I guess the consensus is about the same all over that the player
piano is a slowly dying remnant of a now by-gone era that may never
return again.  This is a sad statement but it bears a great deal of
truth.  It seems that all sorts of mechanical musical instruments have
lost much of their value and they are much harder to find a home for.

I recall that in the not so distant past player grand pianos were
really in demand and the prices realized for some of the nicer units
was about what a new home would cost in the fifties, now they're hard
to give away and most often don't even get close to the cost of their
restoration.  The economy has added to the pain but this has been
coming for some time.

Part of the problem is that there few public venues that feature
a player piano.  Years ago there were player pianos on practically
every game show and there were plenty of places where you could go
to see one and enjoy one including pizza parlors, ice cream shops,
restaurants and bars.  Today the public barely remembers players and
when they do see one they're amazed and fascinated.

When I would do some larger antique shows I would always have a couple
of players on hand and plenty of rolls; the people would come from all
over the show when they heard the wonderful old tunes floating through
the air.  We would draw large crowds of older folks and young folks all
anxious to see the mechanical wonder.  I feel guilty sometimes for not
continuing the antique shows but it becomes more difficult every year.

I'll end this epistle on a cynical note.  Someone once asked me,
"What's the difference between and upright and a spinet piano?"
-- The upright burns longer.

Jim Jelinek