> Hi Phil,  So, what's a "Tino" accordeon player?  Pictures?

A good question.  So-called "Accordeon-Jazz" machines were the rage 
in Europe during the 1920s and 1930s.  This coincided with the
popularity of accordion-based jazz and swing music (sometimes called
"musette").  The accordion never really gained this popularity in the
USA, so Seeburg, Coinola, etc. made no accordion machines, nor were
the European Accordeon-Jazz (I use the French spelling) machines
imported into the U.S.  There were many makers of these instruments,
the most famous being Amelotti and Seybold in France, Pierre Eich in
Belgium, and Kuhl & Klatt in Berlin.

A few used the accordeon-jazz format (accordion and percussion) with
an automaton "human" player.  The most famous was "Accordeo Boy" made
by Gastaud & Raibaut in Nice, France and marketed by Amelotti.  This
was also referred to as the "Tino" accordion machine, as the life-size
figure resembled the popular crooner Tino Rossi (some say he is also
based on Maurice Chevalier).

Gastaud et Raibaut also made the "Pneuma Accordeon-Jazz" for Maison
Bodson ("House of Bodson") in Paris.  This was the "Tino" figure on
accordion accompanied by a minstrel figure on drums.  The automaton
figures work off an electrically-powered cam system in their torsos
rather than from the roll.  They don't actually play the accordion.

I believe both these machines used the 67-note Kuhl & Klatt Pneuma
Accordion-Jazz roll rather than Amelotti's roll.  It is curious that
they do not use Amelotti's roll system, which was quite similar.
Both these rolls, by the way, use the standard 65-note piano roll
spacing.  Kuhl & Klatt apparently licensed their rolls to numerous
firms.  I own an accordeon-jazz machine sold by Presburg in Paris that
uses this roll, though without Tino!

By the way, I also own a Pierre Eich "Harmonika-Jazz" machine which
uses accordion reeds along with percussion.  I like musette very much,
and I'm hoping to get some hot period music arranged for a few of the
more popular roll formats.  If anyone is interested, let me know.

To see photos of some accordeon-jazz machines, see
http://www.boite-accordeon.com/galerie3.html.

Philip Jamison
Pennsylvania