The iPod's 4,000-Pound Grandfather

 

These days, music lovers are spoiled. With one small handheld device, you can flick your thumb and hear anything you want - from Jay-Z or Lady Gaga to a postwar blues rag or a Bach concerto. Some of us remember when you had to get up and turn over the vinyl record to hear the 'B side' of an album, or when you'd put foil on your antenna to pick up the best radio station from a sea of static.

An iPod's the same thing as a giant orchestrion 100 years ago. An orchestrion is like a souped-up player piano. These automatic music machines encased in beautiful wood cabinets don't just play piano but also drums, bells, and pipes that can imitate violins as well as woodwinds and horns.