In response to the post regarding Robert Heilbuth by Glenn Thomas in
011126 MMDigest, here's some info.

Robert Heilbuth is a German-born composer and band organ builder, now
in his 90s, and he is the most cantankerous fellow I have ever met --
the last of the great San Francisco eccentrics!

He has a hippie's disdain for grooming and social climbing, mixed
with a punk rocker's energetic contempt for pretentiousness.  He
composes music especially for the "Heilbuth Band Organ" -- music that
is energetic, creative, catchy, astounding.  He punches out the tunes
by hand on piano rolls.  Why is the composer Conlon Nancarrow the
subject of so much attention, and Heilbuth isn't?

Before he retired, Heilbuth worked as a piano tuner.  He loves waltzes
and polkas, especially those by ("Skater's Waltz" composer) Emil
Waldteufel.  He has met members of the Waldteufel family.

Heilbuth's band organs and tracker action pipe organs look like a pile
of random bits and pieces, and they sound better than any band organ
I've ever heard.  There are some Wurlitzer bits in there, but he uses
no tremolo -- he _hates_ tremolo.  Amazing recordings of Heilbuth's
compositions have been made by Wayne Schotten.  See his web site at
http://www.lavarat.com/wayne.html

When I lived in San Francisco I repeatedly tried to convince Heilbuth
to allow these recording to be put out as a record.  He would have none
of it!  He would adamantly state that he didn't care about becoming
known to the general public, or the "Genital Pubic" as he would call
them.  Too bad, because those tapes have some fabulous stuff.  The
songs have great names like "Ass Kicking Polka."

Heilbuth is infamous for being gruff, even petulant.  The late Anton
LaVey (another great San Francisco character who was an organ player
and founder of the Church of Satan) loved to tell Heilbuth stories,
like how he would determine the detail of pneumatic tubing by chewing
on a piece of it.  He said the different types had different tastes.

Or how he was called to do a last minute piano tuning for a San
Francisco society matron, at the woman's mansion, just as a fancy
party was getting underway.  The hostess at the party asked Heilbuth
discreetly if he would mind putting on a suit jacket before he tuned
the piano.  Heilbuth replied, with his loud German accent: "Lady,
I'm a piano tuner, not a Hollywood actor."

The Heilbuth organs are made from scratch.  As mentioned, some ranks
are Wurlitzer, but some are one-of-a-kind creations such as the
"Esophagophone" which -- you guessed it -- is named after the
esophagus.  The drums and cymbals in the Heilbuth Band Organ came from
some old high school marching band.

With a good deal of patience I was able to convince Heilbuth to let me
video tape him and his band organ in action.  I did this on 03/19/94.
He was fairly unfamiliar with videotape, and asked me when it was going
to be developed.  I explained that it recorded instantly, like audio
cassettes.  He actually answered four or five questions in a somewhat
friendly and patient manner.  He must have been a little under the
weather that day!

I have sent along to MMD a photo attachment.  This is Heilbuth probably
around 1993.  He is visiting my wife, tuning her Marxophone, with her
dove, "Birdling", on his shoulder.

Heilbuth is an extremely talented composer and organ builder.  One
thing I was surprised about is that he had never heard of artist-
magician-organ builder-automaton maker Cecil Nixon, since Heilbuth was
living in San Francisco in the 1950's and 60's when Nixon was there
living his last days.  (Anton LaVey knew both of them.)  I am the
author of the slim biography of Cecil Nixon, entitled "Isis and
Beyond."

I hope that, one day, Heilbuth's recordings will be issued on disc!

Cheers,
Doran Wittelsbach, Vancouver, Washington

 [ I'll place the photo at http://mmd.foxtail.com/Pictures/
 [ Thanks for the fine report, Doran!  -- Robbie