Dear MMDs,  As I am closing for the auctioneer the catalogue of the
next auction in Chartres (France), due for December 5th (the catalogue
will be ready probably end of next week), I am intrigued by a very
curious object.

It is a miniature Duo-Art roll in its box, strictly similar to the
original one: everything is there, the labels, the roll with its
comments, etc., excepting that the box is only 15 cm long (6 inches),
instead of the usual 32 cm (12-1/2 inches), and everything is reduced
to the same scale.

The roll is a "World's Music" roll, playing a selection of Rimsky-
Korsakoff's "The Golden Cockerel", by Arthur Rubinstein, Aeolian D355,
with comments by Albert Coates, and the usual beautiful engraving when
you play the roll, just before the music comes.

There are perforations, this time not miniature, of the same size as
the original, but of course for a reduced scale (probably around 40
notes), with side perforations (for the nuances?).

I wonder of course what it is, and on which instrument it might play.
Any comment would be appreciated !

Best regards,

Philippe Rouille  (Paris, France)
http://www.cnam.fr/museum/musica_mecanica/

 [ Editor's note:
 [
 [ That roll certainly is a curiousity, Philippe.  The rollography,
 [ "Catalog of Duo-Art Piano Rolls", compiled and published by Charles
 [ Davis Smith (c) 1987, sayss that Duo-Art roll D-355 was published
 [ as "Students' Edition (British AudioGraphic)" in November 1927.
 [ Says historian Smith:
 [
 [ "AudioGraphic was the term used by Aeolian to designate a body of
 [ issues -- in almost all cases already recorded and in the Duo-Art
 [ library -- which were specially designed with lengthy and elabor-
 [ ately engraved roll leaders and included comments ... The Student
 [ Series were in blue boxes ..."
 [
 [ If the length of the box (and the enclosed music roll) was reduced
 [ to six inches by reducing the width of the music paper, there would
 [ remain only 20 playing notes.  Viola!  A 20-er Duo-Art belly piano!
 [
 [ -- Robbie