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@ehurtley13 жыл бұрын
Wow. I had no idea QRS is still around. My parents still have the old player piano we had as a kid. One of the rolls I loved as a kid was the Star Wars theme. Our player piano could be switched from 'conventional' to 'western' sound. The western sound was perfect for the "Cantina" section of the Star Wars roll. Also, did anyone notice that the 'wand boxes' in the first Harry Potter movie look suspiciously like piano roll boxes?
@mdgnys11 жыл бұрын
I recently acquired a player piano from pre 1920s. The engineering brains for the machine is just astounding. I learned that it runs on vacuum pressure rather than positive pneumatic pressure. Otherwise it would just blow the paper off the read bar. This way it sucks it towards it. Its really a piece of engineering brilliance.
@redfailhawk3 жыл бұрын
I’m curious what you paid, if you are open to sharing such information.
@8546Ken8 ай бұрын
You should see the engineering that went into a reproducing piano, where the loudness is varied by varying the level of the vacuum according to certain perforations in the roll. There are separate regulators for bass and treble divisions. There were several different brands with totally different systems for doing this.
@darfoz88076 ай бұрын
wow! it really is a testament to human ingenuity. given the tools and technologies they had at the time, it's remarkable that they were able to create something like that!
@darfoz88076 ай бұрын
@@8546Ken does the roll take into account how hard/long a key is pressed, the pedal, etc?
@8546Ken6 ай бұрын
@@darfoz8807 The length of a note is controlled by the length of the slot in the paper. In common player pianos, the loudness of each note is not controlled by the roll. All notes play the same. The person playing the piano can control the expression or loudness by how hard they pump the pedals. Sometimes the roll has printed notations indicating how it should be played. But there is also a more expensive piano called a "reproducing piano", usually built as a grand piano. These had an electric air pump. These were much less common, and require special rolls. These have a separate set of holes to control the degree of vacuum, separately for the bass and treble. There were also separate holes to control the expression pedals. There were at least three companies building reproducing pianos - all incompatible with each other. Ampico, Duo-art, & Welte-Mignon Reproducing piano rolls were often recorded by well-known pianists using pianos that could record in real time. Many of these rolls have been transferred to MIDI files, so you can hear the music played almost exactly as it was played by the original artist 100 years ago. I actually restored one of these pianos 32 years ago.
@Rendydany9 жыл бұрын
oh my god. I worked a lot with DAW and digital piano roll. but never knew that it's a thing
@SSTC.11 жыл бұрын
Grandfather of MIDI
@baxterlaw212 жыл бұрын
Actually, they are still using that Apple IIe to capture the roll/music info and to perforate the rolls; they could have made that video yesterday. They have too many titles (thousands) to make it worthwhile to transfer/translate the electronic roll data to something more modern. And the Apple IIe is very robust and this is well within its capabilities.
@kurtkaufman Жыл бұрын
The most interesting section for me was at 0:45, where we see *one* method by which a pianist entered the actual notes to be reproduced. This is probably close to how the vast majority of "classic" rolls from ca. 1900 to 1930 were created.
@microsoftice6498 Жыл бұрын
But the question is, how do you define the intensity with which a note is played on a roll?
@kurtkaufman Жыл бұрын
@@microsoftice6498 As I understand it, At the time of playback, a typical piano roll requires someone to "interpret", by means of hand controls. On certain more sophisticated systems, this is automatic (Duo-Art, Welte-Mignon), and is encoded in the roll. With the exception of Welte-Mignon, it's not clear if it was ever possible to directly "record" the original pianist's dynamics. With Duo-Art, a roll editor would add the dynamics later.
@Arkelk20106 жыл бұрын
Interesting blend of modern an old technologies. And still a lot of work by hand.
