The "Piano with Organ Function and Tapes"
Many people like to think that all the good coin-in-the-slot pianos and
orchestrions have been found, and that the only trade in such instruments is
now limited to that between established collectors. This kind of defeatist
attitude prevents many people from going to the effort of honestly looking
for still hidden treasures that could be right in front of their nose. But
this story shows that thinking there is nothing worthwhile left to find is
not necessarily the way it is. Forgotten and valuable mechanical music
machines can still be discovered in some unlikely places by an alert person
who pays attention and actively pursues some oftentimes very obscure looking
clues.
A recent example of an unexpected find is told by my friend Björn Isebaert,
of Ghent, Belgium. His friend, Kurt De Jonghe, of Meulebeke (West Flanders),
Belgium, also a mechanical music enthusiast, regularly buys a magazine
filled with all kinds of advertisements, hoping to find more mechanical
music instruments to add to his collection. In April of 2002 Kurt noticed an
advertisement that read "For sale: piano with organ function and tapes." At
first the ad did not stir more than a flicker of interest, but eventually he
called the owner and asked if it was still for sale.
"Sure,"
the owner replied. Kurt asked: "What mark is it?" "It's a Weber Unika; but
you have to come soon or we'll bring it to the garbage park." Needless to
say, Kurt wasted no time getting to the man's house; and when he entered he
nearly fainted. Sitting before him was an almost mint condition Weber Unika.
The inlaid brass letters on the case façade shined so brightly that the
instrument seemed to be almost new, as though recently shipped from the
Weber factory. Unfortunately, however, the original top gallery (a simple
decorative top facade) and electric lanterns were missing, and upon closer
examination (through the thick layers of dust) a crack at the right side of
the case was observed, but it was repairable. The inside mechanisms seemed
to be in immaculate condition, too, the player mechanism, pipework, the
piano and all else looked to be complete and in pristine unrestored
condition. Overall the Unika discovery was the fulfillment of a collector’s
dream, when actually stumbling upon a pristine instrument, even though it is
not currently in playing condition.
Instrumentation of the Weber Unika consists of a piano with expression, a
mandolin attachment and a set of 28 beautifully toned wooden violin pipes.
The work number stamped on the roll mechanism’s bottom board for this
instrument is 2547, suggesting this machine was manufactured in 1925, and
was the 47th instrument made by Weber that same year. In contrast, the
serial number on the Feurich piano is 43039, which, according to Pierce's
Piano Atlas, puts the manufacturing date at 1927-1928. But the piano atlas
is known to have dating errors, and it is the opinion of a number of
seasoned collectors and restorers that a circa 1925 manufacturing date is
more than likely the correct one. The Unika was originally imported into
Belgium by Gérard & Cie, an important importer of mechanical music
instruments located in Brussels.
All
of the original paper instruction placards, such as the electrical
schematic, feeder pump instructions, et cetera, were still glued inside the
little orchestrion and in excellent condition. Also with the Unika were
about 20 music rolls, most of them original Weber arrangements; others being
of Belgian origin (possibly made by Eugene De Roy). And, not withstanding
the initial shock of finding such a beautiful, unrestored Weber in such
unlikely surroundings, the biggest surprise of all was the price: the owner
was only asking 500€ (about U.S. $450.00) for it; and after some
negotiations Kurt was able to buy it for only 400€.
The instrument had belonged to the father of the present owner, a man
named Roger, who resided in Ename, near Oudenaarde (East Flanders), about 30
kilometers from Ghent. Roger's father had acquired the instrument in
exchange as payment for a debt, whereupon they transported the heavy Unika
to his home on a cart. It is presumed that the crack in the case may have
been caused during the hauling of the instrument. The father had five sons,
and after his death one of the sons, Roger, moved into and lived in his
father’s house, and thereafter became the new official owner of the Weber
Unika. The presence of the Unika apparently never aroused much interest in
Roger, its new owner, because the instrument had been standing in the house
unused, unappreciated, and the case unopened for over 20-years. That the
instrument remained unused could be partially due to the fact that Roger
could never find the keys to the cabinet, which had fallen between the swell
shutters in the top of the machine. But whatever the case, the loss of the
keys may have been a blessing in disguise, since no one had opened the case
and damaged any of the internal player mechanisms or the fragile violin
pipes.
With the help of several acquaintances, Kurt De Jonghe successfully moved
the Weber Unika to his home without incident, later remarking that it was,
indeed, quite a heavy instrument. Once safely in his home, Kurt could more
closely and leisurely inspect the Unika, which, as before, appeared to be in
nearly mint condition. To get it playing fairly well only the bellows cloth
on the feeder pump, an electromagnet and the electric motor had to be
replaced (the motor had been previously replaced; there was an 380 VAC motor
in it, which needed to be changed to a 220 VAC motor). As a final touch, the
Unika’s piano was tuned to 435Hz, instead of the 440Hz pitch, because it has
not been tuned for a long, long time, and delaying the final tuning to A440
allowed time for the piano to gradually equalize itself and adjust to the
much increased string tension.
Other instruments in Kurt De Jonghe’s collection include:
- A home-made 40-key book organ, circa 1930s, that was used for many
years to accompany a Belgian singer; therefore, the organ has a very
soft sound.
- A Kuhl-and-Klatt player piano, with mandolin attachment, using
Pierre Eich music rolls.
- A small collection of music boxes.
