobby. His

friends from around the world. They
enjoyed leisurely days of swimming,
boating, and fishing.

One of our fondest memories was
at a picnic hosted by Emery and Tara
for some of his collector friends. This
turned into a hilarious event. After
lunch, he fired up his 1920 La France
Fire Truck, with everyone piled on the
running boards and back perch. Emery
then proceeded to drive us all through

collection was always open for fundraisers,
historical societies, and other
cultural groups. He traveled far and
wide, both here and in Europe, attending
numerous music conventions and
touring various musical collections
and events.

Emery was also an antique car
enthusiast, owning many rare and
unique examples of gas, electric
and steam automobiles. We traveled
together many miles attending car
shows and participated in numerous
car tours (runs) across the country.
One highlight was the Fall antique car
meet in Hershey, PA.

I also treasure our weekly lunch get
togethers that usually lasted well into
the afternoon.

Emery spent most of his working
career in the die cast industry. He
began as a salesman and ended up as
the owner of a company.

A highlight Emery often shared
about his family was a months-long
vacation on their Georgian Bay island
called “Ishpiming,” meaning “Heaven”
in the native Ojibway language, where
he reconnected with family and

In order for anything

A Lasting Legacy

once alive to have
meaning, its effect
must remain alive in
eternity in some way

– Ernest Becker, Philosopher
The Musical Box Society International
Throughout its history, MBSI has fostered an interest in and preservation of is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
automatic musical instruments. Your gift to the Endowment Fund will All donations to the Endowment
support programs that will help future generations appreciate these Fund are tax deductible.
achievements of man’s creative genius. Visit www.mbsi.org to learn more. A gift of any size is welcome.

54 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

his hometown with sirens blaring
and riders screaming and laughing.
I am certain the townspeople who
observed this event thought that there
had been a breech in security from a
local senior citizen facility.

Later in life Emery spent many
pleasant hours researching the Prior
ancestry and genealogy. The Prior

family was among some of the earliest
settlers in Northeast Ohio, arriving in
about 1800 from New England.

Emery was truly an exceptional
American and special friend, never
complaining, always happy and positive.
He is survived by wife Tara, son
Chris (Wendi), daughter Ginny, and
grandchildren Cyrus and Dean.

Condolences

MBSI would like to offer
sincere condolences to the family
of Eugene “Gene” Saboda and his
wife, Maureen, as they mourn his
passing.

Advertise in The Mart

Have some spare parts or extra rolls taking up the space
where you should be installing your next acquisition?
Ready to trade up, but need to sell one of your current
pieces first? Get the word out to other collectors by
advertising in The Mart, an effective advertising tool at an
inexpensive price.

Go online to place your advertisement at www.mbsi.org,
fill out the form in the Mart section, or contact Russell
Kasselman at (253) 228-1634 to get started. You may also
email advertisements to editor@mbsi.org

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 55

Writer’s guidelines for Mechanical Music

The MBSI Publications Committee
wants to maintain and improve the
quality of its magazines. The following
guidelines are designed to help you in
preparing your articles for publication.

Title

Please include words that allow
your article to be categorized and
filed in an index of articles. You may
include a subtitle which may further
clarify the title.

Outline

Please organize your article in a
chronological, logical format. Avoid
lengthy paragraphs and sentences.

Punctuation

In most instances, quotation marks
are typed after periods and commas.
“This example has the proper format.”

Be consistent with capitalization,
numerals, names, etc. The Associated
Press Stylebook is used as a
basic reference tool for questions of
consistency. Decimal points should
be preceded by a 0 if they are only
fractional. Example: 0.25 is correct.
The editor and members of the Publications
Committee will proof read
articles for accuracy and consistency.

Footnotes and Bibliography

Provide footnotes and a bibliography
where appropriate. Provide
reference websites and a list of further
reading suggestions if available. When
quoting materials, note the numeric
footnote in the text.

Photographs

Provide digital photos whenever
possible. Try to eliminate background
clutter when taking pictures. Be sure
there is enough light or a good flash.
Take care to avoid the flash reflection
on the instruments. Shut off the date
and time recorder on your camera.
Set the camera to take photos with
the highest resolution possible. Send
in the high-resolution photos. Do not
reduce the size for the purposes of
email, instead send several emails
with a few photos in each email.

Printed photos are acceptable but not
recommended.

If photos correspond to the text to
illustrate a procedure or particular
piece of a music box, please note this
in the photograph’s file name. For
example, if you refer to Figure 1 in the
text please title the photo Figure1.jpg
to ensure the correct image appears in
the correct position on the page. If you
are not able to alter the photograph’s
title, please provide captions for
photos that clearly identify them and
where they should be positioned in
the article if that is important to the
presentation of the material.

Article Text

If possible, please submit the article
in either Microsoft Word format as a
.doc attachment or include it as text
in an email. As a last resort, a typed
document can be accepted via mail.
Do not type in all caps.

Review Process

All articles are reviewed by the
editor and the Publications Committee
chair and can be referred to one
or more members of the Publications
Committee or a recognized expert to
be checked for technical and historical
accuracy. Even though the article
is assumed to be the author’s opinion,
and thoughtful opinions are encouraged
to stimulate discussion and more
research, the author may be asked to
substantiate his/her statements.

If describing the restoration of
an antique instrument and using
materials not originally used in the
manufacture of that instrument, the
author should explain why he/she
chose to use alternative materials.

No article should be written in such
a way that it can be construed as
commercial advertising for one’s own
products, goods, or services or those
of any other individual or company.

The panel may make suggestions
which will be noted and the article
returned to the author for his/her
response. This is standard procedure
for any technical and professional
publication. The goal of the review

process is to help make every article
as good as it can possibly be and to
contain as few errors as possible. In
no manner should this process be
construed as censorship. The author
will receive a proof of the typeset and
formatted article. It should be read
carefully. After the second proof, no
changes can be made. It is understood
that the author can withdraw the
article at any time prior to publication.

Mechanical Music is published six
times per year. Materials intended
for publication should be submitted
approximately 60 days prior to the
publication date for any issue. For
example, materials to be published in
the March/April issue of Mechanical
Music (March 1 delivery date) should
be submitted on or about January 1.

The article publishing schedule is
dependent on the review process and
other obligations that are time sensitive.
Although every effort is made to
publish articles within a few months
of submission, the date of publication
is dependent on the number of articles
in process, their length, and the review
process. The editor will make every
effort to keep the author informed
about the probable publication date.
Authors may contact the editor at any
time for an update.

Thank you for your contribution(s)
to Mechanical Music. Your efforts
are of great value to this generation
and future generations of mechanical
music enthusiasts.

Send articles to:

MBSI Editor

130 Coral Court

Pismo Beach, CA 93449

Email: editor@mbsi.org

Phone: (253) 228-1634

Copy this page and keep it handy,
then look at your collection. There
certainly must be a musical piece that
you found after either searching for
it for many years or through unusual
circumstances. It could be a subject
for our popular, “The Hunt” series.
We look forward to receiving many
stories in the coming months.

56 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

(802) 728-9694 (802) 728-9694
Music Box Company, Inc.

We restore Swiss cylinder and disc music boxes.

• Cylinders are repinned if necessary and all worn
parts are rebuilt to original specifications or better.
• Combs are repaired and tuned. Nickel plated parts
are replated as needed.
Trust your prized music box to the finest quality
restoration available. We have been accused of over
restoring! Better over than under I say!

We will pick up your music box anywhere east of the
Mississippi River, and transport it to our shop in
Randolph, Vermont, where it will be stored in a
climate-controlled area until it’s finished and returned.

We have a complete machine shop where we build Porter
Music Boxes, more than 3,000 so far. We are unique in
the industry in that we are capable of manufacturing any
part needed to restore any music box.

See our website, www.PorterMusicBox.com, to read
letters of recommendation and browse a selection of the
finest disc boxes currently being manufactured anywhere
in the world. We have twin disc models, single disc
models with 121/4” or15 1/ “ discs, and table models with
beautiful cabinets created for us in Italy. Also we can

occasions.

P.O Box 424
Randolph, VT 05060

support.

Call (802) 728-9694 or
email maryP@portermusicbox.com

The Organette Book
ISBN 978-0-9557869-5-2
colour throughout;Additional Illustrations of Models; Additions to Lists of The Organette Book
ISBN 978-0-9557869-5-2
colour throughout;Additional Illustrations of Models; Additions to Lists of
The Musical Box Society of Great Britain announces the publication of two new books
Published in September 2018

100pp Hard Back ISO A4 format [8.27” × 11.70”; Profusely illustrated in

Supplement to

colour throughout with Additional Illustrations of Models, 89 Additional Lid
The Disc Musical Box Pictures Additions to Lists of Models, Patents, Tune Lists & Serial Numbers;
Combined Index of Images in the original book and its Supplement.

Compiled and Edited by
Kevin McElhone

Originally published in 2012 and still available The Disc Musical Box

ISBN 978-0-9557869-6-9

is a compendium of information about Disc Musical Boxes, their Makers and
their Music; profusely illustrated in colour throughout with Illustrations of
each Disk Musical Box Model, and with Catalogue Scans, Lists of Models,
Patents & Tune Lists.

Supplement to

Compiled and Edited by
Kevin McElhone

100pp Hard Back ISO A4 format [8.27” × 11.70”; Profusely illustrated in

Patents, Tune Lists & Tuning Scales; A New Section on Trade Cards;
Combined Index of Images in the original book and its Supplement.

The Organette Book is a compendium of information about Organettes,
their Makers and their Music. Originally published in 2000 but now out of
print although second-hand copies are occasionally available in online
auctions.

************************************************************************************************************************
For all MBSGB Publications, please refer to the Musical Box Society of Great Britain website for further details including latest
availability, discounted prices and information on how to order. -www.mbsgb.org.uk

58 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

Ben’s Player Piano Service
Repair and restoration of air powered mechanical music
devices of all description.
Player pianos
Reproduing pianos
Dance organs
Fairground organs
Nickelodeon pianos
Original historically
Correct techniques
And materials used
Throughout in the
Rebuilding process.
Benjamin R Gottfried
464 Dugan Road, Richfield Springs NY 13439
Bensplayerservice.com 315-858-2164
WWW.REEDERPIANOS.COM • 517-886-9447
Specializing in the Restora on and Retail of Fine Pianos
Available Reproducing Pianos:
Chickering •Marshall & Wendall •George Steck
Mason & Hamlin •Knabe •Aeolian
»QRS & AMPICO MUSIC ROLLS«
“Where Fine Pianos
Are Reborn”
Fine Art & Antique Consignments
The highest level of customer service plus private,
professional and confidential transactions.
120 Court Street, Geneseo, NY 14454 cottoneauctions.com
Call / Text: 256-702-7453
Email: four.four_time@yahoo.com
Purchasing single pieces or entire collections.
“I am still
delighted with
the machines
I bought from
you. Your prices
were fair, everything
was just as you
described it.”
– Joe… Baraboo, WI, April 2020
Browse our selection of music boxes,
music box disc, phonographs, cylinder
records and more on: 4-4time.com
4-4time.com
Ben’s Player Piano Service
Repair and restoration of air powered mechanical music
devices of all description.
Player pianos
Reproduing pianos
Dance organs
Fairground organs
Nickelodeon pianos
Original historically
Correct techniques
And materials used
Throughout in the
Rebuilding process.
Benjamin R Gottfried
464 Dugan Road, Richfield Springs NY 13439
Bensplayerservice.com 315-858-2164
WWW.REEDERPIANOS.COM • 517-886-9447
Specializing in the Restora on and Retail of Fine Pianos
Available Reproducing Pianos:
Chickering •Marshall & Wendall •George Steck
Mason & Hamlin •Knabe •Aeolian
»QRS & AMPICO MUSIC ROLLS«
“Where Fine Pianos
Are Reborn”
Fine Art & Antique Consignments
The highest level of customer service plus private,
professional and confidential transactions.
120 Court Street, Geneseo, NY 14454 cottoneauctions.com
Call / Text: 256-702-7453
Email: four.four_time@yahoo.com
Purchasing single pieces or entire collections.
“I am still
delighted with
the machines
I bought from
you. Your prices
were fair, everything
was just as you
described it.”
– Joe… Baraboo, WI, April 2020
Browse our selection of music boxes,
music box disc, phonographs, cylinder
records and more on: 4-4time.com
4-4time.com
July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 59

A FANTASTIC AUCTION
Antique Music Boxes, Phonographs & Related ItemsAndrew & Harriet Ellis Collection
A FANTASTIC AUCTION
Antique Music Boxes, Phonographs & Related ItemsAndrew & Harriet Ellis Collection
To be held in the Barry Expo Center, on the Barry County Fairgrounds at 1350 N. M-37 Highway,
Hastings, Michigan – 4-1/2 miles northwest of Hastings on M-37 or approx. 20 miles southeast of

Grand Rapids on Beltline/M-37 to the auction location on:

Thursday, Friday & Saturday, September 2, 3 & 4, 2021Thursday starts at 1:00 P.M. following the luncheonFriday and Saturday begin at 9:00 A.M. each dayThis collection is phenomenal and the content is
staggering. Hundreds of machines, rarity afterrarity, and multiples of desirable and sought after
examples about. As found examples acquired and
accumulated by Mr. and Mrs. Ellis over the course

of five decades, makes this an offering that any

collector, museum and investor will not want to
miss.

Regretfully, Mr. Ellis passed away on February 27at the age of 87. This collection is a tribute to his
efforts to acquire and accumulate wonderful and

desirable machines in this field, along with his wife

Harriet during their 68 year marriage.

Plan on attending this terrific event. Call for your

copy of a complete catalog with over 1,000 pictures.

Rare Edison
Class M with
5” mandrel

Rare Multiphone Banjo Model
coin operated 24 cylinder
phonograph

Symphonion Eroica triple disc music
box in the Haydn Model, an extremely

hard to find example.

Steven E. Stanton

144 South Main St., P.O. Box 146 • Vermontville, MI 49096

(517) 331-8150

Phone 517-726-0181 • Fax 517-726-0060
e-mail: stantonsauctions@sbcglobal.net Michael C. Bleisch
website: www.stantons-auctions.com (517) 231-0868

Stanton’s Auctioneers & Realtors conducting auctions throughout Michigan and across the United States since 1954.
Over 7500 sales conducted and 4,000 parcels of real estate sold at auction. Call us to discuss your sale with a firm has the
experience to properly handle the job right for you. Steven E. Stanton, (517) 331-8150, Email – stevenEstanton@gmail.com

Sing a Different Tune!

Expand your library of discs! With over 9,500 discs
in stock, I’m sure to have something for your machine!

Here’s a small sampling of sizes/brands on hand:

Ariston – organette – 13” Mira – 9”, 12”, 15”, 18”
Celesta – 15” Monopol – 13”
Criterion/Olympia – 15”, 20” Polyphon – 6”, 8”, 9”, 11”, 15”, 19”, 24”
Edelweiss – 8”,12” Regina – 11”, 12”, 15”, 20”, 27”
Gem Roller Organ – 6” Stella – 9”, 14”, 15”, 17”
Grand Roller Organ – 13” Symphonion – 8” through 20”
Harmonia – 9” Thorens – 4.5”, 11”

Imperial Symphonion – 10”, 13”,14”, 15”
Kalliope – 5”, 7”, 9”, 13”, 14”,17”

Email/call me with what you’re looking for. I can provide lists with

title/cond./price for most of what’s in stock!
While listening to ‘new’ music…sit back and read a new book!

Cylinder Music Box Repair – new from the AMBC, UK – very
limited edition, only 8 in stock – no more available. -$65 + pstg.

The Music Box Makers of Switzerland – from theAMBC, UK –
tracing the history of Swiss music box makers. -$65 + pstg.

The Disc Musical Box, by K. McElhone – a fabulous reference book
with background histories, comb tuning scales, list of makers &
models, $60 + pstg. Supplement to the book with even more info!
$30. Both: $80 + pstg.

Nancy Fratti Music Boxes 315-684-9977
PO Box 400 Canastota NY 13032 USA

musicbox@frontiernet.net

FOR SALE
REGINA 151/2 MUSIC BOX. Mechanism was

THE MART

professionally restored. Bought new combs
RESTORED MUSICAL BOXES Offering a from Porter and they have been tuned and

Display Advertising Dimensions and Costs
Dimensions 1 issue 3 issues* 6 issues*
Back Cover 8.75” x 11.25” $600 $540 $510
Inside Covers 8.75” x 11.25” $450 $405 $383
Full Page 7.25” x 9.75” $290 $261 $246
Half Page 7.25” x 4.5” $160 $144 $136
Quarter Page 3.5” x 4.5” $90 $81 $77
Eighth Page 3.5” x 2.125” $50 $45 $43
Add a 10% surcharge to the prices shown above if you are not a member of MBSI.
*Display Discounts shown above are calculated as follows:
3 consecutive ads 10% Discount
6 consecutive ads 15% Discount

ALL ADS MUST BE PREPAID

We accept VISA/MC and Paypal.

ADVERTISING DEADLINES:

The 1st day of each even month: Feb., Apr., Jun, Aug., Oct. and Dec.

Display ads may be submitted camera-ready, as PDF files, or with text and
instructions. File submission guidelines available on request.

Errors attributable to Mechanical Music, and of a significant nature, will be
corrected in the following issue without charge, upon notification.

CLASSIFIED ADS

• 47¢ per word
• ALL CAPS, italicized and bold
words: 60¢ each.
• Minimum Charge: $11 per ad.
• Limit: One ad in each category
• Format: See ads for style
• Restrictions: Ads are strictly
limited to mechanical musical
instruments and related items and
services
• MBSI member’s name must
appear in ad
• Non-members may advertise at the
rates listed plus a 10% surcharge
PLEASE NOTE:

The first two words (or more
at your choice) and the member’s
name will be printed in all caps/bold
and charged at 60¢ per word.

Mechanical Music

Mechanical Music is mailed to all
members at the beginning of every
odd month — January, March, May,
July, September and November.

MBSI Advertising Statement

It is to be hereby understood
that the placing of advertisements
by members of the Society in this
publication does not constitute nor
shall be deemed to constitute any
endorsement or approval of the business
practices of advertisers. The
Musical Box Society International
accepts no liability in connection
with any business dealings between
members and such advertisers.

It is to be further understood that
members are to rely on their own
investigation and opinion regarding
the reputation and integrity of
advertisers in conducting such business
dealings with said advertisers.

variety of antique musical boxes, discs,
orphan cylinders, reproducing piano rolls &
out of print books about mechanical music.
BILL WINEBURGH 973-927-0484 Web:
antiquemusicbox.us

THE GOLDEN AGE of AUTOMATIC MUSICAL
INSTRUMENTS By ART REBLITZ.
Award-winning classic that brings historical,
musical, and technical information to life
with hundreds of large, vivid color photos.
We guarantee you’ll find it to be one of the
most interesting, inspiring, informative books
you have in your library–or your money back.
Everyone has been delighted, and some
readers have ordered several copies. Get
your copy today for $99 plus S/H. MECHANICAL
MUSIC PRESS-M, 70 Wild Ammonoosuc
Rd., Woodsville, NH 03785. (603) 747-2636.

http://www.mechanicalmusicpress.com

Each One
Reach One
New Member
installed. Plays as it should. New top reproduced.
Have receipts for work and parts.
$2,100.00. Call JON GULBRANDSON, at
(763) 923 5748

MARVELS OF MECHANICAL MUSIC -MBSI
Video. Fascinating and beautifully-made
film which explains the origins of automatic
musical instruments, how they are collected
and preserved today, and their historic
importance, MBSI members and collections
are featured. $20 USD. Free shipping in the
continental U.S. Additional postage charges
apply for other locations. Purchase now at
www.mbsi.org

SUBMIT ADS TO:

MBSI Ads
130 Coral Court
Pismo Beach, CA 93449
(253) 228-1634
Email: editor@mbsi.org

62 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

WANTED SERVICES WANTED SERVICES
Display Advertisers

LOWREY OR HAMMOND ORGAN that plays
piano rolls or the player part, working or not.
These were made in the early 1980s. Contact
LES BEEBE, at (609) 654-2789.

SEEKING PLANS or measurement for a
Polyphon lower cabinet for 19.5 size disc.
Contact ROD MOORE, rodcrna4u@gmail.
com or (336) 337-1165 North Carolina

BOOK OR ROLL ORGAN in working condition.
Contact DAN ALBRECHT at danalbreht@
frontiernet.net or (763) 972-6202

SERVICES
REPRODUCTION POLYPHON discs; Catalogs
available for 19 5/8”, 22 1/8”, and 24
1/2”. DAVID CORKRUM 5826 Roberts Ave,
Oakland, CA 94605-1156, 510-569-3110,
www.polyphonmusic.com

Add a photo to your ad!
You know the old saying, “A photo
is worth 1,000 words!” For $30 you
can add a photo to your ad in the
Mart.
A photo makes your ad stand out
on the page and quickly draws a
reader’s interest in the item.
Email your advertisement with
photo to editor@mbsi.org or call
(253) 228-1634 for more details.
SAVE $’s on REUGE & THORENS MUSIC
BOX REPAIR & RESTORATION – MBSI
MEMBERS RECEIVE WHOLESALE PRICING.

40 + Years experience servicing all makes
& models of cylinder and disc music boxes,
bird boxes, bird cages, musical watches, Anri
musical figurines, et al. All work guaranteed.
We’re the only REUGE FACTORY AUTHORIZED
Parts & Repair Service Center for all of North
America. Contact: DON CAINE -The Music
Box Repair Center Unlimited, 24703 Pennsylvania
Ave., Lomita, CA 90717-1516. Phone:

(310) 534-1557 Email: MBRCU@AOL.COM.
On the Web: www.musicboxrepaircenter.com
Advertise in The Mart

Have some spare parts or extra
rolls taking up the space where
you should be installing your next
acquisition? Ready to trade up,
but need to sell one of your current
pieces first? Get the word out to
other collectors by advertising in
The Mart, an effective advertising
tool at an inexpensive price.

Fill out the form below and mail to
MBSI at 130 Coral Court, Pismo
Beach, CA 93449. Call (253) 2281634
with questions.

