8/131 Nicole Freres - Keywind, Fat Cylinder Cartel
Serial no. 25668; Gamme no. 917; Circa 1847
Bought at auction February 2026.
Said to be from the 'Golden Era' of music box manufacture, my new friend, Google Gemini has had a stab at identifying the tunes and says "This specific programme of music - combining hit English opera (Bohemian Girl), a serious Italian opera (Due Foscari), a fashionable dance conductor (Jullien) and a minstrel song (Lucy Neal) - is a perfect "time capsule" of the London musical season of 1846. I'm checking all this for accuracy as the tune sheet is in tatters. See below.
See it in the workshop
Said to be from the 'Golden Era' of music box manufacture, my new friend, Google Gemini has had a stab at identifying the tunes and says "This specific programme of music - combining hit English opera (Bohemian Girl), a serious Italian opera (Due Foscari), a fashionable dance conductor (Jullien) and a minstrel song (Lucy Neal) - is a perfect "time capsule" of the London musical season of 1846. I'm checking all this for accuracy as the tune sheet is in tatters. See below.
See it in the workshop
Although the lid was marked, the inlays were intact so it has cleaned up very nicely.
The Scumble finish to the sides was in reasonable shape too.
There was a loose glass cover that's not in good condition. This, and its supports, has been removed because it serves no useful purpose and actually gets tin the way when opening the flap to wind or play the movement.
The movement was very dirty and covered in oil but it did run, just.
The cylinder needs a full re-pin as there are a lot of bent and missing pins, particularly at the bass end.
I've not found any major issues other than two broken teeth and two missing tips and the usual governor service, dampers & tuning.
The tunesheet, although in several pieces, is nearly all there. I have been able to decipher the tunes and partially restore it with the help of AI and some expert friends.
During this process I've discovered that fellow collector and master restorer, Darren J Wallace, has an earlier, very similar, movement with the same Gamme No. 917. Darren does not have a tune sheet, in fact he didn't even have a case for his, so he's very excited to find out what tunes both play.
See below.
The Scumble finish to the sides was in reasonable shape too.
There was a loose glass cover that's not in good condition. This, and its supports, has been removed because it serves no useful purpose and actually gets tin the way when opening the flap to wind or play the movement.
The movement was very dirty and covered in oil but it did run, just.
The cylinder needs a full re-pin as there are a lot of bent and missing pins, particularly at the bass end.
I've not found any major issues other than two broken teeth and two missing tips and the usual governor service, dampers & tuning.
The tunesheet, although in several pieces, is nearly all there. I have been able to decipher the tunes and partially restore it with the help of AI and some expert friends.
During this process I've discovered that fellow collector and master restorer, Darren J Wallace, has an earlier, very similar, movement with the same Gamme No. 917. Darren does not have a tune sheet, in fact he didn't even have a case for his, so he's very excited to find out what tunes both play.
See below.
This is what AI can do for a tunesheet in very poor condition.
The Tune List partly as interpreted by Google Gemini AI (which is not altogether accurate) but with further refinement by Tom Mathiesen and friend it now makes some sense and tunes 6,7&8 are now certain. There is more work to do on the Quadrille..
Tunes 1–5: Quadrille from "The Bohemian Girl"
The first five pieces are the five parts of a Quadrille on themes from The Bohemian Girl (1843).
The composer isn't given on the tunesheet and there are multiple sets of quadrilles by both Strausses, Chubb, Dodworth, Scharfenberg, etc.
1. Quadrille Bohémian Pantalon.
2. Quadrille Bohémian Été.
3. Quadrille Bohémian Poule.
4. Quadrille Bohémian Trenise.
5. Quadrille Bohémian Finale.
6. "Al[legro brilliant] atto [3] soit marche "I Due Foscari" from the opera I Due Foscari by Giuseppe Verdi [premiered 1844].
It is from the beginning of Act III: no. 12, Coro e barcarole.
(Segments of operas are numbered from beginning to end; no.12 is at the beginning of act III).
Tune 7: Celarius Soit Waltz No. 1 by Louis Jullien (pub. 1845). From Jullien's Original Mazurka No. 1 or the Cellarius Valse.
The Cellarius waltz was a type of five-step waltz developed by Henri Cellarius.
Tune 8: Lucy Neal no. 1 du N[ègre chansons?] The first song in the collection Celebrated Negro Songs (ca. 1845), either a simple pinning of the song with its accompaniment or perhaps Variations on the Favourite Mr. [sic] "Lucy Neal" Composed for the Pianoforte by James Sanford. These types of early American folk or minstrel songs became known in England and Europe through the tours of the "Ethiopian Serenaders", a blackface minstrel troupe in the 1840s, and they do sometimes appear on music boxes.
Tunes 1–5: Quadrille from "The Bohemian Girl"
The first five pieces are the five parts of a Quadrille on themes from The Bohemian Girl (1843).
The composer isn't given on the tunesheet and there are multiple sets of quadrilles by both Strausses, Chubb, Dodworth, Scharfenberg, etc.
1. Quadrille Bohémian Pantalon.
2. Quadrille Bohémian Été.
3. Quadrille Bohémian Poule.
4. Quadrille Bohémian Trenise.
5. Quadrille Bohémian Finale.
6. "Al[legro brilliant] atto [3] soit marche "I Due Foscari" from the opera I Due Foscari by Giuseppe Verdi [premiered 1844].
It is from the beginning of Act III: no. 12, Coro e barcarole.
(Segments of operas are numbered from beginning to end; no.12 is at the beginning of act III).
Tune 7: Celarius Soit Waltz No. 1 by Louis Jullien (pub. 1845). From Jullien's Original Mazurka No. 1 or the Cellarius Valse.
The Cellarius waltz was a type of five-step waltz developed by Henri Cellarius.
Tune 8: Lucy Neal no. 1 du N[ègre chansons?] The first song in the collection Celebrated Negro Songs (ca. 1845), either a simple pinning of the song with its accompaniment or perhaps Variations on the Favourite Mr. [sic] "Lucy Neal" Composed for the Pianoforte by James Sanford. These types of early American folk or minstrel songs became known in England and Europe through the tours of the "Ethiopian Serenaders", a blackface minstrel troupe in the 1840s, and they do sometimes appear on music boxes.
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Here is a ten minute video playing all eight tunes.
The tunes start at tune 3 and finish on tune 2. (don't ask!) It doesn't sound too bad despite playing slightly slowly and with many bass notes not played due to missing or damaged pins. |
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