Vintage Pianola/Player Piano Rolls

Vintage Pianola Player Piano Rolls

A vintage player piano or pianola is a self-playing piano that uses rolls of perforated paper to produce notes of music. The pianola first appeared in the late 19th century with sales peaking around the mid-1920s just before musical entertainment gave way to the radio and phonographs. Since then, pianolas have been regarded a collectors item and the music rolls used within this instrument widely collected. There are piano rolls available in all styles of music from The Beatles to famous show tunes, depending on the taste of the collector, and they’re a popular item for lovers of music and antiques.

Pianola player piano rolls traditionally played such famous composers as Mozart and Beethoven, with fans of this classical style of music being spoilt for choice in the vintage rolls that are now available. Other famous music including Christmas carols and Australian medleys are popular choices for collectors of vintage piano rolls.

It’s not just classical music that you’ll find on a vintage music roll, with some famous and more modern artists also available for collection. Many collectors look for iconic artists like The Beatles, Johnny Cash and ABBA on their player piano rolls, whose music is still widely popular today.

The history of the pianola saw a lot of use in the musical theatre and it’s common to find rolls with show tunes and theatre medleys within. There are piano roll collectibles available from popular shows such as Grease, Oklahoma and Les Miserables, and when played on a pianola give an authentic sound that you might find in the theatres of the past.

Collectors of vintage pianola music rolls might use these items solely as collectibles and store them away for viewing. Some people collect vintage pianola player piano rolls to use in various arts and crafts projects as they make an affordable and beautiful form of paper to decorate with. Some sellers offer piano rolls in bulk which makes them ideal for crafting, whereas the rarer and more expensive types are better suited as antiques due to their price.