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Author Topic: A Quiet Melodeon  (Read 10957 times)

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Nick Hudis

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Re: A Quiet Melodeon
« Reply #20 on: January 01, 2010, 02:20:33 PM »

One of the best pieces of advice I got from this forum when I first started playing (and I think I have George to thank for this) was to learn to play quietly.  Its much easy to add volume than to to loose it if you have developed the habit of always playing at full blast.

All my boxes play quietly, so maybe that says something about the way I play.  If I have the choice I almost always knock out the low bass, but this is usually only an option on big high end boxes.  My lovely little Lilliput plays so quietly that the reeds are drowned out by the clacking of the mechanism!
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Ebor_fiddler

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Re: A Quiet Melodeon
« Reply #21 on: January 01, 2010, 08:34:43 PM »

I truly sympathise. I've got a very noisy mechanism on my one-row.  :||:
« Last Edit: January 01, 2010, 08:36:19 PM by Ebor_fiddler »
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I'm a Yorkie!
My other melodeon's a fiddle, but one of my Hohners has six strings! I also play a very red Hawkins Bazaar in C and a generic Klingenthaler spoon bass in F.!! My other pets (played) are gobirons - Hohner Marine Band in C, Hohner Tremolo in D and a Chinese Thingy Tremolo in G.

Andy Next Tune

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Re: A Quiet Melodeon
« Reply #22 on: January 01, 2010, 10:01:27 PM »

At Witney, JohnK suggested we should savour and utilise the full and diverse range of sounds coming from a melodeon, including the Hohner percussion section. Its the diversity that makes the melodeon unique.
Most other instrument players just have to settle for playing notes!

Andy

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Ebor_fiddler

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Re: A Quiet Melodeon
« Reply #23 on: January 02, 2010, 10:16:39 PM »

Is a Quiet Melodeon anything like The Quiet American!   :-*
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I'm a Yorkie!
My other melodeon's a fiddle, but one of my Hohners has six strings! I also play a very red Hawkins Bazaar in C and a generic Klingenthaler spoon bass in F.!! My other pets (played) are gobirons - Hohner Marine Band in C, Hohner Tremolo in D and a Chinese Thingy Tremolo in G.

Chris Ryall

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Re: A Quiet Melodeon
« Reply #24 on: January 03, 2010, 07:07:00 AM »

Once I'd got the concept I found I could play quiet tunes fairly easily - this in my 1 voice Castagnari Lili days. Single voice is a real help in this.

The left ends of the boxes I've owned have been far more indomitable and playing there quietly is something I still cannot do reproducably. I suspect Ashokan Farewell may do us all good in this regard
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Andrew Culwell

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Re: A Quiet Melodeon
« Reply #25 on: January 03, 2010, 11:45:02 PM »

Is a Quiet Melodeon anything like The Quiet American!   :-*
There is no such thing as a quiet American.  Being American I resemble that remark, Uh I mean resent!   ::)

 I just came home from a session in which My teacher who was playing his Castagnari next to me said "boyo that Hohner of yours is a loud box"   We had just got done playing a rousing hornpipe.  I haven't been to many sessions and I'm really not good enough to play the tune as I know it and play it quietly.  It seems that my Hohner can play quietly but then I'm focusing on playing quietly and lose the tune.   Since I am stone deaf in my left ear I have difficulty sometimes gauging my volume or lack thereof especially in a session.  So I'm wondering if there is a way to tune my Hohner that will make it quieter until I can learn to adjust the dynamics of my playing without messing up the tune?
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Theo

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Re: A Quiet Melodeon
« Reply #26 on: January 03, 2010, 11:59:35 PM »

  So I'm wondering if there is a way to tune my Hohner that will make it quieter until I can learn to adjust the dynamics of my playing without messing up the tune?

Don't think you can "tune" it to be quieter, but you could place a layer of soft material under (or over) the grill, to absorb some of the sound.
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Theo Gibb - Gateshead UK

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george garside

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Re: A Quiet Melodeon
« Reply #27 on: January 04, 2010, 10:06:32 AM »

Once I'd got the concept I found I could play quiet tunes fairly easily - this in my 1 voice Castagnari Lili days. Single voice is a real help in this.

