(Photograph courtesy of Reblitz-Bowers Encyclopedia.)

Peerless Orchestrion Style A—Style VIII Case. Introduced in 1910, the case was dark wax finished oak, with art glass panels illuminated by electric lights. It utilized the same player mechanisms as did the earlier Peerless Style D orchestrions, with an endless-roll mechanism and its bulky bin located on the backside of the piano. It had a piano, a single rank of 32 metal flute pipes arranged symmetrically, along with snare and bass drums, and a genuine Turkish cymbal.

(Photograph courtesy of Reblitz-Bowers Encyclopedia.)

Peerless Orchestrion Style A—Style IX Case. Introduced in 1910, like the Style VIII, the Style IX was dark wax finished oak, with art glass panels illuminated by electric lights. It utilized the same player mechanisms as did the earlier Peerless Style D orchestrions, with an endless-roll mechanism and its bulky bin located on the backside of the piano. Instrumentation consisted of a piano, a single rank of 32 metal flute pipes arranged symmetrically, snare drum, bass drum, and a genuine Turkish cymbal.

(Photograph courtesy of Reblitz-Bowers Encyclopedia.)

Interior View of the Peerless Orchestrion Style A. The interior of the Style A orchestrion is fairly simple. Above the keyboard is the piano action, a single rank of 32 metal flute pipes arranged symmetrically, and mounted on top of the piano pin-block structure is, at right, a reiterating snare drum, and, at left, a bass drum, and a genuine Turkish cymbal. The cast lettering on the piano plate reads: "Peerless Piano Player Co.; F. Engelhardt & Sons, Prop'rs."

Below the keyboard, and attached to the underside of the keybed, is the pneumatic stack with rubber tubing coming together and exiting the piano case to connect with the endless roll mechanism located behind the piano case. To the right is the electric motor, which is belted to a sarge pulley mounted on a shaft the protrudes to the back side of the piano, whereupon it powers both the endless roll mechanism and the vacuum feeder bellows. A the left is the hefty sustaining pedal pneumatic and other controls.

(Photograph courtesy of Art Reblitz.)

Peerless Orchestrion Style A in a Style VIII case variation with hanging art glass lamps. This Dan Adams photograph was taken circa the late 1960s, when this Peerless orchestrion was in the Roy Arrington collection. This artfully designed Gothic styled orchestrion was also pictured in Art Reblitz's book: Treasures of Mechanical Music. Catalogue illustrations of the Orchestrion Style A do not show case styles VIII, IX, or X with the beautiful hanging art glass lamps. The case itself is of quartered oak with a dark wax finish. Inside the case, above the keyboard, is the piano action and a single symmetrically arranged rank of 32 beautifully polished metal flute pipes. Higher up in the case is a reiterating snare drum, a bass drum, and cymbal.