MUSICA MECCANICA

O. 1.       Chair-shaped barrel piano to be carried on shoulder, made by Gillone di Casale Monferrato during the first decades of 19th century. The sounbox, particularly refined, is made of walnut entirely marquetried in rosewood and maple, the sound board is made of maple. The machinery, that allows to change the pieces, and the crank are made of bronze, the pinned music roll and the worm gear are made of beechwood.

 

O. 3.       Rolmonica, sort of harmonica that plays with a music roll made of pierced paper. Made during the first decades of 20th century in USA, it presents the caption: ROLMONICA / TRADE MARK REG / PATD 11-3-25 OTHER PATENTS PENOING 6-5-28. The instrument is made of celluloid, with dimensions of 88 x 104 mm (3.45” x 4.1”) and it presents 12 holes for the two-tonal metal reeds, an embouchure, and two small wooden cranks for the unrolling and the rewinding of the roll. This instrument has 11 rolls with as many music pieces.

 

O. 4.       Reed musical box with music on pierced music rolls (organina). Germany, the probable maker was Welte from Freiburg, mid 19th century. It works by a crank activating two pairs of bellows with alternated valves that carry the air to two rows of 11 free reeds. The instrument has a music roll made of pierced paper, 2.5m long, with the melody of a waltz.

 

O. 5.       Music box from Sorrento made during the first decades of 20th century. The instrument is a jewellery box with three compartments, very fine make, with a floral marquetry made of numerous woods. The music box, made of music roll and metal comb, gets started with the opening of the cover and plays the song “O’ sole mio”.

 

O. 7.       Intona, reed music box made in Germany between the end of 19th century and the beginning of the following. The instrument works thanks to a crank that activates the bellows and makes the pierced disk rotates. The reading system is negative, that is the holes of the disks free some jacks that, by means of levers, make the pallets open or close. The disks are made of metal (more resistant than the inexpensive ones made of cardboard).

 

O. 8.       Toy gramophone, datable to the third decade of 20th century, made in Germany. The gramophone has triangular shape (the side is 17 cm -6.7”- long, while the base is 15 cm -5.9”- long and is lightly convex) and it is 63 mm (2.5”) high, it is made of coloured tinplate with figures of three kid musicians per side, it has spring winding with a lever that allows to choose two rotating speeds of the turntable and the rest position, and it works with 78 rpm records with diameter 15 cm (5.9”) wide.

 

O. 9.       Kiddyphone, gramophone for kids made of tinplate, working with 78 rpm records with diameter 15 cm (5.9”) wide. Datable to the second decade of 20th century, it has cylindrical shape with 168mm (6.6) wide diameter, 80mm (3.15”) high; there is a tone-arm with the needle and the sound box, and a 145mm (5.7”) long horn. The circumference is divided in four parts; on three of them there are scenes of children, on the fourth is printed: Kiddyphone trade mark / MADE IN GERMANY / Regd. M.R. N° 5019 / U.S.A. PAT. APPL. FOR.

 

O. 10.     Gem Roller Organ, mechanical organ with pinned music rolls, made in USA (patented 1887) by The Autophone Company Of Ithica manufacturer from New York at the end of 19th century. The instrument works thanks to a crank; a back bellows keeps the space empty while the two lower bellows carry the air against twenty metal reeds, made free by the movement of the pinned roll. The instrument is made of fir painted black while the writings and the decorations are made of golden varnish, and there are four music rolls. Three of them have not the title of the piece, while on the other one is written: 109 Marching Thru Georgia.

 

O. 11.     Gramophone for children made of tinplate during the first decades of 20th century in Germany. The instrument, rounded, with diameter measuring 152mm (6”) and the height measuring 96mm (3.75”); on the circumference there are four pictures of singings and dances, and the writing: D.R.G.M., GRANCA FLUN, MADE IN GERMANY. The charge is by key and it works with 78 rpm records with diameter 15 cm (5.9”) wide. The needle, the sound box, and the horn are arranged on a tone-arm on one side of the body.

 

O. 12.     Nirona gramophone, datable to the third decade of 20th century, branded: FABRIQUE FN ALLEMAGNE, made of red iron, quadrangular. The height is 128mm (5.05”) while the side is 198mm (7.8”). The charge is by crank and it works with 78 rpm records with diameter 15 cm (5.9”) wide. The needle and the sound box (in a red metal cone) are arranged on a tone-arm on one corner of the body.

 

O. 13.     Toy gramophone, Triumph brand, quadrangular, made of iron painted red, German, datable to the third decade of 20th century. The charge is by crank and it works with 78 rpm records with diameter 15 cm (5.9”) wide. The needle and the sound box are arranged on a tone-arm on one side of the body.

 

O. 14.     Toy gramophone, German, Bing Valora brand, datable to the third decade of 20th century, with triangular shape, dark green. The charge is by crank, on one side, and it works with 78 rpm records with diameter 15 cm (5.9”) wide. The needle and the sound box are arranged on a tone-arm on the body.

 

O. 15.     Toy gramophone, Bingola III brand, German, datable to the third decade of 20th century, with triangular shape, red. The charge is by crank, on one side, and it works with 78 rpm records with diameter 15 cm (5.9”) wide. The needle and the sound box are arranged on a tone-arm on the body.

 

O. 16.     Toy gramophone, Bingola II brand, German, datable to the third decade of 20th century, with triangular shape, beige. The charge is by crank, on one side, and it works with 78 rpm records with diameter 15 cm (5.9”) wide. The needle and the sound box are arranged on a tone-arm on the body.

 

O. 17.     Toy gramophone, Bing Valora brand, datable to the third decade of 20th century, with triangular shape, coloured imitating the wood. The charge is by crank, on one side, and it works with 78 rpm records with diameter 15 cm (5.9”) wide. The needle and the sound box are arranged on a tone-arm on the body.

 

O. 18.     Gramophone for children, American, branded: ELECTRIC PHONOGRAPH / MODEL M 4007 / MADE IN U.S.A. / SPEAR PROCUTS INC. / BRIDGEPOST. CONN. The movement is activated by an electric motor, and it is datable to the fourth decade of 20th century. The body, made of red and yellow tinplate, is decorated with pictures for children, it has triangular shape (325mm -12.8”- long and 196mm -7.7”- wide), and the tone-arm, on the acute top, has the sound box and the needle.

 

O. 19.     German crank gramophone, with double mechanism to make the duration of the charge longer. Variable speed, about 78 rpm. Body made of fir stained with walnut, quadrangular. Turntable and horn elbow, in the shape of swan neck, made of cast iron, German reproducer branded with a diapason. Horn made of white and green tinplate.

 

O. 20.     Edison phonograph branded: TRADE / THOMAS EDISON / MARK / HOME, made in 1903. On the cover the writing EDISON / HOME / PHONOGRAPH is stamped. The phonograph is a sound reproducer invented by Thomas Edison in 1877 and is made of metal cylinder shaft, activated by a spring charged by a crank, on which rotates a wax cylinder previously recorded with an instrument called dictation machine. The needle of the reproducer courses on the groove recorded on the wax and transmits the sound to an amplifying horn. The cylinders earlier lasted two minutes, later they lasted four. The luck of Edison and his phonograph rapidly collapsed with the arrival of records. This instrument is contained in a wooden case measuring 40 x 215 x 150 mm (1.55” x 8.45” x 5.9”) with a handled semicylindrical cover that is 150mm (5.9”) high. The huge black horn, divided in eleven sections, is sustained by a metal structure.

 

O. 21.     Wax cylinders (17) for Edison phonograph in their original boxes, duration of two or four minutes. The cylinders were produced during the first decade of 20th century.

