General Information

Serial #

N/A

Part Number

1

Total Parts

3

AKA

N/A

Patents

N/A

General Description

Paper; plastic; ink; cardboard.

Dimensions

Note: These reflect the general size for storage and are not necessarily representative of the object's true dimensions.

Length

34.5 cm

Width

6.0 cm

Height

7.0 cm

Thickness

N/A

Weight

N/A

Diameter

N/A

Volume

N/A

Lexicon

Group

Communications

Category

Music

Sub-Category

N/A

Manufacturer

AKA

QRS

Country

United States of America

State/Province

Unknown

City

Unknown

Context

Country

Canada

State/Province

Quebec

Period

The player piano that accompanies this artifact was purchased in 1915 and was last used in the late 1980s or the early 1990s.

Canada

Until the beginning of the 20th century, musical education in Canada was mostly accessible for upper and upper middle-class families. Exported pianos were expensive, and although the Canadian piano manufacturing industry steadily grew throughout the 19th century, locally made pianos were often regarded as inferior to European instruments. However, at the start of the 20th century, the trade experts noted a strong improvement in the quality of the Canadian-made pianos and a shift in the ratio of imported versus exported pianos. During the first two decades of the 20th century, the interest in music instruments among the Canadian middle class exploded. The phenomenon was due not only to the improving quality of the locally manufactured instruments, but it was also the result of the “Piano in Every Parlor” and “Music in the Home” campaigns organized but the Canadian Piano and Organ Manufacturers’ Association. These promotions, organized by 23 major piano manufacturers, were intended to improve the sales of brand name pianos, organs, and various mechanical musical instruments. Yet, as still not everyone could afford music lessons or a sophisticated reproducing piano, the campaigns opened a large market for lower-quality, less expensive player pianos. From 1900 to 1912, the number of Canadian piano manufacturers had more than doubled, from 12,000 to 30,000. However, most of the new manufacturers were in fact only retailers who sold the so-called “stencil piano”, an inexpensive instrument with standard specifications produced in large numbers and sold under company names made-up by storekeepers.

Function

A player piano roll used to play music when placed inside the piano action of a player piano.

Technical

Although the first experiments with mechanical musical instruments go back to the 13th and the 14th centuries, the first player piano as we know it was developed by Henri Fourneaux in 1863, called the “Pianista”, and commercialized in 1890 with Votey’s “Pianola”. At the start of the 20th century, the player piano became the most common automatic musical instrument, and faced close competition against the phonograph on the home entertainment market. Its popularity declined in the 1930s when the radio started to replace live music. Most of the Canadian player pianos were made by local piano manufacturers, who based the new instruments on their grand or upright pianos. At the beginning of the 20th century, the best-known Canadian player piano makers included L.E.N. Pratter, Heintzman, Martin-Orme, Mason & Risch, Organ Co. and Bell Piano. Although player pianos were less expensive than reproducing pianos, which claimed to mimic pianists’ technical skills, not everyone was able to afford a brand name player piano such as a Prattola or a Mason & Risch. Some manufacturers offered player pianos furnished with standard mechanism, keyboards, and cabinets of slightly lower quality than brand name pianos. These instruments were purchased in large quantities by retailers who would stencil their names on the fallboard. The player piano this roll accompanies is furnished with a standard Otto Higel piano action, an important Canadian-made action that was used by many player piano manufacturers around the world and typically found in stencil player pianos.

Area Notes

Unknown

Details

Markings

Lettering embossed on one of the spool ends reads: “QRS/U.S.A.”.

Missing

One of the flanges is missing; part of remaining flange is missing; roll leader seems to have been cut off.

Finish

Beige paper; black flange; brown cardboard roll.

Decoration

No decoration.