The purpose of the Mechanical Music Registry project is to document the
technical and historical development of automatic musical instruments;
especially coin-operated pianos, orchestrions, and band organs. In a field
where little technical information was originally issued and extremely
little survives, it has been difficult to know whether certain features and
models are early or late. Collecting lists of serial numbers without other
information would be a fruitless pursuit, but when they are combined with
constructional details, this information enables us to learn more about how
the products of each maker evolved through the years. It also provides
insight into the history of a specific instrument: When it was made, whether
it was an earlier or later design, whether all the mechanisms are original,
etc.
Detailed information on production and mechanical improvements has
remained elusive for several reasons:
Most sales literature was discarded and few manufacturers issued
service literature.
Most production records were destroyed by the 1950s, with the rare
exceptions of Wurlitzer and Regina factory records.
Certain makers of automatic instruments used multiple brands of
pianos from various suppliers, resulting in ambiguous serial numbering.
Technicians painted over serial numbers, discarded original piano
hammers and other parts that had manufacturing dates, and changed
mechanisms from different eras from one piano to another.
The Mechanical Music Registry is currently the brainchild and ongoing
product of and is maintained through the cumulative effort of three
long-time friends and mechanical music enthusiasts: Q. David Bowers, Art
Reblitz and Terry Hathaway. The registry will hopefully provide a centrally
located repository for certain historical lists of mechanical music
information. All information contained within the registry pages has been
and will continue to be researched and compiled on a voluntary, time, and
interest permitting basis. It is to be offered freely through this web site
in the hope that doing so will aid in preserving certain historical
information and also promote further interest, research, and preservation
efforts in the area of automatic mechanical musical instruments. It is not
intended to be a commercial endeavor in any way or to any degree for any
person or entity, but strictly a freely volunteered gift by all persons
involved and with the purpose of helping maintain interest and enlighten
future generations regarding our mechanical music heritage.
Project Genesis
The Mechanical Music Registry Project presented on this web site is a work in process, and it was unknowingly but
essentially initiated way back in 1997 by Terry Hathaway. It all started
when he began faithfully compiling and offering database reports featuring
his research work on Wurlitzer Mandolin and Concert PianOrchestra music
rolls.
In the meantime, Art Reblitz had been meticulously researching and
keeping records since the mid-1960s on various American-made automatic
instruments manufactured by Link Piano Company, Marquette Piano Company
(Cremona), Mills Novelty Company, Nelson-Wiggen Piano Company, Operator's
Piano Company (Coinola and Reproduco), various Engelhardt firms (Peerless),
North Tonawanda Musical Instrument Works, Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, and, of
course, especially the prolific J. P. Seeburg Piano Company (which also made
the Western Electric brand of keyboard and cabinet style coin pianos and
orchestrions). This wealth of meticulously collected information by Art
Reblitz and many friends kept growing through the years, but was never
published in any complete or coherent way until its inclusion in this
Mechanical Music Registry.
What eventually caused the quick evolution of Terry Hathaway's former Music Roll Database Project into the new Mechanical Music Registry pages rested on a decision made during the early part of 2009. Fortuitously,
Art Reblitz and David Bowers, two scholars of mechanical music and each
accomplished authors in their own right, decided to join forces and write a
new book (The Reblitz-Bowers Guide to Coin-Operated American Pianos and
Orchestrions). This unique collaboration brought together previously
unassociated people and events that would eventually culminate and bring
forth a new avenue of expression.
That some sort of formalized Mechanical Music Registry be considered was
suggested by David Bowers in early October of 2009. The idea immediately
appealed to Terry Hathaway, who quickly set out to design the database
structures and web pages required to begin making the production/shipping
information that had been collected widely available. Thus, a harmonious
combination of discrete interests laid the framework that would provide a
perfect place to showcase and make available all of the yet unpublished
production data accumulated by Art Reblitz over many years, as well as any
new production/shipping information acquired during the extensive research
work carried out by David Bowers.
As such, and to give credit where it is due, it could reasonably be
argued that the natural outcome of the 2009 collaborative book effort by Art
Reblitz and David Bowers was the impetus leading to the creation of the
Mechanical Music Press's new Mechanical Music Registry. This alliance,
coupled with Terry Hathaway's technical interests (and as acting webmaster)
and the person who will get the tedious job of coordinating and keying-in
the data, will serve to generate the actual public place in which all of the
information will eventually be orderly and conveniently displayed.