3………. Renaissance Antiques
55…….. Music Box Restorations
55…….. Miller Organ Clock
57…….. Porter Music Box Company
58…….. MBSGB
58…….. American Treasure Tour
59…….. Reeder Pianos
59…….. Cottone Auctions
59…….. Ben’s Player Piano Service
59…….. 4-4Time.com
60…….. Stanton Auctions
61…….. Nancy Fratti Music Boxes
67…….. Southeast Chapter
68…….. Marty Persky Music Boxes

Name
Phone
Email
Text of ad

Mechanical
Music
Directory
MeMbers,
MuseuMs,
& Dealers
2020 2021
ORDER EXTRA COPIES

The 2020-2021 Directory of Members,
Museums and Dealers is only $10 for
members. (International shipping is extra)

Call MBSI Administrator Jacque Beeman at

(417) 886-8839 or send a check to:
Musical Box Society International
P.O. Box 10196
Springfield, MO 65808-0196
July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 63

OFFICERS, TRUSTEES & COMMITTEES of the
MUSICAL BOX SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL®

OFFICERS
President

Tom Kuehn
4 Williams Woods
Mahtomedi, MN 55115
kuehn001@umn.edu

Vice President

David Corkrum
5826 Roberts Avenue
Oakland, CA 94605
musikwerke@att.net

Recording Secretary

Linda Birkitt
PO Box 541
San Juan Capistrano, CA 92693
scarletpimpernel28@yahoo.com

Treasurer

Edward Kozak
3615 North Campbell Avenue
Chicago, IL 60618
ekozak1970@gmail.com

TRUSTEES

Dave Calendine
Bob Caletti
Ed Cooley
Dave Corkrum

G.Wayne Finger
Matt Jaro
Tom Kuehn
Mary Ellen Myers
MBSI FUNDS

COMMITTEES
Audit

Edward Cooley, Chair, Trustee
Dave Calendine, Trustee
Matt Jaro, Trustee

Endowment Committee

Edward Kozak, Treasurer, Chair
Edward Cooley, Trustee
Dave Calendine, Trustee
B Bronson
Wayne Wolf

Executive Committee

Tom Kuehn, Chair, President
David Corkrum, Vice President
Clay Witt, Immediate Past Pres.

G.Wayne Finger, Trustee
Mary Ellen Myers, Trustee
Finance Committee

Edward Kozak, Chair, Treasurer
Wayne Wolf, Vice Chair
David Corkrum, Vice President
Edward Cooley, Trustee
Peter Both

Marketing Committee

Bob Smith, Chair
Dave Calendine, Trustee

G.Wayne Finger, Trustee
Judy Caletti
Meetings Committee

Matt Jaro, Chair, Trustee
Judy Caletti
Tom Chase
Cotton Morlock
Rich Poppe

Membership Committee

Chair, TBD
Mary Ellen Myers, Trustee,

Southeast
Linda Birkitt, Southern California
Gary Goldsmith, Snowbelt
Christine Hopwood, Golden Gate
Julie Morlock, Southeast
Rob Pollock, Mid-America
Dan Wilson, Piedmont
Gerald Yorioka, Northwest Int’l
TBD, East Coast
TBD, Great Lakes
TBD, National Capital
TBD, Sunbelt

Museum Committee

Sally Craig, Chair
Clay Witt, Immediate Past Pres.
Glenn Crater, National Capital
Ken Envall, Southern California
Julian Grace, Sunbelt
Matt Jaro, National Capital
Rob Pollock, Mid-America
Richard Simpson, East Coast

Museum Sub-Committees

Ohio Operations
Rob Pollock

SPECIAL ACTIVITIES
Publications Back Issues:

Jacque Beeman

Regina Certificates:

B Bronson

MBSI Pins and Seals:

Jacque Beeman

Librarian:

Jerry Maler

Historian:

Bob Yates

Nominating Committee

Dan Wilson, Chair
Clay Witt, Immediate Past Pres.
Bob Caletti, Golden Gate, Trustee
Mary Ellen Myers, Trustee,

Southeast
Jonathan Hoyt, Golden Gate
Robin Biggins, Southern California
Aaron Muller, Lake Michigan

Publications Committee

Bob Caletti, Chair, Trustee
Steve Boehck
Dave Corkrum, Vice President
Christian Eric
Kathleen Eric
Terry Smythe

Publications
Sub-Committee

Website Committee
Rick Swaney, Chair
B Bronson
Don Henry
Knowles Little, Web Secretary

Special Exhibits Committee

Chair Mary Ellen Myers, Trustee,
Southeast
David Corkrum, Vice President,

Golden Gate
Donald Caine, Southern California
Jack Hostetler, Southeast
Knowles Little, National Capital
Judy Miller, Piedmont
Aaron Muller, Lake Michigan
Wayne Myers, Southeast
Rick Swaney, Northwest Int’l

MBSI Editorial Office:

Iron Dog Media
130 Coral Court
Pismo Beach, CA 93449
editor@mbsi.org

Members can donate to these funds at any time.
Send donations to: General Fund (unrestricted)
MBSI Administrator, Endowment Fund (promotes the purposes of MBSI, restricted)
PO Box 10196, Ralph Heintz Publications Fund (special literary projects)
Springfield, MO 65808-0196. Museum Fund (supports museum operations)

All manuscripts will be subject to editorial review. Committee and the Editorial Staff. are considered to be the author’s personal opinion.
Articles submitted for publication may be edited The article will not be published with significant The author may be asked to substantiate his/her
or rejected at the discretion of the Publications changes without the author’s approval. All articles statements.

64 MECHANICAL MUSIC July/August 2021

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

Date Event Location Sponsor
Aug. 30-Sept. 4, 2021 MBSI Annual Meeting Ft. Myers, FL Southeast Chapter

When will your chapter meet next? Holding a “virtual meeting?” Let us know!
Send in your information by Aug. 1, 2021, for the September/October issue.
Don’t hold your questions until the next chapter meeting. Ask them today on our Facebook discussion group

-the Music Box Society Forum.
Please send dates for the Calendar of Events to Russell Kasselman (editor@mbsi.org)

CONTACTS

Administrator Jacque Beeman handles back issues (if available) $6;
damaged or issues not received, address changes, MBSI Directory
listing changes, credit card charge questions, book orders, status of your
membership, membership renewal, membership application, and MBSI
Membership Brochures.
P.O. Box 10196
Springfield, MO 65808-0196
Phone/Fax (417) 886-8839
jbeeman.mbsi@att.net

Traveling MBSI Display
Bill Endlein
21547 NW 154th Pl.
High Springs, FL 32643-4519
Phone (386) 454-8359
sembsi@yahoo.com

Regina Certificates: Cost $5.
B Bronson
Box 154
Dundee, MI 48131
Phone (734) 529-2087
art@d-pcomm.net

Advertising for Mechanical Music
Russell Kasselman
Iron Dog Media
130 Coral Court
Pismo Beach, CA 93449
Phone (253) 228-1634
editor@mbsi.org

CHAPTERS

Snowbelt

Chair: Tracy Tolzmann
(651) 674-5149
Dues $10 to Gary Goldsmith
17160 – 245th Avenue
Big Lake, MN 55309

Southeast

Chair: Jack Hostetler
(352) 633-1942
Dues $5 to Clay Witt
820 Del Rio Way Unit 203
Merritt Island, FL 32953

Museum Donations
Sally Craig,
2720 Old Orchard Road
Lancaster, PA 17601
Phone (717) 295-9188
rosebud441@juno.com

MBSI website
Rick Swaney,
4302 209th Avenue NE
Sammamish, WA 98074
Phone (425) 836-3586
r_swaney@msn.com

Web Secretary
Knowles Little
9109 Scott Dr.
Rockville, MD 20850
Phone (301) 762-6253
kglittle@verizon.net

CHAPTERS

East Coast

Chair: Elise Low
(203) 457-9888
Dues $5 to Roger Wiegand
281 Concord Road
Wayland, MA 01778
or pay via PayPal, send to
treasurereccmbsi@gmail.com

Golden Gate

Chair: Jonathan Hoyt
jenjenhoyt@yahoo.com
Dues $5 to Dave Corkrum
5826 Roberts Ave.
Oakland, CA 94605

Japan

Chair: Naoki Shibata
81-72986-1169
naotabibito396amb@salsa.ocn.ne.jp
Treasurer: Makiko Watanabe
makikomakiko62@yahoo.co.jp

Lake Michigan

Chair: Aaron Muller
(847) 962-2330
Dues $5 to James Huffer
7930 N. Kildare
Skokie, Illinois 60076

Mid-America

Chair: Rob Pollock
(937) 508-4984
Dues $10 to Harold Wade
4616 Boneta Road
Medina, OH 44256

National Capital

Chair: Matthew Jaro
(301) 482-2008
Dues $5 to Florie Hirsch
8917 Wooden Bridge Road
Potomac, MD 20854

Northwest International

Chair: Rick Swaney
(425) 836-3586
Dues $7.50/person to Kathy Baer
8210 Comox Road
Blaine, WA 98230

Piedmont

Temp Chair: Dan Wilson
(919) 740-6579
musicboxmac@mac.com
Dues $10 to Dan Wilson
4804 Latimer Road
Raleigh, NC. 276099

Southern California

Chair: Robin Biggins
(310) 377-1472
Dues $10 to Diane Lloyd
1201 Edgeview Drive
Cowan Hgts, CA 92705

Sunbelt

Chair: Ray Dickey
(713) 467-0349
Dues $10 to Diane Caudill
4585 Felder Road
Washington, TX 77880

Copyright 2021 the Musical Box Society International, all rights reserved. Permission to reproduce by any means, in whole or in part, must be obtained in writing
from the MBSI Executive Committee and the Editor. Mechanical Music is published in the even months. ISSN 1045-795X

July/August 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 65

HALF PAGE
HORIZONTAL
7.25” x 4.5”
QUARTER
PAGE
3.5” x 4.5”
EIGHTH
PAGE
3.5” x 2.125”
Mechanical Music
Devoted to All Automatic Musical Instruments
Journal of the Musical Box Society International
Mechanical Music
Journal of the Musical Box Society International
Devoted to All Automatic Musical Instruments
Volume 63, No. 3 May/June 2017
Mechanical Music
Journal of the Musical Box Society International
Devoted to All Automatic Musical Instruments
Volume 63, No. 1 January/February 2017
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We’re getting our vaccine shots.
We’ve made our plans.
It’s time to make yours!
Fantastic
Collection
Tours
Don’t miss an opportunity to see the Southeast’s premier
collections of mechanical music. This is a once-in-a-lifetime
chance to see and hear these marvelous instruments, live and
in person. These are each “must see” collections.
Amazing instruments! Workshops! The Mart!
Entertainment! Ice Cream Social!
International experts! Local “open houses”
This is going to be a
GREAT convention!
Aug. 30 Sept.
4, 2021
pianos ever made), and the 1876 Dufner Barrel orchestrion with
nine barrels that is one of only three known Dufner instruments.
Also see and hear his replica Seeburg KT Special nickelodeon,
one of about 60 he manufactured in the 1980s! Tour his work-
shop and a display of mechanical music, automata and opera
Registration forms for this meeting will be
in the May/June issue of Mechanical Music.
Fort Myers, Florida
We’re getting our vaccine shots.
We’ve made our plans.
It’s time to make yours!
Fantastic
Collection
Tours
Don’t miss an opportunity to see the Southeast’s premier
collections of mechanical music. This is a once-in-a-lifetime
chance to see and hear these marvelous instruments, live and
in person. These are each “must see” collections.
Amazing instruments! Workshops! The Mart!
Entertainment! Ice Cream Social!
International experts! Local “open houses”
This is going to be a
GREAT convention!
Aug. 30 Sept.
4, 2021
pianos ever made), and the 1876 Dufner Barrel orchestrion with
nine barrels that is one of only three known Dufner instruments.
Also see and hear his replica Seeburg KT Special nickelodeon,
one of about 60 he manufactured in the 1980s! Tour his work-
shop and a display of mechanical music, automata and opera
Registration forms for this meeting will be
in the May/June issue of Mechanical Music.
Fort Myers, Florida
The JANCKO Collections

Joel and Pam Jancko’s “Backyard Museum” features a group
of buildings each with a magical display of Americana from
the Civil War through WWI. The Barn is where you will see
and hear a wide variety of automatic musical instruments,
including an Imhof & Mukle, Seeburg H, Wurlitzer CX, Double
Mills Violano, Cremona K, Weber Unica, Encore Banjo, Model
B Harp, Bruder band organ, Limonaire band organ, Bruder
monkey organ, American Photo Player and classic Mortier, as
well as a variety of cylinder and disc music boxes, organettes
and phonographs. Also walk through a service station, fire
station, bicycle shop, and cinema. In the Annex you will see
rare military artifacts (including a working Gatling gun) and
an authentic log cabin, general store, 1910 soda fountain,
game room and saloon. Outside, explore the fort. Listen to a
performance on the crown jewel of the collection – the OPUS
1616, a 3/23 Wurlitzer Theater Organ, installed in the newly
constructed dance hall.

The EDGERTON Collection

Bill Edgerton’s collection has it all -big and small. It includes
four fairground organs (Gavioli, Bruder, Limonaire and
Gasparini), a large Decap, an Ampico A piano with some
unusual music choices, several special cylinder and disc
boxes, barrel pianos and barrel organs, an Orpheus disc-playing
piano, a Piano Melodico (one of the most ornate 65-note

posters. You must see his framed artwork that smiles at you….
then it doesn’t!

The YAFFE Collection

Find a comfortable couch and enjoy Mark and Christel Ya§e’s
beautifully-appointed venue while listening to their large and
varied group of instruments, including the earliest known
Francois Nicole overture music box plus Falcone, Reymond
Nicole, F Nicole and Nicole grand format overture boxes.
Single overture boxes by Ducommon Girod, Mertert, and
Nicole and a Captains table interchangeable overture cylinder
box with 12 cylinders are on the menu. See rare and unique
automata – a drunk on the bench, a Cambodian dancer (one of
two known), a life size flute player, a Japanese mask seller and
an acrobat. Don’t forget the organs, an 84-key Mortier cafe,
112-key Mortier dance organ, 121-key DeCap dance organ plus
European orchestrions (Marenghi orchestrion, Welte style 3 in
custom case, Weber Otero, Weber violano, Weber Unika,
Popper Roland, Hupfeld universe with moving scene, Hupfeld
Helios 1/31, Phillips Paganini 3 Orchestrion), custom art case
pianos (Kanabe, Mason Hamlin and Chickering); the latest
known Hupfeld Phonolizt Violina; American nickelodeons
(Mills double violano in custom Gothic case, Encore original
(not repo) banjo, Wurlitzer, Violano, Seeburg J with bird pipes,
Nelson Wiggins 6x and 8x, Cremona J and G, Link with endless
roll). And much more!

7

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11’ tall
Welte 4 Concert Violina Orchestra Wurlitzer CX with Bells Welte Brisgovia C Luxus

Four Weber Orchestrions with Animated Scenes!

Unika Maesto Otero Grandezza

Jaeger Brommer
42’er Violinopan 20’er Automaton
Seeburg KT Special
Visit: Mechmusic.com Mills Bowfront Violano
Call Marty Persky at 847-675-6144 or Email: Marty@Mechmusic.com
for further information on these and other fine instruments.

Mechanical Music

Journal of the Musical Box Society International
Devoted to All Automatic Musical Instruments

Volume 67, No. 3 May/June 2021

PuRchAse • sAles • consignment

of Quality Cylinder & Disc Music Boxes, Musical Clocks & Automata

For over forty years we’ve placed fine antiques in collections around the world.
Our reputation has been built upon appreciative buyers and satisfied sellers.
Pictured are a few of the musical antiques in our current and recent inventories.

496 First Street, California 93463 • Ron & Julie Palladino
Open Seven Days a Week 10-6 • 805-452-5700
www.renantiques.com

Visit the charming Danish Village of Solvang, half an hour above Santa Barbara in the beautiful Central Coast Wine Country
RENAISSANCE ANTIQUE S

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Mechanical Music

Journal of the Musical Box Society International

Devoted to All Automatic Musical Instruments

Volume 67, No. 3 May/June 2021

Editor/Publisher

Russell Kasselman

(253) 228-1634

editor@mbsi.org

MBSI Editorial Office:

Iron Dog Media

130 Coral Court

Pismo Beach, CA 93449

editor@mbsi.org

Publications Chair

Bob Caletti

All manuscripts will be subject to editorial
review. Articles submitted for publication may
be edited or rejected at the discretion of the
Publications Committee and the Editorial
Staff. The article will not be published with
significant changes without the author’s
approval. All articles are considered to be the
author’s personal opinion. The author may be
asked to substantiate his/her statements.

Mechanical Music (ISSN 1045-795X) is published by
the Musical Box Society International, 130 Coral Court,
Pismo Beach, CA 93449 six times per year. A Directory
of Members, Museums and Dealers is published
biennially. Domestic subscription rate, $60. Periodicals
postage paid at San Luis Obispo, CA and additional
mailing offices.

Copyright 2021. The Musical Box Society International,
all rights reserved. Mechanical Music
cannot be copied, reproduced or transmitted in
whole or in part in any form whatsoever without
written consent of the Editor and the Executive
Committee.

MEMBERS: SEND ADDRESS CORRECTIONS TO:
MBSI, PO Box 10196,
Springfield, MO 65808-0196
Or, make corrections on the website at www.mbsi.org.

POSTMASTER: SEND ADDRESS CHANGES TO

MBSI, PO Box 10196,
Springfield, MO 65808-0196

MBSI NEWS
5 President’s Message
7 Editor’s Notes
8 Outreach Corner

11 Mid-Year Trustee
Meeting Minutes

14 Trustee Nominee Bio,
Richard Dutton

50 In Memoriam

Chapter Reports

51 Golden Gate

Features

16 Nickel Notes
by Matt Jaro

23 A changeable cylinder
box prototype

30 Plérodienique, a special
kind of music box

44 Organilleros, Mexico
City’s music makers

MBSI has replanted 139 trees so far as
part of the Print ReLeaf program.

On the Cover

A changeable cylinder prototype
of unknown maker is detailed
by Bill Wineburgh who recently
restored this instrument to pristine
condition. Page 23.

Plérodienique

Peter Both delves into the known
boxes of this type, providing details
on each one. Page 30.

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 3

MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION
M
M
echanical music is a fascinating hobby! It
appeals to the artist, historian, craftsman, and

musician all at the same time. Play an automatic

musical instrument in a room full of people and all else

will stop as the machine enraptures the audience with the

sparkling melodies of yesteryear!

Mechanical music instruments are any sort of auto

matically-played machine that produces melodic sound

including discs and cylinder music boxes that pluck a steel

comb; orchestrions and organs that engage many instru

ments at once using vacuum and air pressure; player and

reproducing pianos that use variable vacuum to strike piano

wires; phonographs; and self-playing stringed, wind, and

percussion instruments of any kind.

The Musical Box Society International, chartered by the

New York State Board of Regents, is a nonprofit society

dedicated to the enjoyment, study, and preservation of

automatic musical instruments. Founded in 1949, it now

has members around the world, and supports various

educational projects.

Regional chapters and an Annual Meeting held each year
in different cities within the United States enable members
to visit collections, exchange ideas, and attend educational
workshops. Members receive six issues of the journal,
Mechanical Music, which also contains advertising space
for members who wish to buy, sell, and restore mechanical
musical instruments and related items. Members also
receive the biennial MBSI Directory of Members, Museums,
and Dealers.

The only requirements for membership are an interest in
automatic music machines and the desire to share information
about them. And you’ll take pride in knowing you
are contributing to the preservation of these marvelous
examples of bygone craftsmanship.

More Information online at www.MBSI.org, or

Call: (417) 886-8839, or

Email: jbeeman.mbsi@att.net

Copy this page, and give it to a potential new member. Spread the word about MBSI.

Last name First Name Initial

Last Name First Name Initial

Address

City State / Zip Postal Code / Country

Phone Fax E-mail

Sponsor (optional)

Membership Dues

US members (per household)……………………………………….$60
Student Membership $20

(online journal access only)

Canada…………………………………………………………………………$70
Other International………………………………………………………$75

(Add $20 for International air mail.)

Join online: www.mbsi.org/join-mbsi

Check or Money Order Payable to: MBSI Treasurer (US Funds Only)
Mail to: New Member Registration – MBSI
PO Box 10196
Springfield, MO 65808-0196

Visa/MasterCard

Exp. Date CCV

Signature

4 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

By Tom Kuehn

MBSI President

Several items deserve attention as
we transition from spring into summer.
I will begin with some important
decisions made at the recent Trustees’
mid-year meeting held via Zoom on
March 20. See the minutes on pages
11–13.

The COVID pandemic continues
to shape many of our discussions.
The most important decision before
the board was whether to continue
planning for our annual meeting at
the end of the summer to be hosted by
the Southeast Chapter. I asked Matt
Jaro, chair of our Meetings Committee,
to conduct a brief survey of our
members who normally attend annual
meetings to determine if they would
attend an annual meeting this year if
it was conducted in a safe manner.
Results showed that approximately
2/3 would do so. There was sentiment
that not holding a meeting again
this year could lead to a decrease in
meeting attendance in the future.
Members of the Southeast Chapter
voted to continue the planning efforts
at their March 19th meeting. The next
day, the trustees voted unanimously
to continue preparations under the
assumption that the pandemic would
largely be over by the end of the
summer and additional safety precautions
would be implemented to protect
the attendees. Registration fees will be
fully refunded up to August 1st to help
alleviate members’ financial concerns.
So let’s remain optimistic that many of
us will be able to meet again at the end
of August and share a wonderful time
together.

The Trustees voted to grant $10,000
from the MBSI Endowment Fund
to the endowment fund that helps
support the Herschell Carrousel
Factory Museum for restoration and
maintenance of band organs and roll
perforating equipment. The initial
request had been made last year. The
trustees received additional clarifying

information concerning the museum’s
endowment fund that allowed the
request to be granted at this meeting.