 

O. 22.     Theremin made at the end of 20th century in USA. This instrument was invented in 1919 by the Russian Leon Theremin and can be considered in effect one of the first completely electronic musical instruments. The aspect that makes this instrument really singular is its working: it is played without being touched! It is made of two antennas, approaching or distancing the hand to the vertical antenna you can control the intonation, while with the horizontal antenna you can control the volume. The two antennas are fixed on a chassis, containing the electronic circuits, measuring 193 x 62 x 110 mm (7.6” x 2.45” x 4.35”), with two control knobs regulating the starting and the intonation.

 

O. 23.     Magnetophon Geloso G256 that was called "Gelosino" for its small dimensions. It has only two valves (12AX7 and UL41) with a selenium redirector. It was created in around 1955 by the Geloso manufacturer, founded by John Geloso, born in 1901 in Argentina; his Piedmontese parents came back to Italy in 1904. This big Italian manufacturer, thanks to its quality and reliable radio receivers, recording devices, and amplifiers allowed us, throughout more than thirty years (about 1950 - 1970), to record songs, listen to the radio, to voice cinemas, clubs, squares, and churches. This model is the successor of the famous G255, from which it took the nice coloured button panel and the arrangement of the controls, other than the "roundish" look. It is an excellent tape recorder used for music recorders. It has, in the middle of the front, an EM80 valve, the magic eye tube used as an indication of record amplitude.

 

O. 24.     Phonograph-radio device with record-stand and drinks cabinet, datable to around 1950. The valve radio, with wooden cabinet, Taurus model, made by the famous Watt Radio in Turin in 1946, can receive with frequency modulation on medium, short, or micro waves, or selecting the RCA connection. It presents a superheterodyne circuit and alternating current (AC) supply / 110 125 140 160 220 volts. The phonograph is a Philips with movable head-shell tone-arm and the possibility to vary the speed into 16, 33, 45, or 78 rpm. It is arranged in the upper drawer of the cabinet, with the typical roundish look, that shows two side compartments for the drinks and, in the middle, the record-stand.

 

O. 25.     American valve radio, model Q10-3, made by the New Yorker R.C.A. Victor (Radio Corporation of America) in 1947 (serial number B 73851), for the Swiss market, and sold in the Au Grand Passage in Geneva. The body is made of brown Bakelite; there are two front control knobs, ivory colour, for the volume and the stations searching, while on the back there is the control knob for the changing of the frequency and the antenna. The frequency indicator is on the upper front of the cabinet; the dimensions are: 165 x 150 x 250 mm (6.5” x 5.9” x 9.85”). The frequencies goes from BC (Broad Cast band AM) to SW (Short Wave), the circuit is superheterdyne with intermediate frequency (IF) 455 kHz, the speaker is magnetodynamic AP (permanent magnet and mobile coil); the supply is with alternating current, 220 volts European type, and the five valves are 12SA7, 12SK7, 12SQ7, 50L6GT, and 35Z5GT/G.

 

O. 26.     Valve wire recorder, American, made by Webster-Chicago, 228-1 model. This is a recorder (dictation machine) very in vogue in 1950s and for the recording it used a thin steel wire, precursor of the magnetic tape. It is supplied with alternating current, 120 Volts, 70 Watts; made in 1951. The device has its original Bakelite microphone, 4 controls in the front panel for the listening and the recording, a neon lamp for the level of recording and the regulation of volume/starting/turning off. On the top there is a lever for the starter of the wire and the rewind, as well as a timer for a maximum of 60 minutes; the reels were produced of 15, 30, or 60 minutes. The wire, moving for 62cm (24.4”) per second, was more than 2.5 km (15.55 mi) long, all in a reel that was wound and rewound also thanks to the vertical oscillation of the needle that allowed the right spooling. The wire is made of "ERGON" steel, and it was lightly oiled to preserve the needle and to guarantee the regularity for the movement of the wire.

 

O. 27.     Singing bird, Swiss automaton made during the first decades of 20th century by Reuge manufacturer in Sainte-Crox. The history of mechanical music began in 14th century in Flanders, but only in 1780 the Jaquet-Droz brothers invented the singing bird. In 1848, The Parisian Bomtems Blaise invented the mechanism of singing birds that has remained almost the same until now. In 1865 Charles Reuge, clock maker from Val De Travers, moved to Sainte-Crox, town famous for the production of music boxes, and founded the production factory of singing birds that is still operating. This instrument is made of a cage with a red bird on a perch that turns around, moving the beak and the tail. The height of the cage is 311mm (12.25”) while the diameter of the base is 162mm (6.35”); the cage structure is made of silver, covered, at the bottom and near the hanger, with Capodimonte porcelain with figures and flowers on a silver background. The brand, stamped on the bottom, is: REUGE lyre MUSIC / SAINTE-CROX / MADE IN SWITZERLAND.

 

O. 28.     Anonymous serinette, coming from Prague, datable to the second half of 19th century. The name comes from French “serin” (canary), because it was used by the girls of the time to teach the canaries to sing. This instrument is made of a wooden box (233 x 165 x 151 mm – 9.2” x 6.5” x 5.95”) with inside a little bellows, a worm drive that activates a nailed cylinder, and some levers that open the valves of the wind chest. The crank, on the front, activates both the bellows and the cylinder that opens the valves directing the air to the ten wooden pipes under the instrument that produce the sound. Near the pipes there is a title block with the list of the five musical pieces: U panského Dvora (ancient folk music: “At the landowner‘s farm house”), Proč bychom se netĕšili (“Let's rejoice and be merry”. A musical piece from Bedřich Smetana’s opera “The Bartered Bride”), Boleslav (a city in Central Bohemia), Nesluyde mládenci (“youth”), Neťukej, neťukej (ancient folk song: “Do not tap”). A brass lever on the right allows to lift the levers and move the cylinder to change song.

 

O. 29.     Suitcase portable gramophone branded: LA VOCE DEL PADRONE / logo of the dog listening to the gramophone / Società Anonima Nazionale del “Grammofono” Milano. The name of the British company actually was Gramophone, but because of the famous Francis Barraud’s painting "His Master's Voice" (In Italian: “La voce del padrone”) depicting the dog Nipper listening to a gramophone, used as the brand of the label, it soon took this unofficial denomination. In 1931 SNG (Società Nazionale del Grammofono, founded in 1912 by Alfredo Bossi), SAIF (Società Anonima Italiana di Fonotopia) and Marconiphone (Italian manufacturer specialised in producing radio devices) joined to give birth to a single manufacturer that imported and distributed gramophones and was also a record industry. The measures of this model (HMV 102), made in England in around 1934, are: 285 x 410 x 150 mm (11.2” x 16.15” x 5.9”), the serial number is 2896. The charge is by crank and the speed can change around 78 rpm, it has an automatic brake and a turntable, the horn for the sound is under the turntable near the motor, while the case for the needles is on the front left corner.

 

O. 30.     Pathé gramophone, Diffusor type, Lumière model, datable to the second decade of 20th century. At the end of 19th century the brothers Charles and Emile Pathé founded the Pathé Frères that, at the beginning, only imported from US Edison phonographs and Colombian gramophones, combined with cylinders registered in French. Then, in early 20th century, they started the production of their own gramophones, renamed Pathéphonès, that show many innovations: the needle made of «non-consumable» sapphire that, the advertisement explains, «has not to be changed after every hearing», guaranteeing at the same time a reproduction «without hoarse or nasal sounds, but a perfect voice ». The Pathéphonès, made in France, Belgium, Austria, and Russia, are different from other gramophones because the recording of the record starts from the centre and finishes outwards. Furthermore Pathé, for its records (produced in five sizes, up to 50 cm -19.7”- of diameter), adopts the recording system developed by Edison for the cylinders. The French brothers wanted to impose their technical standard, but they’re too smart to «forget» who had already bought gramophones from other brands: so the mechanical adapter was born, allowing to use the Pathé records with every device. The success was huge, also because the Pathéphonès were sold by instalments, with the system «Pay while listening to music »: in Italy the cheaper Pathéphonès, made of wood [«uso walnut»], cost 65L, while the model Duplex with two horns (or funnels, as they are defined on the catalogues) reaches the cost of 375L. This gramophone has the box made of wood with dimensions 360 x 450 x 138 mm (14.15” x 17.7” x 5.45”) that contains the perpetual mechanism charged by a crank, that makes the record turn constantly. The conical horn, made of cardboard, thought by the Lumière brothers in 1913, with parabolic shape, has diameter 358mm (14.1”) wide, in the centre of it there is the sapphire needle that «reads» the classic record. This gramophone can reproduce 78 rpm Pathé records measuring 29cm (11.4”) and 35cm (13.75”) and it is branded on the cardboard: DIFFUSOR PATHE’ / BTE  S.G.D.E. while on the body there is the writing: Pathé.

