Fellow MMD'ers:  I haven't noticed any report about the joint MBSI and
AMICA meeting which took place at Mike Ames' Solana Instruments museum
last weekend as part of various club activities.

In case no one has mentioned it, I'd like to thank Mike and his
wife Marilyn for hosting another great day jam-packed with events
including roll punching and scanning operations, antique gas engines,
hosting Larry Broadmoore's PowerRoll system (which gave quite a work out
to Mike's Steinway Duo-Art), and of course various instrument
demonstrations from their fabulous collection.

But to me the highlight of the day was the performance of Bach's
Brandenburg Concerto played on not one, but three different automatic
musical instruments -- simultaneously!

Through a computer MIDI interface this historic performance brought
together an Aeolian residence pipe organ, a Mason & Hamlin Ampico B
and a Mills Violano Virtuoso.  The result was staggering, even
breathtaking.  The deep resonance of the pipe organ's bass pipes, the
sparkle of the Mason & Hamlin and, cutting through it all, the violin
solo on the Violano, altogether was beyond memorable.

Standing on the balcony next to the piano, or on the main floor beneath
the organ's pipes (which, for those who've not had the pleasure of
visiting Solana Instruments, are located in a specially built pipe
chamber above the main floor of the large main collection hall) gave
wonderfully different perspectives on Dave Wasson's masterful
arrangement.

What would Charles F. Stoddard or Henry Sandell or any of the other
mechanical music pioneers have thought of this wild coordination of
instruments, made possible solely through the imagination of a very
21st-century engineer?  I only wish all of our fellow enthusiasts could
have witnessed it.  Hopefully, Mike will continue with such experiments
and continue to allow us to enjoy them through these open houses.

By the way, it's Mike's philosophy to make all technology updates fully
reversible so that future owners of his instruments can return them to
their original playing condition.  With this in mind, Mike says no
holes are drilled, clamps are used, and when the MIDI interface gear is
removed it's hard to tell it was ever there.

Bravo, Mike.

Marc Sachnoff