Amendments to the society’s bylaws
and policy and procedures documents
were approved by the board. Some
changes were approved at the emergency
board meeting held last May
as a result of the cancellation of the
annual meeting last year. The substantive
changes this time completed the
changes in society operation that
would be needed should an annual
meeting be canceled or held without
a quorum. After the board approved
the changes, members of the Executive
Committee went through both
final documents very carefully before
giving their approval. Copies of both
revised documents can be found on
the “Members Only” section of our
website.

The bylaws and supplemental

material submitted by the new Japan
Chapter were approved by the board.
Naoki Shibata is the new Chapter
Chair. I sent Naoki my congratulations
for completing the last requirement
for the establishment of a new MBSI
chapter.

In other matters, the Executive
Committee agreed to a request by
our sister organization in France,
AAIMM, to reprint, in French, the
article “The Queen, the Sultan and
the Organ Clock” by Dr. Robert Penna
published in the September/October
2020 issue of Mechanical Music. The
article is scheduled to appear shortly
in the AAIMM publication, issue 118.
It is refreshing to know that our sister
organizations can collaborate in a
number of ways.

I wish all of you a safe and rewarding
summer and hope to see many of
you in Ft. Myers.

MBSI MEMBERSHIP DRIVE
EACH ONE/REACH ONE NEW MEMBER

MBSI is always interested in increasing its membership and is pleased to offer new members a $15
discount off their rst year’s membership. You are considered a new member if you have not been a
member in the past three years. This discount is also available on our website, www.mbsi.org.

Current MBSI members who sponsor a new member will receive a $5 discount off their next year’s
MBSI membership renewal for each sponsorship. Attach a copy of the discount voucher below to a
copy of the membership application form on Page 4 of this issue of Mechanical Music. Place your
name as “sponsor” on the application form.

Please make copies of these forms as needed and send the completed forms with checks to the MBSI
administrator at the address listed below.

★
★
★★
®
(INTERNATIONAL)
ORGANIZED IN 1949
DEVOTED TO ALL MECHANICAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
★
★
★★
®
(INTERNATIONAL)
ORGANIZED IN 1949
DEVOTED TO ALL MECHANICAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
Musical Box Society International
P.O. Box 10196
Springeld, MO 65808-0196
Phone/Fax: (417) 886-8839
Musical Box Society International
P.O. Box 10196
Springeld, MO 65808-0196
Phone/Fax: (417) 886-8839
Dues Voucher –$15
New U.S. members may join MBSI for one year at $45 (instead
of $60); Canadians $55 (instead of $70; and, other International
members at $60 (instead of $75). This certicate must accom-
pany payment and a copy of the completed membership
application from page 4 of this issue of Mechanical Music.
New Member Name(s):
Authorized by MBSI Administrator
NEW MEMBER
GIFT CERTIFICATE
New members are those who have never been members of MBSI
or those who have not been members for three years prior to
submission of this voucher.
New members are those who have never
been members of MBSI or those who have
not been members for three years prior to
submission of this certicate.

Gift Membership Name

Address, City, State, ZIP
Phone Email
Sponsor

SPECIAL OFFER: Purchase one or more rst-year MBSI gift
memberships at $45 each U.S., $55 Canadian, or $60 other International
and you will receive $5 off your next year’s MBSI membership
renewal for each “New Member” gift.

Please mail this form together with your check made payable to “MBSI” to the MBSI Administrator at the address listed
above. Memberships are $45 for U.S. residents, $55 for Canadian residents, and $60 for other International residents.

Editor’s Notes

We seem to be slowly but surely
advancing toward a time when we can
all look back at the global pandemic
restrictions on travel and public gatherings
and marvel at how we were able
to stay sane during this time. I can tell
people are itching to get out of their
homes and go anywhere, as evidenced
by the Golden Gate Chapter’s report
in this issue. Time to socialize was
mentioned in only one line of the
report, but it was clear by the pictures
showing happy faces sharing their
mechanical music and fellowship with
other enthusiasts, sometimes for the
first time in a year, that told me when
the green light is finally given, chapter
activities across the nation will ramp
up faster than we can blink.

It makes me excited to think that
this year’s annual meeting might be

MAILING ADDRESS

MBSI Editorial / Advertising
130 Coral Court
Pismo Beach, CA 93449

EMAIL ADDRESS

editor@mbsi.org

PHONE

(253) 228-1634

one of the best in some time, not for
the collections toured or presentations
given, but rather for the friendships
renewed and new connections being
formed between both long-time and
brand-new members.

I encourage everyone to stay safe
and healthy, which to me means
taking whatever time you need to
re-enter society on a level where you
feel comfortable. Once you reach that
point, however, I say get out there and
enjoy spending time with each other.
Share the music. Share the machines.
Invite new people over. Aaron Muller
has good thoughts on this in his
Outreach Corner column in this issue.
Be sure to give it a read.

Huge thanks go out to Linda Birkitt
for compiling the Mid-Year Trustee
Meeting Minutes, which is a monster

job each year. She has taken on the
task performed for so long by David
Corkrum and is really getting the hang
of it.

I can’t forget to thank our contributors
in this issue as well. Matt Jaro’s
Nickel Notes column is a roller-coaster
ride through the history of Welte-Mignon.
Bill Wineburgh details a curious
prototype changeable cylinder box
found in a storage locker. Peter Both
gives us the lowdown on the Plérodienique
style musical box and Robert
Penna introduces us to the Organilleros
of Mexico City. Enjoy!

Welcome new members!
Ellen Domeny & Brad GowinFebruary 2021
Greenbrae, CA
Elaine Pease Janey & Frank BrandonGlendale, GA Sulphur Springs, TXRandy Garner Michael Hammond
Albuquerque, NM San Francisco, CA
Sponsor: Don Caine
Greg Keefover March 2021
Centennial, CO
Philippe & Eve CrasseCarole Ann Brown
Toulouse, Haute Garonne, France Dallas, TX
Kevin & Maryann OswaldEric Johnson
Titusville, NJHenderson, NV
Rod & Linda Moore Sponsor: Don Caine
Greensboro, NC
Sponsor: Bob Caletti
William Kearns & Tom English
Tampa, FL
John Banta
Chester, PA
Ziwen Fan
Beijing, China

A Lasting Legacy

Throughout its history, MBSI has fostered an interest in and preservation of
automatic musical instruments. Your gift to the Endowment Fund will
support programs that will help future generations appreciate these
achievements of man’s creative genius. Visit www.mbsi.org to learn more.

In order for anything
once alive to have
meaning, its effect
must remain alive in
eternity in some way

– Ernest Becker, Philosopher
The Musical Box Society International
is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
All donations to the Endowment
Fund are tax deductible.
A gift of any size is welcome.

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 7

Outreach Corner Outreach Corner
By Aaron Muller

Special Exhibits Committee Member

Hello fellow members.

Many changes have come about in
the past 60 days since we published
part one of “Mixing Play with Work.”
Most significantly, vaccinations are
now being offered to help combat
COVID-19. This is great news! First and
foremost, the health benefits that all
of us will begin to enjoy will be significant.
Secondly, we may have begun
to turn the corner on a pandemic that
shook the world. For many the healing
process has just begun and for others
the sense of loss may never subside.
Let us pray for loved ones lost and
give thanks to those who sacrificed so
much in the fight against this devastating
virus. MBSI may not be the most
well-known group out there, but we
can do our part. After all, how many
organizations can lay claim to playing
the “Happiest Music on Earth”?

Undoubtedly, happiness is what
most of us are after anyway and MBSI
is perfectly positioned to provide
exactly that to a public soon to be in
search of in-person entertainment
outside their own homes. If you don’t
already have a special exhibit in mind
for the day when we are all free to
gather again in groups, now might
be the most ideal time to put one
together. It won’t take much, just pick
out your favorite machine or two and
find a way to spread the joy.

In this, the second half of my
Outreach Corner article, we will look
at exactly how to do that. The possibilities
are endless, but for now I will
share with you a few of the different
ways the Lake Michigan Chapter has
tried to make the world a happier
place. Each event we host is given the
consideration of inviting the press or
media. In the March/April 2021 issue
of Mechanical Music you saw pictures
of a newspaper article telling the story
of the “Magic of Music.” That particular
day, like many others, we made the

We saw our Special Exhibit in the Barrington Resale Mini Museum grow by a number
of instruments. Special thanks must go out to an anonymous family whose incredible
generosity made it possible for us to purchase nine additional instruments from
their private collection. We added seven new music boxes, a KT Special and this
1916 Wurlitzer 146 band organ to our ever-growing museum. The Carousel Dropper
Board is from a 1900s British Switchback. It is 9 feet long and 3 feet tall and features
a depiction (painting) of Lord Edward Roberts from the Boer war of 1899. We will be
bringing the Wurlitzer out front to play for the public on Sunday afternoons.

Mini Museum available to a group of in a few weeks earlier and told me how
kids and their chaperones. The group the class was learning about sound
came from the Christian Liberty Acad-and how it traveled through different
emy located near our resale shop in materials such as wood, glass, water
Algonquin, IL. Their teacher had come and air. I showed her how we could

8 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

Always a good idea to have some MBSI material on hand when setting up a special exhibit. Just the basics will do. The MBSI trifold
brochures and a membership application should be enough to hand out to anyone who might be interested. These should
both contain the MBSI website address and, if possible, a link to our MBSI video.

put our elbows on the edge of a larger
Regina music box and our hands over
our ears and listen to the bass notes
resonate in our ears through bone
conduction. After trying it for herself,
she quickly asked if I wouldn’t mind
showing that fun technique to her
entire classroom of children. Not only
did the kids love it, but each group
that came after that seemed to grow
larger and larger until we had almost
one adult for every child. Sharing a
special exhibit like this is always a
two-way street. The kids were having
a great time and so was I.

In my last article, I also spoke about
utilizing new resources as they become
increasingly available. Right now, the
newest and best resource I know of
is the internet. I have compiled a list
of helpful Facebook groups that have
some very helpful people as members.
On Facebook, simply search any of
the following terms to find the group:

• Musical Box Society Forum
• Band Organs, Fairground Organ
and Street Organs
• Antique Phonograph Enthusiast
• Player Piano Enthusiast
• Mechanical Music Chat
Roadside attractions can also be a very fun and effective way to get the word out
about mechanical music instruments, especially if you have a friend who will let you
borrow the company calliope truck for your chapter meeting. We had many families
and individuals stop by for pictures and videos with the Fisher Calliope Truck. Most
of them never having seen or heard one before. Special thanks to Jeffrey Sanfilippo
and the Sanfilippo Family Foundation for letting us borrow this wonderful instrument
every few years for a chapter meeting.

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 9

Newcomers to the special exhibit at Barrington Resale are a A special exhibit doesn’t have to be very large. Two or three
15½-inch mahogany serpentine case Reginaphone and base machines and a fun banner can do the trick just fine.

cabinet next to a Seeburg KT Special.

• Mechanical Musical Instruments,
• Association of Musical Box
Collectors (AMBC)
• McClinsey’s House of Music
• Orchestrions of Europe
• Mechanical Musical Instrument
and Parts Sales/Wanted UK
• National Carousel Association
• Orchestrions of America
• Carousel Connoisseurs
• AMICA (Automatic Musical
Instrument Collectors’
Association)
• American Carousel Organs
• Musical Box Society of Great
Britain
• Mechanical Music Media
• Mechanical Music and Midi
Systems
• Mechanical Music Parade
• Band Organ Music, Carousel
Music, Mechanical Music
• Australian Collectors of Mechanical
Musical Instruments Inc.
• Vintage Fairground Stuff and
Organs Chat Sales and Wants
• Organists and Organ Lovers
I cannot imagine being a part of
mechanical music in today’s world
without being in touch with these
groups. Information can be shared
around the planet instantly. If I have
a question about anything related to
mechanical music, I can go to one of
my groups that most closely fits my
question and ask them.

There must be a group for everything
on Facebook. In fact, social
media comes in a lot of formats but
by far I think the most popular one is
still Facebook. The list of websites on
the internet you can find to visit is just
as endless when you search through
Google or any other search engine.
Many times, however, I have simply
started with the Facebook groups and
almost every time they will send me

a direct link to a very useful website
without all the need to search on
your own. Usually, it ends up being a
website I have never heard of before.
Access to this level of knowledge and
expertise is why I am such a strong
believer in Facebook and the new
friends I have made all over the world
because of it.

That is about all the information I
had to share with you for now. I hope
you have enjoyed reading my two-part
article and I look forward to writing
more in the future. Remember, special
exhibits can be any size and just about
any place. Check with your local
museum or historical society and
see if they will let you come in for a
day with a couple of your machines. I
like to go camping from time to time
and even bring a machine with me
for that. You never know when you
can brighten someone’s day through
mechanical music.

10 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

MBSI Mid-Year Trustees’
Meeting Minutes

Top row, left to right: Mary Ellen Myers, Dave Calendine, Clay Witt, Bob Caletti. Second row, left to right: Tom Kuehn, Matt Jaro,

Ed Cooley, Linda Birkitt. Bottom row, left to right: Wayne Finger, David Corkrum.

Mar. 20, 2021

These minutes will be official when
approved and voted upon during the
annual meeting of the Board of Trustees
in Fort Myers, FL, in 2021.

On Mar. 20, 2021, at 9:05 a.m., the
2021 Mid-year Trustee Meeting was
called to order by President Kuehn.
The following Trustees were present:
Tom Kuehn, President presiding, Dave
Calendine, Bob Caletti, Ed Cooley,
David Corkrum, Wayne Finger, Matt
Jaro, Mary Ellen Myers and Clay Witt
(nine of nine present, a quorum).
Linda Birkitt attended as recording
secretary.

President Kuehn informed the group
that Trustee Witt will be retiring as
a trustee as of the conclusion of this
meeting, Trustee Witt acknowledged
that it was his great privilege to serve
MBSI, and that he will miss some, but
not other aspects of the position. He
then thanked this body for all their
hard work. President Kuehn thanked
him for his many years of service.

The minutes of the Sept. 4, 2020,

Trustees’ Meeting were presented
by Secretary Birkitt. Trustee Finger
moved to approve the minutes, with
corrections noted by Trustee Witt. The
motion carried and the minutes were
approved as corrected.

Old Business

Secretary Birkitt presented the
current board actions for review.

Trustee Jaro reported on the progress
of CDL – Controlled Digital Lending.
Digital Controlled Circulation is used
to circulate electronic copies of books,
but there is no software for DCC, so
circulation evolves through the honor
system. Although Jerry Maler is our
lending librarian, he reports only two
to three books have been checked
out over several years. Trustee Finger
indicated that we need a webmaster
to develop this electronic library to
provide value to the membership.
Trustee Witt suggested that Russell
Kasselman work with Trustee Caletti
to develop this electronic lending
library system.

Trustee Finger commented that
Terry Smythe deserves a response

back regarding his gift of 29 scanned
books. Smythe also has other historical
materials digitized which would be
invaluable to MBSI.

The status and possible development
and use of rack cards for
advertising MBSI at the American
Treasure Tour (A.T.T.) Museum in
Oaks, PA, was briefly re-addressed.
More information is needed on the
whereabouts of the initial content
and drawings for the proposed card
design. The use and value of these to
MBSI was also discussed.

President Kuehn then presented
the Herschell Carrousel Factory
Museum Funds request which will
be funded by our Endowment Fund.
During the discussion, Trustee Witt
noted that now MBSI has received
the additional documentation from
the museum requested by the board.
During the initial discussion, Trustee
Calendine moved that the board
approve the grant request in the
amount of $10,000. During the course
of discussion after the main motion
was seconded, Trustee Witt offered
the following motion as a substitution

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 11

for the main motion: “I move that we
approve a grant of $10,000 from MBSI’s
Endowment Fund to the Herschell
Carrousel Society of the Niagara
Frontier Endowment Fund to be used
for the restoration and maintenance
of band and carousel organs and roll
perforating equipment at the Herschell
Carrousel Factory Museum.” After the
amendment motion was seconded and
debated, it was adopted by a seven to
two majority via voice vote. There
being no further discussion, the main
motion was unanimously adopted as
amended.

Officers’, Administrator’s And
Committee Reports

Vice President Corkrum presented
the Vice President’s report. He
informed the trustees that he is
responsible for coordinating the
annual awards process and ensuring
timely nominations are presented to
the board at the mid-year meeting.
Additionally, he is required to create
the annual report for MBSI which is
submitted to the Board of Regents of
the University of New York by June
2021. He also gives guidance and
advice to the society’s chapters, keeps
himself informed of chapter activities,
and reviews and recommends
revisions of bylaws and policies and
procedures. The report was received.

Since Treasurer Ed Kozak was not
present, President Kuehn read the
treasurer’s report, Finance Committee
report and the Endowment Committee
report. There is no change to the
budget approved at the last meeting.
The treasurer’s report was received.

6a. Endowment Committee report.
As of Dec. 31, 2020, MBSI’s financial
statements reported the Endowment
Fund balance, a perpetual duration
asset, to be $160,270. The fund balance
increased by $4765 from the previous
year’s balance of $155,505. The
“Endowment Interest Earned Fund”
has a balance of $52,511 as of Dec.
31, 2020. Two-thirds of this amount is
available at this date for projects or
programs. The trustees are reviewing
the additional information submitted
by the Herschell Carrousel Factory
Museum, to support a donation to
their endowment fund. The report was

received.

6b. Finance Committee report. A
question from Vice President Corkrum
about museum restoration funds will
have to be postponed as there was no
museum committee representative at
the meeting who had that information.
The report was received.

President Kuehn read the Administrator’s
Report. As of Dec. 31, 2020,
MBSI totaled 1,003 memberships. This
compares to 2019’s numbers of 1,079
members. Currently, the membership
has grown to 1,073 as of Mar. 1, 2021.
Twenty-six new members between
Jul. 1, 2020, and Dec. 31, 2020, joined
MBSI. Of these 26, 20 (77 percent)
were generated via the website. For
the calendar year 2020 the grand total
was 58 new members, of which 42 (72
percent) were website generated. The
report was received.

Chair Cooley presented the Audit
Committee report. As is required by
New York statutes and regulations
which govern MBSI, our financial
statements must by reviewed annually
by an independent CPA. Cinda
Rogers, CPA, has been doing this and
has agreed to an additional contract
extension. Although two new revenue
standards were written in 2019,
they had no financial impact on our
accounting. The Audit Committee will
no longer audit the comparison of
sales items to reported income as the
monies generated were insignificant
monetarily. Treasurer Kozak’s revenue
analysis indicates that the MBSI net
membership revenue for 2020 was
$69,029. Using 2019 data, the total
estimated revenue would be $71,100.
The difference is -2.9 percent and this
percentage difference will continue
to increase annually since declining
membership impacts this analysis.

The Audit Committee audited the
returned Conflict of Interest (COI)
forms and found that nine were missing
for the current year. All Officers,
Trustees and Committee members are
required by MBSI policy to sign these
forms yearly and be conversant and
compliant with the policies governing
COIs.

The report also made suggestions
concerning setting a specific time
of year for COI statements to be

gathered and about developing easier
to use methods of transmitting them
electronically. Trustee Witt noted that
we have legal constraints and agreed
to do some research concerning what
we are allowed to do about the matters
raised and to work with the Secretary
and Vice President to determine what
might be done to reduce the annual
COI statement gathering burden. The
report was received.

The Marketing Committee Report
was presented by Trustee Finger. The
video interview project is evolving
slowly as one interview has been
completed and two are in the works. If
sufficient funds are available, a fourth
interview will be included. Trustee
Finger and the Editor of Mechanical
Music (MM) are promoting a Facebook
Forum discussion group. The
certificate program giving auction
houses the ability to award one
free year of membership when they
hold auctions is being evaluated. To
enhance membership involvement, a
quiz or puzzle related to our hobby will
appear in Mechanical Music thanks
to Judy Caletti. The committee is
looking for other ideas to make MBSI
more visible to the public and attract
more new members. The report was
received.

Chair Jaro read the Meetings
Committee Report. This year’s Annual
Meeting is in the planning stages for an
in-person meeting. The event will be
held in Fort Myers, FL, at the Crowne
Plaza Hotel between Aug. 30 and Sept.
4, 2021. Trustees Jaro and Calendine
surveyed a group of MBSI members
to see, if they were vaccinated, would
they attend the Annual Meeting. Sixty-
eight percent indicated they would, if
proper distancing and masking were
utilized. Additionally, the Southeast
Chapter voted unanimously at their
Mar. 19 meeting to move forward
with hosting the meeting. European
attendees are concerned about a
refund policy if the meeting should be
canceled. Trustee Calendine moved to
provide a full registration refund for
any reason for the Annual Meeting in
Florida, up to Aug. 1, 2021. After that
date, a case-by-case decision will be
made. Motion carried.

Dave Calendine has graciously

12 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

agreed to serve on the Meetings
Committee, replacing the late Mary
Pollock. The report was received.

President Kuehn was asked if the
Japan Chapter will host an Annual
Meeting. He will investigate this question.
Trustee Jaro suggested that Japan
hold a Special Meeting which would
not be as expansive as an Annual
Meeting. Trustee Myers suggested that
we include Japan Chapter meetings
reports in MM.

Trustee Jaro gave the Museum
Committee report as Chair Sally Craig
was not present. The Guitarophone
and the PAPA JANO donations are now
on display and working at the A.T.T.
The repair cost for the Guitarophone
was completed. Due to Covid-19,
the A.T.T. Museum was closed most
of this past year. Final Inventory
reconciliation is still open regarding
the Barry Johnson donation to MBSI
for the A.T.T. Museum until all items
have been received. This item requires
annual review until 2023 as per Board
Action. The report was received.

The Nominating Committee Report
was read by President Kuehn as Chair
Dan Wilson was unavailable. Trustee
Witt is resigning as a trustee as of
Mar. 20, 2021. His position will remain
open until the election during the next
annual meeting. Richard Dutton has
been nominated to begin his first four-
year term as a trustee at the upcoming
annual meeting.

