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Author Topic: One row with bells!  (Read 12556 times)

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triskel

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #20 on: December 30, 2013, 09:48:44 PM »

Don't get too excited now, folks: this is a very ordinary 19th century German one row box.

Exactly so! In fact I've often seen them on German accordions from the last quarter of the 19th century, especially on ones sold by Campbell's of Glasgow - who launched and popularised the melodeon in the first place. I've got 6 or 7 German ones here (mostly Campbell's), plus a German-American one by C. T. Menze (that I mentioned recently) and even a large French flutina, all with a bell (or two), not forgetting a Russian Saratovskaya garmoshka.

I've even got an early-1900's Royal Standard "Fairy Chimes" that has a xylophone over the pallets, and played on by them...  :o


Edited to add photo

triskel

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #21 on: December 30, 2013, 09:54:02 PM »

Just wondering if you could whistles fitted as well...

They were made too, by Spaethe. You'd sometimes find two extra buttons on the bass-box of one of his, which play a bird-whistle on one and squeakers on the other - one of mine also has two extra "clapper" keys that play "cuck-oo", not forgetting a vox-humana ("tremolodeon") on the treble end!

triskel

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #22 on: December 30, 2013, 09:57:14 PM »

You should be able to replace a reed with a whistle.
...but percussion is a much more appropriate thing to add to the bass buttons.

I've a poor photocopy, from an old Royal Standard catalogue, which shows a "Welsh Champion" melodeon player with a small drum mounted on top of his instrument!  ???

rees

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #23 on: December 31, 2013, 12:06:48 PM »

Any more details on the Welsh Champion melodeon player? I thought I was the only one  ;)
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Rees Wesson (accordion builder and mechanic)
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Bob Ellis

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #24 on: December 31, 2013, 12:27:46 PM »

Any more details on the Welsh Champion melodeon player? I thought I was the only one  ;)

Of course, you are a champion, Rees, but not the only one. What about Ian, who plays for Carreg Las. I have often been impressed by his playing.
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triskel

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #25 on: December 31, 2013, 02:03:44 PM »

Any more details on the Welsh Champion melodeon player? I thought I was the only one  ;)

Here he is then Rees, your predecessor:


Mr. J. V. Tiaman
Champion Player of Wales

Replete with both drum and cymbal on the bass end of his melodeon - did you inherit those off him too, along with the medal?  ;)

He's featured alongside the English (well Sheffield anyway!) and Scottish Champions:

Mike Hirst

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #26 on: December 31, 2013, 02:40:11 PM »

triskel,

thanks for posting. I have a Royal standard instrument in a wooden case with the testemonial pasted inside. As it is both faded and worn I have never notice the drum attachment. I have noted the names of the champion musicians and often wondered at what competition their medals were won. Do you have any further info?
« Last Edit: December 31, 2013, 04:19:04 PM by Mike Hirst »
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rees

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #27 on: December 31, 2013, 03:12:55 PM »

Brilliant! Thanks.
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Rees Wesson (accordion builder and mechanic)
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triskel

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #28 on: January 01, 2014, 04:10:37 AM »

triskel,

thanks for posting. I have a Royal standard instrument in a wooden case with the testemonial pasted inside. As it is both faded and worn I have never notice the drum attachment.

Mike,

I have a semi-miniature (8 3/4" tall) Royal Standard "The Royal Navy" 2-stopper model, made for Pain Brothers Ltd. of Hastings;


which has an engraving of the Peter Wyper photo (and mention of some of the other champions) inside the lid of its cardboard box, is that what you mean?


Quote
I have noted the names of the champion musicians and often wondered at what competition their medals were won. Do you have any further info?

There's virtually nothing known about these melodeon "championships" at the moment, except that there were "Scottish champions" as early as the 1880s. They were probably only reported locally, but it should become possible to find out more about them as more newspapers become searchable online - I hope!

Edited to add another photo

triskel

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #29 on: January 01, 2014, 04:19:13 AM »

By the way, I was in the former Royal Standard factory several times - in fact I was getting new button accordions and melodeons made there for a number of years, and working on a concertina project with them, but I'm afraid it's closed down again now.  :(

Mike Hirst

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #30 on: January 01, 2014, 01:32:33 PM »

I have a semi-miniature (8 3/4" tall) Royal Standard "The Royal Navy" 2-stopper model, made for Pain Brothers Ltd. of Hastings, which has an engraving of the Peter Wyper photo (and mention of some of the other champions) inside the lid of its box, is that what you mean?

