Family Ties

[kiminca]

Hi all,

 

After a delightful thanksgiving dinner, my family gathered around to watch my niece and I play a duet. She plays the violin, and I on the concertina. It was my first debut in front of the family. First, there was comments about the music and then the face. After the laughter died down, I was told about my grandfather. Appearantly he play the concertina constantly and took it with him where ever he sailed. I never got to know my grandfather since he was always in some other country. I had never even knew he played concertina. My other grandfather played Irish fiddle which delighted my niece.

 

How many other c.netters inherited a love of the concertina from family members?

[David Barnert]

I definitely owe my love of playing (and listening to) music to my father. He didn't play concertina, but he played piano, piano-accordion, guitar (classical & folk), and took up the recorder late in life. It bothered him that he never learned an instrument he could play in an orchestra. He (on piano) an I (cello) and a cousin (clarinet) played chamber music together. He died in 1979, shortly after I learned to play the banjo, my first "folkie" instrument. The concertina came much later.

[Helen]

No one in my family played any type of music. They thought I was a little odd. Well, let's not go there.

[d.elliott]

two of my instruments came from my great uncle Harry, who used to teach concertina in the Sheffield area. A Wheatsone Aeola and a Wheatstone 12 key English miniature, the latter of which he used to amuse children on the trams as he journed around selling herbalist remedies as part of my grandfather's business. He never had children which probably why I got his concertinas and why he used to delight in amusing kids in this way.

 

Dave

[Chris Timson]

No one in my family played any type of music. They thought I was a little odd.

Exactly my experience. On the other hand my nephew Jamie is very musical. I've lent him a Jones 26 button G/D anglo for him to try. I'm quite hopeful...

 

Chris

Edited December 4, 2004 by Chris Timson

[Helen]

Oh Chris,

 

You give me great hope.

 

Maybe a branch of the family will be musical.

 

Helen

[Jeff H]

My great Grandfather (mothers side) was an immigrant to the US from German speaking Salnau Bohemia (now Zelnav Czech Republic) He first landed in St Paul in 1873 then on to Seattle in 1875..

According to my mother he was a very good concertina player.. what type I have no idea.. could have been German Anglo could have been Chemnitzer.. I do know that his instrument is hostaged by an ex (married into now divorced) member of the family..I would like to get ahold of the instrument

 

My mother(rip) and father(rip) both played piano..my mother took lessons and was adequate, my father did not and was a brilliant player..

 

I am currently the only person in the family with musical interests.

And to my knowledge no one other than my greatgrandfather was a squeezer.

 

Jeff

[Brian Humphrey]

Kiminca,

 

There have been a few musicians in my family, but no concertina players that I know of. I was told that one of my great uncles played fiddle and banjo. I only met him once, as a small child.

 

My parents loved to dance. Some of my earliest memories are of romping around at square dances when I was about three years old.

 

My mother's brother, my uncle Leon, played violin and upright bass as a teenager in a ballroom dance band in the forties, and he played guitar and upright bass in a country-western band in the fifties. That band, the Bar-Q Boys, had its own local Saturday afternoon TV show for a couple of years, so I got to hear my uncle play on television when I was a little boy. I started guitar lessons with him when I was nine. By then, he was no longer playing in bands. My cousin, his daughter, was learning piano, and sometimes she and I would try playing together.

 

When I was growing up, one or two of uncle Leon's old band buddies would attend birthday parties and holiday dinners at his house, and sometimes such an evening would end in a session. It was a thrill when I was finally good enough to play a bit of guitar along with them.

 

A few years ago, I started asking uncle Leon some questions about his personal musical history and I got a few brief responses. He couldn't understand why I would be interested in all that "ancient history," so I didn't persist. He died recently, so I'll never know as much of his story as I'd like to.

 

When I was in hgh school, my younger brother Neil and I took piano lessons for a time on an old upright that I had paid $1 for at an auction. He continued when I went off to college, and he got further with piano than I did.

 

I discovered English concertina when I was 28, and melodeon when I was 30. Shortly after that, on visits home, I would play contra and square dance tunes when Neil assembled family and friends so he could practice calling for dances.

 

Now, my brother and I are the only musical ones in our family, and we live in different states. He DJ's and calls for dances on occasion, and I continue my happy addiction to playing in contra dance bands.

 

Brian

[bellowbelle]

Among relatives that I knew or at least met a few times while growing up, there were a few musicians here and there, but actually only a few whom I ever heard play. My great-aunt 'Tati' (Finnish for 'aunt') influenced me greatly. She was the organist at her church, and though I hardly ever went to her church, she played her piano for me when we visited her home.

 

As far as the concertina goes...well, that started with the piano-accordion. A man who was friends with my parents played the accordion. So, I got some free lessons...though, the deal was that I had to play in church. ( Hmm, I do think I woulda preferred just to hand over the cash with the 'In God We Trust' on it, but...whatever.)