The Nominating Committee’s
recommendation for officers and
trustees to be approved by the board
for presentation to the members for
election at the 2021 MBSI Annual
Meeting is as follows:

• David Corkrum to serve a
two-year term as President
• Matt Jaro to serve a one-year
term as Vice President
• Richard Dutton to serve his first
four-year term as a Trustee
• Tom Kuehn to serve an additional
two-year term as a Trustee per
the bylaws
• Ed Kozak to serve another
one-year term as Treasurer
• Linda Birkitt to serve another
one-year term as Recording
Secretary

The report was received.

President Kuehn asked for a motion
to approve the committee’s slate of
officers and trustees. Trustee Witt
moved to approve the new slate of
officers and trustees. The motion
carried.

Special Exhibits committee chair
Mary Ellen Myers presented her
committee’s report. The Special
Exhibits committee has been
hampered somewhat by Covid19;
however, with Chair Myers’
innovations, she has surmounted the
problem. A new Outreach Corner in
Mechanical Music was initiated in
the November/December 2020 issue
of Mechanical Music with an article
written by Wayne Myers. Aaron Muller
has also written one article and plans
to write a follow-up article for the next
issue. Jack Hostetler has reported that
the Christmas Show at the Villages in
Florida is scheduled for the weekend
before Christmas, subject to pandemic
restrictions that might be in effect.
The report was received.

Publications Committee Chair
Caletti presented the committee’s
report. He noted that our editor had
been able to convert our journal to a
text version on the website going back
as far as 2015. These text versions can
be translated to other languages on
the website and used by non-English
speakers along with the images in
the printed version. The report was
received.

The editor’s report was presented by
Trustee Caletti. Per the editor, advertising
revenue and pages are moving
both up and down in Mechanical
Music. New advertisers in Mechanical
Music can now receive free ads on
the MBSI website that may encourage
more advertising. Several new authors
submitted articles for Mechanical
Music this past year. The report was
received.

The Website Sub-Committee Report
was presented by Chair Rick Swaney.
MBSI now has a Facebook Forum. It
is a Facebook group with easy posting
procedures. Currently there are 335
members in the Facebook Forum.

The emphasis of the Facebook Forum
is to increase membership renewal.
There are also plans to redesign the
MBSI website’s homepage to improve
interest in the site. The report was
received.

New Business

Bylaws and Policies and Procedures
documents were updated by the President’s
Special Committee consisting
of Vice President Corkrum, Trustee
Finger and chaired by Trustee Witt.
President Kuehn requested a motion
to approve the updated Bylaws and
P&P documents as recommended by
the committee. Trustee Calendine so
moved with the correction of the date
of the mid-year meeting from Mar. 19,
to Mar. 20, 2021. The motion carried
unanimously.

President Kuehn presented the
Japan Chapter’s draft of their bylaws
and supplemental material. Trustee
Witt stated that in Article ll on amendments
to the bylaws, the amendments
should be approved by MBSI before
they go into effect for the Japan
Chapter. A motion was requested to
approve the Japan Chapter bylaws and
supplemental material. Vice President
Corkrum so moved. The motion was
approved unanimously.

President Kuehn stated that the
Membership Committee Chair has
been vacant since Rob Pollock vacated
the position. President Kuehn had tried
to find a chair for this committee, but
without success. Trustee Myers noted
that four chapters have no members
on this committee. She suggested two
potential candidates. The search for a
Chair of the Membership Committee
will continue.

The Trustees entered a closed
session to evaluate nominations for
MBSI awards.

Trustee Calendine moved, seconded
by Trustee Cooley, to adjourn the
meeting. The motion passed. The
Mid-Year Trustees’ Meeting adjourned
at 2:30 p.m.

Respectfully submitted on Mar. 26, 2021
Linda Birkitt
Recording Secretary

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 13

MBSI Trustee Nominee Richard Dutton

I was first exposed to mechanical
music when I was only a small boy.
In 1953, when I was six years old, my
father brought home a Concert roller
organ and 30 rollers (“cobs”) which
he had bought at a roadside auction
on Long Island, NY, for $6. The case
was dark brown with age and the
stenciling barely visible, but the organ
itself played well. I was immediately
fascinated with it and, because no one
else in the family cared about it as
much as I did, it became a plaything of
mine growing up. I played each one of
the cobs many, many times and knew
every note of every tune and each tune
by name (except for the titles of tunes
on two cobs without labels, which I
did not learn until many years later).
Often, I would drag the organ around
the way other children carry a favorite
toy and I would play it for my friends
on the picnic table in our backyard.

By the time I reached my teens, I was
less interested in the organ, and after
I went away to college, it spent many
years in the cellar before I took it to
Rita Ford’s music box shop in New
York City, NY, in 1977 and had one of
her repairmen completely overhaul it.
At that time, I became seriously interested
in acquiring additional cobs to
play on it, but (in the days long before
eBay) I had no idea where to look for
them. Rita sold me a few and I was
able to buy a few more from a woman
who at that time had a music box
shop up in Westchester County, NY. I
bought a larger number from a fellow
out on Long Island who, I somehow
found out, at that time bought and
sold roller organs and repaired them
in his basement.

Then, more than a decade later, in
the mid-1990s, I heard from an antique
dealer I had contacted about cobs that
there was a mechanical music show
being held in Bound Brook, NJ, and
when I went to it my whole perspective
on roller organ cobs changed.
While I had always thought that my
roller organ was very special and rare,
I found that there were a number of
other people around who had them

and that there were even people who
specialized in cob roller organs and
had large numbers of cobs for sale,
such as the late Alvin Moersfelder in
Wisconsin (who had driven all the way
to Bound Brook in his old Cadillac,
loaded up with roller organs and cobs,
catching naps at rest stops on the
way). At that point, I began acquiring
any cobs I could find that I did not
have, sometimes buying large lots of
them, sight unseen, often with organs,
keeping the cobs I needed and trading
the duplicates for others I could add
to my collection. I met more and more
people in the mechanical music realm
as one transaction led to another
and, with the advent of eBay, I began
buying cobs and organs in online
auctions as well. In my “wheeling and
dealing” I eventually completed nearly
500 transactions and expanded my
collection to more than 1,000 different
cobs, all but about a dozen of the
1,050-plus 20-note cobs known to have
been made.

As I acquired cobs, often in large
batches that included many without
a label containing a legible number or
title, I found that I had a special ability
to remember tunes and associate them
with titles and then numbers so that,
after a while, I was able to recognize
hundreds of tunes on the roller organ
and identify cobs immediately upon
hearing them played. As a result of
this, people all over the world send
me cobs or recordings of cobs with
missing, partial or illegible labels for
me to identify by ear. Sometimes, they
even call me and play them for me
over the phone.

In 2002, at the “mart” at an annual
meeting of MBSI in Chicago, IL, I had
the opportunity to buy a Grand roller
organ, the larger, much scarcer 32-note
model that plays 13-inch cobs, and I
immediately went back to my roller
organ contacts to acquire as many
different Grand cobs as I could find. I
now have all but four of the 160 Grand
cobs known to have been made.

The records I kept of my hundreds
of transactions involving roller organ

Richard Dutton

cobs provide a large volume of data
about the frequency with which the
various cobs have turned up. I have
organized this data and assigned each
cob a “scarcity rating” of either “most
common” (MC), “very common” (VC),
“common” (C), “less common” (LC),
“scarce” (S), “very scarce” (VS) or
“no known copy” (N). The rating of
“most common” was given to just five
cobs that turn up many times more
than the others. Perhaps these were
manufactured in much larger quantities
because they were included with
an organ as a “starter package.” At the
other extreme are cobs of which I am
unaware of any existing copy. Of these
14, all but four are Spanish or Polish
titles.

I have always been interested in
the music on the roller organ as
well, the hymns because of my own
religious background and long-standing
interest in hymnology, and the
popular songs, dance tunes, classical
pieces, etc. because of my general
fascination with the “roller organ era”
and the prevailing popular culture of
that time. My love and appreciation
for the music stem in part from the
fact that so many of the cobs contain
appealing, harmonious, full arrangements
of very pretty tunes. It was a
remarkable accomplishment for the
Autophone Company of Ithaca, NY,
the manufacturer of all cob roller
organs and cobs, to put hundreds and

14 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

hundreds of musical pieces popular in
the mid-1880s through the early 1920s
onto pinned cobs and it is a joy for me
to crank through them and listen to
them.

The late Todd Augsburger generously
provided me space on his roller
organ website, rollerorgans.com, for
my long-standing and ongoing project,
Dutton’s Roller Organ Cob Handbook,
which includes statistical information
about the relative scarcity of the various
roller organ cobs and combines it
with details concerning the individual
tunes—how they came to be written,
who performed or popularized them,

what role they played in the culture of
the times, etc.—as well as providing
references to sources of sheet music
for anyone interested in finding lyrics
or playing the tunes on their own
musical instruments.

I have now, after more than 13
years, completed my individual write
ups about the pieces on all but about
20 of the 1,200-plus 20-note and Grand
cobs and I hope to add to the website
my paragraphs about the remaining
ones shortly.

Professionally, I am a retired lawyer
who spent more than 32 years at
the same large Wall Street law firm

practicing in the area of wills, trusts
and estates. I graduated from Yale
College, received a master’s degree
in Celtic Languages and Literatures at
Harvard, specializing in Irish literature
and folklore (including traditional
music; consistent with my interest
in reed instruments, I play the Anglo
concertina), but instead of completing
my Ph.D. thesis there I returned to
Yale for law school.

I currently live with my wife of 36
years, Marlene, in Little Egg Harbor,
NJ, a nautical community in the southern
part of the New Jersey shore on
the edge of the Pine Barrens.

Interesting Tidbits

A piano specially constructed for use by the bedridden. This photo is reported to be taken in Great Britain around
1935. Image provided by the Dutch National Archives / Spaarnestad Collection / Photographer unknown. For a
variety of other interesting historical photos, feel free to visit https://beeldbank.spaarnestadphoto.com/

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 15

Nickel Notes

By Matthew Jaro

A Music Trade Press Reader’s
History of the Welte-Mignon – Part Two

In the last exciting episode of And the following week this Sale of Welte Stock
Nickel Notes, Edwin Welte went back appeared on Page 21. On Mar. 22, 1919, (after the end of
to Germany to serve in the German the war) this appeared on Page 22 of
army in 1914. An agreement was MTR.
reached between Welte and the Auto
Pneumatic Action Company with the
evil George W. Gittins as president
of Kohler and Campbell (the parent
company of Auto Pneumatic).

Now, the U.S. declares war on
Germany and I left the reader to
wonder what would happen to Edwin
Welte’s business interests in the U.S.

The Alien Property Custodian

On Jun. 29, 1918, the following
appeared on Page 20 in the Music
Trade Review (MTR).

16 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

The advertisement at left appeared on Page 23 of the
Mar. 22, 1919, issue.

Gittins Steps In

In May 1924, the article at the bottom of this page
appeared in the Music Trades.

Notice that Gittins did not waste any time in buying the
Welte Company from Mitchell – gee, do you think this was
planned all along? According to Doug Hickling (September
1971 AMICA Bulletin):

Gittins considered it a serious personal affront that Kohler
had failed to name him as an executor of his will and had
instead named Richard W. Lawrence, who was at that time President
of Autopiano Company and a relative newcomer to the
family of Kohler businesses. Friction immediately developed

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 17

between Gittins and Lawrence with
the result that Gittins was let go,
Lawrence replacing him as President
of Kohler & Campbell.

Thereafter, in 1917, Gittins
acquired control of the Estey Piano
Company, which had a large factory
at 133rd Street and Lincoln Avenue,
Bronx, New York.

When, in 1919, the Alien Property
Custodian auctioned certain Welte
patents and the controlling shares
of the stock of M. Welte &Sons, Inc.,
Lawrence sent an underling to the
sale with limited authority to bid
on the Welte assets. Lawrence’s
agent was outbid, however, by a
group of businessmen who, having
paid $100,000 to the Alien Property
Custodian for the property, promptly
sold their acquisition to George W.
Gittins. Gittins thus gained control,
not only of the Welte physical assets
and patents, but of the right of M.
Welte &Sons, Inc., to receive royalties
from the manufacturers of reproducing
piano mechanisms, including a
payment of $30,000.00 a year from
the Auto Pneumatic Action Company
under the terms of the Licensee agreement
under which Auto Pneumatic
built and marketed the Welte-Mignon
(Licensee) reproducing piano mechanism.
Since Auto Pneumatic was one
of the Kohler industries, Gittins’ coup
must have been particularly galling
to Lawrence.

The Factory Sale

The article above appeared in
August of 1919, in MTR on Page 25.
Notice that Gittins bought the entire
Welte enterprise including patents for

$100,000 and sold the factory alone for
$150,000 a few months later.

So now, in December 1919, it was
apparently time for a little flag-waving,
and Gittins, the new president of
Welte announces:

This passage seems so self-serving
to me. Gittins had nothing to do with
the tradition of Welte. He got the business
for next to nothing and he talks
about American ownership.

Moving Right Along

Things get pretty complex and intertwined
at this point.

On Feb. 7, 1920, an arrangement
was consummated where M. Welte
and Sons, Amphion Piano Player
Company and Kohler Industries (for
the Auto Pneumatic Company) would
control all of the Welte reproducing
piano patents. (The American Piano
Company owned Amphion). The
music rolls would be cut from the vast
Welte library. Kohler got a recording
piano from Welte so that new rolls
could be recorded (the DeLuxe Reproducing
Roll Corp.). Kohler would be
building a new roll plant.

At the same time, the Amphion
Piano Player Company is ready to
market a reproducing piano invented
by Lewis B. Doman. Note that Doman
was involved in the Stoddard Ampico
system.

Also, the American Piano Company

(Ampico) has admitted the validity of
the Welte Bockisch patents.

In March 1920, Gittins formed a new
corporation named the Welte Mignon
Corp. and from now on M. Welte and
Sons would be known as the Welte
Mignon Corporation with a capitalization
of $1 million.

In a lawsuit trial, a woman who
bought a Welte licensee piano was
told by a Welte representative that she
did not have an original Welte. She
sued on the grounds that the piano she
bought was misrepresented. The trial
showed that the mechanisms were
identical, with the exception of the
tracker bar and therefore she had no
grounds to complain.

The article below appeared in the
Mar. 20, 1920, issue of MTR, Page 27.

Further News

On Sept. 17, 1921, the Aeolian Corp.
after being sued for infringement of
the Welte patents, settled out of court
and agreed to pay royalties to Welte.

On Nov. 5, 1921, the Auto-Pneumatic
Company began recutting the original
Welte Mignon to the standard nine
holes per inch format. (More on the
roll formats later).

It must have been painful for Edwin
Welte to have all of his assets in the
United States seized. Notice that the
article below from Jun. 11, 1927, says
they are descendants and does not

18 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

mention anything about their contribution
to the success of the company.

In one respect, he was an enemy
combatant, having enlisted in the
German army, but on the other hand,
he was talking about becoming an
American citizen, and I think he was
really just caught in the middle. I don’t
think he ever received compensation
for the seized business, and it must
have been hard to visit the Welte
studios years later.

Receivership

Now it seems like Mr. Gittins has
run the company into the ground.
It can’t pay its debts and is placed
in receivership. It looks like Gittins
overextended the business, since he
acquired six subsidiaries a few months
earlier.

An article in the Nov. 26, 1927, issue
on Page 29 reported the news.

To summarize some of the events
that follow: The appointed receivers
wanted to sell the Estey piano business
in order to free up cash to pay
the creditors. They did this in March
1928. At the same time, the good old
Auto Pneumatic Action Company was
quick to point out that they were doing
fine and they were not associated
with the original Welte Company – so

customers should continue to buy the
licensee pianos without worry.

The receivership was finally ended
with a reorganized Welte-Mignon
Company.

On Jan. 5, 1929, William C. Heaton
resigned as sales manager of Welte
Mignon. He had held the position only
since the spring. He quickly found a
job as manager of sales for the Fada
Radio Corporation. Earlier, Heaton
was president of the Auto Pneumatic
Action Company. It’s funny how
people’s fortunes changed. Since Auto
Pneumatic was responsible for the
licensee business, maybe Gittins was
hoping to attract customers back to
the original Welte-Mignon Company.

The End of the Line

By February 1929 Welte-Mignon was
back in receivership. This time, the
explanation was that the company had
to be protected from small lawsuits.

On Jul. 15, 1929, Donald F. Tripp
(a Wall Street financier) bought the
Welte organ business for $79,000 at
auction – that’s less than it would cost
you to buy one organ today. The new
company was named the Welte-Tripp
Organ Company.

Tripp moved the organ business into
a modern new plant at Sound Beach,
CT, but there was no production for
over a year. Mr. Tripp lost his considerable
fortune in the continuing slide
of the stock market and was forced
to liquidate his assets to pay off creditors.
He sold the business to the W.W.
Kimball Company on Jul. 1, 1931, for
the sum of $35,000. Kimball marketed
the organ as the Kimball-Welte but
did not record any new rolls. Installations
continued into the late 1930s.
After World War II, Kimball worked
on developing electronic organs and
abandoned the pipe organ business
(according to Doug Hickling).

In February 1930, the Krakauer
Brothers bought the contents of the
Welte Factory, which included several
hundred unfinished grand pianos.
The name Welte-Mignon was sold by
the receivers to a group that would
become known as the Welte-Mignon
Piano Corporation. They continued to
install Welte mechanisms in people’s
pianos.

They ran the ad above until 1931
and then there was no more heard
from them. The most important Welte
patents expired in the 1930s.

Loose Ends

What ever happened to our friends
in the pneumatic action business?
Remember that Kohler and Campbell
owned the businesses.

In the October 1930 Presto, this
article appeared on Page 31.

What happened to our friend
Gittins? He was squeezed out of the
corporation by the receivers and his
common stock was worthless. Further,
in March 1931, Presto reported:

What about all the rolls? In 1932, the
MTR had the following classified ad.

As far as the German interests were
concerned, in 1931 the Welte firm in
Germany turned out its last repro-
ducing instrument and Edwin Welte

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 19

resigned.

Finally, in 1932, the notice above
appeared in the Zeitschrift für Instrumentbau
(ZI).

It announces that the Welte firm
went into receivership.

Edwin Welte

During World War II, the retired
Edwin Welte worked on an idea for
an electronic organ, but it did not get
support.

In 1947 Richard Simonton struck
up a friendship with Edwin Welte and
they exchanged about 150 letters.

The Welte factory was destroyed by
Allied bombs during World War II and
living conditions in Post-War Germany
were harsh.

“Our fine old city [of Freiburg] was
within 20 minutes time and without
any defense by an aerial attack to 2/3
destroyed, with it also completely the
factories of M. Welte and sons with
everything in it.

My private house was saved. I
live now in three rooms of it, with
my wife and daughter. The rest of
the house is occupied [requisitioned
without rent] by a French officer and
his family.” 4-30-47

“The French officer cut off the
radiators of my apartment to save
coal for the first floor. Naturally there
is only one furnace in my house and
no stoves. Heavy snowfall today and
the rooms ice cold. SO I write this
letter in the kitchen where we have
a kitchen-hearth which is heatable
with coal or wood. Mrs. Welte is just
running around in the town to find

somebody to place a little stove in
the bedroom. I do not think that such
things do happen in the American or
English zone.” 11-18-47

“We cannot escape our destiny,
when we see and hear about the lives
of other people we are satisfied again.
The conditions here in regard to food,
clothing and housing are intolerable.
We have an excellent archbishop in
Freiburg, who does everything possible
to help. He showed a great deal
of courage during the Nazi-period.”
11-18-47

The Welte Rolls

In order to end this article on a
happier note, I would like to say a few
words about the rolls. The Aeolian
DuoArt was the only system that never
changed encoding schemes. Ampico
had the A and B systems, although
these were largely compatible with
each other. Welte, on the other hand,
had quite an evolution.

The first system was the T-100
rolls or “red Welte rolls.” These rolls
were 127/8 inches wide and had 100
holes with 80 playing notes, motor
speed controls and assorted control
channels. These rolls had no tempo
markings because the motor could be
sped up by means of the two lock and
cancel signals.

The instruments made in Germany
and imported to America before
World War I used red rolls. The Welte
Artistic Player, made in America prior
to the war, used pianos such as Mason
& Hamlin and Krakauer that also used
the red rolls.

The T-98 or “green Welte rolls” were
the standard 11¼ inches wide with
nine holes to the inch. There were a
full 88 playing notes and 10 control
notes. Instead of lock and cancels, the

green rolls used chain perforations
for the control. This made it the only
reproducing system that could play
a piano’s full 88 key compass. All the
green rolls run at the same speed. The
green Welte mechanisms were never
marketed in America.

The Welte-Mignon “licensee rolls”
were the standard 11¼ inches wide
with nine holes to the inch with 80
playing notes and 18 control channels.
The licensee rolls’ use of the lock and
cancel required two channels for each
function and therefore there are only
80 playing notes.

The licensee rolls were primarily
made by the Deluxe Reproducing
Roll Corp. (a subsidiary of the Auto
Pneumatic Action Company). Many of
the original Welte rolls were recoded
and reissued to play on the licensee
pianos. See image on the facing page.

This concludes my marathon writing
sessions to produce this two-part article.
I find the story to be fascinating.
There has been much written about
the history of nickelodeons but not
much about the reproducing pianos
in the last 40 years. I hope my minor
effort goes some way to alleviating
this deficiency.

Please contact me with questions or
comments. I have tried to be accurate,
but I may have made some mistakes
or rash judgments. Please tell me!!

Email Matt Jaro at mjaro@verizon.
net if you would like any information
about style “A”, “G”, “4X”, “H” or “O” rolls.
Also, comments and suggestions for this
column will be appreciated.

Reprinted with permission of the
author and The Automatic Musical
Instrument Collectors’ Association
(AMICA). Originally printed in the
September-October 2015 issue of The
AMICA Bulletin.

20 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 21 May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 21

22 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021 22 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

A Changeable Cylinder Box Prototype

Questions remain as to who made this particular musical box as it has markings indicating Jaccard but has no definitive

provenance.

