Melodeon.net Forums
Discussions => Other Free Reed Instruments => Topic started by: Lyn on June 21, 2016, 05:34:52 PM
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Not that I am abandoning my beloved Mory - far from it! But I 'had a go' of a friend's Anglo the other week, and was surprised as to how 'right' it felt. I tried an English model a couple of years ago, and just could not get on with it - hated the thumb strap, buttons in all the wrong places, system a mystery, so had put concertinas firmly out of my mind. I'm now on the hunt for a decent 30 button C/G Anglo and have been much encouraged (as usual!) by Steve Dumpleton of this parish, who is giving me freely of his experience and support.
Prices are a bit eye-watering, coming from the melodeon community, there seems to be a huge gap between pretty crap, a bit less crap, pretty good, and 2nd mortgage time, unlike boxes where you can pick up a really decent one for quite sensible money. I understand the reasons (oh! I've done my research!!) but it's a shame that no-one has come up with something to bridge that gap.
Anyway, hope to be showing off a purchase sometime next month. A whole new world has just opened up to me! ;D
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I've come the other way. I started out on the anglo (which i still play everyday) and then got myself a d/g after a brief foray into b/c. So i've been pleasantly surprised at how cheap melodeons are ;D
I do find, however. that playing along the rows has become almost my default on the concertina these days -nothing wrong with that, just an observation.
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A few months ago I offered an 1895 C/G Lachenal at a ridiculously low price here on Mel Net.
No takers.
I sold it for 50% more about a month later. It was resold again in May for 2.5 times my original asking price.
There are deals out there.
I have owned a Jeffries 38 button and had on permanent loan a Jeffries C/G 38 button...
I much prefer the Button Box/Morse accordeon reeded models to any of the above... either the Lachenal or the Jeffries.
I also owned a very fine raised ebony ended Wheatstone English concertina.
Though I like the "idea" of chromaticism.. what a bafflingly awkward design.
I offed it.
One Morse concertina of interest is the ESB baritone. Have a listen/look at the video from The BB web site.
http://buttonbox.com/morse-ESB.html
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Try A.C. Norman or Marcus Music. They both make mid-price anglos using top quality melodeon reeds
I've just come from a pub session with Andrew Norman and played his concertina. Very nice indeed.
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Try A.C. Norman or Marcus Music. They both make mid-price anglos using top quality melodeon reeds
I've just come from a pub session with Andrew Norman and played his concertina. Very nice indeed.
Seconded.
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Thanks for your comments and suggestions, chaps. I'm borrowing a Scarlatti from EATMT via the very helpful Katie Howson, to bridge the gap between now and when I have my own instrument. I know it won't be brilliant, but just think how gorgeous a decent instrument will be to play in comparison when I get it!
I remember buying a decent fiddle after struggling with a really crap cheapest -in-the-shop variety.
Right, off to scour youtube for more anglo players videos …...
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A few months ago I offered an 1895 C/G Lachenal at a ridiculously low price here on Mel Net.
No takers.
I sold it for 50% more about a month later. It was resold again in May for 2.5 times my original asking price.
There are deals out there.
I have owned a Jeffries 38 button and had on permanent loan a Jeffries C/G 38 button...
I much prefer the Button Box/Morse accordeon reeded models to any of the above... either the Lachenal or the Jeffries.
I also owned a very fine raised ebony ended Wheatstone English concertina.
Though I like the "idea" of chromaticism.. what a bafflingly awkward design.
I offed it.
One Morse concertina of interest is the ESB baritone. Have a listen/look at the video from The BB web site.
http://buttonbox.com/morse-ESB.html
I wish my desire for a concertina had coincided with yur first posting of your LAchenal, Melodeon! ;) I checked out the Morse, videos, and have to say I'm not so keen on the baritone sound.
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If you want a cheap starter I have a secondhand Stephanelli 30 key for £80 plus delivery. It comes with a case and three tutor books.
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Try A.C. Norman or Marcus Music. They both make mid-price anglos using top quality melodeon reeds
I've just come from a pub session with Andrew Norman and played his concertina. Very nice indeed.
