Re: Value of Old Piano Rolls
By Dan Wilson
People asking about old rolls, of which they know absolutely nothing, are a commonplace on the newsgroup Usenet/rec.music.makers.piano. I recently sent this response off and humbly submit my judgment to AMD readers' opinion, so I can fine-tune it for later use. I have to guess about US prices somewhat.
---quote---
"Charles Nitsch" <nrmlisbrng@earthlink.net> asked:
> I have some very old player piano rolls and someone wants to buy
> them, how much should I ask for them?
"I have an old table -- how much is it worth?" Start again.
VERY old player piano rolls have pins in the end and holes a bit bigger than woodworm. These are 65-note and on the edge of being junk unless in very nice condition or containing unusual or rare music, in which case they should be sold by title through one of the enthusiast journals - ask your local technician to find a contact. Having gone to all the trouble, you want to sell, so don't ask more than 2.50 UK Pounds, or US$ 5.00. Otherwise, price by the box of 30 or so, 50 pence each in England, maybe $1 each in USA.
If the ends are dimpled and the holes are woodworm size, these are common- or-garden 88-note. The above applies plus 20-25%. They must be in reasonable boxes, otherwise you'll be lucky to get rid of them for more than 25p/50c each.
The only valuable old player rolls are reproducing rolls which contain a complete historic recording. If you know nothing, you have to go by the make: Welte-Mignon, Welte Licensee, Artrio-Angelus, Recordo, De Luxe, Ampico, Duo-Art, or (less likely in USA than Europe) Duca, DEA, Triphonola, Animatic-T. Again, you can only capitalize on the true market value by selling by title, but even so it's uncommon for rolls to command more than $35.00.
By lots, (and they have to be old, not with plastic ends or D-ring tabs, indicating they're modern copies, and in undamaged boxes) expect a bit more than double the 65-note prices above.
Of course, they may be organ rolls, or nickelodeon rolls. The story is then different again. I'd simply try asking 50% more than you're being offered for them, and get on with some more profitable pursuit.
Dan Wilson (Friends of the Pianola Institute, London)
---end-of-quote---
Your comments invited ! We could do with a consensus FAQ on this.
(Australia included, please. As far as I can tell, New Zealand has one player-piano and that's in the Museum of Transport & Technology, Western Springs, Auckland ! :-))
Dan Wilson
[ Ed. Note: Thanks for the good article above, Dan, and
[ Hey, "Down Under!" What's the current ratio of pianos
[ to kangaroos?!!
[ -- Robbie
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