By Bill Wineburgh

Not too long ago I restored an interesting
changeable cylinder musical
box. It came out of a storage unit in
nearby Yonkers, NY. It had belonged
to a recently deceased collector (of
many things) whose daughter needed
to clear out the storage unit. It has a
unique design that is unlike any I have
ever seen. I would like to share it with
you.

A Jaccard / Cuendet / Abrahams
Prototype

The subject piece has a grain-
painted case with side handles and
transfer borders made to look like
inlaid wood trim and color floral decorations
on the lid and front to also
look like inlays. There is a drawer in

the base that can hold three cylinders.
The design is quite like those by B H
Abrahams of Ste Croix, Switzerland
and London, England, who was also
the London agent for Jules Cuendet.

It came with three cylinders that
measure 13 inches in length and 21/8
inches in diameter. Two of the cylinders,
numbered 60702 and 60712, have
accompanying tune sheets. The third
cylinder is numbered 60704 and has
no tune sheet. Each cylinder plays six
airs.

The two tune sheets are the “terrace
at right” design, seen as Sheet No.
6 in H.A.V. Bulleid’s book “Tune
Sheets” and is used by Jules Cuendet
in his catalog. The tune sheets are
marked “Lith. Picard-Lion Geneve”
on the lower left and “DEPOSÉE” on
the lower right. The tune names are

typewritten rather than written in pen.

The bedplate is forged with “Jaccard
BRS” on the underside (which Jaccard
brothers?). It has numerous holes that
have been filled in where it may have
once been prepared to use for another
set-up (1).

The comb has 93 teeth (92 playing)
and gamme number ‘1766’ on the bass
lead, referring to the comb’s tuning,
and the comb base (plinth) is marked
for tuning to exclude the highest treble
tooth and has a “J” and “99” (or “66”?)
impressed in the underside (again,
which Jaccard?).

The cylinder drive and locking
mechanisms are unique to this mechanism
and are unlike any I have seen.
The mechanism matches a patent by
Eugène Félix Jaccard of Ste Croix,
Switzerland. The German patent is

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 23

Completely restored and ready for play, this unique musical box includes a drawer to hold three cylinders.

No. 42511, dated Feb. 22, 1888, and the

U.S. patent is No. 382,879, dated May
15, 1888. The Swiss patent is No. 421,
dated Dec. 14, 1888. Illustrations from
the American patent accompany this
article.
The cylinder drive mechanism
works using an indented groove in a
drive plate that is turned by a double
spring barrel and governor control
mechanism. The cylinders have a pin
extending from the left end of the
cylinder that fits into that groove. As
with any interchangeable cylinder

box, at the tune’s end, the comb teeth
are aligned with the break in the
pinning, allowing the user to change
the cylinder without damage to the
cylinder pins. Changing these cylinders
demands some caution as there
are no “handles” on the cylinder ends
with which to lift the cylinder. Later
interchangeable musical boxes such
as those by Mermod Frères and others
incorporated handles or extended
cylinder shafts to allow lifting the
cylinder up and off the mechanism
without fear of damaging the cylinder

pins (2).

The tail stock has an indented steel
bar at its left end that marries with
the pointed pin on the right end of the
cylinder shaft. The steel bar is spring
tensioned within an iron housing that
is part of the cast bedplate. The right
end of the steel bar is bored to hold
a perpendicular steel rod that can
be rotated towards the front of the
mechanism along a curved lip in the
cast housing in order to release the
cylinder tail stock. The top of the rod
has a knurled cap that can be removed

24 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

Restored bedplate and cylinder installed. Caution is required when changing tunes as the cylinder has no handles.

The left end of cylinder no. 60712 with
rod extended to catch the drive gear. The right end of cylinder no. 60712.

The cylinder drive notch and drive mechanism. Patent images for this technology
are shown on pages 28 and 29 of this issue.

when removing the wooden start/
stop and change/repeat cover. I noted
that the curved lip was worn from
repeated movement of the release rod
and needed some repair in order to
work as intended (3).

So, who made this? There are no
numbers or other marks anywhere
on the bedplate or works to help
identify the maker. We know it was
made after 1888 as that is the date of
the E.F. Jaccard patent and none of
the listed tunes were published after
that year. The bedplate casting is by
one of the Jaccards. The tune sheets
are Cuendet’s design and the case is
a typical Abrahams design used in
Britannia, Imperial disc boxes as well
as in cylinder boxes. Phillipe, Jules &
Charles Cuendet, Ami, Charles, Justin
and other Jaccards, from Ste Croix
and L’Auberson, and Barnett H. Abra-
hams of Ste Croix, the London agent
for Cuendet, seem to be the players.

A Similar Prototype by L’Épée

David Evans wrote an article in the
Winter 2019/2020, Issue 19, of Mechanical
Music World, published by the
Association of Musical Box Collectors
(AMBC), about a L’Épée experimental
changeable cylinder movement. The
similarities and differences to the
example that I recently restored are
most interesting.

A patent for the L’Épée mechanism
was issued to James Yates Johnson
dated Oct. 14, 1887, about four months

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 25

The cylinder pin holder shown with the cylinder removed.

A closeup of the cylinder pin holder in the released position.

Jaccard BRS as seen on the bedplate, but no indications are
made as to what set of Jaccard brothers made it.

The cylinder pin holder extended as it would normally be while
playing the musical box.

earlier than Jaccard’s German patent
referenced earlier.

The differences between the L’Épée
prototype described by Evans and
the piece described in this article lie
in both the cylinder drive mechanism
and in the tail stock design. The drive
mechanism is reversed from one to
the other, and the tail stock in the
Jaccard design adds the internal
tension spring to better hold the cylinder
in place and a steel shaft to release
the cylinder from above the fall board.
Both designs use a typical snail cam
on the right end of the cylinder and a

coil spring on the left end of the cylinder
shaft to help steady the cylinder
on its shaft.

Competition Among Makers

At the time these patents and
prototypes were made, the German
disc musical box manufacturing was
severely impacting Swiss cylinder
box sales. As a result, the Swiss and
French cylinder box manufacturers
were struggling to compete. One way
to do that was to add more music to
the fixed number of tunes on pinned
cylinders. This was done in several

ways. One method was to either make
the distance between the tooth tips
further apart to allow more pins to be
placed between them and thus more
tunes to be pinned on a cylinder, or to
use only every other tooth in a comb by
clipping off the tip of alternate teeth.
Another method was to pin two tunes
in a single rotation, thus doubling the
number of (albeit shorter) tunes on
a cylinder. Fat cylinders were also
employed (having a larger diameter)
that would allow for a longer program
or for two tunes of more normal
length in one rotation. The revolver

26 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

A sideways letter J and the number 99 are impressed into the comb plinth, but it is not clear which Jaccard cast this piece.

Markings on the comb plinth (shown before restoration) indicate that the highest treble piece is to be excluded when tuning.

box provided a very complicated Competition among the cylinder My observations and research lead
and expensive way to do this as well. box makers must have been fast and me to believe that this piece was a
Further, and appropriate to this arti-furious and new ideas likely spread prototype for a mechanism that was
cle, providing additional cylinders was quickly among them. That might never put into production for at least
also tried, using either changeable or account for the similarities between the three reasons noted at (1), (2) and
interchangeable cylinders. the L’Épée and Jaccard designs. (3) above, as well as the likely high

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 27

One of the two typewritten tune sheets that came with the musical box.

An image from American Patent No. 382,879 showing a cylinder change mechanism.

28 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

Another image from American Patent No. 382,879, this time
showing the cylinder drive mechanism.

In this image you can see the additional holes in the bedplate
that were later filled in as if the bedplate had been originally
used in a different configuration.

An example of a B H Abrahams musical box that somewhat
resembles the box detailed in this article.

cost of manufacturing it. I attribute it to one of the Cuendets,
likely in the 1890s, as an attempt to make a changeable
cylinder box to compete with other cylinder box makers as
well as with the German disc musical boxes. If any reader
knows of another movement like this, please let me know.
Perhaps further research can help nail down the maker.

Samples of the music may be heard at:

https://youtu.be/OsqURW0xCvw

https://youtu.be/vYuY8eZEJro

Smartphone users may scan the QR codes at right to go
directly to the videos.

More online
Smartphone users can scan the QR code above to be
taken directly to videos showing the box in this article
playing tunes.
May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 29

PlérodieniquePlérodienique Plérodienique
A special kind
of music box

Text by Peter Both

(Translated by Deepl.com and corrected by

Carol and David Beck, and Alison Biden)

Photos from various sources

Plérodienique 9735, located at Museum Speelklok, Utrecht.
The exterior of the case features boulle inlays, a technique
named after André Charles Boulle who introduced it in the
first half of the 17th century. Here this technique was used
on ebonized ground by inlaying engraved brass, ivory and
mother-of-pearl.

For every collector and enthusiast of mechanical
music there are extraordinary objects. One of them is
the Plérodienique. Unfortunately, one rarely gets to
see and hear them.

Rediscovery

From the very beginning the name had something
mysterious about it. It is composed of ancient Greek,
here phonetically rewritten as “pleres” which translates
to “abundantly equipped, densely populated,” and
“dienekes” which translates to “continuous, continuous,
connected, uninterrupted.” An inquiry about the
origin and meaning of the word Plérodienique was
answered like this in Mechanical Music in 1963:

“Dear Mrs. Fabel

With reference to your inquiry on the word Plérodienique,
I am pleased to inform you that, since I do
not consider myself an expert, I contacted the French,
the Swiss Embassy and the Music Department of the
Library of Congress here in Washington D.C. and it
comes to this: “Plero” is a word of Greek origin
meaning “many” [and] “dienique”
is just a word ending. Therefore,
Plérodienique could mean
many sounds, fullness, full
volume or the name or type of a
of a music box. Also the following
address was furnished for technical
information – The Chambre Suisse
d’Horlogerie, La Chaux-de-Fonds,

Switzerland. I hope to have helped a
little. Sincerely,
Maria A. Balanger”

As early as 1938, L.G. Jaccard
wrote the following in a series of
articles on “The Origin and Devel

opment of the Music Box” in the
magazine Hobbies, thus encouraging
the first generation of American
collectors to specifically search for

this type:

“Plérodienique
In about 1878 Albert Jeanrenaud

invented a new type of rechange
cylinder, the ‘’Plérodienique.” It may
be considered the most perfect of long
tune music boxes ever made and is
capable of playing, without interruption,
one tune of six revolutions. The
chief characteristic of this piece is that tunes of
unequal length can be played on the six revolutions.

The cylinders are about twenty inches long and thirty-
six lines in diameter and require about two hundred
prongs on two combs of equal length. Similar to the
Sublime Harmonie type. The cylinder was made in two
sections on a common shaft, with a coil spring between
them, pushing each section against its respective “limacon”.
When the first revolution is ended, section one
stops and changes, meanwhile section two continues to
play. After the change takes place it resumes playing
and gives time for section two to go through the same
process of stopping and changing of revolution; the two
sections are now in position to play simultaneously.
The music will cease to play at the sixth revolution if
set at “stop.” Regardless of the oncoming of the popular
tune sheet music box, the phonograph and the player
pianos, this beautiful piece retains its unique position
because of its unusual mechanism.”

It is not surprising that many of the 18 researched
boxes known today were once owned by MBSI
co-founders. Again and again, more details were
sought after, as the following excerpts from Mechanical
Music show. As early as July 1960 in the article
“Simple ways to determine the age of music boxes”
written by Marguerite Fabel, we read the following,
among others:

“Remember that Interchangeable Music Boxes were
not invented until 1878, and also by this time the
different combinations of music were in use, Sublime
Harmony, Piccolo, Tremolo, and all sorts of combinations
of these. By this time the music box industry had
really advanced and the larger table boxes and elaborate
models were much in evidence.

It is well to remember too, that nickel plating was

not discovered until 1878, so boxes with it are apt to be

from 1880 on.

The Longue Marche, the music box with the long
playing capacity was made in 1876. The Revolver type,
1878, the Plérodienique (split cylinder) 1878, this box
was capable of playing tunes of unequal length. In 1886
the Ideal Interchangeable Boxes were started, there are
a lot of these, and they produce quite pleasing music. By
this time too, boxes wound with cranks on the outside,
and we now begin to find disc boxes.”

In 1963 Murtogh Guinness wrote an article with
questions that still occupy us today:

“Plérodienique or telescope music box”

“It would be interesting to know how many of our
members own a Plérodienique; it is said that there are
five or six known; that would make them seem rare, but
as to how many were made, it would be harder to know,

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 31

Plérodienique No. 21296, located at the Bayernhof Museum, Pittsburgh, PA.

unless some records ever turn up.

Anyone might easily pass one by
not knowing what it was unless they
had seen one, or had a description.

Roughly, the combs are like a
Sublime Harmony the cylinders made
in two halves, on one shaft, usually a
small band round the middle fills the
gap between the two halves. There is a
star wheel snail tune changer at each
end; a spring in the middle between the
two halves of the cylinder, keeps both
halves pressed against their snails;
an important point to understand in
the operation of this mechanism, is
that snails are not set in exactly the
same place at both ends, one being
further round the cylinder than the
other, by a very small amount, so that
while one half of the cylinder is being
pushed inwards, and not playing;
after both ends have changed, they

play together, as in most musical
boxes. The advantage of this system
is, that since one half changes while
the other is playing, it makes possible
continuous playing of music, for as
many revolutions as the cylinder was
made for, or for several shorter pieces.
If anyone is on the lookout for one,
things to look for are: a band round
the middle of the cylinder, (Fig. 1).
and a tune changing snail at each
end.” (Fig. 2)

Fig. 1, showing the band at the middle
of a cylinder.

Fig. 2, showing the tune changing snails
at either end of the cylinder.

32 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

Present

My wife and I were soon made
aware of these music boxes and
wanted to listen to them at every
available opportunity. Unfortunately
for us, we have never been able to
hear the instrument exhibited at CIMA
(Musée du CIMA [Centre International
de la Mécanique d’Art], Sainte-Croix,
Switzerland) until now. It remained
under lock and key during all our
visits. Another one, in the Nethercutt
Collection in San Sylmar, CA, was not
played during our visit either as it had
been damaged in an earthquake. We
were lucky to hear one at Francis and
Esther Crawford’s home and at the
Morris Museum. At the 2019 MBSI
Annual Meeting, I attended Alison
Biden’s talk titled “Sleeping Beauties:
A Happy Ending or Grimm Fairytale.”
On this occasion Alison presented
the Plérodienique of the Pitt-Rivers
Collection, which unfortunately is
stored in the museum’s depot and will
remain hidden from the public for the
time being. I further learned that Alison
was looking for information about
the Plérodienique. When we recently
added a music box of this type to our
collection ourselves, I contacted her
and we decided, together with Dave
and Carol Beck, to look for more
information. We also wanted to find
the whereabouts of all the known
instruments. The research with the
help of many collectors and museums
has resulted in the following.

The manufacturer of the Plérodienique
is listed as Paillard & Cie.
of Ste-Croix, Switzerland, although
a single insert cylinder music box
(Seewen) is signed “G. Mermod
& Bornand, Successeurs d’Albert
Jeanrenaud” and the “Rosenberg
box” is often referred to as the only
Mermod Plérodienique. Jearenaud
was the inventor of the system but his

U.S. patent of 1882 is assigned to M.J
Paillard & Co, New York. It could also
happen that the sales agent used his
name as a trademark (for example J.
Manger).
Details and contradictions

We distinguish basically two different
types. On the one hand there
are the Plérodienique boxes with

Plérodienique No. 11025 in the collection of Peter and Jacqueline Both.

a fixed cylinder. The Museum fuer
Musikautomaten in Seewen and the
Nagamori Culture Foundation each
have an example in their collection.
The cylinder is about 42 centimeters
long with a diameter of 6.5 centimeters
and it plays six revolutions in just
under 6 minutes. On the other hand,
there are the Plérodienique music
boxes with interchangeable cylinders
in two sizes, 42 centimeters and 53.5
centimeters with a diameter of 5.5
centimeters and 6.5 centimeters,
respectively. The cases were individually
manufactured according to taste.
Probably, they were not only made in
Ste Croix, but also in England. The
exact release date of the first boxes
of this genre is by no means clear.
According to Arthur W.J.G. Ord-Hume,
a Plérodienique was presented at the
1862 London Industrial Exhibition. A

closer study of the sources, however,
reveals that John E.T. Clark already
wrote in his book, published in 1948,
that Messers Paillard of Ste. Croix
presented a very large and elaborate
music box with a greatly improved
cylinder exchange system in London
in 1862. It was the largest and most
complicated music box ever seen in
this country, with six telescopic interchangeable
cylinders. Clark examined
this instrument and further notes that
the cylinder was 53 centimeters long
and “The Barber of Seville” could be
heard on one and on another “Invitation
à la Valse.” Although both works
were composed long before, one
must assume that Clark was mistaken
about the date and that the whole
thing probably took place 15–20 years
later. Probably, Ord-Hume’s statement
was also based on Clark’s dating. It is

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 33

hard to imagine that all Plérodieniques
still in existence are attributed to
the period between 1880 and 1890,
implying that it took 20 years before
this type was built in larger numbers.
Paillard’s company history would also
contradict this. According to Laurent
Tissot, the Paillard brothers were
bankrupt on Apr. 3, 1861. During the
subsequent liquidation it turned out
that Marius-Justin Paillard from New
York was also involved in the bankruptcy
because of some real estate.
It was agreed to continue producing
music boxes and to establish a rescue
company called C. Paillard & Cie. in
1865. The new company flourished
not least because of Amédée Paillard’s
inventions, such as a new, simpler
exchangeable cylinder system, the
Sublime Harmonie and the so-called
revolver system. The Plérodienique
was another such new development.
In 1873, it was possible to pay back the
debts and the Paillard brothers were
rehabilitated at the court in Grandson
in 1874. Be that as it may, it is very
difficult to find reliable time sources.
Patent offices were partly established
later: France in 1792 (1900), USA in
1836, England in 1852, Germany in
1877 and Switzerland in 1888. Other
music box patents can be found from
1869 on.

Jere Ryder of the Morris Museum
recalls the following incident that
supports this thesis.

“I recall about 40 years ago,
during a visit to Guinness’ residence
by Speelklok Exec. Dir. Dr.
Jan Jaap Haspels, Jan Jaap related
to Murtogh & ourselves the story of
after having purchased their piece,
they proceeded to remove the heavy
mirror inside the lid, because the

backing material had been chafing
against the silvered side so much
so as to create heavy wear & silver
losses. As they removed the mirror,
hand fulls of old account ledger paper
fell out. To their surprise & pleasure,
they were original business debtor’s
journals, sort of an original version of
local business credit reports, a TRW of
their day. They were all from & about
London businesses & craftsmen, who
owed how much, when & to whom.

Murtogh, Jan Jaap & ourselves
looked at Murtogh’s mirror and sure
enough, there were distinct demarcation
lines of paper edges, wearing at
the mirrors rear silvered side. After
a brief discussion, we went ahead
& removed the mirror & discovered
exactly the same London debtors
journals used as packing on this
box. I seem to recall they were dated
between 1882-84, but can’t be certain.
Murtogh saved these brittle papers in
a drawer at the house, but upon his
passing they were sadly all tossed
out by contractors clearing “old stuff”
deemed unimportant.”

We have recently learned that the
papers actually still exist and have
been examined and preserved in
England with Murtogh Guinness’s
permission and will be returned to the
Morris Museum in due course.

Thanks to the long playing time of
about 6 minutes, the Plérodienique
music boxes were suitable for playing
longer pieces of music, especially
overtures, complex pieces that could
be arranged artfully. It is not surprising
that the William Tell Overture is part
of the repertoire in almost every copy.
Unfortunately for us, we have not yet
been able to make an inventory of all
the music pieces of all 18 examples.

This research is not always easy, but
thanks to colleagues, the various
museums and the internet, one can
get a lot of information within a short
time. It would be nice if readers of this
article would provide me with even
more information. By the way, there
must be two more examples. One with
a fixed cylinder, which was offered in
an auction as lot number 162.

As stated in the catalog it plays an
overture (probably Der Freischütz)
and Tales from the Vienna Woods.
According to a contemporary witness,
more than 30 years ago the movement
was separated from the case, installed
in a crystal case and sold to the Middle
East. The other specimen, the Horie
Orgel Museum Plérodienique in Chippendale
Barley twist style with seven
large cylinders (53.5 centimeters by

6.5 centimeters), was offered for sale
in 1996. Please do not hesitate to point
out any errors in my research or to
share your findings with me.
Outlook

Unfortunately, due to their complexity
and the length of the music pieces,
these music boxes are rather less
suitable for a museum tour and are
thus usually relegated to inactivity
in a quiet corner, in contrast to the
specimens in private collections.
However, the Museum of Music
Automatons in Seewen is planning
a special exhibition, “Jeu continu…
Swiss Music Boxes in a Class of their
Own” from Oct. 1, 2021 to Apr. 24,
2022, with masterpieces from its own
collections and those of other collections
in Switzerland and abroad. I am
convinced that music box lovers will
be delighted.

