Even when we can only attend the Dorset Steam Fair every few years, we always see something new to dazzle the imagination. The 2011 Fair was one of the best in recent memory. This year the musical instruments could truly be call the "year of midi". Many of the showfield organs were operated by computer based Midi systems to the entertainment and delight of the hundreds of thousands of visitors. The Kelders Familly of Holland presented a completely coodinated show with TWO outdoor big video screens and THREE large and impressive organs. All was controlled percisely by midi so that the music and video presented a completely coodinated show! The finale included several real live owls, flying over the crowd, like messengers from Harry Potter!
Here are just a few of the many beautiful concert and fairorgans.
We enjoyed the show provided by the Passion Dancers of Richard Dean Organ Builders show.
We don't know where else you can find collectors that bring real 150 ton steam locomotives, so that they can parade the field pulling the entire rig with equally heavy live steam engines. It is simply amazing to see!
Here George of the Mills company staff gets a close look at a running Stanley Steamer. In America this is seldom seen today because of liability concerns, but at Dorset you can actually see this equipment as it was intended, doing its job.
After our visit to Dorset, we travelled to Vienna, Austria, truly a city of outstanding beauty. It is hard to imagine, as you stand in front of the Vienna Opera House, how so many magnificent buildings could have survived for centuries in all their glory. Our visit would not have been complete without seeing many dealers and friends in England, Belgium, and Holland.
Our visit to Brussels old town square happened to occur on "festaval days", so we were treated to large but polite crowds, and a live concert orchestra playing very nice classical and modern music right in the middle of the 17th century town square.
Our tour of the Brussels Cathedral included a real wedding in the main church area.
We hope you enjoyed our Dorset fall tour of Europe. We invite you to give us a call at 715-424-5183 if you have interest in the great musical items we have in our Mechanical Musical For Sale Section.
Keep watching for our collection of musical instruments that have not been offered for sale for over four decades. This estate collection will not be sold by any other dealers. Thanks for looking, we hope to hear from you or if you are buying or selling your collection. MNC