Disklavier

I am among a group of people who have successfully built a 
player piano roll scanner and I'm in the process of converting 
the contents of my 1800 rolls into midi files.    

I don't own a Disklavier or PianoDisc or any other solenoid 
operated acoustic piano that will play from midi files.   I do 
have a 1928 Fischer Ampico A grand that will soon be equipped 
with a set of in-line magnet valves which will make it possible 
to "play" my piano from midi files.

In the meantime, I've posted the results of my efforts on my 
personal web site, some 400+ midi's so far.    These are all 
scans from player piano music manufactured in the 1910 - 1930 
era, with a mix of classical, pops of the 20's, ballads, 
ragtime, blues, etc.    All are in midi-1 format.

We have Richard Stibbons in the UK to thank for this unique 
initiative.    A retiree from the broadcasting industry, he 
developed the electronics and the software to make all this 
possible.     He does have a Disklavier and he tells me that my 
scans work just fine on his piano.

For pics of my scanner, scanners built by others, and access to 
my midi files, click on:

http://members.shaw.ca/smythe/rebirth.htm

Enjoy!

Regards,

Terry 

Terry Smythe                     (204) 832-3982
55 Rowand Avenue                 smythe@...
Winnipeg, MB, Canada   R3J 2N6   http://www.mts.net/~smythe

Thank you, and the others who have developed this technique, for providing 
an immeasureable contribution to the preservation of player piano music.  I 
bought my Disklavier so I could hear such music.  I have been enjoying your 
files all afternoon!  Thank you for posting them - and free at that!

Were there any player piano rolls made from the music on the Vitaphone 
recordings?  I believe these were the soundtrack recording disks to the 
early Warner Brother's movies in the 1930's.

Carol Beigel
crbrpt@...


>From: Terry Smythe <smythe@...>
>Reply-To: disklavier@yahoogroups.com
>To: disklavier@yahoogroups.com, dug@...
>Subject: [disklavier] Player Piano Music
>Date: Sun, 25 May 2003 09:19:33 -0500
>
>I am among a group of people who have successfully built a
>player piano roll scanner and I'm in the process of converting
>the contents of my 1800 rolls into midi files.
>
>I don't own a Disklavier or PianoDisc or any other solenoid
>operated acoustic piano that will play from midi files.   I do
>have a 1928 Fischer Ampico A grand that will soon be equipped
>with a set of in-line magnet valves which will make it possible
>to "play" my piano from midi files.
>
>In the meantime, I've posted the results of my efforts on my
>personal web site, some 400+ midi's so far.    These are all
>scans from player piano music manufactured in the 1910 - 1930
>era, with a mix of classical, pops of the 20's, ballads,
>ragtime, blues, etc.    All are in midi-1 format.
>
>We have Richard Stibbons in the UK to thank for this unique
>initiative.    A retiree from the broadcasting industry, he
>developed the electronics and the software to make all this
>possible.     He does have a Disklavier and he tells me that my
>scans work just fine on his piano.
>
>For pics of my scanner, scanners built by others, and access to
>my midi files, click on:
>
>http://members.shaw.ca/smythe/rebirth.htm
>
>Enjoy!
>
>Regards,
>
>Terry
>
>Terry Smythe                     (204) 832-3982
>55 Rowand Avenue                 smythe@...
>Winnipeg, MB, Canada   R3J 2N6   http://www.mts.net/~smythe
>

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On 27 May 2003 "Carol Beigel" <carolrpt@...> said:

> Thank you, and the others who have developed this technique,
> for providing an immeasureable contribution to the
> preservation of player piano music.  I bought my Disklavier
> so I could hear such music.  I have been enjoying your files
> all afternoon!  Thank you for posting them - and free at
> that! 

Thank you for your kind words, appreciated.    Glad you like the 
music.     It has been my objective from the beginning to make 
my scans freely available.     Goes back to a 14 year old dream.

> Were there any player piano rolls made from the music on the
> Vitaphone recordings?  I believe these were the soundtrack
> recording disks to the early Warner Brother's movies in the
> 1930's. 

Player piano rolls could not have been made from disc 
recordings.    Vice-versa possibly.     More likely the music of 
that era would have appeared in production rolls by its 
conventional process.     Music rolls continued to be in 
production up into the late 30's, albeit in sharply reduced 
numbers, following the industry collapse in late 1929/1930.

If you have some tune titles in mind, let me know.   Outside 
chance they may be found in somebody's roll catalog of the 
period.

Regards,

Terry




Terry Smythe                     (204) 832-3982
55 Rowand Avenue                 smythe@...
Winnipeg, MB, Canada   R3J 2N6   http://www.mts.net/~smythe

Hi Terry,

Like Carol, I just wanted to thank you for sharing your efforts with us here.
These files are marvelous and work extremely well with the Disklavier! Anyone
who has not had the chance to listen to these should try them out.

Also, a big thanks again to Richard Stibbons who helped me with some dynamics
problems that I was having with some MIDI translations over to my Disklavier a
couple of months ago...


Danny Simpson

>From: Terry Smythe <smythe@...>
>
>I am among a group of people who have successfully built a
>player piano roll scanner and I'm in the process of converting
>the contents of my 1800 rolls into midi files.
>
>I don't own a Disklavier or PianoDisc or any other solenoid
>operated acoustic piano that will play from midi files.   I do
>have a 1928 Fischer Ampico A grand that will soon be equipped
>with a set of in-line magnet valves which will make it possible
>to "play" my piano from midi files.
>
>In the meantime, I've posted the results of my efforts on my
>personal web site, some 400+ midi's so far.    These are all
>scans from player piano music manufactured in the 1910 - 1930
>era, with a mix of classical, pops of the 20's, ballads,
>ragtime, blues, etc.    All are in midi-1 format.
>
>We have Richard Stibbons in the UK to thank for this unique
>initiative.    A retiree from the broadcasting industry, he
>developed the electronics and the software to make all this
>possible.     He does have a Disklavier and he tells me that my
>scans work just fine on his piano.
>
>For pics of my scanner, scanners built by others, and access to
>my midi files, click on:
>
>http://members.shaw.ca/smythe/rebirth.htm
>
>Enjoy!
>
>Regards,
>
>Terry