Dallas, Texas — Uriel’s Master Woodworks piano restoration experts display the Spinet Musette Vintage Upright Piano by Winter & Company.
The player piano makes waves, sound waves, that is…
During the final years of the 19th century, American businessman, industrial designer, musician, and inventor extraordinaire Edwin Votey invented the pneumatic piano player termed the Pianola. The system that Votey created became a staple in the industry and was used by many piano manufacturers during the 20th century.
In 1901 cabinetmaker Gottlieb Heller started building and innovating pianos as well, and by 1903 had also mastered the art of piano building. Gottlieb sold his company to Julius Winter in 1904, who renamed the small firm Winter & Company. They built a large piano manufacturing plant in New York City that would produce hundreds of thousands of pianos during its lifetime. Shortly after building the plant, they developed a player piano with a mechanism known as the “Master Player,” which did quite well in piano sales.
Winter & Company produced an estimated 25,000 pianos from the New York plant each year for several decades. Winter & Company became one of the largest piano manufacturers in the world and in 1959 merged with Aeolian American to become the Aeolian Corporation.
These beautiful pianos are made well for their price point and are great for beginners or professional musicians. The Winter & Company pianos were known for their great sound and practical use. One of the most sought versions is the famous “Master Player” from 1904, considered a historical musical artifact. The first-generation Spinet or Console Musette pianos from the 1930s are rare and can also fetch a considerable amount of legal tender.
Uriel’s Master Woodworks had the pleasure of restoring this antique, late 1930s version of the beloved New York plant-made Spinet Musette Player Piano from Winter & Company with a vintage gloss walnut finish.