Very nice. Fairground organs used to be quite popular in my younger days but even then they were on the decline. You can still see them in the Netherlands and Belgium.

I like this version as well:

There is a large Whirlitzer player organ at Spindletop Hall, the UK Faculty/Alumni Club in Lexington.

This one has a Welte/Mignon (SP?) player made in Germany prior to the war. There are multiple player units located across the building, and a damper system (louvers moved by electric motors)to adjust the volume. 10 of these units were made. Sadly, the other 9 were destroyed during bombing in the 2nd world war. I played the organ once....you had to play so loud live that the glasses shook in the dining room. Evidently, audio engineering was a budding occupation when these things were built.

There are over 6,000 pipes; some 16 feet long. I covered the unit for a keyboard magazine years ago, climbing in a hot attic with a 4"x5" view camera.

I also have a client; a banker from Indiana who has a large building full of player instruments of all kinds. In the years before the war, these units were the draw at local taverns all over Germany.

Man, are they elaborate...some containing stringed instruments which are mechanically played by the device, in addition to the pipe organ....all played by introducing rolls or sheets into the player unit.

Historic old stuff. Incidentally, I played "Whiter Shade of Pale", and "Can't Get no Satisfaction" on the Spindletop unit. Sadly, to get the player unit working properly, tune the pipes, etc. the cost would be around $600,000.00.

Oh well, so much for my next job. I'd do it as th first time I used a sequencer (LOL)!


Russ