References

Special thanks go to the following persons
and institutions who helped with information
and thus made this article possible:

Alison Biden, Dave and Carol Beck, Raphael
Lüthi (Museum für Musikautomaten in
Seewen), Jere Ryder (Morris Museum, New
Jersey), Marieke Lefeber (Museum Speelklok,

Utrecht), Norm Dolder, Dwight Porter, Bob
Yates, Johan Goyvaerts, Michel Bourgoz, Denis
Margot, Reto Breitenmoser, Laurence Fisher,
Jean-Marc Lebout, Ralph J. Schultz, Lawrence
Crawford, Mark Yaffe, Marty Persky, Paul
Bellamy, Kyle B. Irwin (Nethercutt Collection),
David Worrall, Hana Matsuura, Bonhams NY,
Taizou Murakami, Joji Funakijo, Sachiko
Kawano, Mechanical Music, MBSGB, SFMM,
“The Musical Box” by Arthur W.J.G. Ord-Hume,

“Origin and Development of the Music Box” by

L.G. Jaccard 1938, “Musical Boxes, A History
and an Appreciation” by John E.T. Clark,
published in 1948, “The Curious History of
Music Boxes” by Roy Mosoriak, published in
1943, E. Paillard & Cie, S.A. “Une Entreprise
Vaudoise,” by Laurent Tissot, published in
1987.
34 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

Listing of the Plérodienique music boxes known to us
(and their repertoire, as far as known):

1. Bayernhof Plérodienique No. 21296 (Bayernhof-Museum, Pittsburgh, PA)
A large music box with three existing cylinders 53.5 pieces each and the third cylinder plays two pieces with

centimeters by 6.5 centimeters. Two cylinders play three a total playing time of 6.5 minutes per cylinder.
Of course, this music box also has an eventful history
in the U.S., which can be traced back to Lloyd Kelly
(founding member and first vice president of MBSI and
also former owner of the brand “Regina Music Box”).
In 1948 Kelly sold the movement and cylinders to a
collector in Kentucky who later resold it to the American
restorer and collector couple Carol and Dave Beck. The
Becks completely overhauled the movement and passed
it on to Norman Dolder and Bill Griffin in Florida. These
two commissioned Dwight Porter, of Porter Music Box
Co., to make a new case for the previously loose musical
movement, modeled on the box in the CIMA in Ste-Croix.
The completed music box was finally sold this year to the
Bayernhof Museum in Pittsburgh, PA (former residence
of Charlie Brown). Unfortunately for us researchers, we
do not know the music repertoire yet.

2. Beck Plérodienique No. 198829 (8833) (Private collection)
An elegant piece of
medium size inlaid
mahogany case on
table. There are eight
cylinders measuring
42 centimeters by 5.5
centimeters, which
play a total of 13
pieces. An original
melody card with the
inscription “Nouveau
Système — Ouvertures
Completes” by

P.V.F. is preserved. A
nickel-plated plate
next to the playing plate shows the following engraving:
Paillard Vaucher & Co. / Manufacturers, / Ste. Croix / & /
London. / P.V.F.
The table with curved black legs has two drawers, each
with space for four cylinders. The music box was bought
by Clarence Fabel (founding member and first treasurer
of MBSI) in 1948 in an antique store in the Georgetown
neighborhood of Washington, D.C. It was later repaired
by him. After Clarence passed away, his wife, Marguerite,

sold it to Carol and Dave Beck in 1993. The repairs they
made to this machine were to clean the mechanism
(except for all the cylinders), replace one tooth and
damper the combs. They also built a safety check which
is an exact replica of the ones on Paillard music boxes.

Cyl. Program

1 Les Diamants De La Couronne, Ouverture, Auber

2 Semiramis, Ouverture, Rossini

3 Fra Diavolo, Ouverture, Auber

4 Le Barbier de Seville, Ouverture, Rossini

5 Invitation à la Valse, Weber

6 Freischütz, Ouverture, Weber& Geschichten aus dem
Wienerwald, Valse, Strauss

7 Norma, Casta Diva, Bellini & Il Travatore, Miserere,
Verdi & Pardon de Ploermel, Ombre Legere, Meyerbeer

8 Les Noces d’Olivette, Valse, Audran & Les Contes
d’Hoffmann, Barcarolle, Offenbach & Orphée aux
Enfers, Galop, Offenbach

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 35

3. Both Plérodienique No. 11025 (private collection)
Display piece in English
oak case, on carved chest of
drawers with pediment. Ten
cylinders of 42 centimeters
length and 5.5 centimeters
diameter, a total of 16 pieces
of music. No tune card available,
but the repertoire is
widely known and includes
Chopin and Liszt. The
music box was owned by
the unknown first owner in
England until the 1920s and
was sold to a Dyke family
at that time. Since 1974 the machine was no longer
playable. In Spring 2020, Belgian dealer Johan Goyvaerts
acquired the rare object. He made the musical work
playable again by a first restoration measure. By lucky
coincidence, we, Jacqueline and Peter Both, were able to
secure the rare piece for our collection. Michel Bourgoz
carried out further restoration work last summer, so that
the music box now plays perfectly again. Exceptional is
the Longue-Marche drive with four coupled spring housings.
Although made by Paillard, a plaque by J. Manger /

Geneva London decorates the inside of the lid.

Cyl. No. Program
1 11257 Les Diamants de la Couronne, Ouverture,
Auber
2 11258 Wilhelm Tell, Ouverture, Rossini
3 11259 Fra Diavolo, Ouverture, Auber
4 11260 Semiramis, Ouverture, Rossini
5 11261 Grand Valse Brillante, Chopin & Mazurka No.
5 Chopin
6 11262 La Radieuse, Valse Op. 72, Gottschalk & ???
unknown
7 11263 Rigoletto, Bella Figlia dell’Verdi & ???
unknown
8 11264 Olivette, Valse, Audran & Les Contes
d’Hoffmann, Barcarolle, Offenbach & Athalia
March, Mendelssohn
9 11265 Leonore, Ouverture No. 3, Beethoven
10 11266 Ungarische Rhapsodie No. 2, Schiller Marsch,
Meyerbeer & Liszt

4. Musée des Arts et Sciences (MAS) de Ste-Croix Plérodienique No. 104914 (exhibited at the Musée
CIMA, Ste Croix)
Imposing, curved music box table in Louis XV style.
Two existing cylinders 53.5 centimeters by 6.5 centimeters.
According to tradition it is the last Plérodienique
ever made by Paillard. The technical design with a
centrifugal governor for speed regulation suggests that
this movement was only made around 1900, which is
considerably later than the other known Plérodieniques.
Until 1960, this music box was part of the company’s own
product collection. After that, the music box went to the
local museum of Sainte-Croix (MAS). Two tune cards
with the music program of the corresponding cylinders
are available.

Cylinder 1 # 18540: Freyschutz, Ouverture, von Weber
& Geschichten aus dem Wienerwald, Valse, Strauss

Cylinder 2 # 13204 Rhaposdie Hongroise, Liszt & Hochzeitsmarsch,
Mendelssohn

36 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

5. Crawford Plérodienique No. 6999 (private collection)
Francis and Esther Crawford,
founding members of MBSI in
1949 and parents of the current
owner Lawrence, purchased this
exceptional piece in the 1940s
from Lloyd Kelly of Hannover, MA.
It has four cylinders of 42 centimeters
length and 5.5 centimeters
in diameter. This is the only Plérodienique
with a reference to an
English patent Sublime Harmonie
1874, a rather early Plérodienique
with interchangeable cylinders.
The Crawfords are collectors of
the first order who kept Jaccard’s
articles and collected many
exceptional music boxes.

6. Musée d’Art et d’Histoire de Genève Plérodienique No. 18761
Music box in a very simple design, it was part of the
estate of Etienne Blyelle. Originally without a table; it
comes with five cylinders of 53.5 centimeters length and

6.5 centimeters diameter and zither.
The tune cards assign the music box the number
12230. The number 18761, on the other hand, is stamped
into a holder of the mechanism. The musical repertoire

is also nothing unusual. Something special, however, are
the recordings of Etienne. In 1994, he described how
he played two of his cylinders on the Seewen box and
vice versa to check whether the cylinders were indeed
“interchangeable”.

The five cylinders play the following 10 pieces

Cyl. No. Program
1 13202 Le Pardon de Ploermel, Ombre légère, Meyerbeer
& Il Trovatore, Choeur des forgerons,
Verdi & Il Trovatore, Stride la vampa, Verdi &
La Norma, Casta Diva, Bellini
2 16790 Les Diamants de la Couronne, Ouverture,
Auber
3 18537 Le Barbier de Seville, Ouverture, Rossini
4 18541 Valse Brillante, No. 1 Op 18, Chopin & Johns
Mazurka No. 5, Chopin
5 18763 Rigoletto, Quatuor, Verdi & Ernani, Septuor,
Verdi

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 37

7. Guinness Plérodienique No. 10277 The Murtogh D. Guinness collection of mechanical musical instruments
and automatons, Morris Museum, Morristown, NJ
Extraordinary music box table, made around 1885, in
the style of Napoleon III, with inlays in chased brass,
mother-of-pearl and tortoiseshell (boulle technique) and
gilded applications. In my opinion, together with the twin

from Utrecht, the most beautiful case of a Plérodienique.
The preserved tune card from P.V.F. also points out the
constructive peculiarities of the musical work:

“Le seul Système permettant de jouer des Ouvertures
entières sans interruption” and “Nouveau Système
perfectionné. Jouant des Ouvertures completes.”

There are six cylinders of 42 centimeters length and

5.5 centimeters diameter with nine different melodies:
Cyl. Program

1 Freyschütz, Ouverture, Weber & Geschichten aus dem
Wiener Wald, Waltz, Strauss

2 Le Barbier de Seville, Ouverture, Rossini

3 Sémiramis, Ouverture, Rossini

4 Guillaume Tell, Ouverture, Rossini

5 La Norma, Cavatine, Bellini & Il Trovatore, Miserere, Verdi &
Pardon de Ploermel, Ombre légère, Meyerbeer

6 Invitation à la Valse, rondo-valse, Weber

8. Kiyosato Moeginomura Plérodienique (Kiyosato Moeginomura Museum) No. 18762
Unfortunately for me, I only know this music box from
an article that appeared in Mechanical Music in 1995,
in which the author Coulson Conn praised the Plérodienique
by Joji Funaki and Jun Natori for a cylinder with
the music of Gilbert & Sullivan. The music pieces were:

• March of the Peers from “Iolanthe”
• If You Go In trio from “Iolanthe”
• Tit Willow from “Mikado”
• I Have a Song To Sing, Oh! from “Yeomen of the
Guard
I hope to learn more soon. It must be a later copy,
since Yeomen of the Guard was not composed until 1888.

38 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

9. Nagamori Rechange Plérodienique (Nagamori Culture Foundation Collection)
This example comes on a desk / ladies’ secretary Louis

XV. It once belonged to Dr. Byron Merrick (founding
member and first president of MBSI).
Byron’s collection was sold in 1986 at Wolf’s Gallery
in Cleveland, OH. This piece was purchased by Graham
Webb for Mr. Namura in Japan. After the closure of
the Orugoru no Chiisana Hakubutsukan Museum, the
collection was sold to Shigenobu Nagamori, founder and
chairman of Nidec-Sankyo, which manufactures music
boxes, among other things. A new museum for music
boxes is planned in Kyoto and should be ready and
house the collection in 2021, which is unfortunately not
accessible at the moment.

There are six cylinders of 42 centimeters length and

5.5 centimeters diameter with nine different melodies:
Cyl. Program

1 Les Diamants de la Couronne, Overture, Auber

2 Guillaume Tell, Overture, Rossini

3 La Norma, Bellini & Il Trovatore, Miserere, Verdi & Sémiramis,
Rossini

4 Rhapsodie hongroise, Liszt & Schiller Marche, Meyerbeer

5 Les Huguenots, Bénédiction, Meyerbeer & Bahn frei, Polka,
Strauss & La Fiammina Mazurka & Petersburg Champagne
Galop

6 Olivette Valse, Audran & Les Contes d’Hoffmann, Barcarolle,
Offenbach & Athalia Marche, Mendelssohn

10. Nagamori Plérodienique with fixed cylinder (Nagamori Culture Foundation Collection)
This music box probably corresponds in type and
execution to that of Seewen: the tune card of the Pail-
lard company mentions, in addition to the designation
“Sublime Harmonie Piccolo / Système Plérodienique
jouant sans Interruption en 6 Tours,” the only piece
played by this music box is “Les Diamants de la
Couronne,” an overture by D.F.E. Auber, composed in
1841. The cylinder is not interchangeable in this work.
May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 39

11. Nethercutt Plérodienique (The Nethercutt Collection, Sylmar, CA)
A beautiful specimen, the case was probably
completely rebuilt because the box was damaged in an
earthquake. We know very few details as the museum is
not very willing to give information. The restorer, David
Wells, said the complete mechanism is nickel plated.
12. Pitt Rivers Plérodienique No. 24190 (Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford)
This Plérodienique is unfortunately not accessible to
the public. The Pitt-Rivers Museum in Oxford, England,
is part of Oxford University and has housed its anthropological
and archaeological collection since 1884. No
wonder that mechanical music does not enjoy top priority.
The music boxes are stored in a depot and will be
moved further in the course of the reorganization of the
museum. Nevertheless, it is worthwhile to have a look at
some details of this box.

According to museum staff, there are two versions of
the museum catalog that are not 100 percent consistent.
The box was acquired in 1943 (i.e. during the Second
World War) from the estate of an A.J.A. Symons; at
that time two different catalogs were kept in case one
of them was destroyed by enemy action. A separate
museum piece consists of a chest of drawers (not
matching the actual music box), which contains further
Plérodienique cylinders. It is assumed that they belong to
this mechanism. Since they are inaccessible, neither the
melodies nor the exact number are known. The number
on the ends of the cylinders that were visible seem to
correspond to the number on the end of the cylinder in Mozart, Wenzel Mueller. Indeed, when Mozart’s works
situ in the box. According to the catalogs, there could be were first catalogued by Ludwig von Koechel in the early
three or six additional cylinders to those listed on the 1860s, he was unsure of the authenticity and assigned it
tune card attached to the inside of the lid. Chilcott and to an annex in his catalogue published at the time.
Co. in Bristol, England, were the sales agents. Before

A.J.A. Symons, the music box belonged to a Colonel
Cyl. Program

H. Biden, who ordered it in Bristol and whose heirs
1 Kyrie (6 turns)

subsequently sold it to A.J.A. Symons. The case is simple
and not dissimilar to that of the Plérodienique in Geneva 2 Gloria (4 turns) & Qui Tollis (2 turns)
and Seewen. It comes with six cylinders measuring 53

3 Quoniam (4¼ turns) & Cum sancto spiritu (1¾ turns)

centimeters long and 6.5 centimeters diameter.

4 Credo (1¼ turns) & Et incarnatus est (2 turns) & Et

The tune plaque for this Plérodienique declares the

resurrexit (2¾ turns)

music on its six cylinders are arrangements of Mozart’s
12th Mass. Today, however, following detailed study and 5 Sanctus (1 turn) & Benedictus (5 turns)
research, this Mass is now considered by the musical

6 Agnus Dei (2¼ turns) & Dona nobis (3 ¾ turns)

authorities as being the work of a contemporary of

40 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

13. Rosenberg Plérodienique No. 15229 (private collection)
An exceptional piece in a carved case of solid mahogany
wood, with matching table. Cases of this kind are
automatically associated with the late Idéal Interchangeable
Music Boxes by Mermod Frères, which were very
often sold in similar cases in America. Here too, Mermod
is mentioned as the manufacturer, but this seems highly
doubtful. It is also stated that the music box was sold
around 1894 by Samuel Troll (Geneva).

There are four cylinders with a length of 53.5 centimeters
for the music box. I do not know the pieces. The
music box is owned by S. Rosenberg and once belonged
to Mark Yaffe and before him to Marty Roenigk, who
acquired it from a household liquidation.

14. Seewen Interchangeable Plérodienique 16783 (Museum für Musikautomaten, Seewen)
The museum founder and collector Heinrich
Weiss-Stauffacher acquired his large Plérodienique via

H.P. Kyburz from the English collector Jack Donovan,
ca. 1978–1980. Originally, this music box was probably
accompanied by a table with a drawer for the exchangeable
cylinders. There are two cylinders 53.6 centimeters
by 6.7 centimeters. Cylinder two contains tunes from the
opera “Dorothy by Cellier” but the music on the other
cylinders is not yet identified. The music box is listed
in the inventory of the Museum of Music Automatons
under the number MMA 71697.
15. Seewen Plérodienique fixed Cylinder 12257 (Museum für Musikautomaten, Seewen)
The Museum of Music Automatons in Seewen also
owns a beautiful simple Plérodienique with a fixed
cylinder and at the same time the only known music
box whose tune sheet states, “G. Mermod & Bornand,
Successeurs d’Albert Jeanrenaud.” The carefully
hand-labeled sheet does not give any information about
the music played. The cylinder of this music box has
the dimensions 42.1 centimeters by 6.2 centimeters and
plays two pieces at the usual six revolutions. The first
one is not yet determined, the second is the “Olivette –
Valse” from the opera “Les Noces d’Olivette von Edmond
Audran,” composed in 1879, which can be heard on
numerous Plérodieniques. It also features an artistically
chiseled Zither. The music box is listed as MMA 71696 in
the inventory of the Museum of Music Automatons.

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 41

16. Utrecht Interchangeable Plérodienique 9735 (Museum Speelklok, Utrecht)
The exterior of the case in Napoleon III style is inlaid
with boulle inlays, a technique named after André
Charles Boulle who introduced it in the first half of the
17th century. Here this technique was used on ebonized
ground by inlaying engraved brass, ivory and mother-of-
pearl. This extremely luxurious music box has a large
musical repertoire due to the many additional cylinders
that are safely stored in its drawers. There are three
versions of the tune card.
This Plérodienique was the star of the Sotheby’s
Belgravia auction on Jun. 9, 1977, and fetched a record
price of approximately 60,000 Swiss Francs (or $64,943
U.S. dollars).
At Museum Speelklok there are nine cylinders of 42
centimeters length and 5.5 centimeters diameter with 14
different pieces of music.
Cyl. Program
1 Les Diamants de la Couronne, Overture
2 Le Barbier de Séville Overture
3 Sémiramis Overture
4 Fra Diavolo Overture
5 Invitation à la Valse
6 Guillaume Tell Overture
7 1. La Norma Casta Diva; 2. Il Trovatore Miserere; 3.
Dinorah, Ombre Légère
Cyl. Program
8 1. Les Noces d’Olivette Waltz; 2. Contes d’Hoffmann
Barcarole; 3. Orphée aux Enfers Galop
9 1. Valse Brillante, Chopin 2. Mazurka, Chopin
17. Virginia Plérodienique (Virginia Musical Museum, Williamsburg, VA)
The Museum purchased the music box from an
industrialist, the founder of the first Smithfield Ham Co.,
who bought it from the fourth-generation nephew of
President James Madison. The case is very similar to the
Nagamori box. Although there is only one cylinder left,
the still existing original piece list allows us to present
all the titles.

Cyl. Program

1 Maritana, 3 Stücke, Wallace

2 Il Trovatore, 4 Stücke, Verdi

3 Erminie, 3 Stücke, Jakobowski

4 Dorothy, 3 Stücke, Cellier

5 Ungarische Rhapsodie, Liszt & Schiller, Marsch,
Meyerbeer

6 Le Barbier de Seville, Ouverture, Rossini

42 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

Museum of Music Automatons to host
Plérodienique special exhibition

Manufacturers along the Swiss
Jura arc once produced large and
exceptional music boxes, either for
exhibitions or on order. Technical
innovations made it possible to
play long pieces of music without
interruption – a novelty in those
days. The “Plérodienique” category
of music boxes, together with music
boxes featuring “hélicoïdal” and
“semi-hélicoïdal” tracking, are true
masterpieces of Swiss manufacture
that quicken the pulse of collectors
and enthusiasts around the globe. The
elegant musical furniture of the Belle
Époque offered a blend of precision
mechanics and particularly impressive
musical performance encased in
a dignified exterior.

The Museum of Music Automatons
in Seewen near Basel, Switzerland,
is the first in the world to showcase
the diversity of these rare exhibits
in a remarkable special exhibition
beginning Oct. 1, 2021 and extending
through Apr. 24, 2022.

Outstanding items from the museum’s
collection will be supplemented
by loans from private collectors and
museums in Europe. The exhibition
marks the first time some of the items
will be on public display.

An international collectors’ meeting
will be held at the Museum of Music
Automatons on Oct. 2, 2021, in partnership
with the Swiss Friends of
Mechanical Music SFMM.

The international collectors’
meeting will provide an opportunity
for visiting – and experiencing in the
presence of recognized experts – the
Museum of Music Automatons and,
in particular, the special exhibition
titled, “Jeu continu…” Rounding out
the event will be brief presentations,
talks and a glimpse of the museum’s
extensive collection.

A program, information and registration
for the collectors’ meeting
in Seewen can be found at www.
musikautomaten.ch or request
information by email from musikautomaten@
bak.admin.ch

Detail of a large « Plérodienique » musical box, C. Paillard & Cie., Sainte-Croix c.
1890MMA-71697 (© Seewen Museum of Music Automatons)

Large musical box on matching table with interchangeable
cylinders for continuous playing
(semi-hélicoïdal system). François Conchon,
Geneva c. 1894MMA-97706 (© Seewen Museum of
Music Automatons).

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 43

Organilleros

The Organ Grinders of Mexico

By Dr. Robert Penna, Ph.D

magine you are on vacation and decide to travel
outside the United States. As you wander the
streets in this foreign land, you note how different
things are from your hometown. Few signs are
written in English and passersby are speaking in
a language you recognize but cannot understand.
As you follow the map graciously provided by
your hotel clerk, you walk the labyrinth streets
to each historic location in the old town when
suddenly you hear the high-pitched sounds of an
out-of-tune street organ. More interested in seeing
and hearing this instrument, you delay your visit
to yet another cathedral and follow the sounds.

An organillero plays for passing crowds at a tourist
attraction in Mexico City. Photo by Marco Antonio
Gómez/Flickr

Organilleros ply their trade on the
streets of Mexico City. Above,
Photo by Israel Gonzalez/Flickr. Right,
Photo by Organilleros de Mexico/
Facebook.

There in the plaza directly across
from a venerable old church stands
a uniformed man patiently grinding
away at a barrel organ. Certainly, this
must be Europe, the birthplace of
player street organs and pianos, but
no, this is Mexico City.

Wearing an official cap and dressed
in a beige uniform with a Mexican flag
emblazoned on his chest and a red
silhouette of a bullfighter on his back,
the organillero patiently turns a crank
as the crowds walk around him. Few
seem to stop and even fewer toss him
a coin or two for his efforts. Once quite
popular, Mexico City’s organ grinders
are no longer in vogue and almost
certainly only tolerated by the public.

