IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR SUPPORTING BOOKS OR SHEETS OF MUSIC AND FOR TURNING OVER THE LEAVES OF THE SAME
Year: 1884

page_text: I, GIUSEPPE NAPOLEONE CAROZZI, of Great Portland Street, in the County of
Middlesex, do hereby declare the nature of said invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
APPARATUS FOR SUPPORTING BOOKS OR SHEETS OF MUSIC AND FOR TURNING
OVER THE LEAVES OF THE SAME" to be as follows :—
My invention relates to apparatus for supporting books or sheets of music and
for turning over the leaves of the same.
The chief object of my said invention is to provide an improved hygienic music-
stand. It is well known that improper posturing of the body tends greatly to
cause false acts of breathing. Moreover the erect posture is the best for singing,
because the lungs are then in the most favourable position for the reception of air.
If the vocalist forms habits of stooping or bending the shoulders forward during his
performance, he will soon begin to use his lungs improperly. By means of my
improved stand the music may be raised from a point a few inches above the
key-board of a piano to a height equal to that of the performer if desired; the
necessity for stooping or bending forward is thus obviated, cramping of the chest is
avoided, and full scope can be given to the lungs and voice. My improved stand
also enables a person to play a piano without leaning over the same to look at his
music and without raising his shoulders while he plays.
I sometimes provido, in combination with the said stand, means whereby the
music can be properly held thereon and whereby the leaves of the music can be
successively turned over as required by a simple movement of the hand or finger,
or of the foot, if desired.
In constructing my improved stand I provide a frame for holding or supporting
the book or sheets of music. This frame is fitted upon another frame in such a
manner as to be free to slide up and down thereon except when held by a catch or
stop as hereinafter described. The upper frame is made with a toothed rack which
fits into one of the guides of the lower frame, in which guide is pivotted a lever.
One arin of this lever is made with a projection or tooth and is acted upon by a
spring which tends to keep the said tooth in engagement with the teeth of the said

page_text: rack and thus hold the upper frame in any position to which it may be moved. The
other arm of the lever is provided with a rod whereby the said lever can be moved
by hand to disengage the said tooth from the rack teeth. I may, if desired, provide
the stand with two racks and levers similar to that above described.
A spring arm or rod is attached to the front of the stand either at the top, or at
the bottom, or both. This arm is designed to hold the book or sheets of music at the
centre in such a manner as not to impede or hinder the turning over of the leaves
thereof. The said arm may extend only a short distance from the top or bottom of
the stand, but I prefer that it should extend from top to bottom of the same and be
provided with a spring at each extremity.
For the purpose of holding the book or sheets of music open I sometimes secure a
flat bar or piece by means of hinges to the part by which the same is supported.
This piece is arranged to be acted upon by a spring which tends to retain it in
position either in line with the said support or folded over so as to bear against
the book or sheets of music. This piece may, however, be otherwise arranged; for
example, it may be made to slide up and down or to and fro relatively to the said
support.
At, or near, one end of the said piece I provide a magnet which is designed to
act in combination with small plates or pieces of steel or iron attached to the leaves
of a book or sheets of music, in order to separate or detach a leaf at one of its edges
from the leaf or leaves beneath it and thus permit the insertion of a person's finger
to turn over the said leaf. This magnet is preferably made adjustable to suit
books or sheets of music of different dimensions. I sometimes accomplish this
result by passing a screw through a longitudinal slot in the flat bar or piece and
screwing it into the magnet, a spring being fitted upon the screw so that its tension
can be regulated thereby to hold the magnet in any position to which it may be
adjusted.
I sometimes provide the stand with a device, hereinafter described, to operate, in
combination with the magnet, for turning over the leaves of a book or sheets of
music. This device consists of an arm or lever pivotted to the upper frame of the
stand and having fixed upon its axis or pivot a small pinion which gears with a
rack. The said rack is connected by toggle levers or other suitable devices with
the aforesaid flat bar or piece so that the outward or downward movement thereof
will cause the said lever to enter beneath the leaf which has been separated or
raised by the magnet and to turn the said leaf over. The said magnet may, if
desired, be attached to the end of the said arm or lever, which is then provided
with a projecting arm to enter beneath the leaf after it has been raised by the
magnet.
In some cases I provide means for operating this device and the flat bar or piece
by the hand or foot while performing upon an instrument. For example, when
the stand is used with a piano or other keyboard instrument I connect the said flat
bar or piece with a series of levers acted upon by springs These levers are arranged
in proximity to the keyboard of the instrument and can be operated by one of the
fingers of the performer without raising his hands from the keys.
If desired, I provide a mirror at the upper part of the stand to permit the
performer to observe his position while singing or playing. This mirror is either
pivotted horizontally to a bracket fixed to the upper frame of the said stand or it
is made with a universal joint so constructed that the mirror can be adjusted and
fixed in any desired position, and removed when required.
•
I prefer to form a slight projection on the left hand side of the stand to prevent
the sheets of music being thrown therefrom when acted upon by the turning-over
device.
My improved stand may be attached to a piano or other instrument by a thumb-
screw and clamp or other suitable means Or it may be fixed at the top of a
standard or support for orchestral purposes. Or it may be used as a reading desk
or the lil-

