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[David Summers]

So having just been furloughed, I find myself with some free time, so decided to have a go at trying different keys, on my BC box.

Used the song My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean, as I know it well, has almost every possible interval in in, and is a good tune.

Soon reminded myself of how it goes in C Major. G Major also was fairly simple, mainly because My Bonnie contains no 7th, and so didn't need the F# key, and only had to get used to different fingering on the C row.

Next onto F Major, seemed like should be simple enough, just change the B into Bb from the B row, its a pull like the B and just to the left of the B. But what was more of a struggle is that so many notes were on the Pull: ( 1 2 3 4 5 6 ) (F G A Bb C D) (Pull Push Pull Pull Push Pull) so only 2 and 5 on the push - after 30 minutes or so still couldn't get it smooth. Sigh I'll try again tomorrow. An need to work on where to take lungfuls of air, to stop the endless pull ...

Really should have given D Major a go, but F Major rather did me in ....

[rees]

This is on a B/C box yes?

[David Summers]

This is on a B/C box yes?

Indeed, so the outside row a semitone down on the C row. So leftward on the circle of fiths, is just a case of moving one note from the C to the B row - and its the same button. So sounds easy - just the practicalities make it hard; than and fitting the fingering in ones brain ...

Rightwards  on  the circle is a tad harder, as its a change in bellows direction on the note moved to the B row ...

I'm just glad I seem to be able to transpose a tune, fairly quickly ...

[Stiamh]

Really should have given D Major a go, but F Major rather did me in ....

D major on B/C is guaranteed to do in the head of anyone used to playing in D on a D row :-) Until you get into it, and then it's kind of fun. Most of the time!

Funny to think of a B/C player not having tried it, though.

F major is how we C#/D players play in G.

As for transposing into any key... keep at it and you'll get to this level: Dermot Byrne - on the fly, no preparation!

[Chris Ryall]

It’s also great fun on a 3, or 2½ row 5th based instrument. My outer accs row is based on C#, so there are aspects of C#D in there, And as a singer I’m after keys to suit my voice.

What amazes me is that whatever key I explore there are always a couple of hand positions that can be used to anchor its chords and little musical motifs. And a couple of “magic”buttons where rocking the bellows also rocks the melody. Finding these is fun, they aren’t always where you expect.

It’s then a matter of stringing these together and learning how to dab in the notes that don’t fit to that pattern. To be fair song accompaniment is more forgiving than tunes.

A great exploration was C, particularly useful as an accs/D/G has a rockable C bass, and playing eg F Am Dm and G part chords against that produces lots of sus cadences. Then I turned to Cm, and discovered use of my Bb/Ab acc on right end! Hey 😀 I can play in simple Cm, and Cm pentatonic!  Where’s F#? Gosh it’s there both directions and I’ve cracked C blues scale 👍 The bellows moves aren’t like those for D or G, but very similar for all these keys as a “group”

And our instrument is diatonic. So if you can play in C(m) you can play in their modes. ie F (miss out the 4th, or dab the Bb in) G mixolydian (F is its b7th), A minor too … and that takes you to A blues!

From Cm - Eb is fine. From Cm dorian … Bb!

On my kit each key sort of developed as an extend from a related one. Not sure how that works on halftone, but it’s a really fun journey

[playandteach]

Wasn't Arnold Bax (underrated English? composer) also known as Dermot O'Byrne the author?
Is it a common name?