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[pat]

Hi all,

I've been lurking on the forum for some time now, while I considered buying a melodeon. I've recently taken the plunge and bought a very nice Castagnari Nik from Theo. I thought I'd introduce myself to everyone, as it looks like I might be asking some pretty basic questions as I slowly try to learn to play. And here comes the first one...

I'm following David Mallinson's D/G tutor and pretty early on, he makes the point that each note should be sounded with a sharp and quick staccato button press/release. I can get this when changing buttons, but it sounds very stilted when I try to press/release/press on the same button along with a change of bellows direction. It sounds a lot smoother when I just keep the button pressed and just push then pull. Can someone give me a tip as to the correct method to start out on. I want to avoid too many bad habits as possible.

Many thanks for any replies.

Cheers,
Pat

[george garside]

Hi all,

 I'm following David Mallinson's D/G tutor and pretty early on, he makes the point that each note should be sounded with a sharp and quick staccato button press/release. I can get this when changing buttons, but it sounds very stilted when I try to press/release/press on the same button along with a change of bellows direction. It sounds a lot smoother when I just keep the button pressed and just push then pull. Can someone give me a tip as to the correct method to start out on. I want to avoid too many bad habits as possible.

Many thanks for any replies.

Cheers,
Pat
[/quote


Hi Pat & welcome to melodeon .net

It is indeed important to develop the ability to play 'staccato' right from the beginning  and to do so you need to lift finger clear of button between each note. Do this both whilst playing a tune & also playing a scale. It will feel a bit odd at first  when both consequitive notes are on the same button . The technique is easier to get if you keep to slow tunes ( rather than faster tunes played slowly) to begin with as youhave time to  concentrate on spacing the notes out properly as indeed you do when playing scales. 

In practice as you gain expeince you will  sometimes change notes ' on the button' and sometimes ' with the bellows' as the 2 methods give a slightly different effect that can be used to choice.  HOwevr if you don't first develop the staccato technique yu will not later have this choice!

hope this helps

george

[GuyWyatt]

BUT.... don't be too critical of yourself early on. Good luck!
Guy

[pat]

Thanks for the advice. I'll keep up the practice with discrete button presses. It does feel quite stilted, but it is early days too.

Thanks again,
Pat

[Theo]

Hi Pat and welcome

To play staccato thing in terms of tapping the buttons rather than pressing then releasing quickly.  It takes some practice, but its worth working on.  For a got model of what great staccato playing can sound like listen to some of the recordings of Ed Rennie playing with the Bismarks.

Its probably a good idea to start practising as an exercise with just one finger on one note and on one bellows direction at a time, then two fingers on adjacent buttons.  You can also practice the tapping finger action without the melodeon o n any convenient flat surface.  You need to build up some finger strength and agility.  Remember that musicians are small muscle athletes!

[george garside]

and that includes the little finger!
george

[Ellie]

Thanks for asking this Pat - I'm at much the same stage as you, only when I think of questions, they all seem to flee my mind between putting my melodeon down and reaching the computer!!

I have the same problem with staccato notes on the change of bellows direction - time to practise the basics rather than (as well as?) fun tunes I guess

George - perhaps I should try scales with just the little finger, since mine currently feels as though it doesn't really exist, unless I concentrate VERY hard! (and end up with that unfortunate associated rather gormless expression ) 

[george garside]

[
George - perhaps I should try scales with just the little finger, since mine currently feels as though it doesn't really exist, unless I concentrate VERY hard! (and end up with that unfortunate associated rather gormless expression ) 
[/quote]
Ellie
one way of getting the little finger up to strength  is to play simple fairly slow (slow air to march speed) tunes using just one finger. Start by playing whole tune with first fingr, then 2nd finger & so on untill you can play it with any 1 finger at a reasonably musical sounding tempo.

This exercise has other benefits & is not as daft as it sounds!  It helps to get away from the belief that a particular finger is the one to use for a  particular note and helps to form what I can only describe as a 'direct connection between the brain and the button' rather than the brain & the finger.

 Developing the ability to play any note in a tune with any finger then provides you with up to 3 spare fingers to put in twiddles, chords or whatever floats your boat.

Using two shoulder straps helps develop this flexibility as the buttons tend to remain where you expect them to be!

[pat]

Thanks George and Theo for the advice. Its funny but when I starting learning the concertina (English), I think I was a lot more rigorous about playing scales and doing basic exercises than I have been with the melodeon. I've been more tempted to jump straight into tunes I know. I guess I should take a step back and do the repetitious exercises that build up good technique. I'll certainly try your suggestions.

Hi Ellie, its good to hear I'm not the only one in this position. And I know exactly what you mean about the gormless expression: My partner tells me to practice in a different room, not because of the noise, but because of the stern face I have when I concentrate. I wonder how long you have to play before you can relax...