page_text: When the stand is to be used by the conductor of an orchestra I sometimes
arrange at the back of the stand a series of bolls corresponding to the different
musical keys, and I provide rods acted upon by springs, which rods can be pressed
down to strike the said bells. I also arrange dampers on the said rods so as to
damp the sound of the bells when the rods are forced upward by the springs. By
these means the conductor can attract the attention of the orchestra by sounding a
bell corresponding to either key, instead of rapping on his music stand, as ordinarily
practised.
Dated this 1st dow of Tahun 1001
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
For the Applicant.
I, GIUSEPPE NAPOLEONE CAROZZI, of Great Portland Street, in the County of
Middlesex do hereby declare the nature of my invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
APPARATUS FOR SUPPORTING BOOKS OR SHEETS OF MUSIC AND FOR TURNING OVER
"
THE LEAVES OF THE SAME and in what manner the same is to be performed,
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :—
My invention relates to apparatus for supporting books or sheets of music and
for turning over the leaves of the same.
One object of my said invention is to provide an improved hygienic music rest
or support, which can be adjusted to vary its height and which is designed to be
attached to a pianoforte or other instrument or to be used independently thereof.
This rest or support may however, be advantageously used for holding or
supporting books. I sometimes provide, in combination with the said rest or
support, means whereby the books or sheets of music can be properly held thereon,
without impeding the turning over of the leaves.
Another object of my said invention is to provide for turning over the leaves of
music successively, as required, by a movement of the hand or foot, while per-
forming upon a musical instrument, as hereinafter set forth. My invention,
moreover, comprises various improvements as hereinafter set forth.
My said invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which
Figure 1 is a front elevation of one form of my improved apparatus, with a
portion thereof removed to shew the means for holding it in any position to which
it may be adjusted.
Figure 2 is an end elevation thereof.
Figure 3 is a front elevation, and
Figure 4 a central vertical transverse section, shewing another form or modi-
fication of my said apparatus.
Figure 5 is a section on the line a, a, Figure 2.
A indicates a frame provided with a bar a for holding or supporting the books
or sheets of music. This frame is adjustably fitted upon a supporting piece B so as
to be free to slide up and down thereon, except when held by a catch or stop as
hereinafter described

page_text: For this purpose, in the apparatus shewn in Figures 1 and 2, the frame A is
made with a toothed rack C which fits into one of the guides D of the support B.
In this guide is pivotted a lever E one arm e of which is made with a projection or
tooth e¹ and is acted upon by a spring f which tends to keep the said tooth in
engagement with the teeth of the rack C and thus hold the frame A in any
position to which it may be adjusted. The arm e² of the lever E is provided with
a rode whereby the said lever can be moved by hand to disengage the said tooth
from the rack teeth. I may, if desired, provide the apparatus with two racks and
levers similar to that above described.
F is an arm or rod attached to the frame A and acted upon by a spring G, which
tends to press it against the front of the frame A. In Figure 2 this spring is
shewn extended. This arm F is designed to hold the book or sheets of music at
the centre in such a manner as to retain the same on the rest without impeding the
turning over of the leaves. The said arm extends through a slot in the bar a of
the frame A. The said arm may, if desired, be attached to the top of the frame A
as well as to the bottom thereof and be provided with a spring at each extremity.
For the purpose of holding the book or sheets of music open I sometimes secure
a flat bar or piece a¹ to the supporting bar a by means of hinges. This piece a¹ is
arranged to be acted upon by a spring which tends to retain it in position either in
line with the said support, or folded over so as to bear against the book or sheets
of music. This piece may, however, be otherwise arranged for this purpose; for
example, it may be made to slide up and down, or to and fro relatively to the said
supporting bar.
In Figures 3, 4 and 5, the frame A is provided at its lower end with two spring
bolts or catches b which engage with rack teeth on the supporting piece B as shewn
in dotted lines in Figure 3, and which can be simultaneously disengaged from the
said teeth by pulling down the wire b¹.
The rest or support is shewn in these Figures attached to the lid or cover of the
key-board of a grand pianoforte, by clamps c and thumb-screws d. Beneath the
supporting bar a I provide another bar e to which is hinged or pivotted the
piece f. This piece is acted upon by a spring f* which tends to hold it in
the position shewn in Figure 4. The bar e is held up by springs g so that it will
yield to permit the leaves to be readily turned over by hand if necessary.
Near one end of the piece f I provide a magnet H (Figure 5) which is designed to
act (in conjunction with small plates or pieces of steel or iron attached to the leaves
of a book or sheets of music) to separate or detach a leaf at one of its edges from the
leaf beneath it and thus permit the insertion of the finger, or of the lever herein-
after described, to turn over the said leaf. This magnet is preferably made
adjustable to suit books or sheets of music of different dimensions. In the
apparatus shewn, this adjustment is provided for by passing a screw h through as
longitudinal slot h¹ in the bar or piece f and screwing it into the magnet H,
a spring h² being fitted upon the said screw so that its tension can be regulated
thereby to hold the magnet in any position to which it may be adjusted.
I sometimes provide the rest or support with the devices shewn in Figures 3, 4
and 5 to operate in combination with the magnet H, for turning over the leaves,
that is to say-A lever I is pivotted to a bracket on the underside of the bar e',
and projects through slots f¹ in the said bar and in the bar a. The short arm i of
this lever is connected, by a cord ; passing around pulleys ³, with one of a series
of arms or levers J. These levers are connected with each other by a rod or link J¹,
and each of them is pivotted to a bar J adjustably secured by screws to the
piece B of the music-rest. The piece f is also connected with the series of arms
or levers J by a cord k passing around pulleys k¹ and 71. These cords are provided
with buckles or other devices to permit their adjustment. The levers J project
downward over the key-board of the piano, and are preferably arranged as shewn
so that the lower end of each of them is situated between two sets of the black
keys. Either of the said levers can be readily actuated by the finger of a performer
while playing, to turn the piece f outward upon its hinges and, by means of the

