Player-Piano Rolls

I'm fascinated by this story, and by the idea of something long thought forgotten — the last remaining factory to manufacture player-piano rolls has stopped production. Beautiful, cantankerous antique machinery that had been in use almost since the turn of the century has been shut down, disassembled, and put into storage. I wish I could have seen it at work. (Here's a tour of the QRS Technologies manufacturing facility during better times, with a demonstration of how player-piano rolls are recorded and manufactured.)

It came as a complete surprise to me to discover that player-piano rolls were still being produced and sold — over the past several years, QRS Technologies has been selling about 50,000 paper rolls each year. (I can't seem to find current prices on the company's web site, but other vendors seem to have them for around $20 each.) Who in the world has been buying them, I wonder?

You might be surprised at what songs are available — there's a list here (though I've no idea how comprehensive it is). Selections include Charleston Rag (played by Eubie Blake, no less!), Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover, Suicide Is Painless, and even Classical Gas.

And did you know that analog player pianos were still being manufactured and sold, well into this decade? (QRS Technologies acquired the last remaining manufacturer in 1993, to ensure a continued market for player-piano rolls.) They've been supplanted by a modern, digitized system that can be added to a standard piano. (You can even buy a remote with a touchscreen to operate them.)