Mark Kinsler stated in 191020 MMDigest, "I strongly dislike the
arrogance and bullying that's ever-present in universities, and
it sounded like the original poster did too."

In the educational partnerships I've had with five universities
regarding mechanical music, I have not encountered any arrogance or
bullying.  On the contrary, I have encountered a genuine interest
to learn, the willingness and funds to leverage the legacy that we
were left and often a true humbleness about what they don't know.

I do think this new interest by universities is a great opportunity.
It allows us as collectors to talk with and educate people outside
of our usual sphere so they can understand and then educate their
students about this little known field.  It also allows us to work
with university researchers who often think and work differently than
we do, thus challenging us in different ways than our peers.

Plus its a great opportunity to get the word out about mechanical music.
When Stanford had their concert in 2015 that featured Rex Lawson on
the Pianola and the Duo-Art rolls of Percy Grainger playing with the
symphony, it was their most attended concert all year!  That place was
jammed.

All those people there learned about the power of mechanical music that
night.  And due to Stanford's presence in the area and their funding,
they were able to get some good radio spots on the local radio stations
to spread the word about the concert.

So, like Mark Reinhart said, academia isn't the only road.  But I would
add that the work of academia is a great additional road to have as an
outlet to help us leave a bigger legacy than we could otherwise.

Paul Johnson