@Sparkz16078 жыл бұрын
Holy shit that background music Sounds like it came out of Sonic the Hedgehog Do want
@niolink9548 ай бұрын
Checked the description and that "Please rate 5 Stars" brings you back so much
@jeffjeff34267 жыл бұрын
Much of the narration during the assembly of the piano roll didn't sync with the actions being performed on the video.
@ozzietadziu5 жыл бұрын
You'd think that the creators of the video would have noticed the same thing.
@kukral11 жыл бұрын
It amazes me that there are so many comments about the computers for this video. The reason for this is that most people today cannot understand or even fathom mechanical engineering or how precision pneumatic machinery operates. I've shown this to my engineering students and all the comments are about the old floppy discs and computers. They have little imagination today in the music or piano technology.
@jessicawalton46902 жыл бұрын
How have i never heard of this, i thought pianos playing themselves was just horror movie trickery
@davidoppenheim3979 Жыл бұрын
The most fun 1920's Karaoke machines that like older computers, can "run/play" NEW software. Not obsolete devices. As modern as the music rolls that you play on them! So much fun and interactivity! Great exercise by using the original "player pedals" rather than just turning them on using aftermarket mini vacuum cleaners called suction boxes. Still noisy vacuum cleaners by another name! Boring music when simply played this way.
@echodelta911 жыл бұрын
It is the centennial of the Duo-Art system which had twin 4 bit digital to analogue converters. Artists that made these recordings were awed, and wondered why we hadn't done this earlier. We would have digital recordings of Beethoven and Mozart!
@Ragtimer9512 жыл бұрын
Yes, it is sad....And worse of all; they've gotten rid of some of their most popular rolls! Thank goodness there's other roll manufacturers out there.
@harrisonthecarguy37342 жыл бұрын
it's quite sad really, it's a forgotten art that not many people know about
@dogge9292 жыл бұрын
What ornery companies exist still?
@quackistan7 жыл бұрын
I have no idea what series of uploads I've watched that lead me to this video. I've gone down the rabbit hole. . .
@DEDEQUIER12 жыл бұрын
Qu elle belle mecanique !! Merci pour cette magnifique et tres interessante video
@D0S816 жыл бұрын
1:22 i dont which antique is cooler, the piano, or that sweet ass apple mac floppy floppy disc. lol
@sallielancaster55115 жыл бұрын
The piano by far is way cooler
@Musicalmane3 жыл бұрын
@@sallielancaster5511 yeah but they both are cool
@jb5music10 ай бұрын
But instead of the actual live player creating the digital data for the role... It's also possible to compile a piece by transcribing it on a computer notation software score on a computer. Then transcode the file to a MIDI file. Of which I have dozens. I wonder where I could find someone that has one of those machines that I could make actual analog rolls out of them? They're transcriptions of famous players stride piano solos from famous bands from the 1930s
@8546Ken6 ай бұрын
Those rolls transcribed by the famous musicians were a special type of roll played on a special piano called a "reproducing piano" - usually a grand piano.
@punman53928 жыл бұрын
The audio is waaaaaaay off from the video
@holodoctor17 жыл бұрын
Westworld brought me here :)
@PINKBOY100611 жыл бұрын
To: every one that says that this outdated it is not this was made in 2006/2005
@coondogtheman12 жыл бұрын
I was hoping they would have done the how it's made theme song in piano roll.
@patrickrichmond98968 ай бұрын
I think the way it's done today is that the keyboard or synthesizer is hooked up to the computer via MIDI cables and the files are recorded as MIDI files. The one who is making the file sends it off to the company to cut the paper.
@andrejjan22403 ай бұрын
0:31 The first ever MIDIes! :):) (Sythesia 10.9 - synthesiathegame; See Music...)
@jacknedry39254 жыл бұрын
In all seriousness, an Apple ][ would work fine in most mechanical machines.
@leerose86287 жыл бұрын
Dude did I see a floppy disc?
@theR1ddle7 жыл бұрын
Dude you saw a whole Apple IIe running the whole punch works. I have no idea how they would find parts for a 30 year old computer should it break down.
