Our Piano
As miserable as the pandemic was, one good thing happened. Folks began to clean out their homes and the museum was fortunate enough to be on the receiving end of a 1930 Æolian Stroud Pianola during one persons purge in New Hampshire. We found a technician in Northern Vermont (1,000 Keyes) who still rebuilds and maintenances these treasures.
So yes...Our Piano Now Plays Itself!
Friday night piano concerts at The Main Street MUSEUM have now become the 'place to be'. We have a younger generation attending and enjoying everything from Abba to Scott Joplin to Brittany Spears... and beyond! We also play/pump for local senior groups when requested and are available to play your event at the museum (This spring, we played for a wedding at the museum!)
Revelers from WRJ's World Famous Gory Daze Celebration
Currently, we have 3,000 rolls logged in our database with another 7,000 at least, to go. If you want a peek at our on-going spread-sheet of rolls Click Here. (We update this periodically as it's a work in progress). If you are curious about how piano rolls are made here are a few quick video. QRS Factory How's It Made?
WE ARE CURRENTLY NOT ACCEPTING DONATIONS UNTIL WE CATCH UP!
But, when we are...
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Must be able to play the roll on an 88 note player.
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Must be in reasonable condition or repairable condition (we do repair some rolls as we log them into our database).
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Ideally, they should be in a box (doesn't have to be the original box (we have many in wax paper boxes). Unboxed rolls are hard to file and keep track of and preserve from further decay in a museum.)
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We do not have the funds to purchase rolls, but we can pay your postage via Media Mail rates with the USPS.
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We will drive to pick them up or meet you within 2 hours of the museum.
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We will provide you with a tax receipt as your donations are deductible to the fullest extent of IRS code. You assign the value to your donation.
YOU MUST CONTACT US FIRST TO SEE IF WE CAN ACCEPT ROLLS WHEN YOU ARE READY TO DONATE.
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Box and mail your donated rolls to The Main Street MUSEUM, 58 Bridge Street, WRJ, VT 05001 via the United States Postal Service MEDIA MAIL (We checked, they do qualify)
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Take a photo of your receipt showing the amount and date.
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Email the photo to info@mainstreetmuseum.org
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Once we receive the rolls and make sure they are in decent/playable shape we will reimburse you via check or PayPal.
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Once the rolls are received, we will send you a donation receipt and thank you note.
ALSO...
Please know that your rolls will be logged, repaired, played and ENJOYED! We do keep duplicates of songs if they are played by different pianist. However, if it is an exact duplicate it may become art or we will try to sell them to raise funds for the museum and piano tuning. We are a nonprofit and 100% volunteer operated so be assured your donation will help us in many ways. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us at info@mainstreetmuseum.org.
Aeolian Stroud in Action! | J. Lawrence Cook, one of our heros! | Ad from local paper |
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Greg, one of our volunteers who LOVES the piano! | Cross Section | We aim to please! |
David checks a roll | Tax Stamp | QRS Ad |
Not JUST a player piano! Ours has GREAT TONE. This is our local cabaret player, Stevie P. | Jill LePore & crew record for a podcast | One of our Friday Night Concerts |
The lovely Christine Hallquist enjoys our piano! | We Love Eubie Blake here. | One of many rolls |
Art by David Powell | Getting ready to repair & log | Joie & her favorite hat |