 

O. 31.     Barrel piano branded Luigi Vosgien Novara via Totti. Vosigen was among the first Italian maker of large size barrel pianos, suitable for ballrooms and outdoor concerts, thanks to the collaboration with the Colombo manufacturer, piano maker. This instrument, made between the last decade of 19th century and the first of the 20th, has a music roll with seven songs, interchangeable thanks to a side lever while on the front there is the crank that activates the piano.

 

O. 32.     Portable barrel organ branded: COCCHI, BACIGALUPO & GRAFFIGNA / BERLIN. Schönhauser Allee 78, datable to the last decade of 20th century. Many talented Italian makers of mechanical organs made their fortune abroad: Gavioli went to France while Giovanni Battista Bacigalupo, in 1879, emigrated to Berlin and there he founded the first manufacturer with Chiaro Frati: the "Frati & Co." in 1 Buchholzer Street; in 1891 he founded, with the organ maker Giuseppe Antonio Cocchi and the restaurateur Graffigna, a new enterprise with the name “Cocchi, Bacigalupo & Graffigna". The manufacturer had its splendour during the 1920s and had up to fifty employees, and it produced instruments like the Meloton, the Harmonipan (Violinopan-organ), and the Tino Cornet organ. This instrument is equipped with a crank that, besides making the music roll turn, activates two bellows that, canalising the air to the reeds freed by the movement of the pallets, produce the sounds. The music roll can be arranged on seven positions corresponding to as many songs. The front is closed by a red rag that probably substitutes the original painted fabric. The songs listed on the inner plaque are not the same the can be really played, thus it is possible that the music roll has been substitute during the 1930s.

 

O. 33.     Europhon radiolamp, designed by Adriano Rampoldi in 1968. The Europhon manufacturer was born in Milan during the postwar, proposing on the market several model of radio that were operational, economical, and with a captivating design. It became famous for the production of the first hybrid products (the radioclock, the radiotelevision, and the radiolamp, all designed by Adriano Rampoldi) but it later collapsed because of careless business choices. The radiolamp has three controls: two for the regulation of the light intensity (suffused or full light) and one to turn on the transistor radio. The bas is made of ABS while the diffuser is made of polymethacrylic. Transistor radio. Superheterodyne circuit only with medium waves (MW), supply with alternating current (AC) / 220 Volts and magnetodynamic AP speaker (permanent magnet and mobile coil). The dimensions are: 165 x 230 x 165 mm (6.5” x 9.05” x 6.5”).

 

O. 34.     French record player, made in 1961, branded TEPPAZ – stereophonique –modele – 448. Teppaz is a gramophone brand that had a great success: originally, it was an enterprise that produced electronic pieces founded by Marcel Teppaz, in 1950s it was symbol of surprise parties, in 1960s of yé-yé music, and in 1970 it reached a million of produced pieces. The brand was bought 1998 by Jean-Claude Sensamat. Once closed, the Teppaz record player seems like a small trapezoidal suitcase, with rounded corners and two cupola-shaped covers that, when opened, reveals the loudspeakers and all the circuits of the valve amplifiers in it. This device is equipped with two more covers with two additional loudspeakers each being 6 watt and having 1 tweeter; it has six valves, four ECL82 and two EF86, it is made of pink leather and is 11,4kg heavy. The record player has three control knobs: one for the turning off and the volume (arrèt puissance), one for the basses (grave) and one for the acutes (aigu). Moreover, there are a balance control and a speed control (0, 16, 33, 45, 78 rpm), a control knob for the power supply (127/160/ 220 V), and three buttons for ambiance-brillance, medium-aigu, and avec-sans.

 

O. 35.     Italian valve radio, 426 model, made in 1955-56 by Allocchio Bacchini, Milan. The body is made of brown wood, on the left front there is the loudspeaker while the frequency indicator is on the right of the cabinet; there are four front control knobs, the one for the turning on under the loudspeaker, while under the frequency indicator there are the control knobs for the volume, the stations searching, and the record player input, and on the back there is the antenna. The dimensions are: 620 x 320 x 250 mm (24.4” x 12.6” x 9.85”). The frequencies are on medium waves (OM – “onde medie”) and two series of shortwaves (2 x OC – “onde corte”), the circuit is superheterodyne with intermediate frequency (IF) 465 kHz, the loudspeaker is magnetodynamic AP (permanent magnet and mobile coil), with 2.5 W power, the supply is with alternating current 220 volts, and the five valves are UCH81, UF41, UBC41, UL41, EM4, UY41.

 

O. 36.     Dutch valve radio, BX 480 A model, made by Philips in Eindhoven in 1949. The body is made of black Bakelite that frames a large protection for the loudspeaker, there are four front control knobs: for the turning on, for the volume, for the stations search, and for the record player input. The frequency indicator is on the top of the cabinet and is made of transparent plastic plates: one large plate and four thin plates. The dimensions are: 470 x 300 x 230 mm (18.5” x 11.8” x 9.05”). The frequencies are on medium waves (MW), longwaves (LW) and more than two series of shortwaves (>2 x SW), the circuit is superheterodyne with intermediate frequency (IF) 452 kHz, the loudspeaker is magnetodynamic AP (permanent magnet and mobile coil), the supply is with alternating current 110-245 volts, and the five valves are ECH21, EAF42, EAF42, EBL21, AZ1.

 

O. 37.     Italian valve radio, probably made by Ducati manufacturer in around 1948. The body is made of brown wood while the front is made of walnut briar-root, on the left front there is the loudspeaker while the frequency indicator is on the right of the cabinet and, under it, there are three control knobs: for the volume, for the turning on, and for the station search, while the antenna is on the back. The dimensions are: 471 x 272 x 208 mm (16.4” x 10.7” x 8.2”). The frequencies are on medium waves (MW) and two series of shortwaves (2 x SW), the circuit is superheterodyne with intermediate frequency (IF) 465 kHz, the loudspeaker is magnetodynamic AP (permanent magnet and mobile coil), with 2.5 W power, the supply is with alternating current 125-220 volts, and the five valves are 6A8G, 6K7, 6Q7G, 6V6G, 5Y3G. In 1926, in Bologna, the Ducati family and other Bolognese investors founded the Società Radio Brevetti Ducati, with the aim to industrially produce pieces for the arising industry of radio program, starting from Adriano Ducati’s patents. After the Second World War it started a motorcycles production, now characterising this enterprise.

 

O. 38.     German dictation machine, “Orbaphon”, made in Stuttgart in 1913 by George Kromm. This instrument was used to record the wax cylinders, lasting four minutes, for the reproduction on phonographs. It is made of an electric motor that makes the cylinder rotate; a brass horn, fixed or connected to a tube, that concentrates the sound (at first it was used only for vocal recording, later Edison thought to use it for musical pieces too); a recording system that engraved upon the wax cylinder (reusable up to 130 times); and a little brush that cleans the wax smears on the cylinder.