At the end of the 19th century, most
barrel organs in Mexico were imported
from Germany and were an instant hit

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 45

An organillera walks home, instrument slung across her back after a days work.
Photo by Organilleros de Mexico/Facebook

with the wealthy. Often used for entertainment
at private parties, they were
looked upon as the height of fashion.
As time progressed, the barrel organ
music became prized by the general
public as well. Organ grinders made
their way through the streets and were
welcomed by all.1

Many believe that the first barrel
organs arrived when European
circuses came to entertain in Mexico.2
Others believe the first organs were
a gift from the German government
to Mexican president Porfirio Diaz
who held office from 1876–1911.
Later, many instruments were made
in Central and South America.3 At
first, these organs were handed out as
bonuses to reward political favorites
and, perhaps later, to veterans who
had suffered the loss of a limb.

One of the earliest examples of
veterans gaining barrel organs is noted
by Alexander Buchner. He explained
that often barrel organs were given to
amputee veterans so they could earn a
living. This practice appeared as early
as the Seven Years War (1756–1763)
and was especially encouraged in the
German-speaking regions of Europe.
Empress Maria Theresa of Austria
was the first to authorize permits to
crank a Leierkasten (barrel organ) in
public. In 1810, Prussia copied Austria
and issued permits as well.4 American
Union veterans of the Civil War who

had suffered the loss of limbs sometimes
received barrel organs from
church and civic groups to help them
support themselves.5

In the United States, the practice
of organ grinders disappeared almost
entirely as politicians helped pass laws
outlawing their use. The most famous
of these bans was passed by New York
City Mayor Fiorello Henry LaGuardia
who dismissed them as public
nuisances.6 One of his reasons for
the ban was that the playing of these
instruments endangered children by
placing them close to automobile traffic.
He also argued that organ grinders
encouraged begging, and, as the vast
majority of the organ grinders in
New York were Italian, they were the
pawns of Mafia gangsters who rented
them their instruments and locations.7

In Mexico, the practice of organ
grinders had been held in esteem until
fairly recent days. Many of the younger
people fail to see the heritage of and
craft in the organ grinder’s work.
Money formerly given them is now
provided to street acts such as mimes,
musicians, superhero costumed characters
and street acrobats. Not so long
ago, however, the organ grinders of
Mexico were a respected part of the
culture actually receiving government
health and housing benefits.8 Unfortunately
for their ilk, this was one of
the first perks taken from them. Yet,

Above: An organillero is ignored by
most of the crowd around him. Photo by
Eduardo Meza Soto/Flickr

even today, they remain licensed and
unionized.

The decline in donations and
government support has had a negative
impact on the organilleros. In the
past, grinding was a respected occupation,
one that would be a lifelong
vocation and would see instruments
and even locations handed down
through a family. Organilleros often
worked in pairs; while one played a

46 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

Right: An organillero seeks tips from
passersby on the street. Photo by
Eduardo Meza Soto/Flickr

barrel organ, the other would solicit
donations or tend to a merrily dressed
monkey. Nowadays, the organilleros
struggle to make a living. The cost of
repair of the instruments has become
high and many cannot afford the basic
maintenance. This is why the organ
sounds one hears on the streets are
often much out of tune and also a
reason why so many instruments are
no longer owned outright but merely

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 47

rented.

At first the barrel organs played
European music, mostly waltzes
and operatic overtures, but over the
years, Mexican tunes became the
norm. Songs such as “Cielito Lindo”
and “Volver, Volver” were demanded
by the public. And, of course, the
organilleros complied. One waltz
which is a perennial favorite and will
be instantly recognized by most with
different titles is “Sobre las Olas,”
written in 1888 by Juventino Rosas. It
can be heard played on a poorly tuned
barrel organ at https://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=mAry89RLvVA and on a
restored German organ at https://www.
youtube.com/watch?v=9R9I_Oop9Ds.

Many do not realize the pride in
their work felt by these grinders.
They work in hot weather carrying a
heavy instrument and constantly turn
the lever in rhythm appropriate to the
song. No matter how tired or heated
they get, the grinding must remain
consistent.

One local critic of the organilleros
complained that the songs are
endlessly repeated, out of tune, and
dated. He expressed the opinion
that the noises they make should be
banned by the government. Yet many,
especially older citizens, love the
nostalgic atmosphere they create and
praise the grinders’ hard work.9

Reports indicate that there are
fake organ grinders sneaking into the
profession. These are frowned upon
by the professionals. These imposters
carry empty organ cases with a CD

A uniformed organillero plays with his hat out for tips in Mexico City. Photo by
Angélica Portales/Flickr. Facing page, Photo by Alfredo Peñaloza/Flickr

Footnotes:

1 Cocking, Lauren. “Meet Mexico
City’s Street Organ Grinders,” Culture
Trip, June 7, 2017. https://theculturetrip.
com/north-america/mexico/articles/
meet-mexico-citys-street-organ-grinders/

2 “Mexico City’s Organ Grinders Defying
the Changing Times, Keep on Playing”, EFE
News, April 1, 2019 https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=vsJRz-HuPpo

3 Cocking, Lauren. “Meet Mexico
City’s Street Organ Grinders,” Culture
Trip, June 7, 2017. https://theculturetrip.
com/north-america/mexico/articles/
meet-mexico-citys-street-organ-grinders/

player inside. They merely mimic the
actions of the true organilleros.

Fortunately for these true grinders,
during the late 1990s and the early
2000s, the Mexico City Government
launched a project to restore the

4 Buchner, Alexander 1959. Mechanical
Musical Instruments, translated by Iris
Urwin. London: Batchworth.

5 Penna, Robert “The Barrel Organ and the
Disabled Civil War Veteran,” MBSI Journal,
Musical Box Society International Journal,
May/June 2018

6 Penna, Robert “Organ Grinders, the Mayor
and Cartoons of the 1930’s,” MBSI Journal,
Musical Box Society International, January/
February 2018

7 Yavner, Louise “Why La Guardia Put an
End to Organ Grinding,” letter to the editor
of The New York Times, January 5, 1982. Ms.

historic city center. The plan also
called for preserving the organ grinders
as an institution. Perhaps there
is hope that this fascinating piece of
culture will continue to endure for
both locals and foreign visitors.

Yavner was the president of the La Guardia
Centennial and his former Commissioner of
Investigation.

8 Markowitz, Martin “Mexico’s Organ
Grinders dwindle in Popularity,” CCTV-America
report, https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=YZlykOmm8ag

9 Ahmed, Azam, “Mexico City’s Organ
Grinders Once Beloved, Feel Shunned,” New
York Times, September 12, 2016. https://
www.nytimes.com/2016/09/13/world/
americas/mexico-city-organ-grinders.
html?smid=fb-nytimes&smtyp=cur&fbclid=IwAR3kGaH4CBmmw_
OyBbuj6LpmAlbtXOhXcNeTKJXvllnY0MbuDFPoUcHXCkQ

48 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 49

In Memoriam In Memoriam
Don Lundry – 1936-2021

By Paul Senger

I am sad to announce the passing
of National Capital Chapter member
Donald “Don” W. Lundry of Locust
Grove, VA, at home, at the age of 84 on
Sunday Feb. 14. Don loved activities
with MBSI and Automatic Musical
Instrument Collectors’ Association and
was an avid collector of music boxes
and player pianos. Don and Peggy
“Peg” Lundry were regular attendees
at chapter events, annual meetings,
and were major contributors to the
2011 MBSI Annual Meeting including
serving as a tour bus captains. Don
was always cheerful with wonderful
stories, jokes and mischiefs.

Don had been dealing with multiple
illnesses, privately at home for about a
year, with the help of doctors, in-home
health aides, hospice, and his loving
wife of 12 years, Peg.

Don’s many interests included
reading, bridge, music, and travel.
Don’s love of books and reading,
particularly science fiction, led him
to join the New York Science Fiction

Society in the early 1970s. He chaired
multiple science fiction conventions
around the world. Most recently, Don
joined the county library board as
their Member-at-Large. As a bridge
player he reached LifeTime Bridge
Master status. His travels included
a European honeymoon on a Vespa
motorbike and multiple cruises.

Over the years he worked for IBM,
General Electric, and other firms as a
software engineer and manager. Don
served his country as a U.S. Army
Reservist in the Signal Corps for
approximately 30 years achieving the
rank of colonel. He was particularly
proud of his graduation from the U.S.
Army War College.

Previously, Don was married to
Grace Campbell Lundry for 40 years
before her passing in 2003. Don is
survived by his wife Peg and his three
children, 10 grandchildren and three
sisters.

Don will return to Illinois, to his
birthplace for a private burial.

Our condolences go out to Peg and
the family.

Bus Captains Don and Peg at the 2011
Annual Meeting.

Peg and Don at the 2014 MBSI Annual
Meeting.

Andy Ware – 1943-2021

It is with great sadness that we friends.
report the death of long-time Sunbelt After owning and operating a phar-
Chapter member Andy Ware. macy in California and a wholesale

Andy and Frances made the long greenhouse in Florida, Andy and Fran-
trek from Boerne, FL, to almost every ces retired to Boerne, where Andy had
Sunbelt meeting. He will certainly be space and time to pursue his hobbies
missed. of mechanical musical instruments,

Our thoughts and prayers are with plants, antique clocks and Model T
Frances and the rest of his family and Fords.

Frances and Andy Ware at a 2020
Sunbelt Chapter meeting.

MBSI has also learned that Henry Childs has passed away. Our most sincere condolences are extended to his family.

50 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

Golden Gate Chapter

Chair: Jonathan Hoyt
Reporters: Chuck and Peggy Shoppe
Photographers: Marc Kaufman, Chuck
and Peggy Shoppe, Bob and Judy
Caletti, Alan and Mary Erb

Mar. 21, 2021 – Zoom

A small, but mighty, group of Golden
Gate Chapter members had a Zoom
chapter meeting on Sunday, Mar. 21.
We began with a discussion of the
joint Musical Box Society International/
Automatic Musical Instrument
Collectors’ Association convention set
for 2022, followed by a brief business
meeting led by Jonathan Hoyt, and
then the real fun started.

There was plenty of socializing as
we gathered together for the first time
in more than a year. The music started
with a virtual trip to Minnesota and the
viewing of a video documentary from
the Kiven Lukes collection. He shared
many pristinely-restored instruments
including a Steinway grand reproducing
piano, a Seeburg cabinet piano,
a 27-inch Regina changer, a cylinder
music box, a roller organ, and other
musical instruments in his collection.
When his collection outgrew his
house, he built a very large hall/music
room where friends could gather to
share the enthusiasm and music.

Our chapter members shared their
treasures too. Marc Kaufman played
his rare Sirion 19-inch disc shifting
upright music box. Gordon Ulrickson
played a lovely early key-wind cylinder
box. Chuck and Peggy Shoppe played
a Decap self-playing accordion and a
newly acquired 18½-inch Mira console
grand music box. We were also joined
by Alan and Mary Erb! It was the first
time many of us had seen Alan and
Mary since they moved to Nevada.
They played a large upright Regina
27-inch disc box and a small barrel
organ. Bob and Judy Caletti played a
Boogie Woogie song on their Seeburg
H with a recently added MIDI system.

All in all, it was a great meeting!

Above: Chuck and Peggy Shoppe’s
Decap accordion, alongside a Kalliope
musical box.

Left: Alan Erb plays a small barrel organ
from his collection.

(More photos on Page 52)

Closed and open views of Chuck and Peggy Shoppe’s newly-acquired 18½-inch Mira console disc box.

Marc Kaufman’s rare 19-inch Sirion
upright disc-shifting music box.

Bob Caletti with his Seeburg H, playing a Boogie Woogie tune.

52 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

Photography tips

When taking photos at your chapter meeting or other
MBSI gathering, remember these simple tips to get great
images for the rest of the membership to enjoy.

1. If someone is looking at a musical instrument, ask them
to turn and look at you while you take the picture. It’s
always better to see someone’s face rather than the
back of their head.
2. When taking a picture of a person and a musical instrument,
ask the person to step slightly to the side of the
instrument so that you can capture their face and the
instrument at the same time. It’s great to see people
enjoying wonderful instruments, but it’s even better
when the beauty of the instrument isn’t blocked by
bodies.
3. Try to get people “in action” while they are enjoying the
music. Some of the most natural smiles and enjoyable
photos happen when people aren’t aware they are being
photographed.
4. Don’t be afraid to snap a shot with your cell phone
camera. This is a great way to capture a spontaneous
photo and most cell phone cameras take photos that are
large enough to reproduce in the magazine.
Advertise in The Mart

Have some spare parts or extra rolls taking up the space
where you should be installing your next acquisition?
Ready to trade up, but need to sell one of your current
pieces first? Get the word out to other collectors by
advertising in The Mart, an effective advertising tool at an
inexpensive price.

Go online to place your advertisement at www.mbsi.org,
fill out the form below, or contact Russell Kasselman at

(253) 228-1634 to get started. You may also email advertisements
to editor@mbsi.org
May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 53

* Wurlitzer Style 153 Duplex
Military Band Organ
* Cremona K * Wurlitzer Style C Decap Dance Organ
* Nicole Frères Overture Music Box
* Hupfeld Universal * Mills Violano Virtuoso
Grand Deluxe
Biedermeier Style 34 Ruth & Söhne
Fairground Organ

* Bontems Bird Cage
Automatons Weber Unika

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The Organette Book
ISBN 978-0-9557869-5-2
colour throughout;Additional Illustrations of Models; Additions to Lists of The Organette Book
ISBN 978-0-9557869-5-2
colour throughout;Additional Illustrations of Models; Additions to Lists of
The Musical Box Society of Great Britain announces the publication of two new books
Published in September 2018

100pp Hard Back ISO A4 format [8.27” × 11.70”; Profusely illustrated in

Supplement to

colour throughout with Additional Illustrations of Models, 89 Additional Lid
The Disc Musical Box Pictures Additions to Lists of Models, Patents, Tune Lists & Serial Numbers;
Combined Index of Images in the original book and its Supplement.

Compiled and Edited by
Kevin McElhone

Originally published in 2012 and still available The Disc Musical Box

ISBN 978-0-9557869-6-9

is a compendium of information about Disc Musical Boxes, their Makers and
their Music; profusely illustrated in colour throughout with Illustrations of
each Disk Musical Box Model, and with Catalogue Scans, Lists of Models,
Patents & Tune Lists.

Supplement to

Compiled and Edited by
Kevin McElhone

100pp Hard Back ISO A4 format [8.27” × 11.70”; Profusely illustrated in

Patents, Tune Lists & Tuning Scales; A New Section on Trade Cards;
Combined Index of Images in the original book and its Supplement.

The Organette Book is a compendium of information about Organettes,
their Makers and their Music. Originally published in 2000 but now out of
print although second-hand copies are occasionally available in online
auctions.

************************************************************************************************************************
For all MBSGB Publications, please refer to the Musical Box Society of Great Britain website for further details including latest
availability, discounted prices and information on how to order. -www.mbsgb.org.uk

56 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

(802) 728-9694 (802) 728-9694
Music Box Company, Inc.

We restore Swiss cylinder and disc music boxes.

• Cylinders are repinned if necessary and all worn
parts are rebuilt to original specifications or better.
• Combs are repaired and tuned. Nickel plated parts
are replated as needed.
Trust your prized music box to the finest quality
restoration available. We have been accused of over
restoring! Better over than under I say!

We will pick up your music box anywhere east of the
Mississippi River, and transport it to our shop in
Randolph, Vermont, where it will be stored in a
climate-controlled area until it’s finished and returned.

We have a complete machine shop where we build Porter
Music Boxes, more than 3,000 so far. We are unique in
the industry in that we are capable of manufacturing any
part needed to restore any music box.

See our website, www.PorterMusicBox.com, to read
letters of recommendation and browse a selection of the
finest disc boxes currently being manufactured anywhere
in the world. We have twin disc models, single disc
models with 121/4” or15 1/ “ discs, and table models with
beautiful cabinets created for us in Italy. Also we can

occasions.

P.O Box 424
Randolph, VT 05060

support.

Call (802) 728-9694 or
email maryP@portermusicbox.com

We’re getting our vaccine shots.
We’ve made our plans.
It’s time to make yours!
Fantastic
Collection
Tours
Don’t miss an opportunity to see the Southeast’s premier
collections of mechanical music. This is a once-in-a-lifetime
chance to see and hear these marvelous instruments, live and
in person. These are each “must see” collections.
Amazing instruments! Workshops! The Mart!
Entertainment! Ice Cream Social!
International experts! Local “open houses”
This is going to be a
GREAT convention!
Aug. 30 Sept.
4, 2021
pianos ever made), and the 1876 Dufner Barrel orchestrion with
nine barrels that is one of only three known Dufner instruments.
Also see and hear his replica Seeburg KT Special nickelodeon,
one of about 60 he manufactured in the 1980s! Tour his work-
shop and a display of mechanical music, automata and opera
Registration forms for this meeting will be
in the May/June issue of Mechanical Music.
Fort Myers, Florida
We’re getting our vaccine shots.
We’ve made our plans.
It’s time to make yours!
Fantastic
Collection
Tours
Don’t miss an opportunity to see the Southeast’s premier
collections of mechanical music. This is a once-in-a-lifetime
chance to see and hear these marvelous instruments, live and
in person. These are each “must see” collections.
Amazing instruments! Workshops! The Mart!
Entertainment! Ice Cream Social!
International experts! Local “open houses”
This is going to be a
GREAT convention!
Aug. 30 Sept.
4, 2021
pianos ever made), and the 1876 Dufner Barrel orchestrion with
nine barrels that is one of only three known Dufner instruments.
Also see and hear his replica Seeburg KT Special nickelodeon,
one of about 60 he manufactured in the 1980s! Tour his work-
shop and a display of mechanical music, automata and opera
Registration forms for this meeting will be
in the May/June issue of Mechanical Music.
Fort Myers, Florida
The JANCKO Collections

Joel and Pam Jancko’s “Backyard Museum” features a group
of buildings each with a magical display of Americana from
the Civil War through WWI. The Barn is where you will see
and hear a wide variety of automatic musical instruments,
including an Imhof & Mukle, Seeburg H, Wurlitzer CX, Double
Mills Violano, Cremona K, Weber Unica, Encore Banjo, Model
B Harp, Bruder band organ, Limonaire band organ, Bruder
monkey organ, American Photo Player and classic Mortier, as
well as a variety of cylinder and disc music boxes, organettes
and phonographs. Also walk through a service station, fire
station, bicycle shop, and cinema. In the Annex you will see
rare military artifacts (including a working Gatling gun) and
an authentic log cabin, general store, 1910 soda fountain,
game room and saloon. Outside, explore the fort. Listen to a
performance on the crown jewel of the collection – the OPUS
1616, a 3/23 Wurlitzer Theater Organ, installed in the newly
constructed dance hall.

The EDGERTON Collection

Bill Edgerton’s collection has it all -big and small. It includes
four fairground organs (Gavioli, Bruder, Limonaire and
Gasparini), a large Decap, an Ampico A piano with some
unusual music choices, several special cylinder and disc
boxes, barrel pianos and barrel organs, an Orpheus disc-playing
piano, a Piano Melodico (one of the most ornate 65-note

posters. You must see his framed artwork that smiles at you….
then it doesn’t!

The YAFFE Collection

Find a comfortable couch and enjoy Mark and Christel Ya§e’s
beautifully-appointed venue while listening to their large and
varied group of instruments, including the earliest known
Francois Nicole overture music box plus Falcone, Reymond
Nicole, F Nicole and Nicole grand format overture boxes.
Single overture boxes by Ducommon Girod, Mertert, and
Nicole and a Captains table interchangeable overture cylinder
box with 12 cylinders are on the menu. See rare and unique
automata – a drunk on the bench, a Cambodian dancer (one of
two known), a life size flute player, a Japanese mask seller and
an acrobat. Don’t forget the organs, an 84-key Mortier cafe,
112-key Mortier dance organ, 121-key DeCap dance organ plus
European orchestrions (Marenghi orchestrion, Welte style 3 in
custom case, Weber Otero, Weber violano, Weber Unika,
Popper Roland, Hupfeld universe with moving scene, Hupfeld
Helios 1/31, Phillips Paganini 3 Orchestrion), custom art case
pianos (Kanabe, Mason Hamlin and Chickering); the latest
known Hupfeld Phonolizt Violina; American nickelodeons
(Mills double violano in custom Gothic case, Encore original
(not repo) banjo, Wurlitzer, Violano, Seeburg J with bird pipes,
Nelson Wiggins 6x and 8x, Cremona J and G, Link with endless
roll). And much more!

WWW.REEDERPIANOS.COM • 517-886-9447
Specializing in the Restora on and Retail of Fine Pianos
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Repair and restoration of air powered mechanical music
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Reproduing pianos
Dance organs
Fairground organs
Nickelodeon pianos
Original historically
Correct techniques
And materials used
Throughout in the
Rebuilding process.
Benjamin R Gottfried
464 Dugan Road, Richfield Springs NY 13439
Bensplayerservice.com 315-858-2164
May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 59

A FANTASTIC AUCTION
Antique Music Boxes, Phonographs & Related ItemsAndrew & Harriet Ellis Collection
A FANTASTIC AUCTION
Antique Music Boxes, Phonographs & Related ItemsAndrew & Harriet Ellis Collection
To be held in the Barry Expo Center, on the Barry County Fairgrounds at 1350 N. M-37 Highway,
Hastings, Michigan – 4-1/2 miles northwest of Hastings on M-37 or approx. 20 miles southeast of

Grand Rapids on Beltline/M-37 to the auction location on:

Thursday, Friday & Saturday, September 2, 3 & 4, 2021Thursday starts at 1:00 P.M. following the luncheonFriday and Saturday begin at 9:00 A.M. each dayThis collection is phenomenal and the content is
staggering. Hundreds of machines, rarity afterrarity, and multiples of desirable and sought after
examples about. As found examples acquired and
accumulated by Mr. and Mrs. Ellis over the course

of five decades, makes this an offering that any

collector, museum and investor will not want to
miss.

Regretfully, Mr. Ellis passed away on February 27at the age of 87. This collection is a tribute to his
efforts to acquire and accumulate wonderful and

desirable machines in this field, along with his wife

Harriet during their 68 year marriage.

