Original Catalogue Specifications:
-
Wurlitzer
#20973 stamped chassis above roll changer.
- Philipps Chassis Nr. 4885.
- Revolver Mechanism (roll changer) Nr. ???.
- Unit chassis with separate wrap-around case (with integral floor)
format.
- Standard 6 station, friction drive revolver mechanism (roll
changer).
- Round belt/chain & sprocket reduction for feeder (pump) crankshaft.
- Wurlitzer pneumatic lock and cancel controls.
- Manual on-off control for violin pipes.
- Uses Wurlitzer Mandolin PianOrchestra or Philipps Pianella
Mandolinen (P.M.) rolls.
- Tracker Scale: Pianella Mandolinen (P.M.)
- Height: 8 ft. 6 in.
Width: 5 ft. 6 in.
Depth: 3 ft.
Shipping weight: 1,500 lbs.
61 Note Musical Scale:
- Piano (Wurlitzer 56-note), with Mandolin attachment
- 37 Violin and Violoncello Pipes (30 wood violins + 7 wood
violoncellos)
- Chimes, 13 bars (orchestra bells)
- Tenor drum (reiterating action)
- Bass drum, with cymbal
Special Lighting Effects:
- In addition to interior lighting to illuminate the colorful art
glass panels, atop the PianOrchestra sits a Peacock type "Wonderlight."
The large, circular peacock's tail consists of a reflective metal
shroud, bent to form many individual reflective "facets." During
restoration, cut mirrors were fitted to a newly made metal shroud,
providing a glistening reflective surface, compared to the original
polished metal surface. Behind the peacock's decoratively painted cast
metal body is a tapered glass tube, with an electric light bulb inside.
The glass tube is painted with transparent pigments in a design
representing peacock tail feathers. When the PianOrchestra is
operational, the glass tube rotates, driven by a pulley on the backside,
which is connected via a round leather belt to another, smaller pulley
located on the pump crankshaft. As the painted tube rotates, colorful
tail feathers are projected onto the reflective metal shroud's facets,
producing a striking, moving kaleidoscopic effect.
Notes:
- The piano bass is strung with two unison strings, with a third
string an octave lower, for a total of three strings for each bass note.
- The eight rectangular sections in the lower parts of the roll case
door, situated just below the glass music roll viewing window, are for
holding tune-cards, which were individually printed cards somewhat like
the standard music roll labels. These cards could be easily slipped into
an appropriate slot by removing the holder assembly from the backside of
the roll case door. Six music rolls per changer load, six tune cards.
So, then, why eight slots? Many early Wurlitzer instruments had the
ability to display up to eight tune-cards, even though only six rolls
could be loaded on a machine at any one time. The two "extra" slots were
used for instructional cards, i.e., how to use certain aspects of an
instrument. Different styles of Wurlitzer instruction cards have been
observed explaining things like (1) how to use the coin accumulator,
i.e., you get one tune for each nickel deposited, up to about twenty,
and (2) how to select a specific music roll on a roll changer equipped
instrument. However, for the PianOrchestra there is no provision for
selecting a specific music roll, as with many of the Wurlitzer 65-note
coin-pianos, so perhaps there were other kinds of instruction cards
unknown to this author.
Chronological History:
Circa 1912/14
Chassis and the majority of its components manufactured by J.D. Philipps &
Sons, Bockenheim, Frankfurt-am-Main, Germany.
Circa 1912/14
Chassis components imported by Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, New York.
The chassis is basically Philipps, with components added by Wurlitzer.
The piano, mandolin attachment, pipes and pipe chest, lock and cancel
controls, drums, and associated actions and the free-standing, wrap-around
furniture case appear to all be Wurlitzer designed and manufactured
components. The coin-accumulator and all associated electricals were added
by Wurlitzer.
Circa 1915
Unknown location in Lewiston, Maine
On March 10, 1915, the PianOrchestra was sold out of the New York office
of the Rudolph Wurlitzer Company to a location in Lewiston, Maine. The
instrument reportedly remained in its original location until it was sent to
a roller skating rink in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada.
Circa 1920s
Roller Skating Rink, Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada.
Probably in the 1920s, but this date is not known for certain, the
PianOrchestra was reportedly shipped to Quebec, Canada, whereupon it was
then soon installed in a roller skating rink in Fredericton, New Brunswick,
Canada. Nothing is currently known about the skating rink, nor when the
instrument was taken out of service and put in storage, although it is
thought that it was in use until the 1940s.
1984
Steam engine collector, Quebec, Canada.
In 1984 the PianOrchestra was discovered in a storage building near the
old skating rink by a collector of steam engines who lived nearby.