 

O. 39.     Travel gramophone, Mignophone. Created and patented in Paris (French SGDG patent) in 1920, the Mignophone is a rare French miniature gramophone. Produced in different colours: red, green, black, tobacco, and blue. The hexagonal horn is foldable and made of stiff cardboard and is arranged on the cover when the gramophone is closed. The record is screwed on the turntable. The dimensions of the box when closed are 210 x 135 x 70 mm (8.25” x 5.3” x 2.75”). This specimen, tobacco-colour, has been made in around 1926, on the round resonator there is the writing: MIGNOPHONE / SOUND BOX / FABRIQUÉ en FRANCE / W.H.SMITH & SON. / PARIS while on the box there is the plaque of the shop that had sold it: G. Jandelli in Béziers. The charge is manual: the crank is arranged on the front of the instrument, where there is also the lever for the stop and the control for the speed while the horn is arranged on a support on the left front corner of the box.

 

O. 40.     Amorette, German music box with pierced disks made of tin. The instrument, made by the clockmaker Otto Bergmann in Leipzig in around 1898, is made of a wooden box painted black, with dimensions 335 x 248 x 180 mm (13.2” x 9.75” x 7.1”), with inside two bellows and a wind chest with sixteen free reeds made of metal. A crank activates the bellows and makes the disk rotate. This, fixed with a stop on the board of the instrument, pushes some levers that free the reeds emitting the notes.

 

O. 41.     French music box with comb free reeds activated by a small toothed cylinder, dating back to 1930s. The box is made of pale wood with dimensions 101 x 76 x 49 mm (3.95” x 2.85” x 1.9”). On the box there is a print with a rural landscape and the crank that activates the cylinder. On the bottom there is a title block with the writing: MUSIQUE à 1 AIR / Lazila Dimacly / MADE IN FRANCE  FABRICATION FRANCAISE / N° 1129.

 

O. 42.     Reuge music box, mechanical, with manual charge (Volga) probably made in 1972. Box made of elm briar-root and cut glass, with 72-notes comb and cylinder with three tunes, short music pieces from 5th, 6th, and 9th Beethoven’s symphonies. A complete charge allows to reproduce about 16 times the tunes. Making the front button slide, the music box reproduces all the pieces, taking it back to the starting position the melody stops at the end of the piece. The mechanism is always visible. The reproduced tune is identified by a little marker that indicates the number of the tune with an arrow, and every tune lasts about 36 seconds. The dimensions are 230 x 145 x 100 mm (9.05” x 5.7” x 3.95”) and on the mechanism there is the serial number 18037. The manufacturer, in the heart of Jura Mountains, has been founded in 1865 by the clockmaker Charles Reuge and it remained a family business until 1988, when it was transformed in a limited company that today has about 60 co-workers. Antoine Favre is the father of the music box and the contemporary musical movements were based on a two-hundred-years-old idea: in 1796, the Genevan artisan substituted the existing spring and bells with vibrating teeth. The sounds are extremely more clear, more varied and precise. This innovation is the history of mechanical music. The knowledge of music box masters spread out thanks to clockmakers who left Sainte-Croix to work in Geneva. During the period of Napoleonic Wars, they went back to their native town, because of the lack of manpower and started to till the land, without abandoning their workshop labour. Thanks to this priceless know-how, Sainte-Croix region soon became the cradle of music box. At that time the town counted just barely three thousand inhabitants, but the authorities soon understood all the economic potential deriving from handmade production of mechanical music: at that elevation it is impossible to live only with the products of the soil. Founded in 1808, the Société d'Horlogerie of Sainte-Croix called back from the city the greatest clockmaker masters. While they divided their time between the agriculture on the mountains and the workshop labour, the inhabitants of the town took advantages from their precious teaching. The clocks and the music box they produced benefited in refinement and precision. In a few years, Sainte-Croix was able to compete with the great Maisons of Geneva.

 

O. 43.     Music box machinery, second half of 20th century, made of metal. Comb with 18 notes playing the tune of Stille Nacht.

 

O. 44.     Royal phonograph from Pathè Freres manufacturer, made in 1904. It is a sound reproducer made of a metal cylinder shaft activated by a spring charged by a crank on which a wax cylinder rotates. The needle of the reproducer courses on the groove recorded on the wax and transmits the sound to an amplifying horn. The cylinders used for this instrument, the Salons, were bigger than usual cylinders, with the diameter being 90mm (3.55”) and the height 106mm (4.15”). These dimensions permit a better quality of reproduction compared to Edison cylinders. The dimensions of the box are 24 x 16 x 12 mm (0.95” x 0.6” x 0.45”).

 

O. 45.     Wax cylinders (seven) for Pathè phonograph, type Salon, in cases made of cardboard with metal top, diameter 90mm (3.55”) and height 106mm (4.15”). These dimensions permit a better quality of reproduction compared to Edison cylinders.

 

O. 46.     Philips Roller Radio cassette player made in 1980, functioning as radio (FM MW LW SW) and cassette player for magnetic tapes. Red-coloured, this radio has been specifically designed for young people. The loudspeakers have been clearly separated from the main body that maintains the radio tuner and the cassette player. The evident handle recalls the portability; the back has some swellings under which the batteries are arranged. The brilliant colours and the finishing made of shiny plastic create a young and distinct, contemporary look.

 

O. 47.     Valve FBT amplifier datable to 1960s; its dimensions are 55 x 20 x 38 cm (21.65” x 7.85” x 14.95”). Its colour is grey and it presents two 12 watts loudspeakers. On the top there are a green control light for the turning on, the on/off lever, three control knobs that are green (VOL), red (NI), and yellow (LO), and four jacks (døb, two input, and one output).

 

O. 48.     Voxson television, T 1101 model, black and white, produced in 1970 in Rome by FARET (Fabbrica Apparecchi Radio e Televisione SpA). The body is made of mustard ABS and the screen is made of Plexiglas. The measures are: 28 x 32 x 26 cm (11” x 12.6” x 10.25”). Superheterodyne conversion, VHF/UHF wave range, and loudspeaker with dynamic permanent magnet (PDyn) and mobile coil.

 

O. 49.     Cichito portable record player, made in Italy in 1977 by Wilco for 45 rpm records. This device, rather spartan (with only the button for the volume and the one for the record ejection), is supplied both with 220 Volt and with batteries to go along with the trend of the time to listen to music everywhere.

 

O. 50.     Parlophon, small suitcase gramophone (285 x 160 x 240 mm – 11.2” x 6.3” x 9.45”) activated by a crank. Founded in Germany in 1896 by Carl Lindström, the brand Parlophon was first used to made gramophones before the enterprise started producing records. The symbol ₤, in German, stands for Lindström. On August 8th, 1923, a British branch, “Parlophone” (with final “e”), was instituted, guided by A & R Manager Oscar Preuss. Parlophone established a landlord covenant with co-ownership base United States Okeh Records, making Parlophone a leader among UK jazz brands. CLPGS published a list of Parlophone titles released between 1923 and 1956. The regulator of rpm, on the front together with the crank hole, has a needle with mica membrane branded Parlophon. The mechanics support, the inner bell with side small door to regulate the sound intensity, and the tone-arm, are made of wood, while the suitcase is made of leather.

