When we think of a barrel organ, we usually think of the large colorful instruments that play on the street or at the fair. As the folk instrument that it had become after a career that started in the 16th century at the royal courts of Europe.
With a barrel organ, the organ pipes are supplied with wind from bellows at the right moments by means of a rotary movement. The same rotary movement also sets the music program (cylinder, paper scroll or organ book) in motion. The rotary movement can be done manually, but also with the aid of a weight or a (possibly spring) motor.