General background info on the most common roll labels

For pictures of what some of these rolls actually look like see the pages on this site with scanned colour pictures of the actual rolls themselves. The widest cross-section are depicted to give an insight into the large variety that have been produced and their stages of development.

UK Rarity Guide :
* = Uncommon in the UK
** = Occasionally encountered
*** = Common
**** = Virtually every box of rolls has some.

Aeolian
Made by the Aeolian Company - manufacturers of the player piano with the generic brand name of "Pianola". Early on they made a 46-note player organ then a 58-note version. Next came the Aeriol 65-note player piano in 1897 and the push-up piano-playing 65-note "Pianola", followed by the introduction in c.1901 of Metrostyle (see further on) markings on rolls. Next came the internal player piano or "Pianola Piano", the 88-note scale instrument was introduced about 1908 together with the auto-sustain mechanism and the themodist method of accenting notes. Aeolian also made 116-note player organs in reed and pipe versions, the "Duo-Art" reproducing piano (1913) and finally the Duo-Art reproducing pipe organ playing 176-note rolls. Of course there was much more fun than that along the way we assure you. You can't really omit such wonders as 32-slit tracking devices, Duo-Art Concertolas and a whole host of other er.....'wonderful' items. Aeolian even later made gramophones and 78s under the Vocalion brand. The rolls are always well made with generally good arrangements. The output represents essentially the industry standard and is therefore somewhat commercial in choice of repertoire. This said, there is a wealth of choice repertoire lurking away in the catalogues and for sheer scope you cannot equal the company. (46, 58, 65, 88, 116 & 176) ****

Ampico
Reproducing piano roll made in the US between 1914 and the late 30s. There are 3 types : Stoddard Ampico, Ampico A and Ampico B. For the full effect they need to be played on a piano equipped with the appropriate Ampico system. **

Animatic

Made by Hupfeld in Germany. The roll paper has a watermark either with the word "Phonola" and the date watermarked also or a watermarked musical treble stave with the notes B & E shown. The B & E is really H & E (H is musical B in germanic european music notation). H & E are the initials of the company that made the roll paper. Hupfeld eventually bought them outright to make all Hupfelds paper exclusively. The rolls have "snakebite"-type expression and are cut to play at constant speed. They are artist-recorded and are therefore just one down from a reproducing roll in terms of ability to reproduce an artistic performance. The red central line does not show that the roll goes at a constant speed. It is marked to show the two halves of the stack so the operator can see which half of the stack the melody is playing in. Although these rolls will play on all normal players the vice versa does not necessarily apply. Why? Well, the auto-sustain holes on Hupfeld rolls and tracker bars are a fraction further to the right than normal rolls and players. The leaders invariably have a picture of the Hupfeld factory on them. (88) **

Artist
Good quality song rolls marketed by Herbert Marshalls but punched however from Aeolian masters. On the evidence, most of Herbert Marshalls output of rolls were cut from Aeolians UK masters. **

Artistyle
The dynamic line and tempo line are combined into a printed chain of letters. Early ones were made by Wilcox and White, USA to play in their Angelus range. Wilcox and White shared roll production facilities in Meriden with Aeolian whose factory was right across the street. In the UK Herbert Marshalls made Artistyle branded rolls and continued to do so after Wilcox and White had ceased trading most of which appear to have been cut from Aeolians UK masters. Artistyle rolls were manufactured up to the war and abortively after the war for a short period. (65&88) ***

Artona
Made by the late Gordon Iles until a couple of decades ago using some of Aeolian's own punching machinery. Some rolls were simply recuts, other were new post-war arrangements of his own. Often maligned as a cheap brand though many rolls are perfectly good as are the arrangements. The roll paper is sometimes white, sometimes brown and sometimes turquoise blue depending on when the rolls were punched. If Mr Iles hadn't supplied new rolls after the war many more player pianos would no doubt have been scrapped! (88) ***

Audiographic
Made by Aeolian in Duo-Art and a Pianola version cut from the Duo-Art edition of the same. The rolls have a fabulous printed section at the beginning with several feet of text and pictures all about the series, the recording artist, the composer, the music etc. The music is described on the roll as it plays. The degree and style of annotation depends on which series you are playing from. (88) **

Autoplayer
Made from Aeolians masters though marketed by a different company. The quality of the rolls is however just as good as a standard Aeolian roll. The good thing is that the popular rolls selected for this brand from the Aeolian masters are invariably the most lively and full of Aeolian's arrangements. (65&88) ***

Broadwood
Quality rolls produced for Broadwood by 2-3 different manufacturers. Always a top class punching on a good grade of paper with good printing. Broadwoods, a piano manufacturer with a very well established reputation for making perhaps one of the finer British-made pianos, wanted a quality roll to supply to their customers. Similarly the arrangements selected for this brand are consistently tasteful. (65&88) ***