 

O. 51.     Pathé Baby home projector, built in 1929 and distributed to the Italian market (for fans of the genre, the legendary "battinove"). Pathé Frères was founded in Vincennes in 1896 by Charles Pathé and his brothers Emile and Théophile, and indeed was the first film company that controlled the entire production process of filmmaking: from the manufacture of the film through to production and finally distribution in salt. It is substantially constituted by a base of mm. 100 x 180 with four legs, an electric motor, the illuminating apparatus, the projection device, the coils door film. The electric motor is fixed to the base with special joints, has a socket for connection to external power, a plug for connection to the projector, a power switch and a rheostat for the intensity variation of the current supplied to the projector (the projector works with voltages from 110V) in a small wooden cradle. At the base it is fixed to a vertical metal structure at the center of which is located the projection device, consisting of a lens, a rotary shutter, a crank for manual feed. Above it is inserted a metal arm on which you insert one of the two coils (the one with the film to be projected) and the cylindrical coils that drive the film in its movement through the projector. The other coil (the one that receives the film already projected) is inserted, by means of a suitable metal frame, directly into the base, on the side opposite to the motor. Integral with the coil is inserted, on the same axis of rotation, a disk to be connected with a belt for the transmission of motion. Behind the lens of the projection device, it fits the illuminating apparatus constituted by a light bulb in a low voltage filament with a fixed resistor, a concave mirror and a condenser lens, placed in opposite position with respect to the lamp, inserted in a cylindrical housing electrically connected to the base. This cylinder is constrained in the lower part but a compass openable to allow the positioning of the film guide, a rectangular frame placed between the condenser and the projection lens which forms the guide for the sliding of the film 9.5mm. It used to be 9.5 mm films. perforated at the center, usually in rolls of 8.5 meters. The presence of the reel holder arm, the motor mount, pulley back, allowing the screening of "super" film or length of 100 mt. This projector could be used both manually by means of the crank that with the electric motor. The screening is done by placing the projector in front of a white wall or a piece of cloth, you put this film in the debtor coil (higher) in the film frame guide, you turn on the lamp, you focus the image, use the lens and proceeds with the projection by operating the electric motor. The views film is collected in the receiver coil. The projector is placed in its wooden cabinet with three narrow drawers and a compartment with two doors (mm. 1180 x 570 x 358) and place on the upper floor (place to mm. 83 from the ground) with movable walls to facilitate insertion the coil and with a big hole on the short side at the projector.  

 

O. 52.     Records (seven) for 78 rpm content in a tin coil of the Fono Roma. This company was born on 11.26.1931 and immediately stood out for innovation and research. It was the first jazz recordings with the orchestra Carlini, direct from Sesto Carlini in 1932, in 1933 it recorded the monumental work of Sardinian folk music of Gavino Gabriel and up to 1970 it recorded fusion progressive rock (the Area). Currently it is a dubbing studio. The records contained in the coil are: 1) record engraved on one side with the label: DISCOTECA DI STATO / K R 153 D. d. S. 16 / GIOVANNI GENTILE / "I patti lateranensi e il pensiero italiano" (Dal discorso per l'inaugurazione del VII Congresso Naz. di filosofia, letto in Campidoglio il 26 maggio 1929.VII presente il Capo del Governo BENITO MUSSOLINI). 2) record with handwritten label; A: Pessac best side 12.25.33, B: Pessac GHK 08/12/33. 3) record engraved on one side with the label: S. A. FONO ROMA / REPARTO FONOGRAFICO / DISCO N. handwritten KR 250 30-1-34 / Voi che sapete / sopr. G. Pederzini. 4) record with label; A: S. A. FONO ROMA / REPARTO FONOGRAFICO / DISCO N. handwritten KR 211A 01.05.34 / Marechiaro / orch. Fragna, B: S. A. FONO ROMA / REPARTO FONOGRAFICO / DISCO N. handwritten KR 211X 1.5.34 / Marechiaro / orch. Fragna. Armando Fragna (Naples, August 2, 1898 - Livorno, August 15, 1972) was an Italian musician and composer who for 20 years headed one of the RAI orchestras. 5) record Excelsius T 6237 labeled not for sale A Tu ca nun chiagne (De Curtis) / GIOVANNI ASSANTE TENORE, B Torna a Surriento (De Curtis) / GIOVANNI ASSANTE TENORE. 6) record D Columbia 12543; A: LA TOSCA / E lucean le stelle / ALESSANDRO GRANDA, B: LA TOSCA / recondite armonie / ALESSANDRO GRANDA. Registration (1932, in Udine) of the Peruvian tenor whose real name is Alejandro Granda Relayza (Callao, November 26, 1898 - Lima, September 3, 1962). 7) PARLOPHON record; A: LETTERA DI MANON / ORCHESTRA EDITH LORAND / II B-27039, B: AUBADE printanière / ORCHESTRA EDITH LORAND / B-27039 I. The "Edith Lorand Orchestra" was one of the most famous bands of the Weimar Republic, with numerous appearances in the Admiralspalast in Berlin. In his dual role as virtuoso violinist and orchestra conductor, Edith Lorand (Budapest December 17, 1898 - November 23, 1960 New York) quickly he became the star and, at the same time, a symbol of women's emancipation in 1920.

O. 56.     Italian amplifier LEM B 202, built in 1970. In 1969, in San Giovanni in Marignano (RN), the brand LEM (Laboratorio Elettro Musicale) was born, from the GEM of Matteo Galanti, dedicated to the development of audio diffusion systems. The brand grew rapidly and became very popular first in Italy and then in the world. The Italian company was able to supply from small amplification systems to large live theatrical events and outdoor events and permanent systems for parks and discos such as the Yellow Flag in Rimini. Subsequently LEM dedicated itself to the construction of Computer /modeling based audio systems (i.e. with the possibility of DSP control for EQ management) such as the Tourmaster series in different versions. This amplifier is in two pieces, the amplifier itself of cm. 67 x 28 x 16.5 and the mono speaker of cm. 55 x 57 x 38. On the front face of the amplifier there are two inputs; the bright button; the volume, bass, middle and treble knobs; five levers for equalization and the compress and master knobs; on the back face there is the switch and the output for the speakers.

 

O. 53.     Magnetofono Geloso G255 S famiglia, three-valve, built in 1955 by Giovanni Geloso in Milan, at the viale Brenta 29 facility, licensed by Arrigo Castelli, and sold at 42,000 lire plus 230 lire of radio fees, 46,000 lire, complete with accessories . The speed is 4,75 and 9,5 cm / sec. The valves are: UL41, 12AX7 and DM70, the bandwidth is 100 - 4500Hz and 80 - 6000Hz, the power supply is 110 - 220Volt and the dimensions are cm. 24 x 13 x 14. On the top there is a transparent cover that, open, gives access to the reels, recorder heads and capstan, speed selector and volume knob. On the right side there are four keys: red is for recording, black for pausing, green for listening, and yellow for rewind. On the front face is the magical eye that was used to indicate the recording level and a red lever for the tape clutch. On the rear face we find the voltage selector, the microphone input and the output for the amplifiers. There is also the T32 microphone.

 

O. 55.     Chromatic rolmonica, a kind of harmonica that plays with a perforated paper roll. Built in the third decades of the twentieth century in the United States, branded: ROLMONICA / TRADE MARK REG / CHROMATIC / PAT. NO. RE. 16986 – NO.1.720.991. The instrument is in celluloid, with dimensions of mm. 119 x 92 x 92 x 36, it has 8 + 8 holes for the sixteen metal reeds, a mouthpiece and two small wooden knobs for unwinding and rewinding the roller. This instrument is equipped with 3 rolls of paper for as many songs.