Building a Knowledge Base of Information
This Mechanical Music Registry includes different types of information
for various brands, depending on what information is available, such as
surviving original documents, ledgers, catalogue information, and/or a
simple tally of surviving mechanical music specimens. For large Wurlitzer
and Philipps PianOrchestras, we include detailed descriptions for each known
surviving example (based on years of research by Terry Hathaway and others).
For Seeburg and smaller American companies, we include lists of hundreds of
known examples with their mechanical and musical details details (compiled
by Art Reblitz and many others since the 1960s), to recreate the history of
their production and development as accurately as possible, and to establish
dating guides where no factory records exist.
For the large and complex Wurlitzer company, certain factory records do
still exist, so we are able to provide reports of actual production based on
years of meticulous compilation and analysis by Terry Hathaway. We also
include rollographies—both in this site, and links to other sites—each of
which represents hundreds or thousands of hours of work by an enthusiast or
group of enthusiasts who are particularly interested in a specific
instrument.
As you peruse the registries and associated pages, we trust that you will
enjoy the opportunity to learn more about the history of these wonderful
instruments and their music. It continues to amaze us that now, over 80
years since the end the original mechanical music era, so much previously
unpublished information continues to become available. If you have your own
favorite topic that you have researched but that is not yet covered here,
please let us know, as we are always interested in adding well-researched
work to the Mechanical Music Press knowledge base.
Acknowledgments
Many people have graciously contributed detailed information over the
years regarding various types of automatic musical instruments, thereby
helping to form the core of what is now this Mechanical Music Registry. Due
to the large number of names to be cited a separate page has been
constructed just for this meritorious purpose. Please visit the Acknowledgements page in appreciations of all who has taken the time and
effort to help make the study of mechanical music more interesting,
complete, and ultimately useful.
Updating and Correcting Registry Entries and/or Errors
The authors of the Mechanical Music Press website welcome additional
information as well as factual corrections to the registry databases. A
special downloadable fill-in survey form (in PDF format) is available on
each database page that can be used to submit additional information and/or
corrections. Moreover, not only can these forms be used to submit data for
the brands/makes of machines already listed, but they can be adapted to ANY
other brand or type of automatic musical instrument--even if no such
equivalent database is currently offered in the registry pages. Submitted
information that does not fit into a current database scheme may be saved,
and if enough interest persists a new registry database to cover a new topic
will be considered. Please see the New Registry Categories page for details regarding the submission of
ideas and suggestions for new database categories.
Inquiries About Database Entries
The Mechanical Music Registry is not intended to generate or provide
individually specific answers, but rather to do no more than freely provide
certain submitted historical information for perusal by interested parties.
Any published database information is derived from a specific source list,
or an amalgamation of several lists covering a specific topic, for which all
known technical data from any such list or combination of lists will have
been included in its entirety, including any and all special notes or
comments. This means that ALL of the available information (from any
given source) and for each and every mechanical music item listed has been
purposely included with no further historical or technical information
available. Therefore, please do not attempt to contact the Mechanical Music
Press for additional source information for or about any individual item or
items, because there will be nothing additional to share.
Please also keep in mind that the Mechanical Music Registry is a database
reporting facility only, and it is not prepared nor equipped to deal with
general questions about mechanical music instruments or their history.
Consequently, please do not send e-mail questions to the Registry.
Any referenced registry contact information in these web pages is a one-way
"receive only" e-mail address, with no reply capabilities.
Availability
As was pointed out earlier, this registry section is a work in progress.
Consequently, certain lists may require that they be released incrementally,
as time and interest allows for the inclusion and/or completion of
information. Oftentimes the sought after information resides on yellowed and
often fragile pages, which can be filled with cryptic, faded, and nearly
illegible handwriting, whereupon each line item must be carefully read and
hand-keyed into its respective database. Moreover, although old handwriting
is generally beautifully ornate and legible, certain curt references and
abbreviations are subject to mistaken interpretation and error. This means
that data entry is often very time consuming, tedious, and fraught with
research and interpretative frustrations and delays. But since accuracy is
an imperative quality, delays and incremental release of data tends to be
unavoidable.
Volunteer Effort
The Registry is strictly a volunteer effort and project and is not
intended to have or be any kind of commercial endeavor. No participants are
paid or reimbursed for any fees, out-of-pocket expenses, costs, or time, and
no provision or capability exists to pay any fees or costs associated with
any material that may be submitted to or for the Registry, or for anything
that may be retained or contained within any part of the Registry project.