page_text: magnet H, separate or raise one leaf of the music, and then actuate the lever I so
that its end enters beneath the said leaf and turns the same over. When the said
lever J is released, the spring f* causes the lever I, and other parts, to return to
their normal position, an arm or projection f2 on the piece f striking against the
short arm i of the lever I in the return movement of the said piece f. I' may, if
desired, provide one or more spiral springs at the back of the frame A and suitably
attached to the piece f, to assist in effecting this return movement. The piece f
may be held in the position shewn in Figure 5, by means of the arm or catch f³.
The magnet is sometimes attached to the end of the lever I, which is then
provided with a projecting arm to enter beneath the leaf after it has been raised
by the magnet. I prefer to attach a piece I of India-rubber or other suitable
material to the end of the lever I, and, in some cases, I cover the said lever with
an India-rubber tube to obviate its liability to tear the paper.
I sometimes provide a mirror K at the upper part of the frame A to permit the
performer to observe his position while singing or playing. This mirror is pivotted
horizontally at K' in a forked arm K2, which is hinged to a bracket K³ attached to
the frame A, so that the said arm and mirror can be folded over, and will then be
flush with the front of the said frame. In some cases, however, I make it with a
universal joint so constructed that the mirror can be adjusted to, and secured in,
any desired position, and so that it can be removed when necessary or desirable.
I prefer to provide an adjustable arm on the left hand side of the frame A to
prevent the sheets of music from being thrown from the rest or support when acted
upon by the turning-over device, and also to arrest the movement of the lever I
when it has turned over a leaf.
The music rest or support shewn in Figures 3 to 5 may, if desired, be secured to
the top of a stand for orchestral purposes. When it is to be used by the conductor
of an orchestra, I sometimes arrange, at the back of the frame A, a series of bells
corresponding to the different musical keys, and I provide rods acted upon by
springs, which rods can be pressed down by the conductor, by means of his baton,
for example, to strike the said bells. I also arrange dampers on the said rods so
as to dampen the sound of the bells when the rods are forced upward by the springs.
By these means, the conductor can attract the attention of the orchestra by
sounding a bell corresponding to either key, instead of rapping on his music-rest,
as ordinarily practised.
Many advantages are gained by the above described improvements. It is well
known that, when a person is singing, improper posturing of the body tends greatly
to cause false acts of breathing. Moreover the erect posture is the best for singing,
because the lungs are then in the most favorable position for the reception of air.
If a vocalist forms habits of stooping or bending his shoulders forward during his
performance, he will soon begin to use his lungs improperly. By my invention,
the necessity for stooping or bending forward is obviated, cramping of the chest is
avoided, and full scope can be given to the lungs and voice, because the music may
be raised from a position a few inches above the keyboard of a piano, for example,
to any desired height.
My improved rest or support, moreover, enables a person to play a piano without
leaning over the same to look at his music, and to play accompaniments while
singing, without raising his shoulders.
It is obvious that I may somewhat vary the construction of my apparatus
without departing from the nature of my invention, for example, I may, if desired,
connect the lever I and the piece f carrying the magnet, with a suitable lever or
other device to be operated by the performer's foot in order to turn over the leaves.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is :-
First. A book or music rest or support having one part adjustable relatively to
the other part and provided with the rack teeth, and one or more levers or catches,
.

page_text: (with or without the spring arm or rod F), all substantially as, and for the purposes,
set forth.
Second. The combination, with my music rest or support, of an adjustable mirror,
as, and for the purpose, set forth.
Third. The combination, with my book or music rest, or support, of the adjustable
magnet arranged to operate in conjunction with sheets or plates of steel or iron
attached to the leaves, substantially as, and for the purpose, set forth.
Fourth. The combination, with the said magnet, of the pivotted arm or lever I
and means whereby the said magnet and lever can be operated by the hand or foot,
while playing, to turn over the leaves, substantially as set forth.
Fifth. The improved apparatus consisting of the parts constructed and combined
substantially as described with reference to either of the forms or modifications
shewn in the accompanying drawings, for the purposes specified.
Dated this 5th day of December 1884