J.C. Deagan Inc. (Chicago, Illinois)

One of the finest makers of tuned percussion instruments, J.C. Deagan Inc. had a remarkable line of products ranging from xylophones, orchestra bells and chimes used by symphony orchestras worldwide to novelty instruments like the Una-Fon, musical coins and shaker chimes made for vaudeville acts, circus parades and outdoor advertising.

Deagan made the Piano-Vibraharp in very small numbers in the late 1920s and early 1930s for dance bands, radio stations, etc. It consists of a small upright piano-shaped case containing a real vibraharp with 56 tuned aluminum bars, resonators with tremolo and sustaining pedal. The keyboard actuates a pneumatic mechanism that plays the vibraharp with large felt hammers.

Only three examples are known to exist, one of which is connected to the pipe organ in the Sanfilippo Collection. This example was formerly in the collections of Franklin Corya and Wolfgang Schweppe. It was restored in the 1980s, acquired in 1998 and remains in excellent playing condition. It is also equipped with a MIDI system for connection to a pipe organ, and it is currently connected to the Walker digital organ in the Milhous Collection. Note that this is a hand-played instrument, but it could be made to play automatically by connecting into either the pneumatic action or MIDI system. 62x46x18 inches.