In MMD 991213, Dan Wilson quoted the following:

 "I think that Harold Bauer wrote that, when he played for Thomas
  Edison, Bauer's legatissimo drove Edison nuts.  He couldn't stand
  the sound made by the overlapping notes."

and asked: "Did Edison commission private recitals or were they friends ?"

I believe the reference is to Bauer as a recording artist.  I can't
lay my hands on anything at this moment to confirm or deny it, but
I believe that Bauer recorded for Edison, and I know he recorded for
Victor and perhaps other companies as well.  It is entirely probable
that he at least auditioned for Edison.

Edison himself served as the artistic director for his own recording
enterprise, and personally auditioned the artists and reportedly
determined what got recorded and what didn't, and by whom.  The result
is that Edison's output on the whole was rather eclectic, heavy on the
sentimental, the trite, and the comic, reflecting his personal taste in
music.

The comment with reference to Bauer would be consistent with Edison's
disposition with regard to pianists.  It has been written that Edison
preferred delicate pianism and detested "pounders" whose dramatic flair
and heavy antics wreaked havoc on what was left of his hearing.

It is legend, whether true or not, that he threw Sergei Rachmaninoff
out of his studio after an audition, shouting "You're not a pianist,
you're a pounder, that's what you are!"  (Reportedly, Rachmaninoff's
bold style of playing offended Edison's distorted hearing and hurt his
ears.)  Yet, Rachmaninoff did in fact record for Edison; whether it was
before or after he was reputedly chased out of the studio I cannot say.

Re-cordially,
Mark S. Chester