@jacobzelmore60807 жыл бұрын
Michael Lee I just said the same thing lol
@wendygoerl91627 жыл бұрын
Back in the late 1980's, my sister worked in a knitting mill that tracked their baskets (of fabrics/garments) with punch cards.
@goldenretriever64407 жыл бұрын
Michael Lee Dude did I see an Apple 2
@Renville807 жыл бұрын
theR1ddle no kidding. We have two pieces of equipment at my work that are run off a frigging PDP-11! It recently malfunctioned and the machine techs had quite the time getting it back in running condition.
@andrejjan22403 ай бұрын
POV: The printer is the piano... POV: Guttenberg plays the piano...
@allison888888884 жыл бұрын
i want a player piano & an apple computer!
@KaraMarisa2 жыл бұрын
I found a box of these in my attic in my childhood home.
@pocoapoco211 жыл бұрын
It's amazing what an ancient machine like that is capable of when it doesn't have to support the huge overhead of a modern operating system.
@davidoppenheim3979 Жыл бұрын
Much more fun and interactive than boring electronic keyboards hand held devices with ear buds!
@themagicboy6548 Жыл бұрын
Love that they still use an apple ][
@daphneblake78897 жыл бұрын
I have a Boston player and a trunk full of old rolls with no resources to restore it. all I need is a place and money
@clariona13 жыл бұрын
Check out ARTCRAFT Music Rolls online. They've been in Wiscasset, Maine, for over 50 years, and they still make dynamic music rolls using original cast iron perforators. The arrangements are hand punched and are far superior to computer generated piano rolls as well as most of the music rolls made in the past.
@Melissa077411 жыл бұрын
0:49 I wonder what that plaque says.
@mumiemonstret9 ай бұрын
1:03 "Then they just perforate the carbon marks" - that sounds like a very elaborate process if done manually, or interesting if done by machine. Why don't we get to see it?
@mumiemonstret9 ай бұрын
I wonder how the two sections of narration got mixed up (2:30 and 3:04). Was it aired like this?
@sgirondogs13 жыл бұрын
interesting video
@ethan-L2 жыл бұрын
What kind of the paper did they use? Is it susceptible to tears or mold growth?
@OofusTwillip Жыл бұрын
The modern paper they use now is more durable. Some old piano rolls used more acidic paper, which is now very brittle. Luckily, there are some people who scan piano rolls, and convert them to MIDI files. Thousands of rolls have been preserved this way, including many that are too fragile to play. I grew up with a 1914 Starck player-piano. Today, I have a 1915 Lexington player-piano. And about 200 antique and modern piano rolls. I recently bought some from QRS, and several antique ones on eBay.
@davidoppenheim3979 Жыл бұрын
@@OofusTwillip New QRS rolls are being made in Seneca, PA at their facility today. Up to date music such as Frozen, Titanic theme, Lady Gaga songs, Billy Joel tunes, Dolly Parton, Travis Tritt, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, and broadway and Christmas music ALL easily obtainable on used or new piano rolls that are fully interchangeable for all types of player pianos!
@grandcarriage12 жыл бұрын
Oooo. Nice floppy disc. I wonder how long ago that was recorded....
@appleeimac12 жыл бұрын
@kaylera1 yes it is but is it a e, +, or 2?
@3840MUSIC11 жыл бұрын
Great video - Does anybody recognize that the video and text they speak does not match after they cut the paper off and put the temporary tag on?
@mrb69210 ай бұрын
I absolutely noticed that. I wonder how the audio got swapped?
@samakechijowo9 жыл бұрын
I wonder what year did this video was made? Who still use floppy disk nowadays?
@tsltyler9 жыл бұрын
Sam Akechi they still do to this day! Why change it if the method still works?
