Pianola

The Pianola is an early type of player piano that was invented in the late 19th century. Named after the Greek word for "automatic" or "self-playing," it was a precursor to modern player pianos. The Pianola consisted of a mechanism that could play pre-roll rolls of music using hammers that struck the strings.

The inventor of the Pianola is Nicholas Shepherd (also known as Alexander W. Smart in the USA) and also the British instrument maker Charles Steinway himself and the British technician and inventor, John H. McPherson was working with, is generally credited to have developed the first commercial Pianola in the 1890s. The Pianola was developed by groups of inventors working independently in the same time period, with Charles Steinway's version being licensed to the Aeolian Company (later known as the Aeolian Plateory Company) in 1902. The Pianola gained popularity in the early 20th century, particularly in the 1900s and 1910s, as recording technology improved and more rolls of music were available.

The Pianola machine had a complex mechanism that used various components, including a set of metal disks with holes in them and a series of fingers that lifted the hammers onto the strings. By reading the pattern of holes in the disks, the fingers could strike the corresponding keys on the piano to produce music. Pianolas came in various sizes, including domestic and larger concert versions. They were often played for live audiences, and were also used as entertainment in music halls and live performance settings.