Harry J. Lincoln/E. T. Paull: "Midnight Fire Alarm" player piano roll

[Grundsau47]

at all costs listen to this as rendered by the Firehouse 5+2!!

[clariona]

I put a little more speed and razamatazz into my performance of Midnight Fire Alarm. Hope you enjoy my rendition as well. I think my guys are really in a hurry.

[Yaledmot]

@clariona One thing about the player piano, music can be made to run as fast as it can. This does not make it better. Musical clarity is important. E.T. Paull's music is frantic enough as it is. I know musicians who play this and other Paull compositions and they are at a resonable tempo. There are a couple of other E.T. Paull player piano postings--Burning of Rome--and they are taken at break-neck speed and are just taken way too fast. There is a reason for artist's tempos.

[VictrolaJazz]

I was always curious how these other E. T. Paull compositions, listed on the back of our copy of Dawn of the Century sounded! Wonderful! Thanks!

[Yaledmot]

@VictrolaJazz "Burning of Rome," "Midnight Fire Call," "Napoleon's Last Charge" all have a similarity of composition. A and C sections similar with a greatly different B section in the middle of the composition with the melody in the bass.  Still great musical fun though. BTW, I got a response from the great piano and orchestrion restorer Art Reblitz last night--He was not aware of any piano rolls of "Dawn of the Century."

[VictrolaJazz]

@Yaledmot Yes I do notice similarities amongst them, which is probably not unusual. I'll bet he would have been a worthy competitor to John Phillip Sousa. I had a Smith & Barnes player from '83 to '97. I corresponded with the last person associated with QRS before it went under (I still have one of the last catalogs)--he sold me his 1918 copy of the Galli Curci Rag for $40, but would not part with Dawn of the Century, so it must have been done by someone.

[Yaledmot]

@VictrolaJazz With this "Midnight Fire Call," you can almost picture a horse-drawn fire pumper being pulled through the streets.

[VictrolaJazz]

@Yaledmot I know, very exciting!

[RomanticMusikFan]

Is it possible for me to get the sheet music for this?

[Yaledmot]

Keep searching antique stores that deal in "antique" sheet music.

Be prepared--original copies with the water color front page, in good condition, can be quite expensive.

[organistedejazz]

try lester s levy sheet music site. maybe it's available on it

[HarborGuy]

Tricky fingering - nice old roll - reminds me of the midway...........You have a great player- the one is wonderful...not to mentin the action........

[Yaledmot]

The player and piano action provide good repetition. That counter melody that "tremolos"/snakes its way through, requires a responsive player stack and piano action.

It has been an amazing find since I found it rotting away in a church about a year ago.

E.T. Paull's music found its way into the circus tent as well as midway band organs and brass bands.

[RagtimeFreak86]

I love this tune

[Yaledmot]

Frantic and fun.