Concert Roller Organ

I know there is a way to post video on here, but I just can't wait long enough for the upload.  There has to be a better way.

So here are some photos instead.

I love the decal produced by Decals Unlimited.  Just wish they also had the decorative ones originally located on the front and sides of the case.  Of course, all were originally stencils, not decals.

Looking pretty good.  It was rather beat up and the workings needed a complete restoration when I bought it.

I got 8 old rollers (cobs) with the organ.  Then I bought these 5 new cobs.

I don't remember if I ever posted the restoration photos on here.  I'll check.  I just might also try uploading that video in a separate post.

Cleaning Up for the New Year

Since I have today off (YAY) and I had the weekend off (YAY), I decided it would be a good time to sort and clean.  You know...all that stuff that just gets shoved into any available spot, just temporarily until you have time to clean.

Ahhh, 80° and humid - to be there now...

I found this postcard in a pile of stuff that I had intended to scan someday.  The scene is Palm Passage, Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas USVI.  In December 1980 and January 1981 we spent a month on St. Thomas.  We often ate lunch at the outdoor cafe in Palm Passage.

The autographs on the back of the postcard

This card was never sent and was used for autographs.  Many evenings, while staying at Point Pleasant, we would walk around the cove to Coki Point and listen to a group of young locals playing steel drums.  They were the high school band.  We'd buy ice teas and find a bench under some palms and listen for a half hour or so.  I think they enjoyed the appreciative audience as most of the tourists would just walk on by.  They got a kick out of being asked for their autographs. I wonder what these 'kids' are up to these days?  Wow, they would be around 47, 48 years old!

When the Cows Come Home

or is that the saints marching in?

I Shouldn't Be Doing This

Writing a blog entry, that is.  You see, I've got 6 sets of keys (5 arrived unannounced) waiting for me down in the workshop, three more sets are due to arrive any day and....tomorrow it's the historical society in the morning and two tunings in the afternoon.  Thursday another two tunings.  Friday night is the Annual Meeting/Chowder Supper for the historical society and we will be attending.  I think Saturday and Sunday are relatively free.  Monday the dentist, Tuesday a tuning at the high school and a selectman's board meeting at night (where I may have to speak publicly...eeeewwwwww).  Wednesday morning it's out to Thacher Island to retrieve a big part of the reed organ for repairs over the winter.  Thursday another tuning.  Saturday night is the Jim Malcolm concert at the UU Church and Sunday afternoon is the reception for my one person show at the UU's gallery.  Amid all of that I've been finishing up woodwork for my mom and trying to get out for some fun stuff.

Which brings me to this post.

My new not-so-plaything toy.

A Concert Roller Organ!  It needs some repair that I'll get to one of these days (haha) and I'll need to find a really super machinist to repair the crank/shaft where it was broken off with the threaded section left in the handle.  Of course the exterior decals will have to be replaced.

The organ operates by cranking the handle.  Bellows create suction within the unit and the 'cob' (because it looks like one) turns.  The pins on the cob open the little valves that you see above the cob.  Behind each valve is a reed.  When the valve opens, that reed/note plays. 20 notes in all.  I've got 9 cobs!
Just thought I'd share for a few moments.  Now it's back to the workshop and keys, keys, keys.

More Good Music

I did some more checking and came up with another two videos to share. I only have two wishes on these. The first being that the focus were better, the second that it just be Evan playing these pieces...he can certainly carry them with no help.

Have A Listen

A super client and a pleasure to work for (this is not his home piano)!

Of Holiday Music

Every year I am tempted to put in an order for a 'special' Christmas CD.  This year I finally did it. 'A' was looking for a specific CD, too.  Hers seems to be one of those hard to find items.  So we trekked to Gloucester Music in search of our odd requests.

When we arrived, I was thrilled to discover that the store has a resident cat.


