Antique player pianos are loved by antique and piano enthusiasts alike. They are made up of two important components - the piano itself, as well as a mechanical player, which accounts for much of their charm.
There are also a number of different types of antique pianos of this kind. These include theme control, isolated theme, split stack control, nickelodeons, 'reproducing' and orchestrions, each with their own appeal.
Theme control antique player pianos have just that - graduated theme control. This means that both the foreground and background melodies are controllable. An example of this type would be Aeolian's "Themodist." Isolated theme pianos, however, are able to pick out the foreground notes from the background without having to break up chords. Some isolated theme piano manufacturers were "Solo Carola" and "Kastonome."
Split stack control are the most common types of antique piano. Split stack control has an operator which is capable of lowering the volume of either part of the keyboard that has been split by the pneumatic player mechanism (basically the keyboards is split in half so that they can play independently).
Reproducing pianos, such as the "Welte-Mignon," are fully automated pianos. That means they are capable of playing music without any human control. Nickelodeons and Orchestrions are also automated instruments that are typically operated by coins for commercial use.
Player pianos grew in popularity during the later 1800s and early 1900s. While the earliest concepts of were from the 1840s, the actual devices were seen in the 1870s.
The Aeolian Company played a great role in the development of these types of pianos and marketed their "Pianola" greatly during the later 1890s. The "Aeriol Piano" also appeared around the same time and is considered the very first complete player piano. The "Welte-Mignon" reproducing piano was then introduced in 1904. The 1920s, then, were the peak period for player pianos, but they rapidly declined after their peak, in part due to the tremendous Wall Street Crash of 1929.
Still, to this day, these special pianos are often most appreciated by those who have a desire to restore these old treasures. Others still simply enjoy the uniqueness of these instruments.
Antique player pianos are much sought after, even nearly a century after their peak in popularity. They have proven to be timeless instruments that hold intrinsic value for their owners and those that admire them.
