A mechanical musical instrument is the ULTIMATE antique! Mechanical music combines art, music, mechanism, and design into a very entertaining antique! Not only are you intellectually entertained, you are also having fun! Each roll or cylinder is a time capsule of history! No other antique can give you the same concert that was given to generations years ago! YET mechanical musical instruments are not tied to the past. New arrangements of [...]
This depends on your annual income. Generally mechanical music IS affordable! Most beginning enthusiasts can afford a player piano, a gem roller organ, a small monkey organ, or a table top disc music box. Price is generally a function of rarity. Remember, however, that price or rarity has nothing to do with enjoying piece. An inexpensive common foot pumped player piano can give you hours of enjoyment as can a Gem [...]
What if a mechanical instrument is unrestored or not playing? For all types of automatic musical instruments from disc music boxes to automata to orchestrions to calliopes, there are qualified restorers. E-mail me or call me if you have questions regarding restorers. You CAN also restore many items yourself! Do not be intimidated. For the most part you will find restoration work to be relaxing, enjoyable, and rewarding! Many restoration [...]
Yes. You can rent a band organ, calliope, or monkey organ to festivals, store openings, parades, and events. Not only are you enjoying your instrument, you are the life of the party and you are getting paid for it! Typically you can charge $400.00 and up for such events. Not only that, you can also sell recordings of your mechanical instrument to the eager and interested public! Nickelodeons can be put [...]
For the most part, a reproduction mechanical music machine is NOT an investment. Do not be lulled into complacency by a cheap price. Very few reproductions go up in value or hold their value. Also you have to be very careful in your research of such instruments. Many reproductions are built poorly. They simply are not up to the quality of the original instruments. Beware of instruments that are heavily converted [...]
What do you think about buying mechanical instruments from Internet auction sites? Caveat Emptor! or Let the buyer beware! I have watched items being sold on internet auction sites for several years now. I have seen many items that are over-described with reproduced or missing parts and displayed with poor pictures. Also some items are NEVER meant to be sold and are used as lost leaders to attract the viewer. Then [...]
This is a picture from the Gavioli fairground organ catalog. I purchase original catalogs of mechanical musical instrument manufacturers for my business archive. This rare catalog was purchased from the granddaughter of the famous street organ builder, Carl Frei. If you have any such catalogs or original literature you would like to sell, please contact me!