If you submit material to the Registry project it is important for you to
understand that there is no person, structure, or entity enabled or known
that is authorized to issue monies or any kind of payment or recompense to
anyone or for anything involved in or contributing content to or for the
Registry project, and that any and all work associated with this project is
to be by volunteer effort alone.
Disputes
Disputes and disagreements over the alleged correctness of any entry,
item, or historical comment shall be judged, determined, and resolved solely
by the authors of this web site, whereupon their verdict shall be considered
final in any ongoing dispute of any kind. That said, all effort will be put
into arriving at a fair and just determination based upon historical facts
thought to be accurate and/or associated trends, so as to arrive at a
reasonable "best" choice answer. It must be further understood that most
so-called historical facts are oftentimes vague and subject to myriad
interpretation at best, and so nothing mentioned and/or suggested in this
web site is ever to be taken as an absolute truth or fact, all things being
subject to change and evolution as new information is uncovered and brought
to light.
Data Submission Protocol
Submitting information for a single machine has been made very easy and
simple. Click on the special data submission form button clearly displayed
on each database category page. Open the downloaded PDF document in Adobe
Acrobat Reader, and then fill in the form at your leisure. You can then
email it directly back to
For multiple machines of the same brand or make, especially for a long
list of items, Microsoft Access database format or the Microsoft Excel
spreadsheet format are the preferred methods of submittal. These file
formats can be easily manipulated and then imported into a current database
structure. However, other table and text formats can usually be
accommodated.
External Links and Collaboration
Certain pre-established and generally recognized as credible listings
and/or rollography projects may, at the sole discretion of the Mechanical
Music Press and/or its authors, be referenced by establishing a direct link
from the menu structures (or some other special textual or graphic
interface) inside the Mechanical Music Registry section. The granting of any
such menu, graphic link or reference privilege is subject to invitation by
the Mechanical Music Press and/or its principal authors. However, anyone
with a bona-fide mechanical music compilation, and which is also generally
deemed to be a credible and accurate representation of original source
documents and/or material, is welcome to submit a link regarding the subject
material for reference link consideration. Please be aware that a cross-link
from the referenced external site to the Mechanical Music Press web site may
be a requirement if and when a link from the Mechanical Music Press is
authorized.
Music Boxes and Other Mechanical Music Devices
Although the registry was conceived as being dedicated to just a relative
few of the many types of coin-operated automatic pianos and orchestrions
once manufactured, it is nonetheless not necessarily limited to only those
types of mechanical music machines. That it began life this way was simply
because this is the major area of interest for the initiating authors.
However, accurately ordered production and/or shipping information for other
classes and/or categories of mechanical music devices are welcome, and
equally as important. Do, however, keep in mind that submittal of large
amounts of information will only be accepted under certain reasonable
circumstances. First and foremost is (1) some assurance of accuracy, next
(2) is a desire to share any such information freely with other collectors,
enthusiasts, and historians, (3) any material submitted must be free of
legal and/or copyright restrictions, and lastly (4) the material must be
submitted in a format that can be readily assimilated and used by the
Mechanical Music Press. Any contributor must also realize that there is no
commercial intent or benefit stated, implied, or inferred in regards to the
Registry. It is strictly a labor of love, a volunteer venture with no
remuneration or fee of any kind due or payable now or in the future. Anyone
contemplating a submission of data who cannot abide by these few reasonable
standards and restrictions is advised not to submit material, or if such is
submitted it will be automatically rejected and not used by the Mechanical
Music Press.
No Warranty and Other Notices
All information is offered "as is," without any guarantee or warranty
whatsoever of any kind, neither stated or implied, as to the accuracy,
exactness, or suitability of any material. Please note that it is possible
that some contractions and/or abbreviations relating to original text may be
used in order to have data conform to database space requirements. All data
will be kept in its original context and format as much as is reasonably
feasible. Any plainly obvious misspellings in original text will be
corrected in and when encountered, but other not so obvious potential
errors, which cannot be verified one way or another, will be left intact,
but possibly noted as suspect. In certain instances, where a large body of
information is available, certain otherwise missing information for a
specific entry may be back-filled (added) when there is a reasonable
certainty of accuracy.
All submissions to the Mechanical Music
Press and/or the Mechanical Music Registry are given with the provision that
the Mechanical Music Press and/or its authors have non-exclusive use of the
information, images, and other matter for use with this project or in any
other media or sharing with others, without limitation. All contributors of
significant, previously unused information will be listed as contributors
under general credits.
