We are pleased to announce that the Global Piano Roll Meeting series will continue. 
The next prelude will present papers by Hermann Gottschewski on distinguishing types of Welte-roll punchings across periods and locations and by Artis Wodehouse on George Gershwin's piano rolls. Program with abstracs (pdf)

Music rolls and pneumatic instruments are a vital part of the history of recording and mechanical music. They provide a rich window into the technological, musical, cultural and economic history of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Recent projects to preserve rolls by scanning and digitization have sparked wider interest in the field. This work has allowed for technical studies of rolls, which are an early digital record of music making. Archival documents are also yielding insights into the business and technology of roll manufacturing.

The 4^th Global Piano Roll Meeting (GPRM) will take place at Stanford University, August 7–9, 2026. The program committee invites proposals for individual papers, organized sessions, lecture-recitals, panel discussions, posters, and performances. 

Call for Papers (deadline: 30 October 2025) (pdf)

This bi-annual meeting, which follows the 3^rd meeting held in Sydney, Australia 2024, is an international forum that fosters community and supports inquiry among professionals, students, and enthusiasts working with paper rolls and pneumatic roll-playing instruments. GRPM is an initiative supported by Stanford University, University of Sydney, Faszinationpianola and Hochschule der Künste Bern HKB.

Contacts:
Kumaran Arul
Sebastian Bausch
Marc Widuch