Hello folks,  As some of you may know, I'm a musician when not
collecting and researching musical instruments.  The past few months
I've been working on a new ragtime composition for a special project.

Besides composition I'm also tasked to record this piece, and due to
my own instruments generally being in various states of repair, but not
yet great enough for a recording project, I'm looking to go visit /
record on a fully restored, regulated, voiced, and tuned upright piano,
preferably next week (March 11th-17th, 2018), in Southern California.
I am in Orange County but could drive up to Los Angeles, or if
necessary, down to San Diego, etc., and also to the Inland Empire.

The piano can be at a public location or a private home etc but if
private, the owner will be kept secret from the project, unless they
specifically want mention in the liner notes.

The piano itself (make, model, and possibly serial number) _will_
be mentioned, hopefully as a minor way to promote the beautiful sound
of that instrument (to buyers of this CD, on one track only) and
potentially save one more like it from the dump in the future.

Some makes of piano that I like include Ahlstrom, Julius Bauer,
Chickering, Estey, Seybold, P. S. Wick, and several others, so if
you happen to have one of these, great!  If not, let me know what
you have and I'll try to make it over and try it out to see if I like
the tone, etc.  I'm not super picky about which make (although there
are a few makes I don't like) but the piano itself _must be_ in great
hand-playable condition.

It need not be a "straight" piano; I'm perfectly okay with hand-playing
a player piano, reproducing piano, coin piano, orchestrion, etc.,
but again it must be restored, regulated and have the hammers voiced.
(I'm looking for a pretty, mellow timbre rather than a "hard" or
"bright" timbre that is too glassy or metallic; also looking for
rich-sounding "live" wound bass strings rather than dead strings.)

Again, I will be recording just one tune on this piano for this
project, although if I like it enough, and the owner is okay with it,
I may want to come back and record a whole album on it at some point
in the future (many months from now, or a year from now).

I'm also looking specifically for a fully restored pre-1915 Weber
upright piano, preferably 1900-1914 era, player or not, for another
near-future recording project, maybe for this Fall, Winter, or next
Spring.  This would be for a full album.  Ideally, the piano should
be located in Southern California, although I may be able to travel
fly elsewhere to make this later recording.

As for this immediate project of one ragtime tune, the owner(s) of
said instrument(s) may get some compensation for their time and the
use of their instrument.  Since the initial one-rag project isn't my
own project (although it will be my own composition) I do not know if
the person in charge of the project can compensate the piano owner,
but I will ask.

As for the recording itself, I will likely either use my own digital
recorder, or ask a friend or family member skilled at recording to
accompany me and bring their equipment.

Regardless of what make it is, if you have a fully restored upright
piano (player or non-player) available in So. Cal. on which I might
be able to record one track this coming week (since the due date is
the end of this month), please send me an email and or telephone.
I'd appreciate hearing from you.  Thanks in advance!

Sincerely,
Andrew Barrett
Costa Mesa, California
tel.: 1-949-378-4221
rag1916@yahoo.com.geentroep [delete ".geentroep" to reply]