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[Keithypete.]

My B/C playing is progressing nicely but still without any real fluency. One thing I am finding really difficult is the A to F# to D sequence, (or any sequence involving all 3 of these notes) which is present in many tunes in D. It seems to be the change of direction and buttons and rows all at the same time. Is it just me? Any ideas for excercises or practice regimes? Also, how does one play the little squiggle over some notes I've seen in many tunes?

[Pete Dunk]

Also, how does one play the little squiggle over some notes I've seen in many tunes?

The little sqiggle is a tilde ~ and I believe it to mean an embellishment like a long or short roll. If the note is d for instance, a short embelishment might be d-e-d and a longer one d-e-d-c-d. Of course I may well be wrong about this as is often the case!

Pete.

[Waltham]

It's a turn.  In classical music it means this. 

[graememackay]

My B/C playing is progressing nicely but still without any real fluency. One thing I am finding really difficult is the A to F# to D sequence, (or any sequence involving all 3 of these notes) which is present in many tunes in D. It seems to be the change of direction and buttons and rows all at the same time. Is it just me? Any ideas for excercises or practice regimes?

Practicing is pretty much the only way of getting round this, practicing arrpeggios (if thats how you spell it) at various speeds on is always a good way to get round this.  B/C keyboard gives a huge advantage for playing in various keys etc and is laid out the way it should be.  Directional changes are the one thing that needs to be mastered to create a more fluent sound.  This is the same on any melodeon as you already know.

But this is one of the many reasons why the lord gave us a C# row on three rows.  Giving us an F# going out the way, matching A & D.

Think ahead.  When you are playing one note, you want to change before you want the note to sound to give your arm and bellows the time to act.

Always remember to use any double notes to your advantage too.

[HallelujahAl]

one of the many reasons why the lord gave us a C# row on three rows

Amen!

though I struggle with the three row beastie as well. I guess its just getting that muscle memory going. I remember when I first started playing a  D/G box I thought I'd never learn to push and pull at the right time but now of course it's automatic. Perhaps actually going at the series A to D to F#  etc - really working on the bit you find hardest will help things along? It usually works for me - but believe me, I'm truly no expert at this. Best wishes!
AL 

[Stiamh]

It's a turn.  In classical music it means this. 

Well in classical music it might indicate a turn, but I doubt that Bauld// is encountering it in classical music. Tallship has the right of it - it means that the transcriber thinks something twiddly should be done at that point in the tune, or that the person whose playing he or she transcribed tended to do something twiddly at that point.

Whether it is a roll or something else depends on the possibilities of the instrument your are playing and your own taste and preferences. (You aren't obliged to do anything of course.)

As for the possibilities on a B/C box, the ones Tallship indicated are two ways you could do something twiddly if you wanted to. But there are many others. The best advice is always to listen to a variety of good players in the style of music concerned, decide which bits you like, and then set about learning how to do them.

No disrespect to the OP or anyone else intended here, but reading music off a sheet and deciding, oh I must play a 5-note roll here, without knowing what these sound like in the hands of good players, and not considering the other 50-odd ways you could handle the passage, doesn't seem like the cleverest approach to me.

As for that "rogue" F# on the push - I play C#/D and the first few times I tried playing D tunes with arpeggios in B/C fingering I thought, they must be joking! But lots of practice, as Graeme suggests, made it easy enough for me: the movements soon become second nature.

[george garside]

bringing the bellows as near closed as possible also helps the AF#D sequence as it prevents bellows 'waggle' & makes fasst smooth control of the reversals much easier.  Soldiers joy is a good tune to practice this sequence.  As Graeme has said the pull F# on the inside row of a 3 row box makes this sequence simplicity itself!

george

[Keithypete.]

All very pertinent & helpful - thanks one and all. Tom Flemming plays a version of Pidgeon on the gate in which he seems to be turning every note, or at least every other note. A lifetime's work. Now if I could just remember where I left that C# row.

[strad]

George

That's a really useful tip re keeping the bellows almost closed. It's helping me already.
All I need to do now is teach my fingers what to do.

Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks??

[graememackay]

Sometimes I find touching the air button while changing direction, softens the whole bellows up, making the change of direction more cusioned and easier on the arm

[risto]

One good thing to be aware of is that the quality of the instrument makes a (big) difference. Once I got Italian tipo a mano reeds (quicker response comapred to Hohner reeds), springs lightened (lighter playability) and button travel shortened (better action) playing that particular sequence became easier. I mean easier, not easy though.

[Keithypete.]

Re: bellows waggle; I now use a back-strap when playing which seems to steady everything up a bit. I used it a lot on the D/G when things sped up at a session. I have taken your point about closing the job down for certain changes. one bit of "wisdom" I would like to pass on is 'Don't practice a mistake!!!!' Practice does NOT make perfect - practice makes PERMANENT!