@Foxyjosh8 жыл бұрын
+Sam Akechi I used to work at a company that has some very old and very high precision boring mills. To start the machine, we have to run a punch tape code through the machine's computer to get it to start up. (It's what was used before floppy disks) To retrofit to a modern computer would cost $25,000. So, until the machine quits working, they are not planing to upgrade.
@jayson83726 жыл бұрын
At our local university we still use an old IBM 386 computer running Windows 3.1 to control a CNC machine...data transfered via a 3.5" 'floppy' disk. Cost to replace proprietary computer (the card inside really) and software, multiple thousands of dollars, cost to buy USB floppy disk for modern computers, about $10 or $15 from eBay. You pick.
@vt27886 жыл бұрын
In North Korea maybe
@jacknedry39254 жыл бұрын
The US Military
@justaflyviewer38928 жыл бұрын
Piece at 1:07 Scott Joplin's Magnetic Rag
@SQUAREHEADSAM19122 жыл бұрын
His very last rag too.
@alessandrodallagnola48137 жыл бұрын
Pls someone write the name of the song at 0.27
@kojichao709612 жыл бұрын
The audio is even quieter than other HIM video's. Make sure to re-adjust your volume so you don't blast your speakers!
@xavierschoen57473 жыл бұрын
I want the devils trill sonata made lol
@007Environment11 жыл бұрын
They scrub corn starch on the paper?
@PINKBOY100611 жыл бұрын
Correction 2008 if you look at the roll at the end
@pongomutley9 жыл бұрын
Pity the narrator got the word printing and the tab making descriptions the wrong way round
@karlellison50945 жыл бұрын
That would be the video's editor fault. Don't know what they're really looking at ....
@crisman76810 жыл бұрын
Scott Joplin's songs :DDD
@baxterlaw212 жыл бұрын
Nope - QRS never followed through on the shutdown and are still making rolls in Buffalo. They just did an order of 130 custom rolls for the Automatic Musical Instrument Collectors' Association Convention in Pittsburgh (July 2012)
@davidoppenheim3979 Жыл бұрын
Also Meliora and Artcraft music rolls still fully available offering great music rolls today!
@benjaminrogers13436 жыл бұрын
We are number one
@thomasjohnston69982 жыл бұрын
What is that first piano roll song?
@rayganparksmitchell5 жыл бұрын
ahhh its a ghost
@Turkeydoodlers14 жыл бұрын
yeah i noticed that :) good video though
@jayulinirwanayuliekajeck11655 жыл бұрын
kayangkono jbul sulite yo
@uncopyrightedkeyboard82508 жыл бұрын
what is the roll preferator softwate called
@Mindsi Жыл бұрын
Does it encrypt pedal data too?
@organfairy3 ай бұрын
There is no need to 'encrypt' the sustain pedal - they just hold down the keys as long as they want the sustain to last. The only reason you have a sustain pedal on a piano is so you can free up your fingers to play additional notes while you hold the already played ones. A player piano can hold more keys than a human have fingers.
@kidcreator27196 жыл бұрын
whats the first song they played?
@rafriedman Жыл бұрын
Di Grine Cuzine.
@sethmerrell88887 жыл бұрын
Does anybody know the beginning song?
@rafriedman Жыл бұрын
Di Grine Cuzine.
@claudioalfano43815 ай бұрын
Is it just me or the voice of the speaker isn't synced with the video and is messed up?
@claudioalfano43815 ай бұрын
Yeah,the script got swapped probably
@zelphx7 жыл бұрын
WOW! This must be old! Dig that 5.25 floppy!
@WellsteadEnterprise13 жыл бұрын
@kaylera1 Yeaa, is so up to date! That faktory wood newer get thru EU safty inspektion, the glu locks so helthy :P
@SexyWellness2 жыл бұрын
I want to see how they made them in the old days
@8546Ken6 ай бұрын
That was covered in the video, but not n detail.