 

O. 56.     Italian Amplifier LEM B 202, built in 1970. In 1969, in San Giovanni in Marignano (RN), the brand LEM (Laboratorio Elettro Musicale) was born, from the GEM of Matteo Galanti, dedicated to the development of audio diffusion systems. The brand grew rapidly and became very popular first in Italy and then in the world. LEM's amplification product range has been widely used for live applications in Italy and Europe in general. The Italian company was able to supply from small amplification systems to large live theatrical events (it has been the supplier of the Sanremo Festival several times) and outdoor events (including the international production of La traviata realized in Paris in 1999) and permanent systems for parks (for example the Aquafan in Riccione) and discos such as the Yellow Flag in Rimini. Subsequently LEM dedicated itself to the construction of Computer /modeling based audio systems (i.e. with the possibility of DSP control for EQ management) such as the Tourmaster series in different versions. This amplifier is in two pieces, the amplifier itself of cm. 67 x 28 x 16.5 and the mono speaker of cm. 55 x 57 x 38. On the front face of the amplifier there are two inputs; the bright button; the volume, bass, middle and treble knobs; five levers for equalization and the compress and master knobs; on the back face there is the switch and the output for the speakers.

 

O. 57.     Franz electric metronome, datable to 1940, produced by Franz Manufacturing Company, Incorporated - designers and manufacturers of American made precision metronomes since 1938. P.O. Box 120396, East Haven, Connecticut 06512-0396. The advent of the controlled alternating current (AC) made possible the invention of the electric metronome Franz (1938) which embodied the first significant improvements of the "Maelzel" type mechanism. In this metronome, a synchronous motor, like those used in electric clocks, operates a hammer that beats time through an adjustable mechanical reduction from 40 to 208. The dimensions are mm. 125 x 105 x 88, the structure is in black bakelite and on the upper face there is a small bulb that lights up with every movement. On the front wall there is a knob that allows you to vary the rhythm from largo to prestissimo (from 40 to 208) while on the back there is the ignition lever to match the sound signal to the bright one.

 

O. 58.     Paper rollers (two) for mechanical piano in their original boxes of the dimensions of mm. 52 x 59 x 322. The rollers have a diameter of mm. 48 for 286 of width while the length of the paper depends on the duration of the piece. During a convention held in Buffalo in 1908, a standard was established that was subsequently adopted by almost all manufacturers. This standard includes all 88 piano notes. The first roll, created by George Barbiero in 1919, is marked L'ÉDITION MUSICALE PERFORÉE, shows the label: Célébre Sérénata / op. 6 / E. Toselli. The second, coeval, EMPECO (The Empeco system, popular in Europe but virtually unknown in America, was used by Philipps, Kastner and many other European manufacturers, some Empeco systems have been installed in coin-operated instruments for use in public places ), on the label: 3057 / Moment d'Amour / (Liebesaugemblick) / Valse Lente / von / Leo Eysoldt.

 

O. 59.     Gramophone Pathé Concert with a crank action, built in Paris in 1910 by Pathé Frères. "Le Concert Automatique Français" was widely used in French public places before the First World War:  the robust speaker, the oversized horn and a token device was ideal for spreading the sound in large, crowded rooms. For ten cents you could hear the latest songs of the time. After inserting the coin, the gramophone has a device that stops the motor after a precise number of rotations, corresponding to the average length of an incision. The instrument is equipped with a sapphire needle and plays records with a diameter up to cm. 50 which make the needle move from the inside to the outside. The powerful engine allows you to listen to several records in a row without having to load them every time. Characteristic is the door behind which it is possible to stack the records. The gramophone is impressive: it has a height of mm. 2120, the diameter of the black horn,  is mm. 670, in front, under the engine, there is a sliding shutter that allows you to store the records, on the top floor, in addition to the rotating plate, there is the mechanism to change the rotation speed and the coin slot.

 

O. 60.     Amplivoice amplified four-transistor trumpet, built in 1962 by Geloso in Milan. The realization of this megaphone stems from an idea of engineering. Edgardo Velicogna, technical director of Geloso until '69 and a very close collaborator of Ing. Geloso. The idea of making an amplified horn powered by six 1.5 Volt batteries and with a removable, directional microphone mounted on four legs was extraordinary. The success of Amplivoice (bulletin N ° 84 spring 1962) is immediate, it is an innovative product that was lacking on the market and is immediately used in many applications, such as street vendors, construction sites, sporting events, trade union events and various strikes. The trumpet molding is made of special plastic, practically indestructible, commercially called Moplen. The metal tag around the microphone printed: AMPLIVOICE / CAT N° 2583 – PAT PENDING, TROMBA AMPLIFICATA / CAT. N. 2583 BREVETTATO, SpA GELOSO / MILANO / MADE IN ITALY. The diameter of the trumpet is mm. 235, the total length of mm. 434 and a weight, without batteries, of Kg. 1.5. The emblematic image of the use of amplivoice, however, is that of Federico Fellini, who used the Geloso megaphone during the direction of many of his films.

 

O. 61.     Projector with sound disc for children built in Barcelona in 1934 by the company NIC. In the 1930s, three brothers from Barcelona invented an instrument with which the little ones could, with just one crank, watch animated films printed on translucent paper bands and listen to the audio recorded on the related discs. Its operation is very simple and at the same time ingenious, conceived on the basis of the principles of the magic lantern: a paper ribbon with two slightly different images, above and below, are projected in such a way that a shutter alternated the vision of one and the other image (thus obtaining a precarious illusion of movement based only on two images that seemed alternating). The paper ribbon passes in front of the shutter, unrolling on one side and winding on the other. The optics are two simple lenses that show the bottom and top of the film, the point of focus should be sought by moving the projector away from the wall or screen where the images were seen. The lighting comes from a 40 Watt bulb. In 1932 the famous logo was patented: a black boy riding an elephant. The base of mm. 250 x 110 supports the projector, black, of mm. 223 x 112 x 80: on the right side there is the logo and the housing for the roller with the film while on the left side there is the cylinder cylinder on which the strip of paper is rolled and the crank of the gramophone to which it is hinged. On the upper floor is mounted the small gramophone consisting of the arm, the diaphragm with the chrome head and the plate, made of green felt with the inscription NIC / patentado, on which is screwed the disc in bakelite, 17 cm in diameter, related to the film. The instrument is accompanied by four discs with a story engraved on each side and the corresponding eight rolls of film.

 

O. 62.     Portable gramophone with decomposable parts Excelda, built by Thorens of Basel in 1935. In the first decades of the twentieth century were made some gramophones with shape and size similar to cameras, so as to be coined the definition of "cameraphone", the gramophone Excelda is an example of this particular type, which was a great success, remaining in production from 1931 until the mid-'40s. The components are contained in a sheet metal box, craquelé blue in colour, with a screw-on lid on which there is a rich circular decoration and an oval plate with the inscription British Patent / N˚ 255001; the front and rear sides are rounded and one of them has a black leather handle with the inscription EXCELDA. Unscrewing the lid, inside the box there are the modular elements: a diaphragm with chromed head, a chromed arm and a crank with wooden handle. The small plate, covered with blue felt, is driven by the spring motor, hidden from the plate. A hole on the side allows the crank to be inserted for charging the motor; on the same side there is a lever for stopping and adjusting the speed of rotation of the platter. The dimensions are 282 x 120 x 52 mm.

 

O. 63.     Magic Lantern Lucciola, built around 1930. The magic lantern is a device that allows, by to a light source and a mirror, to project images imprinted on glass or onto a strip of paper on a screen. It is all in olive-green painted metal with a base, black, which along the longer sides has two pins for wrapping and unwinding the paper tape and a green body, inside which there are two 40 Watt bulbs and the mirror. On the front face there is the adjustable lens for focusing while on the back there is the writing: LUCCIOLA / BREVETTATO / Ing. Nelli & F.lli Moradei / CBC / Firenze. There are also numerous comic strips from the famous Nerbini house.

