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Fairground organ

Description

A fairground organ is a pipe organ which is not played from a keyboard, but rather by mechanical means such as music roll or book music, and designed originally to be used on a fairground or in the United States on a carousel or in a dance-hall or skating rink. In the US, fairground organs are usually referred to as a Band Organ.

Fairground organs were popular as a means of playing music in public venues before the invention of devices for recording sound. They were most popular around the end of 19th and into the 20th century, until sound recording and broadcasting technology edged them out.

Historically these organs have been found in the UK travelling with fairs, often powered by a Showman's engine. Medium sized organs were often used in the centre of rides such as the carousel. The largest instruments were used to front the Bioscope shows, an early form of travelling cinema. In the U.S., while some band organs did travel with carnivals, they were -- and are -- much more likely to find stationary use on carousels and in amusement parks.

Today many of these old organs have found their way into private collections and make their public appearance only at events such as fairs (e.g., the Great Dorset Steam Fair) and steam rallies, or as they are called in the U.S., band organ rallies.

Operation

Early organs were all operated by pinned barrels, which were expensive to produce, bulky and limited in the number and length of the tunes they could play, although the performance of some of these instruments were of a very high standard and the barrel method of performance remained popular with some showmen into the first half of the 20th century.

However, the adaptation of the 'cardboard book system' by Anselmo Gavioli enabled more flexibility in the size, and musical repertoire of mechanical organs. The Gavioli company is a legendary name and the most famous of all the mechanical organ builders. Originally an Italian family from Modena, they settled in Paris in 1845 and soon had won a reputation for their innovations in mechanical musical instruments of all genres. Evidence of their prolific output can be judged by the considerable number of these instruments surviving today in museums and private collections and still working on the fairs in Great Britain.

In 1892 they developed the 'book' music system which had been patented earlier by the Frenchman Claude Setyre. This landmark innovation consisted of making long strips of thin, laminated cardboard, creased to fold 'accordion-style', onto which the music was transcribed and then punched in the form of holes to be read by the organ's mechanism. Overnight, the cumbersome cylinder system, which had been used for centuries to operate mechanical musical instruments, was rendered obsolete and music of any length could be produced.

Most European organs are operated by the cardboard book system, fewer by paper rolls, whereas American organs are all paper roll-operated. Books are read through a 'keyframe', whilst rolls are read by a tracker bar similar to the familiar player-piano or 'Pianola'. Books and rolls have holes punched in them, with the books usually having square holes and paper rolls having round holes. The holes in the music passing over the keyframe or tracker bar operate the organ using either a mechanical or a pneumatic system. The mechanically-operated 'keyed' organs have sprung metal keys that are pushed through the holes in the music books. This mechanical system can be used only with cardboard book music because metal keys would tear the paper of the roll system. The pneumatic 'keyless' system uses no keys; instead air pressure or vacuum reads the holes as they pass over the tracker bar, actuating pneumatic valves which play the organ. Keyless operation can be used with both books and rolls; when used with books, wear on the cardboard is greatly reduced. Books used on the keyed system must be toughened with shellac as used to harden piano hammers and is also used to seal electrical components.

All the pipes are fitted in drilled holes on top of the 'windchest'. This is an area where air is under pressure before being sent to the appropriate pipes. Air is let into the pipes by a small leather mechanism that uses air pressure or vacuum to open a windway. Percussion is operated by pneumatic motors that use pressure or vacuum acting against spring pressure to actuate beaters or hammers. This motion can be used in many ways to operate drums and other percussion instruments such as bells, glockenspiels, castanets, triangles, cymbals.

Builders

A non-exhaustive list of builders, past & present, categorised by the type of organs they built/build;

+ company still operating/new company - defunct company

Fairground organ builders:

  • Gavioli & Cie. (Paris, France) -
  • Charles Marenghi & Cie. (Paris, France) -
  • Adolf Ruth & Sohn (Waldkirch, Germany) -
  • Louis Hooghuys (Geraardsbergen, Belgium) -
  • Wilhelm Bruder Söhne (Waldkirch, Germany) -
  • Alfred Bruder (Waldkirch, Germany) -
  • Gebr. Bruder (Waldkirch, Germany) -
  • Limonaire Freres Paris, France) -
  • Gaudin Freres & Cie. (successors to Marenghi - Paris, France)
  • Chiappa & Sons(London, England) +
  • Rudolph Wurlitzer Company (North Tonawanda, NY) -
  • Eugene DeKleist (North Tonawanda, NY) -
  • North Tonawanda Musical Instrument Works (North Tonawanda, NY) -
  • Niagara Musical Instrument Mfg. Co. (North Tonawanda, NY) -
  • Artizan Factories, Inc. (North Tonawanda, NY) -
  • B.A.B. Organ Company (Brooklyn, NY) [converted European organs to the B.A.B. roll system] -
  • Stinson Organ Company (Bellefontaine, OH) -
  • La Salvia - Pianos Órganos y Armonios (Buenos Aires, Argentina - Since 1870) -

Street organ builders:

  • G.Perlee (Amsterdam, Netherlands)+
  • La Salvia - Pianos Órganos y Armonios (Buenos Aires, Argentina - Since 1870) -

Dance organ builders:

  • Usines Theofiel Mortier (Antwerp, Belgium) -
  • Fr. Decap (Herentals, Antwerp, Belgium) -
  • Gebr. Decap (Antwerp, Belgium) +
  • Gaudin Freres & Cie. (successors to Marenghi - Paris, France)

All types of Mechanical Organs:

  • J. Verbeeck BVBA (Antwerp, Belgium) + Manufacturer of all types of quality mechanical organs - est. 1884 -

References

Bopp, Ron: The American Carousel Organ: An Illustrated Encyclopedia. Grove, OK: Ron Bopp, 1998.

