The Pianolist: A Guide for Pianola Players - Tapa blanda

"This is a little book written to arouse public appreciation of the merits of mechanical players of the pianoforte. Among the claims made by the author, Mr. Gustav Kobbé, are that the scope still left by the machinery for the performers' own feeling and sentiment enables him to still 'call his soul his own,' since the finest modulations are possible, and that these instruments bring the best music into homes which lack of talent had kept silent for years. It is encouraging to find that the public usually order classical works, and not 'ragtime' pieces, to be sent to them, for it shows that the power to listen again without the trouble of again going to a concert or theater reveals the beauty of a Mendelssohn lyric....There is not a word in this book in praise of this invention which we do not endorse, for we believe that the spirit of music, before at large, is now the slave of man, and that until the whole population of a country can play brilliantly without practice, this substitute must help to satisfy that craving for melody natural to man." -Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News, Volume 69, 1908

"His book is filled with advice to the pianolist as to how to get the best effects." -The New York Times

"A guide for pianola players suggested by the experience of one who, undeveloped in musical culture, was briefly satisfied with trashy things but who gradually trained himself to appreciate and to understand classical selections from a wide range of composers. The book recognizes the musical education possibilities of automatic players." -Booklist

"A music-study for the uninstructed music lover." -Publishers Weekly "When the mechanical or semi-automatic piano players first came into use, the professional musicians sneered at them, and perhaps these inventions deserved no better reception, for they were crude and unsatisfactory. There are now about eighty different manufacturers of such 'players,' and while some makes have remained in the stage of musical toys, others have developed into instruments that have aroused the wonder and admiration of great composers, and have been adopted at leading universities and other institutions as valuable aids to musical education. Today almost as many mechanical players are sold as pianos, and it was inevitable that a special literature devoted to this new branch should make its appearance. It began with magazine articles setting forth the scope and value of the piano players, and now we have a whole book on the subject. Its author, Gustav Kobbé, has always been among the pioneers in clearing new paths, and in this volume, as in his 'How to Appreciate Music,' he is not afraid to express his opinions freely, even when they clash violently with traditional views and prejudices." -The Nation

CONTENTS

I. The Title and Purpose of this Book

II. The Charm of Playing a Musical Instrument Yourself

III. First Steps of the Musical Novice

IV. The Thrill of the Great Masters

V. An "Open Sesame" to Chopin

VI. Notes on Some Other Masters

VII. Educational Factors

VIII. A Few "Don'ts" for Pianolists