 

O. 64.     Magic lantern made around 1910 by the Bavarian producer Gerbruder Bing (1863 - 1933). Founded in 1863 by brothers Ignaz and Adolf Bing, it originally produced metal kitchen utensils; at the beginning of the 20th century, Bing was the largest toy company in the world and the Nuremberg factory was the largest toy factory in the world; in 1932, Bing was put into liquidation and in 1933 ceased operations. The body, supported by four golden feet with acanthus leaf decoration, is a parallelepiped in olive-green tin with dimensions of mm. 140 x 130 x 80. On the left side there is a door that allows you to place the light source, consisting of an oil lamp in glass, and on which there is the mark: Standard / E.P. On the front there is a brand: eagle / E.P. on the upper side is housed the vent hood for the fumes of the lamp, in truncated cone shape with a final almost right angle, in black tin with a total length of mm. 152. The optic, of the total length of mm. 112, is placed on the front wall, consists of a single condenser and a single objective: the adjustment is entrusted to the short run of the objective. There are some round slides that show the landscape of the Rhine.

 

O. 65.     Lido portable record player with crank charge with worm screw, spring motor and integrated metal speaker. It, with its particular beige case, in the shape of an oval hatbox with a flat base, was built by the Telefunken Company for Wireless Telegraphy mbH in Hanover in 1938. The weight is 4.48 kg; the dimensions are mm. 145 x 325 x 370 and is built with leather, metal, plastic and fabric. On the inside of the lid there is a pocket, in fabric, for the disks and the word Lido / Telefunken Platten. The arm and diaphragm, with the TELEFUNKEN brand, are arranged at the rear while the crank can be stored inside the speaker. On the left of the rotating plate there is the lever to change the rotation speed while on the right there is a container, in amaranth plastic, for the spare pins and the lever for locking the rotation. The hole for inserting the crank is on the right wall of the casing.

 

O. 66.     Electromagnetic bakelite speaker, the famous 2007 of 1928, known as "barber's plate" or "flying saucer". It is a brilliant example of industrial design: it was designed by Louis Kalff for Philips. The speaker has a cast iron triangular foot supporting a large concave platter with a convex inner disc. The motor and its paper cone are located inside the smaller disc while the larger parabolic disc is used as a reflector. A small rotary switch on the cable allows three different impedances: 500, 1500 and 200 ohms. This speaker was built in three different sizes (large: 2007, medium: 2003, small: 2015). The back of the outer concave platter is marked PHILIPS. The diameter of the larger disc is mm. 403, the overall height mm. 430, the thickness mm. 173 for a weight of gr. 3010. The colour is marbled brown and red with gold inclusions (in fact brass powder). The patterns were always different, as the colour ingredients were incorporated randomly so that each piece is unique. Louis Kalff was a pioneer of industrial design in the Netherlands during the first half of the 20th century: he studied furniture design, sculpture, ceramics and architecture and began working for Philips in 1924 in the marketing department for which he was later responsible. In 1929 he opened a lighting product design department and later became responsible for the lighting sections of the world exhibitions in Barcelona, Antwerp and Paris. He designed the first Evoluon Holland science centre in Eindhoven, opened by Philips in 1966.

 

O. 67.     Portable 4.3-inch television for b/w images Shilyalis-402D. This television was produced in the Kauno Radijo Gamykla (KRG) radio station in Kaunas in 1974 with power or battery operation (220 or 12 Volts). Reception is in the MW and UHF ranges. Diagonal screen size mm. 160, reproducible sound frequency range 400/3500, nominal output power is W. 0.25. The dimensions are mm. 230 x 220 x 160, the case is in red plastic while the front is black, there are the switch/volume, contrast and brightness knobs.  At the bottom are the two selectors for VHF and UHF. There are two antennas, one circular and one telescopic, and the handle is marked SHILJALIS 402D-1E.

 

O. 68.     Symphonion, perforated metal disc music box, 145 mm in diameter. It was produced, in 1895, by 'Symphonion Musikwerke, Leipzig' located at 13-19 Braustrassw Street. The perforated discs have a small metal plectrum at the hole, which excites the metal reed producing the sound as in ordinary music boxes. The mechanism is contained in a box measuring mm. 127 x 197 x 177 with the lid in walnut briar and the rest veneered in walnut, inside vie is the metal comb, the roller that transmits the impulse of the plectrums, the pin that rotates the disc and an axle that holds the disc in place. On the inside of the lid there is a paper print with dance scenes and on the outside there is the name Symphonion. The comb has forty metal reeds: a lever on the right side of the box allows to stretch the spring that will make the disc spin with a smaller lever on top that allows to stop the rotation. The Symphonion Company started business in 1885 and produced the first music box with a disc player. Its founders were Oscar Paul Lochmann and two partners Gustave Brachhausen and Paul Riessner. Within two years, however, these two men had left to found the Polyphon company which produced similar machines in competition with the original company. In 1889, the Symphonion company became a joint stock company or Aktiengesellschaft, with shares listed on the stock exchange. In 1900, Symphonion's business continued under the control of Franz Thumen and Hans Kanitz until 1909, when it ran into financial difficulties and was restructured, with the company name changing to Symphonion-Fabrik AG. Under this name it remained in existence at Schkeuditzer Strasse 13-17b in Gohlis. Symphonion is distinguished by the enormous diversity of types, styles and models produced.

 

O. 69.     Snoby cc/ca portable record player, made in Lecco, Italy, by TRL Electronics, in 1965. Portable device of quadrangular shape of mm. 200 made of plastic, coral-coloured the upper part and cream-coloured the lower part. On the front there is a button for ejecting the record and two black dials, for tone and volume. It can run on dry batteries (1.5 Volt) or connected to the 220 Volt mains; it mounts a magnetodynamic loudspeaker (permanent magnet and moving coil) with an output power of 0.5 W.

 

O. 70.     Tape recorder, model Miny 2301 Transistor Tape Recorder, made in Japan in 1960. Portable device with two motors, running on dry batteries: 3 x 1.5 Volt for winding the coils and 1 x 9 Volt for the microphone, magnetodynamic loudspeaker (permanent magnet and voice coil) / Ø 6 cm Device made of grey plastic, dimensions mm. 205 x 65 x 185. Reel diameter 76 mm (3 inches) can hold the tape at 15 - 20 minutes recording time. Microphone with control button whose input is located on the right side of the unit. On the upper side, in addition to the reel slot, there is a four-position selector switch (rewind, stop, play and record) and the volume wheel. To replace the batteries, it is necessary to unscrew the large screw in the centre of the bottom cover strip and remove it completely. The built-in speaker emits a fairly loud but crackling sound.

 

O. 71.     Diana model reed musical box built in Leipzig, Germany, in 1902, by the Phönix company. Inside there are two bellows and a windchest with fourteen steel reeds set in vibration by the bellows and, on the bottom, there is the serial number N° 4810. The case is in black painted wood, the measurements are: mm. 200 x 240 x 134. On the side there is the crank which activates the two bellows and spins the discs, fixed by a lever on the plane of the instrument, which press the levers which release the reeds which emit the notes. This model was presented in 1901 at the Leipzig Autumn Fair. The producers were the music company Phoenix Schmidt & Co. The cornerstone for the booming music industry throughout Germany was laid in Leipzig. Paul Ehrlich was the architect, then the Phönix of Schmidt & Co. followed his example, starting to produce musical box in 1886 in Kurprinzstraße 18 (today Grünewaldstraße). There are twenty discs in galvanized sheet metal with a diameter of 163 mm.

 

O. 72.     Hand-cranked organ Kinder Ariston, produced in 1900 by Enrlich & Co in Leipzig. The instrument measures 355 x 355 x 185 mm and rests on four 20 mm feet. It operates with cardboard discs with a diameter of 295 mm. The top part shows the radial metal pressure arm adhering to the reading plate with nineteen holes, from which metal rods protrude. These rods, corresponding to the holes in the disc, rise and activate the valves that control the airflow to the reeds. The painting on this part depicts seven dancing children, the last of whom is playing the violin. In the corners, a guitar and tambourine, a horn, a harp, and a drum are depicted. On the right side, there is a crank that controls the rotation of the disc and the inflation of air by the two bellows. On the side of the handle and on the opposite side, six children marching with a dog are depicted. On the opposite sides, there are five child musicians and two pairs of dancing children.