@RobinPratt13 жыл бұрын
@clariona -- You need to oil your player piano pedals on your You Tube postings. You have disabled comments on your site so I thought I would let you know here. Very distracting. Also, Artcraft does not have "perforators". They have a Leabarjan home perforator that produces one roll.
@DityaSangGita8 жыл бұрын
do they still make these rolls? I mean, the pianola isn't that popular nowadays. it is so beautifully made though, so sophisticated
@iangillis12717 жыл бұрын
yes, they do. You can order them from QRS (still in business for over a century), or other small manufacturers
@ozzietadziu5 жыл бұрын
QRS manufacturing is currently (10/15/2018) is now a one-man operation, soon to be discontinued.
@DrRonski5 жыл бұрын
So, will we be able to order rolls from the inventory?
@ozzietadziu5 жыл бұрын
Yes. Check out the QRS Music Technoogies website.
@DrRonski5 жыл бұрын
Just talked to QRS and they said they are not going to be discontinuing manufacturing. Do you think they will just continue to sell inventory and not make any new rolls?
@aattura12 жыл бұрын
HAHAHA a 5" floppy -- this is an OOOLD Vid!!
@gastonlutri11 жыл бұрын
with a f...n 5 1/4 disk!!! wow!!! old times!! :D
@kaylera114 жыл бұрын
Holy crap!! is that like an old Apple IIE??! talk about high tech!
@matheusmartino77477 жыл бұрын
That video was made in 2008. It was just that factory that used old computers.
@007Environment11 жыл бұрын
I've seen self playing pianos before.
@jacknedry39255 жыл бұрын
What’s the tune at 0:25?
@rafriedman Жыл бұрын
Di Grine Cuzine.
@jacknedry392510 ай бұрын
@@rafriedman, THANK YOU!
@ufoengines8 жыл бұрын
I ran across this old digital computer patent 3190554 that computes using air. Think the player piano folks could have made this type of computer? Think and air computer could be made today using 3D printing?
@ufoengines8 жыл бұрын
+IndisputableAttitude Sounds A-OK, Now if I can talk somebody into making a You Tube demonstrating Collision Based Computing using Brush Bots. Patent 672256.
@ufoengines8 жыл бұрын
Hope soon somebody makes a You Tube using brush bots to demonstrate Collision Based Computing. Even better, maybe a swarm of drones!
@CanManDanProductions12 жыл бұрын
Can anyone name the song at 00:27 for me?
@rafriedman Жыл бұрын
Di Grine Cuzine.
@rajanrao4 жыл бұрын
They called that the "Modern method" but they used a floppy disk
@KawhackitaRag14 жыл бұрын
I know... how ironic, right?
@zederish12 жыл бұрын
@coondogtheman1234 hopless :/
@PUNETA12312 жыл бұрын
wtfffffffffffffffffffffffffffff floppyyyy
@richardhall98156 жыл бұрын
Seriously? An Apple II? 5-1/4" floppy disks? Have I just been transported back to the '80s!?
@raccoon6816 жыл бұрын
guess what is used for nukes in the us
@richardhall98156 жыл бұрын
Yeap, and for good reason. Don't have to worry about old computers not connected to the Internet being hacked into. Wouldn't want someone messing around and launching our nukes (though when I think of that the movie Wargames comes to mind...)
@allison888888884 жыл бұрын
yeah, so what?
@zoetrope149213 жыл бұрын
a floppy?!!!!! It is older!!!! nowadays!!!
@TheWoodsOfWonderland11 жыл бұрын
lol floppydisks
@aattura12 жыл бұрын
Everything is probably totally automated by now.
@TheDutyPaid7 жыл бұрын
45,000 titles, which all sound the same.
@PuffyRainbowCloud6 жыл бұрын
Why would they all sound the same? They're different pieces of music,
@TheDutyPaid6 жыл бұрын
Sounds the same not the same work of music. Rap all sounds the same or you could call Dolly Parton a rap act.