Circa 1985
David Bowers collection, Wolfeboro, New Hampshire.
The PianOrchestra was delivered in a pickup truck, by men from Quebec,
possibly employees of the steam engine collector. There was a pair of roller
skates in the base of the instrument. The PianOrchestra was then stored in
Tim Westman's, Woodsville, New Hampshire, shop for possible restoration.
Reportedly, it was in nice, unrestored, original condition, with the
following items missing: approximately one-half of the violin/violoncello
pipes, the vacuum reservoir, motor, and the peacock "wonderlight" mechanism,
including the metal shroud (for the peacock's tail). The furniture case
frame for the peacock mechanism was, however, present. Dave Bowers sold the
instrument before any actual restoration work had begun.
1988
George Baker, Belgrade, Montana.
The PianOrchestra was purchased by George Baker, of Belgrade, Montana,
along with an investor, Joel Naīve, of San Diego, California, as an
investment during the latter part of 1988. Although George Baker was in
Boston at the time, not too far from where the PianOrchestra was stored, due
to some kind of mix-up in gaining access to the instrument, George was
unable to take delivery of the PianOrchestra. Later, George's brother, along
with Clinton Powell, an antique dealer from Costa Mesa, California, took
possession of the PianOrchestra at Tim Westman's shop, in Woodsville, New
Hampshire, in December of 1988. They loaded the machine into a Chevrolet
S-10 pickup truck and hauled it away, presumably to Belgrade, Montana.
The PianOrchestra was restored by George Baker, and in October of 1990,
he moved it to San Diego, California, where it was set up for display at the
Evans Automated Musical Instrument and Car Museum. There was apparently some
rush to get the machine to the museum by a specific date, where it was to be
featured and displayed to prospective buyers at Mr. Evans' wedding party.
The PianOrchestra performed well, although the mother-in-law reportedly
complained that it was too noisy, a distraction to her sense of what the
festivities should be like, no doubt.
1990
Dave & Diane Reidy collection, California.
During
the time the PianOrchestra was being transported to San Diego, California,
by George Baker, in anticipation of displaying it at the Evans Automated
Musical Instrument and Car Museum, David Reidy, a Santa Ana, California,
collector, made an acquaintance that changed the lives of everyone
associated with the PianOrchestra. A friend of David Reidy's, who owned an
antique business in Costa Mesa, California, had been contacted by a Long
Beach, California, man, who wanted to know who in Southern California
collected automated musical instruments. The gentleman was referred to David
Reidy, who telephoned Dave and introduced himself as Greg, someone who sold
car polish at collector car shows in Japan. He went on to say that on a
return trip from Japan he had made contact with a Japanese businessman on
the airplane who asked him to purchase the Bowers Encyclopedia of Automated
Instruments, and to seek out U.S. collectors mentioned in the Encyclopedia
who would be willing to sell their collections. When Greg asked David Reidy
if he and the Japanese businessman could come visit his collection, David
informed him that the collection was not for sale, but that they were indeed
welcome to view the collection anyway.
After visiting Dave and Dianne Reidy, the two visitors stated that they
were going to tour the U.S. to view other collections, and that if the Reidy
collection should ever become available for sale to please let them know.
Then, a few days later, while attending the Packard Swap Meet in Cypress,
California, David Reidy met his friend John Eckman (who owned an unrestored
Wurlitzer style 12 PianOrchestra). The two talked, John Eckman telling Reidy
that he was going to the Evans Automated Musical Instrument and Car Museum
in San Diego, to assist George Baker in setting up a newly discovered, and
magnificently restored, Wurlitzer style 12 PianOrchestra.
David Reidy wasted little time contacting George Baker, through the
museum curator, Temple Baldwin, to make arrangements to see the style 12
PianOrchestra. Reidy then contacted Greg, the car polish salesman, with the
idea of the Japanese businessman in mind as a potential buyer for the
PianOrchestra. David and Greg traveled together to San Diego to inspect the
machine, but the original idea of locating an instrument for another
collector immediately evaporated for Reidy the very moment he caught sight
of the instrument. As his eyes deliciously poured over the magnificent
golden, quartered-oak case and colorful art glass panels, he said to
himself: "This PianOrchestra belongs in the Reidy collection!" And it
obviously did, because David Reidy officially purchased the PianOrchestra on
December 18, 1990, barely two months after the instrument had quietly landed
in San Diego, California.
George Baker delivered the PianOrchestra to the Reidy home a few days
later, setting the instrument up before leaving. To pay for the
PianOrchestra, however, David Reidy had to sell some mint condition pieces
out of his musical collection, although it was a necessary exchange that he
does not regret, given the exquisite beauty and charm the PianOrchestra has
brought to his overall collection.