His name is Pumpkin, but he prefers PK as it is more dignified.  A trait he has honed to perfection.  Of course I didn't have my camera with me and that meant a trip home and back to take some pictures of PK.  By the time we got back to the store, he had stopped prowling the bins of CDs and had settled into his countertop cardboard box for a nap.  You can probably notice that he was not overjoyed about being awakened for a photo session.  When I was done, I thanked him with some under-chin scratching and was rewarded with a chirp-like purr.

Today the owner of the store called to say that my CD had arrived.  What is it you wonder?  The Ventures' Christmas Album.  Think Hooked on Classics meets 50's Rock and Roll and then throw in all your childhood favorite Christmas songs.  You know, Rudolph and Frosty and Jingle Bells and more...

I used to have the LP.  I don't remember what year, but I think I was about 12 or 13 years old.  Played that thing every Christmas season until I no longer owned a record player (or later a turntable).  It's still as quirky and fun as it was back then.  Gotta get in the spirit!

Humor for a Gray Monday

Thought this was cheery fun.

Often Music Helps

Brilliant statement coming from a piano technician, huh?

Working on a set of keys got delayed for far too long.  First is was that Friday grand piano damper job, then Saturday, umm, kinda went by.  Oh yeah, ordering flowers for P's funeral, a run to the dump, the bank, a tuning at the art association...time just gets used up.

So Sunday rolls around and I find that I have an incredible amount of catching up to do on the key job.  Aside from a fun little jaunt to do some antique and junk shop browsing, the entire day was spent in the workshop.  And I needed motivation to keep working along.

What better than some upbeat music.  What did I choose?  The first selection was Enchanted Carousel.

The second was Carousel Memories.

One of these recordings, I believe it is Enchanted Carousel is of a 165 band organ reproduction built by Verbeeck Organ Manufacturing of Belgium.  The only info I came across was that it replaced a Seabreeze Wurlitzer 165 after that organ burned.

Anyway, both recordings are a great deal of fun and kept me 'at it' rather than bemoaning the time involved.


And...while I was in that kind of mood, I ordered a calliope recording!

Unrelated Thoughts and Deeds

Before I forget to say this, here it is. My PC is going to be having it's yearly service mid-week. I still hope to be around, checking up on all of you using my outdated and unreliable laptop. All being operable!

This has been small miracles week and it's a good thing considering some other stuff, but more on that later. First of all, I got a call from the DPW. They HAD found some of the graves that I was looking for. All I needed to do was go down and pick up the paperwork, which I promptly did. My apologies to the DPW office for doubting their capabilities (at least on this one). With the papers that gave the gravesite addresses in hand, 'A' and I set out for Beech Grove Cemetery. Well, we may have been given the addresses, but the cemetery had no street markers. So, although we knew that the Manning relatives were buried in lot 45 of East Elm, we had no idea which street was which. Needing a good walk, we roamed and read markers.There it was! Hard to miss! I took some photos (obviously) and we decided to wander another cemetery on the other side of town, Locust Grove. Locust Grove is owned by Rockport but is located in Gloucester. Welcome to my odd little town.

'A' and I took Saturday off and headed north to Skip's for lunch. It was busier there than usual. 4 o'clock was the scheduled start of their first classic car show of 2010. Even though we were there at noon, people were starting to arrive. 350 cars expected for the first show. We finished lunch and as we headed for the local shopping area to visit a 'Building 19 1/6', I called home to check on the mail. I just had a feeling...and it came true. My check had arrived from the art association! Anyway, 'Building 19 1/6' is a discount, overstock sale store that has everything you never need unless you don't buy it. 'A' bought four DVDs at only $3.99 each. I resisted the temptations of the office supply section and spent nothing. When we got back home I checked out my check, they had also enclosed copies of the sales receipts. The photo was sold to a Rockport resident - South End, the painting sold to a guy from Stoughton, which is a good distance from here. Both did sell on the same day, actually consecutive receipts!