The left ends of the boxes I've owned have been far more indomitable and playing there quietly is something I still cannot do reproducably. I suspect Ashokan Farewell may do us all good in this regard

Agree about left hand end, particularly on the lilly.  Playing the bass quietly( in relation to the treble )if going for long chords etc is often not practical  because the set between bass & treble is fixed at birth so to speak.  This leaves only two possibilities as far as I can see (other ideas most welcome) .

1. Put the long chords in on the right hand & more or less ignore the bass

2. put the long chords in on the right hand  & tap the bass very lightly here & there to either put in an extra bit of rhythm or to add a  short extra grunt to a treble chord.



as to playing both ends quietly , this is quite easy , the trick being to tp the bass extremely lightly so the notes are very short & therefore not around for long enough to do any damage. This can be done for 'dance'tunes  & also to add a little rhythm to song accmpa;nyment etc.

If having pracised both right hand chords & lightly tpped bass you are still not happy with the balaance between right & left I think the only answer is to tape off some of the bass reeds rather than try to mute them with felt or cardboard or whatever.  Those with 3 bass couplers or stops can of course vary as the need arises

george
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Theo

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Re: A Quiet Melodeon
« Reply #28 on: January 04, 2010, 10:47:00 AM »

Once I'd got the concept I found I could play quiet tunes fairly easily - this in my 1 voice Castagnari Lili days. Single voice is a real help in this.

The left ends of the boxes I've owned have been far more indomitable and playing there quietly is something I still cannot do reproducably. I suspect Ashokan Farewell may do us all good in this regard

Agree about left hand end, particularly on the lilly.  Playing the bass quietly( in relation to the treble )if going for long chords etc is often not practical  because the set between bass & treble is fixed at birth so to speak.  This leaves only two possibilities as far as I can see (other ideas most welcome) .

1. Put the long chords in on the right hand & more or less ignore the bass

2. put the long chords in on the right hand  & tap the bass very lightly here & there to either put in an extra bit of rhythm or to add a  short extra grunt to a treble chord.

3. Play chords only on the left, and ignore the bass buttons
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Theo Gibb - Gateshead UK

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Chris Ryall

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Re: A Quiet Melodeon
« Reply #29 on: January 05, 2010, 09:14:56 AM »

as to playing both ends quietly , this is quite easy , the trick being to tp the bass extremely lightly so the notes are very short & therefore not around for long enough to do any damage. This can be done for 'dance'tunes  & also to add a little rhythm to song accmpa;nyment etc.
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Alison Scott

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Re: A Quiet Melodeon
« Reply #30 on: January 05, 2010, 10:45:51 AM »

I've posted this before but it's more apposite here. Last August in Is�re valley I watched Pignol demo playing the left end of his (Gaillard) box louder - followed by playing the right end louder. Norbert seemed to think it was really quite easy, and it's certainly a good exercise in the terms of this thread.

Brilliant! Did he tell you *how* he did it? I'm agog to learn this bit of technique having owned an otherwise quite nice melodeon where the higher notes in the treble simply didn't sound *at all* against a bass drone.
« Last Edit: April 05, 2014, 12:11:52 PM by Theo »
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Rob2Hook

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Re: A Quiet Melodeon
« Reply #31 on: January 05, 2010, 05:23:53 PM »

Yes. its true that the balance of bass and treble is set up by the maker, but it can be altered.  The choice of grille cloth at each end will affect the balance - I knew of an Erica which had a rather heavy treble grille cloth which made it all bass.  So tacking a second cloth over each end might have the desired effect of making the whole box quieter....?

Rob.
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Andrew Culwell

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Re: A Quiet Melodeon
« Reply #32 on: January 05, 2010, 07:05:49 PM »

Maybe someone can come up with a Mute for a Melodeon similar to a trumpet mute.  Hmm maybe a plunger head?
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RickC.

