piano rolls
Player instrument inserts
Piano rolls are scrolls of paper with perforations that encode music for player pianos.
As the roll passes over a reading mechanism, the holes trigger hammers to strike specific keys, reproducing a performance without a live pianist.
Before recorded music became widespread, piano rolls were the primary way to hear professional performances at home.
The term now also describes the visual representation of notes in digital music software, where horizontal bars on a grid show pitch and duration: I edited the melody in the piano roll.
Automatic keyboard instrument
- perforationsSeries of small holes
- spoolsCylinders for winding material
- pneumaticUsing pressurized gas
- scrollsRolled written records
reproducing · Aeolian · pneumatics · vacuum · bellows · air motor · expression · pedals
Quality from past eras
- antiqueOld valued collectible
- restorationReturning something to condition
- preservationMaintaining something's condition
- auctionCompetitive public sale
rarities · artifact · heirloom · patina · relic · collector · archive · condition
Pleasing sequence of notes
- harmonyAgreement or musical blend
- tempoRate of musical performance
- arrangementOrdered configuration or agreement
- ragtimeSyncopated piano genre
Joplin · classical · accompaniment · repertoire · transcription · recording · composition · dynamics
Electronic music data standard
- sequencerOrders signals chronologically
- DAWAudio production software
- gridFramework of intersecting lines
- quantizationConversion to discrete values
notation · programming · software · loop · pattern · visualization · editing · timeline
pianola
Automatic keyboard instrument
- perforationsSeries of small holes
- spoolsCylinders for winding material
- pneumaticUsing pressurized gas
scrolls · reproducing · Aeolian · pneumatics · vacuum · bellows · air motor · expression · pedals · pumping
vintage
Quality from past eras
- antiqueOld valued collectible
- restorationReturning something to condition
- preservationMaintaining something's condition
auction · rarities · artifact · heirloom · patina · relic · collector · archive · condition · cataloging
melody
Pleasing sequence of notes
- harmonyAgreement or musical blend
- tempoRate of musical performance
- arrangementOrdered configuration or agreement
ragtime · Joplin · classical · accompaniment · repertoire · transcription · recording · composition · dynamics · phrasing
MIDI
Electronic music data standard
- sequencerOrders signals chronologically
- DAWAudio production software
- gridFramework of intersecting lines
quantization · notation · programming · software · loop · pattern · visualization · editing · timeline · Ableton
- Piano Rolls
- Victorian-era musicragtime, music hall, operetta, march music, waltzes
piano rollsstreaming audio
Online sound transmission
CDs · compact discs · digital downloads · audio files · vinyl records
piano rollslive performance
Unrecorded staged entertainment
concert performance · sight-reading · human performance · jam session
piano rollssheet music
Published performance notation
musical scores · lead sheets · handwritten manuscripts · oral tradition · tablature
piano, roll, pianos, rolls, rolled, rolling, roller, pianissimo, pianist