Modern bandmasters
With so many badly carved bandmaster and bellringers about with "a face for radio" maybe we should be aiming for something more modern also! Why not have bandmasters and bellringers with identifiable modern faces - people or film stars who are well known today. Any thoughts? Maybe not people like Andrew Lloyd Webber or Gordon Brown or Cilla Slack - we don't want breakages and ice-cream being flung, but there must be a few interesting faces of the era to have. They're not very egalitarian either are they - most are white and male. Three african-american New Orleans jazz musician figures might be fun for a change...

A life sized carving of Beyonce in full swing would certainly make me stop and listen. Well------- look, anyway.

Hi.All Our bandmaster is currently being restored and it looks like Danny La Roo in drag

Danny La Rue! If they've painted it look like a man in drag DON'T PAY THEM! LOL! There is a serious point here though. Ignoring the rococco style attire of figures that went on rococco cased instrument, in each age that these instruments were built the figures represented the styles of the time. The figues usually match the front styles but a lot of swaps have occured since new. The Gaviolis often show carnival or fancy ball outfits of fin-de-siecle Paris. Later on the bell-ringers have very high shortpants from the late teens and early 20s. The bandmaster at Bressingham is late teens / early 20s style in dress and design. Surely we can go for something more modern in 2008. Why not go for something totally modern for a change and extend it to facade style also instead of faux fairground nostalgia type designs all the time. Maybe get a designer who does custom Harley Davidsons or something to customize a facade - "Pimp my 87-key Gavioli" ...oops, there's a lot of those around already that have been pimped-up aren't there! LOL! :oops: :lol: :lol: :roll:

Talking of modern band masters and bringing them into the 21st centuary... how about modeling them on the modern day teenage chav 8) Why not swap the batton for a kitchen knife, replace the dress with some addidas trackies, why not give the A&R bandmaster a huddy! :P Think of the attention! :wink:

I'd Rather stick to tradition but I guess Katie Courack from Good Morning America would be a fine precedent.

I have a friend with John Philip Sousa as the bandmaster on his Wurlitzer organ. It is very recognizable, and seems appropriate for an American organ.

I do say quite appropriate for an American organ, do you have a photo?

yeah , the Harley thing is what I'm talking about, or something totally stylish and ultra-modern. The trouble with most fair organs is most blokes walk by as the facades and figures are essentially as camp as Liberace's boudoir. No red blooded male is ever gonna say to his mate "hey hang on, I just wanna take a look at this" and then stop to admire women in pretty flouncy dresses playing a dainty polka with lots of Louis XIV and gold ...I mean, seriously ...in the real world ...men just don't do that. Watch all those clips on YouTube : you can see blokes walk by and deliberately not even glance over at all that Roger DeBris interior decor. Maybe a couple of smoke machines and some proper flaming torchiers plus Beyonce then? regards Adam PS to Roger De Bris' interior decor click blow. A lot of it came from Marenghi et Cie I think. http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=wpWoGwoULjo

How could they play the wurlitzer 103 without a riot?

We played the 103 during slow periods, when there were less people in the room and during the rare moments when one of the pianos wasn't going. We never played it late at night, but occasionally early in the morning and usually in afternoon to "pep people up". We also played it on request for a few AMICA members who had never heard it before and wanted to know what it sounded like. Yes, it was quite loud in the room, however, due to acoustics and the bend in the hallway, it was barely audible in the lobby, so nobody complained (that I'm aware of), and, unfortunately, very few interested people wandered into the room to see where all the music was coming from, because they couldn't really hear it. Had we waited until the room emptied, moved the organ to the doorway and played it, it doubtless would have gotten people's attention, but at the same time the hotel might have given AMICA trouble about it.