PIANOLA

My roll scans are in MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) format, an industry-standard protocol that works much like the player piano rolls I scan. Think of my scan as the piano roll, and your computer as the player piano!

Rather than carry the actual sound you hear, a MIDI file is a series of numbers which explain how the music is to be played back. This is why MIDI files are so small in size and makes it an ideal medium for roll scanning.

For example, to reproduce the sound of a piano playing a C note, the MIDI sequence contains digital information which says " this is a piano sound." Another number says "a note has been played," other numbers convey information such as "the note is middle C," "the key was struck very softly," "the sustain pedal was pressed," "the note has now stopped," etc.

I can't hear anything!

First, check your speakers are switched on!! Some other steps to try..

1) Double click the volume icon volume_icon in your taskbar (bottom right of the screen, near the clock)

volume_control_window

The MIDI volume is controlled by the 'SW Synth' control. Check that the 'mute' box isn't checked, and that the slider isn't all the way down at the bottom.

2) Visit the Control Panel -> Sounds and Audio Devices (or Multimedia). Under the 'Audio' tab, check that a default device is set for MIDI music playback. If there's one already there, try changing to 'Microsoft GS Wavetable SW Synth' or other options listed to see if that helps.

control_panel_midi

What is a piano roll?	What is a player piano (pianola)?
A piano roll is a roll of paper perforated (punched) with holes that operates a player piano (pianola). The location, position, and length of the perforations determines what note of the piano is activated and how long for. Combined, the perforations produce a performance of a piece of music. Piano rolls were produced by either recording the playing of a pianist or pianists using a recording piano ("hand played" rolls), or arranged by perforating the paper by hand using the sheet music as a guide ("arranged rolls"). Many rolls were produced using a combination of the two methods. Recording an Artempo hand-played roll, early 1920s	A player piano, commonly known as the "pianola", is a piano containing additional mechanisms that allow it to perform music without a pianist. They were most popular between 1900 and 1930, before recorded music became affordable and of high quality. The player piano uses suction and air pressure to operate the player mechanism, which is provided using either an electric motor, or more commonly generated by foot pedals connected to a large bellows contained within the lower part of the piano. When a piano roll is playing, the piano keys move as if an invisible pianist is present. (see video)