Chase & Baker
American made rolls from very early on in the player years. Often made of mid-green paper with red mahogany coloured varnished spool ends. The reason for this is that they believed it looked more aesthetic in the player's mechanism than white paper. Some rolls also come on very dark grey paper with black ends. (65&88) **

Dualano
A vendor's trade name pasted over another manufacturer's rolls. (88) **

Duo-Art
Reproducing piano roll made in the US & UK between 1914 and the late 30s. For the full effect they need to be played on a piano equipped with the appropriate Duo-Art system. **

Echo
A very small UK outfit which produced very cheap hand played rolls in the early 20s. Billy Mayerl recorded (under his name William Mayerl) quite a number of titles for them before his solo career took off. (65&88) **

Electra
An early American brand. The company extensively used electricity is their operations where others would have relied on pneumatic power and hence the name. Click here to see the electra patents in full (65&88) **

Full Scale
Made from Aeolian's masters, in reality simply another Aeolian brand name as far as roll production goes. The quality of the rolls is however just as good as a standard Aeolian roll. An unbranded range apart from the fact that they are "Full Scale". Many of the leaders are essentially Universal leaders. (65&88) ****

Hupfeld
Made in Germany by Hupfeld (see Animatic above). The other kind of Hupfeld roll is an arranged roll cut metronomically from sheet music like many other rolls although never wooden metronomically like some brands. Most people would never notice the difference. (88) **

Ideal
A roll dealers name. In the UK this company simply put it's own leaders and labels on rolls of other companies. The rolls they used to re-brand were all sorts ranging from Imperial to Triphonola. **

Imperial
A brand made by the Perforated Music Company. This was their biggest brand label. The rolls throughout the years of production underwent many slight changes but the trademark characteristics often are: linenised green leader, scalloped edge where paper joins the leader, a one piece flip top box, occasionally circular roll labels glued around the spool ends and sometimes metal spools. A good quality roll though often the popular titles suffer from dull and turgid arrangements. The company also made compatible rolls for many other types of players. When the premises were destroyed by fire in 1918 the company never really recovered and hence most Imperial rolls one is likely to encounter are pre-1918. In its heyday the company was the top producer of music rolls! (65&88) ***

Kastner
Kastner rolls are generally their label pasted onto another manufacturer's rolls. Most 65-note ones are Connorized stamped Triumph and then pasted as Kastner. Fortunately "Kastner rolls" are mainly much better than their pasted label brand name hints at. Most 88-note ones are at least several other companies rolls relabelled. I even have a good Animatic roll with it's leader cut off and reversed with a printed Kastner label stuck on the new front. There are a very few Kastner punched 88-note rolls. These appear to date from around 1913-1914 when Kastner was producing rolls for its Kastonome brand of player which could individually highlight note accents. (65&88) ***

Keith Prowse & Co
A vendor's trade name pasted on unbranded rolls made by the Perforated Music Company (65&88) **

Melographic
Early rolls with a wonderful sprung spool end holding the paper flush. All are straight punched but the music is fine. The paper is generally dark grey or dark green of the type used by some Chase and Baker rolls. The very late 88-note rolls used standard white paper. (65&88) *

Meloto
Made from Aeolian's masters and very many cut from Duo-Art masters, in reality simply another Aeolian brand name as far as roll production goes. No separate leaders. The quality of the rolls is however just as good as a standard Aeolian roll. Some are themodized and just about all have auto-pedal punchings. A very colourful pictorial box in all but the very earliest and latest rolls. Numbers 31xxx and 41xxx series are all single tune dance rolls with the numbers going right up to 419xx for the very last rolls made in the late 1930's. Judging from the repertoire and pianistic style of arrangement the brand appears to have started after 1925 so you can get a good idea of the age of the tune (if you don't know when it was written) from how far up 31xxx and then 41xxx the number is. The 35xxx, 45xxx and 55xxx series are selections, classical, light, ballads and everything else that's not a dance roll and 38xxx series are song rolls...so now you know! The 38xxx series of song rolls do not marry-up numerically with the 26xxx, 36xxx or 46xxx series of Aeolian and Universal song rolls however just in case you were wondering. (65&88) With this brand 65-note roll production continued in the UK right up to 1938/39 surprisingly though with a reduced selection of the same titles. ****

Metro-Art
An Aeolian brand short-lived about 1912. Metrostyle markings on a hand-played roll which was the precursor to the Duo-Art recording system. Rolls often have extra perforation for soft-pedal. The series is identical to the Uni-Record label apart from the alternate numbering sequence. (88) *