This Saturday is the craft fair. The corrected hours are from 11 until 4. Each time I've participated in this particular fair, I have complained about poor advertising. I decided to take matters into my own hands.I have posted announcements on some local bulletin boards and have a similar sign (with the town added to the info) in the rear window of my truck.

Last night, as I checked my email, I was in for a surprise. Not a pleasant one, although nowadays, after 8 years of a variety of similar emails, they have become pathetically amusing. For the first four and a half years after my divorce, my ex found it entertaining to send threatening emails to me. He also posed as me online on several rather questionable adult web sites giving my contact information. He began a smear campaign against me with business associates and through several online sites. His threatening mode continued, in earnest, until my local police filed criminal harassment charges against him and had him served (overseas) with a restraining order. Since that time, he has calmed down, sending only about one email per year. Last night was the first in about 15 months. We chuckled when reading his absurd claims and threats. Copies have been printed and filed. Poor soul is obviously miserable to need to keep doing this. What satisfaction could he receive? For the record, I have never once responded.

I was reading an online friend's blog the other day and the subject matter got me thinking about a song on the CD "Bridge to Havana". So, Uncle B., the song is titled "Unlonely" and it is performed by Montel Jordan and Carlos Alfonso. And spell check does say unlonely is not a word.

So what else have I been doing? I've booked myself on the Thacher Island boat for a mid-June island trip. I'll check out the condition of the reed organ. Hopefully, all will be well with it after it's second winter alone. I'll probably use any spare time out there to do some sketching. I've just finished another painting. No title yet, not even dry yet. You get to see it first here.

Short Odd Ends

Butterfly puzzle

As I've been cruising around reading various blogs over the past few weeks, I decided to make note of some of the more interesting word verification words. As advance fun, I suggest we come up with creative definitions for some of these 'words'. They are: Mushwore, Arbish, Papteded, Artigi, Anonise, Fractat, Whersup, Blevano, Plaucin, Euphish, Mallata, and Hecte.

May I start with: Mushwore - a fungal disease, Artigi - a really super South Pacific island, Anonise - speaking anonymously, Whersup - similar to whassup? but location specific, Plaucin - little known French Impressionist.

Interestingly, Mallata and Hecte didn't set off the spell check.

'A' and I headed for Bed, Bath, and Beyond today to exchange a blanket for my mom. We had mistakenly bought her a down blanket when she had wanted a down alternative blanket. Don't know what the alternative is but it says it's in there. Anyway, we had a Rock & Roll journey. The round trip included old favorites such as Louie, Louie and Wild Thing. Then Chuck Berry performing Sweet Little Sixteen, Roll Over Beethoven, Reelin' and Rockin', Mabelline, Johnny B. Goode, and School Day (?), among a lot of others.

Picked up my last check at Tuck's. A measly 3.5 hours. Used my Christmas bonus...$25 of 'Tuck's Bucks' and bought another 1000 piece puzzle, some envelopes and a card. The puzzle is of a floral filled cat tapestry. It will be the last puzzle before I start on income taxes for us all. I need the table!

Fisk Organs

So many have been checking for the concert schedule that I'll copy the Open House info at the end of this post. Anything else about Fisk and about concerts on their organs, worldwide, can be found by visiting their website. A link is provided in the sidebar of this blog.

Location: C. B. Fisk, Inc. Workshop
Gloucester, MA

Date & Time: November 08, 2008
2-6 pm

Opus Number: 134

Description:
C.B. Fisk, Inc. cordially invites you to our shop in Gloucester to view
Opus 134, A three-manual, 48-voice organ
for Covenant Presbyterian Church, Nashville, Tennessee

Directions:
Rte. 128 to Rte. 133, East 1 mile
Right on Magnolia Avenue, 1 mile
Right on Kondelin Rd., 1/2 mile

Any Hope?

Commentary by Dorothy Donegan, before her performance of the song by the same title, "Things Ain't What They Used to Be.



Sure Ain't"