(Note: The Aeolean Duo-Art Weber reproducing piano was built in 1925. Through an intricate system of pneumatic controls, it eerily produced the expression of an actual performance by famous keyboard artists as recorded on perforated paper rolls.)
The arcs and swirls
Cap each leg
Walnut framed islands of relief
With flourishes covered in gold leaf foil
To draw attention away from
The instrument's secrets
By some hidden network
Of muscle and tendon
The black and white keys begin to move
Finger-like
He is here
Presenting his most famous
Rhapsody
It is his touch
That carves and gilds notes
From the walnut air
It is his pedal
That builds reverberant bridges
Between musical relief
And for a few moments
Even the skeptic finds it impossible
Not to believe
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