Metrostyle
An Aeolian brand. (65&88) Metrostyle markings are a red line which the pianolist follows with the metrostyle pointer on the pianola and thus produces an artistically varied performance from otherwise strictly arranged tempo rolls. Many later popular tune ones are Duo-Art recordings without the codes so the music is top-rate and not just punched metronomically. Metrostyle concept was introduced in 1901. You can follow Metrostyle markings with any player piano quite easily in any event. And furthermore, most people don't follow the thing anyway - often they were printed with a totally meaningless inaccuracy by bored operators at visually following a correctly marked master roll at high speed.Quite fun to find the laziest examples sometime they just squiggle back and forth aimlessly in a manner as if to say;- "I'm just moving the printer lever as if I'm doing something because the boss is watching but it's nearly time to go home." ****

Parex
A cheap brand of the UK late 20's early 30's. Often with very full arrangements and often with a ton of tremolo if you like that sort of thing. Many rolls come with a blank but stunning electric blue colored leader made from glazed linen. (88) **

Perfecta
Made from Aeolian's masters so far as roll production goes. The quality of the rolls is however just as good as a standard Aeolian roll. Often some quite wonderful repertoire is to be had on the Perfecta label. (65&88) ***

Philag
Philag 88-note Roll. Made by Phillips in Germany. The roll ends are not black but varnished natural wood without stain or paint. The leaders have a picture of the Phillips factory on them. Very like an Animatic Hupfeld rolls otherwise. (88) *

Pianostyle
American brand of 88-note rolls. The popular repertoire is arranged in a very agreeable and distinctive style and often with some re-iterating "marimba-style" arrangements. (88) ***

Pleyela
French brand assosciated with french piano makers Pleyel. Often the mid blue boxes have the brand name embossed on the top of the lid in large letters. (88) *

QRS
Made in America and still going strong producing new rolls today. (65&88) ***

Regent
Dance rolls indistinguishable from the Meloto brand. Boxes are drab turquoise generally. Regent continued up to 1941 when wartime paper shortages ceased production (identifiable by three-digit roll numbers). Marketed for a while by the Artistyle Music Roll Co. (UK) which was run by Herbert Marshalls..is this all confusing? (88) ***

S&P
88 note rolls made by the same company as Echo in the UK. S&P are classical titles whereas Echo are popular titles.

SM
A brand of 88 note rolls most likely of German manufacture. Well made with themodist style puchings often, chained perforation usage and red dynamic line and roll stamps instead of the more usual green or black. **

Temponome
American made and reproducing an actual pianists recording. No theme or pedal punchings. The rolls have notes extended to give the effect of the sustain pedal having been operated. Suprisingly this experimental idea really works very well and the rolls give excellent playback. The rolls were taken from early Stoddard Ampico recordings without the dynamic codings. **

Themodist
The rolls have themodist puchings which highlight the melody in players equipped with this system. The rolls will operate in any player however without affecting the music at all and the themodist holes will additionally operate the expression function in any player with the generic snakebite type of expression whatever. They'll also operate in Duo-Art players as these also have themodist accenting mechanisms in them. Many later popular tune ones are Duo-Art recordings without the codes so the music is top-rate and not just punched metronomically. (65&88) ****

Themodist Metrostyle
A themodist roll with metrostyle markings in addition. (65&88) ****

Triphonola
Reproducing rolls for Hupfeld's Triphonola reproducing piano. *

Triumph
Most made from Aeolian masters though generally without the themodist or pedal tracks included rather oddly. Triumph rolls are otherwise generally as good as a standard Aeolian roll (65&88). ***

Universal
Made from Aeolian masters, and therefore in reality simply another Aeolian brand name as far as roll production goes. The quality of the rolls is however just as good as a standard Aeolian roll. The Universal Music Roll Company continued after the war in the UK until about 1948. The song rolls are numbered 36xxx the last three digits which are the song number with the first two digits representing "Universal" brand. The corresponding 65-note Universal song rolls begin 46xxx and corresponding Aeolian song rolls (88-note) begin 26xxx. So for example 26155, 36155 and 46155 would in theory all be the same tune punched from the same master rolls but different brands and sizes. (65&88) ****

Victoria
Spanish made rolls with a very florid leader design generally. Rolls are consistently well arranged and clearly marked. (88) **

Vocalstyle
American made hand-played song rolls with a system of word printing and assosciated symbols showing how the song's vocal intonation (literally the vocal style of the piece and hence the name) should be sung. Interesting. Jelly-Roll Morton recorded a number of rolls for the company. 3 are still missing so if you think you have some Vocalstyle Morton rolls I know some folk who'd be very very pleased to hear from you! (88) *

Welte-Mignon
Reproducing piano roll made in Germany and the US & UK between 1905 and the 1930s. For the full effect they need to be played on a piano equipped with the appropriate Welte system. The first system is known as the Red Welte system with non-standard width rolls usually on red colored paper, the next system is the Welte Licensee (US-made) using standard width rolls and the last is the Green Welte system with standard width rolls on green colored paper. **