I think anglo concertinas are brilliant. I agree with Rees, Marcus or Norman would be good. My first concertina was a Marcus and my second one was an A.C. Norman, I still have the Norman.
Sue
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My other half owns one of the few Anglos in captivity in the UK made by Canadian Frank Edgley (www.concertinas.ca). She considers it a great box for Morris in particular and very good value for money. (We are not talking Scarlatti-cheap here but Morse price range).
We were out with some Canadian Morris dancers visiting the UK and couldn’t help noticing their ‘different’ concertinas, so she had the chance to try them and loved them. Edgley apparently sells a lot to Ireland but hers may even be the first to take up residence in England!
Built to order with your choice of finish etc. Well worth a look if they fall into your price range. [UK Customs duty payable on them, but it's not a lot.]
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I started on concertina before melodeon. First I had a cheap 20-button chinese box that seemed okay until I played a Morse concertina and realized how much of a chore it was to play the 20b box. I then upgraded to a Rochelle but honestly thought that was just as difficult to play, it just had more buttons. I sometimes wish I hung in there but the quality of the cheaper melodeons seemed like better instruments than shelling out for a US$2000 concertina without knowing if I'd really stick with it.
I've played Morse, Edgley and Clover and thought they were all a blast to play. At the time I couldn't afford one and found a cheap melodeon that was in good shape and played well.
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"I wish my desire for a concertina had coincided with yur first posting of your LAchenal, Melodeon! ;) I checked out the Morse, videos, and have to say I'm not so keen on the baritone sound."
Me too. !
I listened to the Baritone once again.. I agree.. not my sound..
Yet the standard C/G 30 button units are a bit wheeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! to my ears.
Perhaps a G/D would be more in synch with my aged aural units.
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Yet the standard C/G 30 button units are a bit wheeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! to my ears.
Depends how they are played. The upper range of the G-row can indeed be shrill, but playing in the key of G in the 'proper' octave, across the rows mostly on the RH end to allow LH chordal accompaniment if you want it, usually brings the overall sound back into a more agreeable pitch range.
On the other hand playing in C, F, Am, Em and Dm suits the range perfectly and sounds great to my ears.
Perhaps a G/D would be more in synch with my aged aural units.
Certainly a good alternative, although at times the G/D can suffer from almost the opposite drawback: the very lowest notes can be a bit too growly and sometimes slow to respond.
Enthusiastic anglo players have been known to carry two instruments around with them in a double case; one in C/G and one in G/D, choosing the one most appropriate for the music being played. I've even seen them swap instruments halfway through a tune!
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Yet the standard C/G 30 button units are a bit wheeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! to my ears.
Depends how they are played. The upper range of the G-row can indeed be shrill, but playing in the key of G in the 'proper' octave, across the rows mostly on the RH end to allow LH chordal accompaniment if you want it, usually brings the overall sound back into a more agreeable pitch range.
On the other hand playing in C, F, Am, Em and Dm suits the range perfectly and sounds great to my ears.
Perhaps a G/D would be more in synch with my aged aural units.
Certainly a good alternative, although at times the G/D can suffer from almost the opposite drawback: the very lowest notes can be a bit too growly and sometimes slow to respond.
Enthusiastic anglo players have been known to carry two instruments around with them in a double case; one in C/G and one in G/D, choosing the one most appropriate for the music being played. I've even seen them swap instruments halfway through a tune!
A lot of G/D anglos suffer from the bass reeds being either too short or in chambers which are too small, making them slow to start and/or with a pitch drop under pressure. When we ordered Hilda's G/D from Crabb in 1980 we got him to use a slightly bigger (1/2"?) case to give more space, and the lowest bass reed is also on a raised chamber which sticks into the bellows to get more air volume. It has no problem with the lowest reeds either starting or sounding, and Crabb then made this their standard G/D model -- but I don't know how many they built...
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I chose a G/D and I'm very happy with that choice, it suits me perfectly. I tend to play along the rows and so the melody is usually mostly on the right hand side with harmony on the left hand side. I'm aware that the players of Irish music usually play in quite a different style. If you can it would be a good idea to have a play around on both and see which suits you best.