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Re: A Quiet Melodeon
« Reply #33 on: January 05, 2010, 07:16:00 PM »

Interesting discussion.  I passed up a very good deal on a Dinn III a few years back because I found it to be a very polite box, even quieter than my Mengascini 2 voice, and figured the Castagnari would not be heard in a big festival session-- which is the only thing I didn't like about the Mengascini.  I was used to the um... volume of Saltarelles.  The Dinn was nicer in some ways, but not $1500 nicer.

 The only Hohner I've owned was fairly loud, certainly louder than the Mengascini (and also the Castagnari's I've played), and had a brighter sound than all of them. 

On the other hand, I have played next to some Tommys that were pretty loud. 

 You could try taping off one block of reeds...  And what's in the water in North Carolina?  You're the second Irish box player I know of there who has hearing issues (as do I, HF loss in my left ear...).

 
                        Rick
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Andrew Culwell

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Re: A Quiet Melodeon
« Reply #34 on: January 06, 2010, 04:23:16 AM »

Interesting discussion.  I passed up a very good deal on a Dinn III a few years back because I found it to be a very polite box, even quieter than my Mengascini 2 voice, and figured the Castagnari would not be heard in a big festival session-- which is the only thing I didn't like about the Mengascini.  I was used to the um... volume of Saltarelles.  The Dinn was nicer in some ways, but not $1500 nicer.

 The only Hohner I've owned was fairly loud, certainly louder than the Mengascini (and also the Castagnari's I've played), and had a brighter sound than all of them. 

On the other hand, I have played next to some Tommys that were pretty loud. 

 You could try taping off one block of reeds...  And what's in the water in North Carolina?  You're the second Irish box player I know of there who has hearing issues (as do I, HF loss in my left ear...).

 
                        Rick


Don't know what's in the water here!  However I lost the hearing in my left ear about 3 months after taking up the accordion, one day I could hear the next I couldn't 80% loss (Docs called it Sudden Hearing Loss) I could have made that diagnosis.  Anyway I was quite appalled at the difference it made in my ability to hear and play at sessions,not to mention trying to listen to what my patients say to me in clinic, I'm trying to figure out how to adapt.  I now find it's much easier for me to play solo that leaves me very little satisfaction when it comes to interacting with other musicians. 

Of course I've also been told it was the almighty's curse for taking up the accordion in the first place.  Not much respect for the box here in the states that's for sure!
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Martin J

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Re: A Quiet Melodeon
« Reply #35 on: January 07, 2010, 06:28:15 PM »


Brilliant! Did he tell you *how* he did it? I'm agog to learn this bit of technique having owned an otherwise quite nice melodeon where the higher notes in the treble simply didn't sound *at all* against a bass drone.
Hi Alison.   The *how* isn't as difficult as it first appears.  I can dem it OK but nor sure I can describe it.  The volume for the right hand is controlled solely by the bellows, the balance of the bass to the right hand is controlled mainly by the bass buttons and is a mixture of stabbing the buttons for a short quick attack note or 'leaning on the button' for a full more continuous tone with a slower attack.  Stab and hold for attack and sustain.  Further variants are made by depressing the bass buttons less (muting) and the attack can be slowed by judicious use of the air button.
I've just deleted about six lines of explanation as it got very turgid so, - it's as strange as patting your head and rubbing your stomach but you'll be surprised just how quickly you get the feel for it.
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Re: A Quiet Melodeon
« Reply #36 on: January 15, 2010, 07:44:12 AM »


Don't think you can "tune" it to be quieter, but you could place a layer of soft material under (or over) the grill, to absorb some of the sound.


Wouldn't this is also mess up the air supply?

Steve
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Re: A Quiet Melodeon
« Reply #37 on: January 15, 2010, 09:46:27 AM »

Wouldn't this is also mess up the air supply?
Highly unlikely. You'd have to make a completely airtight seal around all parts of the bass end grille, the edge of the end plate and around the LH buttons. 
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