Could be. I have several Royal Standard instruments, including a One row in F (possibly with a Sheffield address attached). All are currently in storage. When I get time I'll post some pics.

AtB

Mike
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rees

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #31 on: January 01, 2014, 03:59:13 PM »

Any more details on the Welsh Champion melodeon player? I thought I was the only one  ;)

Of course, you are a champion, Rees, but not the only one. What about Ian, who plays for Carreg Las. I have often been impressed by his playing.

I was being flippant, there are many excellent box players in Wales.  (:)
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Rees Wesson (accordion builder and mechanic)
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triskel

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #32 on: January 01, 2014, 08:32:55 PM »

I have several Royal Standard instruments, including a One row in F (possibly with a Sheffield address attached).

I've got a couple that were made for J.G Graves, Division Street, Sheffield.


You'd often see their name on them, in fact there seems to have been quite a bit of interest in diatonic accordions in Sheffield, going back to the "English accordion" (a modified French accordion/flutina) of John Clare which seems to have first appeared in the 1860s, and there were French accordion/flutina dealers/importers there earlier too.

Edited to add photo

Sage Herb

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #33 on: January 01, 2014, 10:30:33 PM »

JG Graves (1866-1945) was a watchmaker who eventually became Lord Mayor of Sheffield (my birthplace) and was a major benefactor to the city. He expanded his original business to sell a wider range of goods by mail order, so it may be that the boxes discussed here were sold to customers further afield.
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Steve
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EastAnglianTed

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #34 on: January 01, 2014, 10:44:22 PM »

    Love the drum attachment, inspired!
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triskel

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #35 on: January 02, 2014, 04:10:48 AM »

Just wondering if you could whistles fitted as well...

They were made too, by Spaethe. You'd sometimes find two extra buttons on the bass-box of one of his, which play a bird-whistle on one and squeakers on the other - one of mine also has two extra "clapper" keys that play "cuck-oo", not forgetting a vox-humana ("tremolodeon") on the treble end!

Many of Wilhelm Spaethe's (1884, 1889 & 1904 Patent) melodeons were sold under the "Peerless" trade-mark, like the one I've mentioned above, and pictured below. They were of a very innovative and "advanced" design, with an all-metal action (an idea that Hohner didn't adopt until about 45 years later!), grooved fingerboard edge, internal bellows lock and  individual "screwed on leather" reedplates - for which a postal replacement service was even offered!  :o

There are no bells on this one, but plenty of "whistles":


Front view


Grooved keyboard edge


Extra bass buttons for bird-whistle and squeakers + two "clapper" keys to play "cuck-oo"


"Screwed on leather" individual reedplates


Vox-humana ("tremolodeon") mechanism


Vox-humana ("tremolodeon") lever


Bird-whistle (middle, right) and squeakers (middle, left) + two wooden pipes to play "cuck-oo" (bottom)


Bellows lock mechanism + inside flap of vox-humana

I've also added, to earlier posts (above) that mention them, photos of the Royal Standard "The Royal Navy" and "Fairy Chimes" models.

Edited to substitute a more "descriptive" front view photo

Mike Hirst

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #36 on: January 02, 2014, 09:29:43 AM »

Stephen,

thanks for the fab pics. I love the idea of the cuckoo whistle. I have seen these on a concertina, but never on a button accordion.

Thanks for sharing.  (:)
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triskel

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #37 on: January 03, 2014, 09:42:03 AM »

Stephen,

I love the idea of the cuckoo whistle. I have seen these on a concertina, but never on a button accordion.

The bird-whistle and squeakers would be more common on concertinas - in fact I've only ever seen one other melodeon with them on it (also by Spaethe and also in my collection) but never another one with a pair of cuck-oo whistles.  ???

triskel

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #38 on: January 03, 2014, 11:48:42 AM »

... I've often seen them on German accordions from the last quarter of the 19th century, especially on ones sold by Campbells of Glasgow - who did much to launch and popularise the melodeon in the first place.

Here's a photo of a large Campbell's "with knobs on" - not forgetting TWO BELLS, double-acting keyboard, vox-humana, internal bellows lock and knee-rests.


Some people may have seen this particular one before, because it came from the late Ruth Askew's collection and it's illustrated on page 70 of her book, where she says "it came to me from Wales via the Great Dorset Steam Fair" - an old one of yours then Rees?  ;)

rees

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Re: One row with bells!
« Reply #39 on: January 03, 2014, 01:16:30 PM »

Ha ha. Ruth did have a couple of boxes from me but not that particular one.
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