Pat

[Pushpull]

Hi Ellie, its good to hear I'm not the only one in this position. And I know exactly what you mean about the gormless expression: My partner tells me to practice in a different room, not because of the noise, but because of the stern face I have when I concentrate.

I got an email from a morris "colleague" with a photo of me playing and the question "do you always smile so much when you play?" Irony isn't dead. The great Frank Zappa called it "putting on the eyebrows".

Roy.

[Québécois]

I've been more tempted to jump straight into tunes I know. I guess I should take a step back and do the repetitious exercises that build up good technique.

Remember to keep the fun factor in!

I guess learning an instrument is a balance between doing exercises to acquire a playing technique, and play tunes in order to keep the pleasure factor alive. Doing exercises ad nauseam without playing any tune is a sure way to kill your enjoyment.

Happy playing!

[george garside]

 

I guess learning an instrument is a balance between doing exercises to acquire a playing technique, and play tunes in order to keep the pleasure factor alive. Doing exercises ad nauseam without playing any tune is a sure way to kill your enjoyment.

Happy playing!
[/quote]


Couldn't agree more  - The only reason for playing is because you enjoy it.  Exercises should not become the be all & end all but should always have a place  as a way of polishing up & maintaining playing technique in jsut the same way as athletes & sports people keep fit and  make sure all relevent bits of the body ae capable of the required movement at the required speed.  Exercises also increase mental dexterity which is needed to cope with more complex tunes etc. 

For what its worth I think one of the major pitfalls is to assume that by 'learning' ever more tunes  ones playing technique will automatically improve when in many cases  all that happens is  that you can play many tunes badly!
Its rather like learning to drive a car.  YOu learn to drive properly and you can then  drive anywhere you want to. Learn instrumental technique ( how to drive the box!) and , within the limitations of the particular instrument , you can play what you want using aquired skills to play tunes well.

Some may disagree!

george

 

[Brian Peters]

"...each note should be sounded with a sharp and quick staccato button press/release..."

Hi Pat,
The advice here is good, but I don't think anyone has yet made the point that playing each note staccato is useful as an exercise, but not necessarily very musical.  It's the contrast between the staccato notes and the full-length ones (and also volume changes achieved through bellows pressure) that really gives the music its dynamics.

Re George's last point, it's true to some extent that learning more tunes doesn't in itself make you a better musician, but I have to say that in my early playing days I did more than once advance my technique by aiming at a particular piece, previously beyond my technical capabilities.  I knew that when I could play "The Random" I'd be getting somewhere!

[pat]

Thanks for all the advice. I certainly see the merit in doing the staccato thing to improve technique. Its now part of my practice ritual. Someday its got to get better ;-) And I've started doing scales and other exercises that I had skipped up until I asked this question.

I also do some simple tunes for my sanity - I never seem to get fed up with my favourite beginner tune, the Winster Gallop. Not yet anyhow...

Brian, I take your point, but I'm really not up to mixing in different techniques yet, especially as I have a distinct lack of them ;-). I haven't even started on the bases yet - Except for some very loud oom-pah-ing to whip the kids up into a frenzy - They love that!

Chrz
Pat

[Theo]

And I've started doing scales and other exercises ....

.... I haven't even started on the bases yet - Except for some very loud oom-pah-ing

When you are ready try a scale on the bass buttons.  All of G major is there apart from F#, and you can follow the same push-pull pattern as when playing on the G row.  Its a very good way to familiarise yourself with the location of all the bass notes.

[Lester]

And I've started doing scales and other exercises ....

.... I haven't even started on the bases yet - Except for some very loud oom-pah-ing

When you are ready try a scale on the bass buttons.  All of G major is there apart from F#, and you can follow the same push-pull pattern as when playing on the G row.  Its a very good way to familiarise yourself with the location of all the bass notes.

Then progress to playing Donkey Riding on the bass end. People will think you are:

a) Really clever
b) A show off

But will help learning your way round and little bass runs.

[Theo]

But will help learning your way round and little bass runs.

I'm getting to like bass runs so much that I'm considering building a new bass end with bass notes only, a sort of duet melodeon.

[Larry Anthony]

Donkey Riding?

[petefoth]

Donkey Riding?

Try
T:Donkey Riding
R:Reel
M:4/4
L:1/4
F:http://www.banjolin.co.uk/tunes/abcs/donkeyriding.abc    2008-04-08 11:30:33 UT
K:G
|:G>A BB |cA  B2 |BAAG/2A/2|BAA2|
|G>A BB |cA  B2|BAdd|G2G2:|
|:eg dB | cd B2| BAAG/2A/2|BAA2|
|eg dB|cd B2|BAdd|G2G2:|

Regards

Pete

[Lester]

Donkey Riding as it has no F#s