Player Pianos are Pianos Programmed for Fun!

A player piano can be a traditional piano when asked to be, yet they are also so much more! Pianos with technology are more predominant today than at any time in history. The biggest reason is because player pianos are now recreational centers with a ton of tech capabilities that appeal to consumers, educators, and professional musicians alike.

It is so fun for the consumer to access a cloud-based library that contains songs their piano can play for entertainment or background music. For the educator, the recording, sharing, and distance-learning capabilities make teaching and workshops possible and more efficient than ever. The professionals enjoy technology that makes composing and layering user friendly. These tech capabilities make creativity easier than ever before.

Player technology was first introduced in 1896 with an instrument called the Pianola. This player piano worked off rolls of paper! It increased in popularity until 1924 when its popularity peaked. The advent of radio, phonography, and the Great Depression resulted in Pianola’s immediate dive into obscurity. The Stock Market crash in 1929 halted production completely, making it unavailable and temporarily obscure.

A new presentation to the consumer began in the 1950s. Magnetic tape and floppy disks replaced the old pneumatic paper rolls to reproduce recorded favorites—and a new age of technology married to tradition was born! Bosendörfer brought “computer-assisted playback” into being; Yamaha created the “Piano Player” (which evolved into the modern-day Disklavier); and Steinway’s Spirio is the highest-end piano born with technology currently being sold today.

Here at PianoNation and The Piano Store Scottsdale we are the most dependable source of player technology and information. Whether the player is built into the instrument at birth or added to an acoustic instrument later in life, our team of experts can help! Our owner, Todd Brown, is the international distributor for the world’s most popular player piano package, QRS Music Technology’s PNOmation. He is a leading expert known globally for his experience in retrofit player piano technology. This unique process allows an acoustic piano to be played traditionally or by activating the most technologically-advanced self-playing piano system in the world.

PianoNation’s Todd Brown has empowered piano specialists in all of our markets with the knowledge of piano technology. This allows our staff to best advise purchasers to the most logical and cost-effective ways to own a piano with player piano advantages. What could be better than having a specialist trained by a world leader in player piano technology be your tour guide on your journey to finding your perfect piano? Nothing! Well, unless Todd happens to be in the store providing you with his expert knowledge and advice himself!

Reach out to us for the friendliest, most dependable information about pianos—with technology and without. We are happy to share our knowledge with you as you add your new musical family member to your home.