Bowers, Q. David: The Encyclopedia of Automatic Musical Instruments. Vestal, NY: Vestal Press, 1972.

Jüttemann, Herbert: Waldkircher Dreh- und Jahrmarkt-Orgeln. Waldkirch: Waldkircher Verlag, 1993.

Jüttemann, Herbert: Waldkirch Street and Fairground Organs. Rufforth, York: A.C. Pilmer, 2002. (Revised translation of above)

Reblitz, Arthur A.: The Golden Age of Automatic Musical Instruments. Woodsville, NH: Mechanical Music Press, 2001.

Reblitz, Arthur A. and Bowers, Q. David: Treasures of Mechanical Music. Vestal, NY: Vestal Press, 1981.

Cockayne, Eric V. The Fair Organ - How It Works. UK, published by The Fair Organ Preservation Society

External links

See also

pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by forcing pressurized air (referred to as wind) through a series of pipes. The size of pipe organs varies greatly: the smallest portable organs may have only a few dozen pipes, while the largest organs may feature
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A Music Roll is used to operate a Mechanical organ or Orchestrion and contains the music to be played. Originally made of paper, modern rolls are sometimes made of thin plastic or mylar.

The music is stored by means of perforations.
..... Click the link for more information.
Book Music is a medium for storing the music played on European mechanical organs. Similar to piano rolls, but book music is made from thick cardboard, containing perforated holes representing the musical notes to be played. The book is a folded zig-zag style.
..... Click the link for more information.
funfair or simply fair (e.g. "county fair", "state fair") is a small to medium sized traveling fair primarily composed of amusement rides. Larger fairs or the permanent fairs of cities and seaside resorts may be called a fairground
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Motto
"In God We Trust"   (since 1956)
"E Pluribus Unum"   ("From Many, One"; Latin, traditional)
Anthem
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carousel (or carrousel) is an amusement ride consisting of a rotating platform with seats for passengers. The "seats" are traditionally in the form of wooden horses or animals, which are often moved mechanically up and down to simulate galloping.
..... Click the link for more information.
For the periodical, see .
The 19th Century (also written XIX century) lasted from 1801 through 1900 in the Gregorian calendar. It is often referred to as the "1800s.
..... Click the link for more information.
twentieth century of the Common Era began on January 1, 1901 and ended on December 31, 2000, according to the Gregorian calendar. Some historians consider the era from about 1914 to 1991 to be the Short Twentieth Century.
..... Click the link for more information.
A traction engine (sometimes called a road locomotive) is a wheeled steam engine used to move heavy loads, plough ground or to provide power at a chosen location.
..... Click the link for more information.
carousel (or carrousel) is an amusement ride consisting of a rotating platform with seats for passengers. The "seats" are traditionally in the form of wooden horses or animals, which are often moved mechanically up and down to simulate galloping.
..... Click the link for more information.
A Bioscope show was a fairground attaction consisting of a travelling cinema. The heyday of the Bioscope was from the late 1890's until World War I.

Bioscope shows were fronted by the largest fairground organs, and these formed the entire public face of the show .
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fair is a gathering of people to display or trade produce or other goods, to parade or display animals and often to enjoy associated carnival or funfair entertainment. Activities at fairs vary widely.
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For the post-punk band, see .


Shellac is a brittle or flaky secretion of the lac insect Kerria lacca, found in the forests of Assam and Thailand. Freed from wood it is called "seedlac".
..... Click the link for more information.
Pneumatics is the use of pressurized air to effect mechanical motion. Pneumatics is employed in a variety of settings. In dentistry applications, pneumatic drills are lighter, faster, and simpler than an electric drill of the same power rating (because the prime mover, the compressor, is
..... Click the link for more information.
A Mechanical organ is an organ that is self playing, rather than played by a musician.

Usually, mechanical organs are pipe organs although some instruments were built using reeds similar to those found in a harmonium.
..... Click the link for more information.

Description

A Street organ is a mechanical organ designed to play in the street. The operator of a street organ is called an organ grinder.

The two main types are the smaller German style and the larger Dutch street organ.
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Episode no. Season 2
Episode 11
Guest stars Marcia Cross (Julia Fairmont)
Written by Elizabeth Devine
Ann Donahue
Directed by Allison Liddi
Original airdate December 13, 2001
Season 2 episodes

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barrel organ is a mechanical musical instrument consisting of bellows and one or more ranks of pipes housed in a case, usually of wood, and often highly decorated. The basic principle is the same as a traditional pipe organ, but rather than being played by an organist, the barrel
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A Dance organ is a mechanical organ designed to be used in a dance hall or ballroom. Being intended for use indoors, dance organs tend to be quieter than the similar fairground organ. Dance organs were principally used in Belgium and the southern Netherlands.
..... Click the link for more information.


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