 

O. 73.     Pocket phonograph Mikiphone, built in Switzerland, in Ste-Croix, by Paillard, in 1926. It is the smallest phonograph ever produced, its dimensions are 115 mm in diameter by 47 mm in height, on the side there is the winding key for the spring. The packaging arrangement is ingenious; the single spring motor with a three-cylinder speed stabilizer is housed in the bottom, in the top there is the turntable with holes to accept parts of the sound box, the diaphragm, the arm, and the resonator. This, used instead of the horn, is in two pieces that fit the concave sides. On the metal case is engraved: POCKET PHONOGRAPH / MYKIPHONE / SYSTEM VADÁSZ / PATENTED IN ALL COUNTRIES, on the bottom there is the serial number 26–0067843. You can listen to 78 rpm records up to 12 inch in diameter. The Paillard company, specialized in precision manufacturing, developed the world's first pocket phonograph: the Mikiphone, housed in a nickel-plated box the size of a hand. The recording head and a two-piece bakelite resonator had to be connected to the folding arm before the shellac record could be placed on the central spindle of the turntable. This feat of precision engineering won the first prize at an international music exhibition in Geneva in 1927. Le Corbusier went so far as to advertise the microphone in 1926 as a "first demonstration of the spirit of the machine age."

 

O. 74.     Orgue de barbarie Cautiniphone, hand-cranked organ for street performers with perforated paper rolls, built in the 20th century. The instrument, made entirely of solid curly maple, rests on four feet and can be carried over the shoulder with a leather strap. The body dimensions are 268 x 313 x 425 mm, while the windchest measures 290 x 290 x 68 mm. On the right side of the body, there is a crank to advance the rolls and operate the bellows, while on the right side of the windchest, there is a crank for rewinding. The paper roll moves over the windchest, uncovering the reeds corresponding to the holes, and these, when set into vibration, produce the note. The windchest has twenty holes for the twenty notes; there is a roll-up expression shutter on it that protects the mechanism and the roll. On the front, there is an oval inscription: CAUTINIPHONE / CHANTERUE / Montcenis. The first organ of this shape dates back to 1890; in 1937, Guy Cautin resumed production of these instruments at Etablissements Cautin Musique in Montcenis, a French commune located in the department of Saône-et-Loire in the Burgundy-Franche-Comté region.

 

O. 75.     Phonograph for wax cylinders, model Puck, built by Carette & Cie in Nuremberg in the last decade of the 19th century. The base is made of cast metal in the shape of a lyre, resting on three feet, one of which is adjustable. The upper surface of the base, in black enamel, is colored with gold paint. The motor, an open single-spring with a three-cylinder speed stabilizer, is fixed between two vertical axes and is wound with a key. The screw on the governor's rack regulates the speed. A bracket with a drive cylinder for the wax roller is installed separately. An endless wire, enclosed in a metal casing with a tensioning roller, transmits rotation from the motor to the cylinder. The soundbox is rigidly fixed to a conical aluminum horn mounted rotatably on a vertical support. The back of the horn rests on a T-support near the roller in the non-operating position; the needle lowers onto the cylinder and follows the phonogram groove during playback while the horn rotates on the hinge. It can play 2-minute wax cylinders with a diameter of 55 mm. George Carette was born in Paris, later moved to Germany, and founded the company "George Carette & Co" in 1886 in Nuremberg. Initially, the company was known as "Spielwaren-Industrie-Gesellschaft George Carette & Co" (Toy Industry Company George Carette & Co.). In 1895 it was renamed "George Carette & Co." The company existed until 1917 when Carette, who remained a French citizen, was expelled to his homeland. It was the simplest and most economical phonograph on the market, of German manufacture. Easy to operate, it had widespread popularity: it is estimated that between 1900 and 1914, more than one million units were produced in Europe. These talking machines were in the lowest price range of phonographs, sold cheaply, and sometimes one was given away for free with the purchase of 24 cylinders.

 

O. 76.     Mascotte Air Piano, built by Giaccaglia in 1963, patent No. 85101. The instrument resembles a small piano with twelve white keys ranging from C to G, eight black keys, and four bass keys. The lower part is light blue while the upper part is white, bordered by a golden strip. On the front, the Giaccaglia / Castelfidardo brand is displayed. The dimensions are 336 mm in length, 188 mm in width, and 180 mm in height. On the upper part, there is a grille from whichthe sound comes out. This is produced by metal reeds that vibrate when the valve controlled by the key is opened. The airflow is produced by a motor powered by two 4.5 V batteries. The switch to turn on the motor is located on the lower part. Giaccaglia Company was founded in 1957 by Nello Giaccaglia, born in Loreto (AN) on January 12, 1912. He was the head of the carpentry department at the Paolo Soprani company in Castelfidardo. Together with master Bio Boccosi, he developed a method for teaching the accordion, creating a toy accordion with colors and numbers corresponding to the method. The production of these accordions began in Castelfidardo, in his home on Via Brno Buozzi 7. In 1962, he moved to a real factory on Via Bramante 9, also in Castelfidardo, where educational accordions such as the Ciuciuci, Bambi, and Cucciolo, and the first air-powered piano with batteries, the Mascotte, were produced. In 1969, the company moved to Loreto Stazione on Via Bordighera. In 1972, they began producing their first electronic organs, such as the Pet and the Duetto, which had two keyboards. The company ceased instrument production in 1985.

 

O. 77.     Stylophone Dubreq, the first palm-sized mini synthesizer, built in 1970 in London. The Stylophone is an analog electronic musical instrument with a miniature keyboard, played with a stylus. It features a metal keyboard made from a printed circuit board, played by touching it by the stylus. Each note on the keyboard is connected to a voltage-controlled oscillator through a resistor of varying value, and touching the stylus to the keyboard completes a circuit. The only other controls are a power switch and a vibrato control on the front panel next to the keyboard, while a tuning potentiometer is located on the back. The dimensions are 159 mm in length, 98 mm in width, and 38 mm in height. Created in 1967 by Brian Jarvis, the Stylophone quickly became iconic, known for its fun stylus, compact design, and distinctive retro sound. Approximately three million units were sold under the Dubreq brand, often marketed as a musical toy. The instrument has been used by various musical groups and artists in their recordings, including David Bowie in the tracks "Space Oddity," "After All," and "Slip Away," Kraftwerk in the original version of "Taschenrechner" for bass sounds, and Tim Freese Greene (former producer of Talk Talk) in some of his recordings under the name Heligoland. The band Queen also used it in the song "Seven Seas of Rhye" on the album Queen II.

 

O. 78.     Casio VL-Tone VL-1 (known as CasioTone), manufactured in Japan in 1981. The instrument, measuring 300 x 75 x 30 mm, combines a calculator, a monophonic synthesizer, and a sequencer. On the left side, there is an amplifier and a small eight-character LCD display; on the top, there are controls for volume and balance, a three-position octave switch, a voice selector (piano, fantasy, violin, flute, guitar, ADSR), and a four-position power switch (play, rec, call, off). In the central area, there are ten buttons (Reset, Del, tempo up, tempo down, Rhythm, ML-C, Music, autoplay, and two One Key Play buttons). At the bottom, there are 29 very small and soft buttons instead of a keyboard, lacking any touch sensitivity or response (from G to B). Above the buttons, there are controls for one programmable sound and five preset sounds, ten built-in rhythm patterns, and a 100-note sequencer. The calculator mode is located below the buttons, with numbers and mathematical operation symbols corresponding to the calculator functions. On the back, there is a 3.5 mm mono audio output jack and an input for a 6V adapter; the instrument is powered by four AA batteries.