The Art of the the Popular Piano Roll Arrangement
Scant attention has been paid to the artistic contributions made by those who created arrangements for piano rolls. In response, this presentation describes a high level view of three major eras of popular piano roll arranging, the distinctive qualities of each, the economic forces that led to each era and the influence these arrangements may have had on the piano playing public. The discusson will include some of the rich recorded legacy rolls can provide scholars. This includes how piano rolls chronicled the birth and/or development of such distinctively American genres as ragtime, jazz, blues, boogie woogie and novelty piano. Because the piano did not record well on the phonograph until 1925, piano rolls are the prime resource for arrangements and piano works made between 1900 and 1930.