Mechanical Music Digest  Archives
You Are Not Logged In Login/Get New Account
Please Log In. Accounts are free!
Logged In users are granted additional features including a more current version of the Archives and a simplified process for submitting articles.
Home Archives Calendar Gallery Store Links Info
MMD > Archives > May 2010 > 2010.05.05 > 05Prev  Next


Transposing Duo-Art Pianos in Australia
By Bernt Damm

Hello,  I can add at this stage that I spoke to a person who has been
rebuilding 'pianolas' or player pianos here in Australia for a long
time.  He explained to me that just about every other Aeolian stack
he has worked on has this transposing bar I mentioned earlier.  This
includes Duo-Art, Half Duo-Art and 88-note players.  The transposing
bars in all of them are identical and fitted in the exact same way.

Whether these were installed here in Australia or in the USA is still
currently still a mystery to me.  They are of substantial engineering,
professionally installed, and the lever sort of matches the Aeolian
levers.  The wooden parts are black but the finish seems a bit rougher
that the other black action stack parts.

To fit them, the piano hammer rail had to be altered, the spool box
rear had to be routed out, the tracking rewind cutout had to be moved
and the strip of wood that holds the tempo scale had to be halved,
not to mention that all the tubing had to be cut and redone as well
as some other small details.  The large control lever is in at the
left front of the spool box, next to the take-up spool.  It moves up
and down.  The actual transposer bar sits behind the spool box.

In the piano I have here, the wooden lever holder and bracket of the
transposer does cover some other screw holes and these appear to be the
original tracking pneumatic cutout mounting holes.  I don't know if
that would indicate fitment after delivery to Australia or not.

Kind regards,
Bernt Damm
Sydney


(Message sent Wed 5 May 2010, 10:18:00 GMT, from time zone GMT+1000.)

Key Words in Subject:  Australia, Duo-Art, Pianos, Transposing

Home    Archives    Calendar    Gallery    Store    Links    Info   


Enter text below to search the MMD Website with Google



CONTACT FORM: Click HERE to write to the editor, or to post a message about Mechanical Musical Instruments to the MMD

Unless otherwise noted, all opinions are those of the individual authors and may not represent those of the editors. Compilation copyright 1995-2024 by Jody Kravitz.

Please read our Republication Policy before copying information from or creating links to this web site.

Click HERE to contact the webmaster regarding problems with the website.

Please support publication of the MMD by donating online

Please Support Publication of the MMD with your Generous Donation

Pay via PayPal

No PayPal account required

                                     
Translate This Page