This far-reaching and absorbing book is designed to help identify and value woodwind instruments made in Europe and the United States during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

Readers with a background or interest in music and musical instruments will find this book a valuable resource for years to come and one that will enhance their knowledge and collection.

Photos and drawings illustrate how player mechanisms work and how to repair, restore, and maintain them. For beginners and experienced technicians alike.

Captured in this volume in over 700 striking color photos are many historically significant musical instruments created by some of the most important and iconic makers of the last 400 years.

Just how the automatic piano works is described in both words and the author's own clear line-drawings, together with 603 b/w and 43 full colour photos.

This comprehensive, yet delightful and easy-to-read reference unlocks the mysteries of mechanical versions of the King of Instruments and its smaller counterparts.