There have been a series of postings about instruments and rolls selling
for less these days, and it's no surprise to me.

First, you have a generation which didn't grow up with a piano (being
played) in the home, so it's necessary to interest the potential
collectors with exciting instrumental performances.

Second, the roll libraries for most of the old instruments consist of
boring arrangements, mostly of long-forgotten tunes that were on
Broadway for a week or two or are tunes of the dreamy ilk, i.e. lush
salon music, often saccharine, which turns few heads today.  Anyone for
"Sparklets" or "Brides And Butterflies"?  Not me!

It's not necessary that the public "knows" the music, for I've had large
groups assemble whenever "Just Make It Moxie For Mine," "Lion Tamer
Rag," "Roberto Clemente," by David Roberts, "Meringue, Concert Etude,"
by Frank French, or "The Wrong Rag," by Glenn Jenks, were being
performed in public.  It doesn't matter whether this involves a
reproducing piano or a manually operated pedal player, with my rolls,
since the graduated staccato and overlap cutting methods suggest a
keyboard attack which is missing in commercial arrangements, past and
present.

Forty years ago I passed up any number of Colonial style Mason & Hamlin
grands, due to the Ampico roll libraries and the minimal controls for a
pianolist.  The pianos were wonderful, often in mint condition, but the
roll library and player action design were not unlike the point-and-
shoot cameras of today.  Similarly, I passed up any number of Wurlitzer
piano-orchestrions, again due to the music roll arrangements and
selections available.

Had organizations like AMICA encouraged new arrangements, and -- better
still -- ones which transcended the fare of the past, many players would
have retained their value today.  The standard pedal player and the Duo-
Art are two types of instruments which continue to attract new people
into the field, due in a large part to my Artcraft music roll offerings.

Another thing to consider is that the pianos themselves are vastly older
than when some of us began collecting in the late 40's and early 50's.
In those days, you often bought an instrument from its original owner.
Now you have to deal with hammers, strings, felt bushings, and a host of
other piano action costs, beyond rebuilding the player and acquiring
a library of interesting rolls.  In other words, many of the pianos were
run into the ground over the last few decades and need some massive
investment to bring them back to their former glory.

When I left California to co-found the Musical Wonder House at the start
of the 60's, there were many pianos in the San Francisco Bay Area,
mostly Ampico, which were in stellar condition, and which were played
frequently.  AMICA was yet to be founded.  When I returned in 1988 for a
Bay Area convention, I was amazed to see many of these same pianos
playing out of tune and not playing very well.  It was obvious that a
good many of the West Coast instruments were, as I said above, "run into
the ground."

The focus should be on the rolls, which are driving down the collective
interest in many players and orchestrions.  The Duo-Art and 88-note
players have a bright future internationally.  I offer no solutions
except to suggest upgrading to these two kinds of instruments and
realizing that erratic rolls for a T-100 Welte-Mignon or bland, syrupy
arrangements for the B Ampico grand will never excite future collectors.
It's those organ-like note clusters in music rolls which alienate many
listeners today.

Regards,
Douglas Henderson