Sue
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If you come across an ex Salvation Army GD Anglo that has been tuned down from AbEb watch out for reeds that have become unstable in pitch and go noticeably flat when you play hard. Some of these have SA in the fretwork, but any Lachenal GD should be checked carefully for this.
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Haven't noticed my Lachenal G/D going out of tune yet - but it is ex Salvation Army . I'm now curious as to what key it might have been originally . Is it likely to have been AbEb - and is that because SA concertinas were playing with or imitating brass instruments, ?
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I must put in an endorsement for another current concertina builder, Mr. Robert Tedrow of Homewood Alabama. In the 90's, I followed the progress of Bob's journey in repair and restoration, to custom builder.
Around 2004 I had a Wheatstone 30 button (with the aluminum reeds held by pins) which I was not satisfied with. I sold the Wheatstone, and after much consideration of the Marcus, Norman and Edgely, Bob initiated a "concertina tour", which worked like this:
He built a standard model as a 'demo', and interested parties could sign up for the tour. The instrument was then boxed and shipped to someone on the list with instructions that the concertina could be kept for 2 days, and then must be shipped to the next party, fully insured and postage paid by participant. In this way, the concertina travelled all over the US and I believe UK and Europe as well, with participants posting comments as it progressed. I had my chance to try out the box, and I decided to go forward with an order.
I opted for some xtras: green leather bellows, rosewood ends, lathe turned metal buttons, and 6-fold bellows in G/D. Since then, I have great admiration for Bob's innovative skills, craftsmanship, and good humor. Still have it, play it, love it, no regrets! ;D
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Haven't noticed my Lachenal G/D going out of tune yet - but it is ex Salvation Army . I'm now curious as to what key it might have been originally . Is it likely to have been AbEb - and is that because SA concertinas were playing with or imitating brass instruments, ?
That are not all like that Paul, but it is something to check before you hand over your money.
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One of the best new Anglos I've tried recently was a Kensignton Concertina (http://www.kensingtonconcertinas.com/) made by Dana Johnson. Not exactly cheap at $3500 (£2364 at today's exchange rate) but looks, feels and sounds like a proper concertina (and I've been playing a Jeffries for decades) and it uses real concertina reeds which he makes himself. His web site has lots of information about the research he's done into how reeds work, not to mention everything else about how his instruments are made, and his attitude to pricing is commendable (he's aiming to make a reasonable living, but not to get rich by charging whatever the market can stand)
Not quite into second mortgage territory, but a box that I think wouldn't disappoint if you can afford it.
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Kensington Concertinas - interesting website.
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[[[I have owned a Jeffries 38 button and had on permanent loan a Jeffries C/G 38 button...
I much prefer the Button Box/Morse accordeon reeded models to any of the above... either the Lachenal or the Jeffries.]]]
Is this because of tone personality, or you find the action faster/more responsive? Just curious, because I'm spending much of my time playing a Morse with a Tipo-A-Mano reed upgrade lately and neglecting my very nice concertina-reeded instrument.
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I was talking to a lady concertina player t'other night. She was playing what was described as a Jeffries with Jones action. It was not full size, which suited her hands better. She said she preferred the action of a Morse box box she also had, and thought it quicker and lighter, but, being a full size box, she struggled to reach all the buttons.
I have a Marcus, which I tried against a number of other older "quality" boxes on offer at Chris Algar's stall some years ago. I kept coming back to the Marcus, against the more traditional boxes, as I much preferred the action.
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"Is this because of tone personality, or you find the action faster/more responsive? Just curious, because I'm spending much of my time playing a Morse with a Tipo-A-Mano reed upgrade lately and neglecting my very nice concertina-reeded instrument. "
Yes to all the above.
Light, fast, well made, great tone and playability.. also.. projection and..
my wife could tolerate the Morse, but had no room in her heart for either of the Jeffries or the Lachenal.
I sold my Lachenal C/G earlier this year after, once again, playing a Morse.
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Have a look at A P James concertinas - really good sound/quality for the money -
http://www.apjmusic.co.uk/apj_30button_anglo.htm (http://www.apjmusic.co.uk/apj_30button_anglo.htm)