Plan on attending this terrific event. Call for your

copy of a complete catalog with over 1,000 pictures.

Rare Edison
Class M with
5” mandrel

Rare Multiphone Banjo Model
coin operated 24 cylinder
phonograph

Symphonion Eroica triple disc music
box in the Haydn Model, an extremely

hard to find example.

Steven E. Stanton

144 South Main St., P.O. Box 146 • Vermontville, MI 49096

(517) 331-8150

Phone 517-726-0181 • Fax 517-726-0060
e-mail: stantonsauctions@sbcglobal.net Michael C. Bleisch
website: www.stantons-auctions.com (517) 231-0868

Stanton’s Auctioneers & Realtors conducting auctions throughout Michigan and across the United States since 1954.
Over 7500 sales conducted and 4,000 parcels of real estate sold at auction. Call us to discuss your sale with a firm has the
experience to properly handle the job right for you. Steven E. Stanton, (517) 331-8150, Email – stevenEstanton@gmail.com

FOR SALE
CIRCA 1990s Reuge musical movements

THE MART

never used, in original packaging, pristine

RESTORED MUSICAL BOXES Offering a condition: two 4/50 (45008 & 45079); one

variety of antique musical boxes, discs, 3/72 (37213); and one 3/144 (314403)..

orphan cylinders, reproducing piano rolls & Contact DAVID CROTHERS, at dwcboxes@

out of print books about mechanical music. me.com or 267-280-2376

BILL WINEBURGH 973-927-0484 Web:

Display Advertising Dimensions and Costs
Dimensions 1 issue 3 issues* 6 issues*
Back Cover 8.75” x 11.25” $600 $540 $510
Inside Covers 8.75” x 11.25” $450 $405 $383
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Half Page 7.25” x 4.5” $160 $144 $136
Quarter Page 3.5” x 4.5” $90 $81 $77
Eighth Page 3.5” x 2.125” $50 $45 $43
Add a 10% surcharge to the prices shown above if you are not a member of MBSI.
*Display Discounts shown above are calculated as follows:
3 consecutive ads 10% Discount
6 consecutive ads 15% Discount

ALL ADS MUST BE PREPAID

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instructions. File submission guidelines available on request.

Errors attributable to Mechanical Music, and of a significant nature, will be
corrected in the following issue without charge, upon notification.

CLASSIFIED ADS

• 47¢ per word
• ALL CAPS, italicized and bold
words: 60¢ each.
• Minimum Charge: $11 per ad.
• Limit: One ad in each category
• Format: See ads for style
• Restrictions: Ads are strictly
limited to mechanical musical
instruments and related items and
services
• MBSI member’s name must
appear in ad
• Non-members may advertise at the
rates listed plus a 10% surcharge
PLEASE NOTE:

The first two words (or more
at your choice) and the member’s
name will be printed in all caps/bold
and charged at 60¢ per word.

Mechanical Music

Mechanical Music is mailed to all
members at the beginning of every
odd month — January, March, May,
July, September and November.

MBSI Advertising Statement

It is to be hereby understood
that the placing of advertisements
by members of the Society in this
publication does not constitute nor
shall be deemed to constitute any
endorsement or approval of the business
practices of advertisers. The
Musical Box Society International
accepts no liability in connection
with any business dealings between
members and such advertisers.

It is to be further understood that
members are to rely on their own
investigation and opinion regarding
the reputation and integrity of
advertisers in conducting such business
dealings with said advertisers.

antiquemusicbox.us

THE GOLDEN AGE of AUTOMATIC MUSICAL
INSTRUMENTS By ART REBLITZ.
Award-winning classic that brings historical,
musical, and technical information to life
with hundreds of large, vivid color photos.
We guarantee you’ll find it to be one of the
most interesting, inspiring, informative books
you have in your library–or your money back.
Everyone has been delighted, and some
readers have ordered several copies. Get
your copy today for $99 plus S/H. MECHANICAL
MUSIC PRESS-M, 70 Wild Ammonoosuc
Rd., Woodsville, NH 03785. (603) 747-2636.

http://www.mechanicalmusicpress.com

Each One
Reach One
New Member
REGINA 151/2 MUSIC BOX. Mechanism was
professionally restored. Bought new combs
from Porter and they have been tuned and
installed. Plays as it should. New top reproduced.
Have receipts for work and parts.
$2,100.00. Call JON GULBRANDSON, at
(763) 923 5748

SYMPHONION TWIN DISCS 19 sets of 11
7/8” discs for Symphonion table model twin
disc machine. $600.00. Regina 20 3/4” discs
in good to fair condition. Lot of 12 discs,
$300.00. Contact ART MUELLER, at amuellerjr@
verizon.net or (410) 564-8987.

MILLS VIOLANO – Seriously consider this

SUBMIT ADS TO:

MBSI Ads
130 Coral Court
Pismo Beach, CA 93449
(253) 228-1634
Email: editor@mbsi.org

62 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

one! Choice playing condition, sounds great,
holds tune well, looks great, roll library.
Price reduced to sell, $18,950: CARL FREI
CONCERT FAIR ORGAN, plays Gavioli G4
scale arrangements by Carl Frei, Prinsen, Van
Boxtel, Gustav Bruder. 1600 meters of books
alone valued at $30M+ including overtures,
musicals, popular, waltzes, marches. Nine
carved figures. Has been indoors for past
40 years. Big organ sound. Need to move,
so must sell. Price reduced to $99,500. Call
for more details. HERB BRABANDT (502)
425-4263, johebra3@twc.com

SEEBURG GREYHOUND Dog Race nickelodeon.
Completely restored. Excellent
condition. https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=YscJpQHTzJI Contact BILL
KAVOURAS, at deekav@aol.com or call
352-527-9390

MARVELS OF MECHANICAL MUSIC – MBSI
Video. Fascinating and beautifully-made
film which explains the origins of automatic
musical instruments, how they are collected
and preserved today, and their historic
importance, MBSI members and collections
are featured. $20 USD. Free shipping in the
continental U.S. Additional postage charges
apply for other locations. Purchase now at
www.mbsi.org

Add a photo to your ad!
You know the old saying, “A photo
is worth 1,000 words!” For $30 you
can add a photo to your ad in the
Mart.
A photo makes your ad stand out
on the page and quickly draws a
reader’s interest in the item.
Email your advertisement with
photo to editor@mbsi.org or call
(253) 228-1634 for more details.
WANTED
LOWREY OR HAMMOND ORGAN that plays
piano rolls or the player part, working or not.
These were made in the early 1980s. Contact
LES BEEBE, at (609) 654-2789.

COINOLA “X” or C-2. Also Regina 216 music
box with bells. Contact DON KROENLEIN, at
fbac@one-eleven.net or (217) 620-8650

SEEKING PLANS or measurement for a
Polyphon lower cabinet for 19.5 size disc.
Contact ROD MOORE, rodcrna4u@gmail.
com or (336) 337-1165 North Carolina

SERVICES
REPRODUCTION POLYPHON discs; Catalogs
available for 19 5/8”, 22 1/8”, and 24
1/2”. DAVID CORKRUM 5826 Roberts Ave,
Oakland, CA 94605-1156, 510-569-3110,
www.polyphonmusic.com

SAVE $’s on REUGE & THORENS MUSIC
BOX REPAIR & RESTORATION – MBSI
MEMBERS RECEIVE WHOLESALE PRICING.

40 + Years experience servicing all makes
& models of cylinder and disc music boxes,
bird boxes, bird cages, musical watches, Anri
musical figurines, et al. All work guaranteed.
We’re the only REUGE FACTORY AUTHORIZED
Parts & Repair Service Center for all of North
America. Contact: DON CAINE -The Music
Box Repair Center Unlimited, 24703 Pennsylvania
Ave., Lomita, CA 90717-1516. Phone:

(310) 534-1557 Email: MBRCU@AOL.COM.
On the Web: www.musicboxrepaircenter.com
Advertise in The Mart

Have some spare parts or extra rolls
taking up the space where you should be
installing your next acquisition?
Get the word out to other collectors by
advertising in The Mart, an effective
advertising tool at an inexpensive price.
Email your ad to editor@mbsi.org or call

(253) 228-1634 to place your ad for the
July/August 2019 issue.
Add a photo to your ad!

Photos are only $30 extra per issue.

Email editor@mbsi.org or
call (253) 228-1634 for more details.

Display Advertisers

3………. Renaissance Antiques
53…….. Music Box Restorations
53…….. Miller Organ Clock
54…….. Dreamfactory
55…….. Dreamfactory
56…….. MBSGB
56…….. American Treasure Tour
57…….. Porter Music Box Company
58…….. Southeast Chapter
59…….. Reeder Pianos
59…….. Cottone Auctions
59…….. Ben’s Player Piano Service
59…….. 4-4Time.com
60…….. Stanton Auctions
61…….. Nancy Fratti Music Boxes
67…….. Marty Persky Music Boxes
68…….. Morphy Auctions

Mechanical
Music
Directory
MeMbers,
MuseuMs,
& Dealers
2020 2021
ORDER EXTRA COPIES

The 2020-2021 Directory of Members,
Museums and Dealers is only $10 for
members. (International shipping is extra)

Call MBSI Administrator Jacque Beeman at

(417) 886-8839 or send a check to:
Musical Box Society International
P.O. Box 10196
Springfield, MO 65808-0196
May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 63

OFFICERS, TRUSTEES & COMMITTEES of the
MUSICAL BOX SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL®

OFFICERS
President

Tom Kuehn
4 Williams Woods
Mahtomedi, MN 55115
kuehn001@umn.edu

Vice President

David Corkrum
5826 Roberts Avenue
Oakland, CA 94605
musikwerke@att.net

Recording Secretary

Linda Birkitt
PO Box 541
San Juan Capistrano, CA 92693
scarletpimpernel28@yahoo.com

Treasurer

Edward Kozak
3615 North Campbell Avenue
Chicago, IL 60618
kozak@seldenfox.com

TRUSTEES

Dave Calendine
Bob Caletti
Ed Cooley
Dave Corkrum

G.Wayne Finger
Matt Jaro
Tom Kuehn
Mary Ellen Myers
MBSI FUNDS

COMMITTEES
Audit

Edward Cooley, Chair, Trustee
Dave Calendine, Trustee
Matt Jaro, Trustee

Endowment Committee

Edward Kozak, Treasurer, Chair
Edward Cooley, Trustee
Dave Calendine, Trustee
B Bronson
Wayne Wolf

Executive Committee

Tom Kuehn, Chair, President
David Corkrum, Vice President
Clay Witt, Immediate Past Pres.

G.Wayne Finger, Trustee
Mary Ellen Myers, Trustee
Finance Committee

Edward Kozak, Chair, Treasurer
Wayne Wolf, Vice Chair
David Corkrum, Vice President
Edward Cooley, Trustee
Peter Both

Marketing Committee

Bob Smith, Chair
Dave Calendine, Trustee

G.Wayne Finger, Trustee
Judy Caletti
Meetings Committee

Matt Jaro, Chair, Trustee
Judy Caletti
Tom Chase
Cotton Morlock
Rich Poppe

Membership Committee

Chair, TBD
Mary Ellen Myers, Trustee,

Southeast
Linda Birkitt, Southern California
Gary Goldsmith, Snowbelt
Christine Hopwood, Golden Gate
Julie Morlock, Southeast
Rob Pollock, Mid-America
Dan Wilson, Piedmont
Gerald Yorioka, Northwest Int’l
TBD, East Coast
TBD, Great Lakes
TBD, National Capital
TBD, Sunbelt

Museum Committee

Sally Craig, Chair
Clay Witt, Immediate Past Pres.
Glenn Crater, National Capital
Ken Envall, Southern California
Julian Grace, Sunbelt
Matt Jaro, National Capital
Richard Simpson, East Coast

Museum Sub-Committees

Ohio Operations
Emery Prior

SPECIAL ACTIVITIES
Publications Back Issues:

Jacque Beeman

Regina Certificates:

B Bronson

MBSI Pins and Seals:

Jacque Beeman

Librarian:

Jerry Maler

Historian:

Bob Yates

Nominating Committee

Dan Wilson, Chair
Clay Witt, Immediate Past Pres.
Bob Caletti, Golden Gate, Trustee
Mary Ellen Myers, Trustee,

Southeast
Jonathan Hoyt, Golden Gate
Robin Biggins, Southern California
Aaron Muller, Lake Michigan

Publications Committee

Bob Caletti, Chair, Trustee
Steve Boehck
Dave Corkrum, Vice President
Christian Eric
Kathleen Eric
Terry Smythe

Publications
Sub-Committee

Website Committee
Rick Swaney, Chair
B Bronson
Don Henry
Knowles Little, Web Secretary

Special Exhibits Committee

Chair Mary Ellen Myers, Trustee,
Southeast
David Corkrum, Vice President,

Golden Gate
Donald Caine, Southern California
Jack Hostetler, Southeast
Knowles Little, National Capital
Judy Miller, Piedmont
Aaron Muller, Lake Michigan
Wayne Myers, Southeast
Rick Swaney, Northwest Int’l

MBSI Editorial Office:

Iron Dog Media
130 Coral Court
Pismo Beach, CA 93449
editor@mbsi.org

Members can donate to these funds at any time.
Send donations to: General Fund (unrestricted)
MBSI Administrator, Endowment Fund (promotes the purposes of MBSI, restricted)
PO Box 10196, Ralph Heintz Publications Fund (special literary projects)
Springfield, MO 65808-0196. Museum Fund (supports museum operations)

All manuscripts will be subject to editorial review. Committee and the Editorial Staff. are considered to be the author’s personal opinion.
Articles submitted for publication may be edited The article will not be published with significant The author may be asked to substantiate his/her
or rejected at the discretion of the Publications changes without the author’s approval. All articles statements.

64 MECHANICAL MUSIC May/June 2021

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

Date Event Location Sponsor
Aug. 30-Sept. 4, 2021 MBSI Annual Meeting Ft. Myers, FL Southeast Chapter

When will your chapter meet next? Holding a “virtual meeting?” Let us know!
Send in your information by Jun. 1, 2021, for the July/August issue.
Don’t hold your questions until the next chapter meeting. Ask them today on our FaceBook discussion group

-the Music Box Society Forum.
Please send dates for the Calendar of Events to Russell Kasselman (editor@mbsi.org)

CONTACTS

Administrator Jacque Beeman handles back issues (if available) $6;
damaged or issues not received, address changes, MBSI Directory
listing changes, credit card charge questions, book orders, status of your
membership, membership renewal, membership application, and MBSI
Membership Brochures.
P.O. Box 10196
Springfield, MO 65808-0196
Phone/Fax (417) 886-8839
jbeeman.mbsi@att.net

Traveling MBSI Display
Bill Endlein
21547 NW 154th Pl.
High Springs, FL 32643-4519
Phone (386) 454-8359
sembsi@yahoo.com

Regina Certificates: Cost $5.
B Bronson
Box 154
Dundee, MI 48131
Phone (734) 529-2087
art@d-pcomm.net

Advertising for Mechanical Music
Russell Kasselman
Iron Dog Media
130 Coral Court
Pismo Beach, CA 93449
Phone (253) 228-1634
editor@mbsi.org

CHAPTERS

Snowbelt

Chair: Tracy Tolzmann
(651) 674-5149
Dues $10 to Gary Goldsmith
17160 – 245th Avenue
Big Lake, MN 55309

Southeast

Chair: Jack Hostetler
(352) 633-1942
Dues $5 to Clay Witt
820 Del Rio Way Unit 203
Merritt Island, FL 32953

Museum Donations
Sally Craig,
2720 Old Orchard Road
Lancaster, PA 17601
Phone (717) 295-9188
rosebud441@juno.com

MBSI website
Rick Swaney,
4302 209th Avenue NE
Sammamish, WA 98074
Phone (425) 836-3586
r_swaney@msn.com

Web Secretary
Knowles Little
9109 Scott Dr.
Rockville, MD 20850
Phone (301) 762-6253
kglittle@verizon.net

CHAPTERS

East Coast

Chair: Elise Low
(203) 457-9888
Dues $5 to Roger Wiegand
281 Concord Road
Wayland, MA 01778
or pay via PayPal, send to
treasurereccmbsi@gmail.com

Golden Gate

Chair: Jonathan Hoyt
jenjenhoyt@yahoo.com
Dues $5 to Dave Corkrum
5826 Roberts Ave.
Oakland, CA 94605

Japan

Chair: Naoki Shibata
81-72986-1169
naotabibito396amb@salsa.ocn.ne.jp
Treasurer: Makiko Watanabe
makikomakiko62@yahoo.co.jp

Lake Michigan

Chair: Aaron Muller
(847) 962-2330
Dues $5 to James Huffer
7930 N. Kildare
Skokie, Illinois 60076

Mid-America

Chair: Rob Pollock
(937) 508-4984
Dues $10 to Harold Wade
4616 Boneta Road
Medina, OH 44256

National Capital

Chair: Matthew Jaro
(301) 482-2008
Dues $5 to Florie Hirsch
8917 Wooden Bridge Road
Potomac, MD 20854

Northwest International

Chair: Rick Swaney
(425) 836-3586
Dues $7.50/person to Kathy Baer
8210 Comox Road
Blaine, WA 98230

Piedmont

Temp Chair: Dan Wilson
(919) 740-6579
musicboxmac@mac.com
Dues $10 to Dan Wilson
4804 Latimer Road
Raleigh, NC. 276099

Southern California

Chair: Robin Biggins
(310) 377-1472
Dues $10 to Diane Lloyd
1201 Edgeview Drive
Cowan Hgts, CA 92705

Sunbelt

Chair: Ray Dickey
(713) 467-0349
Dues $10 to Diane Caudill
4585 Felder Road
Washington, TX 77880

Copyright 2021 the Musical Box Society International, all rights reserved. Permission to reproduce by any means, in whole or in part, must be obtained in writing
from the MBSI Executive Committee and the Editor. Mechanical Music is published in the even months. ISSN 1045-795X

May/June 2021 MECHANICAL MUSIC 65

HALF PAGE
HORIZONTAL
7.25” x 4.5”
QUARTER
PAGE
3.5” x 4.5”
EIGHTH
PAGE
3.5” x 2.125”
Mechanical Music
Devoted to All Automatic Musical Instruments
Journal of the Musical Box Society International
Mechanical Music
Journal of the Musical Box Society International
Devoted to All Automatic Musical Instruments
Volume 63, No. 3 May/June 2017
Mechanical Music
Journal of the Musical Box Society International
Devoted to All Automatic Musical Instruments
Volume 63, No. 1 January/February 2017
DISPLAY ADVERTISING DIMENSIONS & PER ISSUE COSTS
Dimensions 1 issue 2-3 issues 4-6 issues
Back Cover 8.75” x 11.25” $600 $540 $510
Inside Covers 8.75” x 11.25” $450 $405 $383
Full Page 7.25” x 9.75” $290 $261 $247
Half Page 7.25” x 4.5” $160 $144 $136
Quarter Page 3.5” x 4.5” $90 $81 $77
Eighth Page 3.5” x 2.125” $50 $45 $43
Non-members pay a 10% surcharge on the above rates
Display Discounts shown above are calculated as follows:
3 consecutive ads 10% Discount
6 consecutive ads 15% Discount
FULL PAGE
8.75” X 11.25”
(0.5” bleed)
7.25” x 9.75”
(live area)
PRODUCTION SCHEDULE
ISSUE NAME ADS DUE DELIVERED ON
January/February December 1 January 1
March/April February 1 March 1
May/June April 1 May 1
July/August June 1 July 1
September/October August 1 September 1
November/December October 1 November 1
Mechanical Music is printed on 70 lb gloss
paper, with a 100 lb gloss cover, saddle-
stitched. Trim size is 8.25” x 10.75”.
Artwork is accepted in the following formats:
PDF, PSD, AI, EPS, TIF. All images
and colors should be CMYK or Grayscale
and all fonts should be embedded or
converted to outlines. Images should be a
minimum of 300 dpi resolution.
Email fi les to:
mbsi@irondogmedia.com
USPS or Fed Ex to:
Iron Dog Media, LLC
130 Coral Court
Pismo Beach, CA 93449
Mechanical Music is mailed to more
than 1,500 members of the Musical
Box Society International six (6) times
per year.
PRINTING & ARTWORK SPECIFICATIONS
CIRCULATION
ALL ADS MUST
BE PREPAID
The Musical Box Society International
accepts VISA, Mastercard and online
payments via PayPal.
Contact MBSI Publisher Russell Kasselman at (253) 228-1634 or editor@mbsi.org
CLASSIFIED ADS
• 47¢ per word
• ALL CAPS, italicized and
bold words: 60¢ each.
• Minimum Charge: $11.
• Limit: One ad in each
category
• Format: See ads for style
• Restrictions: Ads are strictly
limited to mechanical musical
instruments and related
items and services

7

Mechanical Music at its Best

Instrument Brokering & Locating / Appraisals / Inspections / Free Consultation

Mechmusic.com

4 Weber Orchestrions with Animated Scenes!

Maesto Unika Grandezza Otero

Ruth 38 Mason & Hamlin RAA
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Jaeger Brommer
42’er Violinopan 20’er Automaton
Seeburg KT Special
Visit: Mechmusic.com Mills Bowfront Violano
Call Marty Persky at 847-675-6144 or Email: Marty@Mechmusic.com
for further information on these and other fine instruments.

COIN-OCOP & MECHANICAL MUSICIN-OP & MECHANICAL MUSIC
MAY 11, 12, 13, 14 & 15, 2021
HISTORIC5DAYAUCTIONHISTORIC 5 DAY AUCTION
Featuring two 40-year collections
fresh to the market.
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MORPHYAUCTIONS.COM
COIN-OCOP & MECHANICAL MUSICIN-OP & MECHANICAL MUSIC
MAY 11, 12, 13, 14 & 15, 2021
HISTORIC5DAYAUCTIONHISTORIC 5 DAY AUCTION
Featuring two 40-year collections
fresh to the market.
2000 N. READING ROAD | DENVER, PA 17517 | 877-968-8880 | INFO@MORPHYAUCTIONS.COM
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