 

I had a lot of exposure to our church music, which was usually informal, never anything classical. I always did kind of like hymns and meditative-type songs.

 

I dumped the accordion for a guitar when I got older, since guitars were more 'cool.' But, when I finally was no longer cool, anyway, I bought an old accordion again. And then, an English concertina! (This is NOT to say that you concertina players are not 'cool,' heheh.... )

 

I guess I have some distant relatives here and there who have performed at places like Caesar's Palace and whatever, or on the radio on country shows, but -- they're either dead now or I only know their names.

[Alan Miller]

My grandmother (born in County Clare) played the concertina but died when I was 3 (many, many years ago). My cousin still has the concertina but when I last saw it, it was not playable. My mother played the fiddle. In fact, she and her three sisters played in a women's orchestra. When I was young (in Chicago in the 50's and 60's) my parents would have parties where someone would play the piano, my mother the fiddle, and everyone would sing. THey had a ball. It is a type of home entertainment I don't experience any longer. I played a bit of piano throughout my life but took up the concertina over a year ago at age 63 and love it. I can't say if it is an emotional tie to my family, but for whatever reason it gives me great pleasure. I just hope to play well enough to join in the regular sessions in Boston where I now live. Alan Miller

[kiminca]

My cousin still has the concertina but when I last saw it, it was not playable.

It would be great to see the concertina that my grandfather had, but your guess is as good as mine where it landed. Perhaps some c.netter is playing it. My guess is that it sank with his boat off the coast of Equador.

 

Passing along musical interest in the family is excellent. for our familly get-togethers, we usually do some hoky musical thing. One year we all got harmonicas and practiced blues riffs and all had a (terrible but fun) concert together. My niece while she plays violin, also inherited my grandmothers piano and is catching on quite quickly. My cousin is ordering his first concertina after having played mine for a few times. So here's to infecting others with the concertina bug.

 

It is a type of home entertainment I don't experience any longer.

 

I'm delighted to say that once a week we open our house to musicians and dancers. I find it very gratifying to have friends who love live music and dancing

[Robin Harrison]

I found out in my twenties that my grandmother had a Lachenal (student) concertina in her wardrobe that she had bought in the 40's.I never heard her play.My brother took it to pieces to restore it but lost interest so it got deep sixed.I still have the Wheatstone tutor she had and have used it.

My dad,who is 80 this year, still has an active country dance band ,The Perfect Cure, in which he plays piano accordion.He's a retired physician.

[John Wild]

I have an uncle (my Father's Younger brother) who is musical and could play almost any stringed instrument (not fiddle). He has a guitar mandolin bouzouki and various other instruments. He also learned keyboards and has a small electric organ. His wife (my Aunt) plays piano and that has been taken up by several of their grandchildren. But their own children were not inclined to play anything. Indeed when the new boyfriend of one of them expressed an interest in my uncle's guitar, the 2 siblings immediately concluded that he would not last long - and they were right. My own father was not musically inclined. I was 29 before taking up the concertina, urged on by others at my local folk club. I sometimes (only sometimes!) wonder if I was born into the wrong section of the family. There was another uncle by marriage who played what I think was a small melodeon. I cannot be sure because I was only about 4 or 5 years old when I saw it - they lived some distance from us and we saw them at most once a year.

 

- John Wild

[bigsqueezergeezer]

I come from a Salvation Army family and always expected to see someome playing. Sadly I never did (I am a Heathen now, so probably never will!).

 

My family were musical, however, and we spent much of our time singing in the evenings. My own musical upbringing was playing the cornet in "Arley Miners' Silver Prize Band" in the Midlands.

 

I only started playing the concertina after I joined a Costwold Morris side (Victory Morrismen in Portsmouth), and I was lent one of those big East German anglos with the huge white buttons.

 

Derek

[Jim Besser]

> My dad,who is 80 this year, still has an active country dance band ,

> The Perfect Cure, in w

 

And do they play the tune with that name? One of my favorites!

[Robin Madge]

Well I don't seem to have any folk musicians in my ancestry but my late father was a church choir-master and also played piano, and he and his brother were choristers from an early age.

My father's mother used to be a singing coach at one time, and his father had a great interest in organ music, visiting Liverpool Cathedral whenever he could attend recitals.

On my mother's side, she sings and plays piano, and her mother and aunt were both church organists.

I think that I'm the only one in my generation who plays or sings so I have to make up for it in enthusiasm if I can!

I'm told that back in the 16th or 17th century we had a court musician in the family!

 

Robin Madge

[geoffwright]

My grandfather was born on a longboat and was one of 12 children. One of his brothers was called Noah (honestly) and another joined the Guards regiment (the family all 6 foot odd apart from me). Even though the boat must have been packed with people banging their heads, my grandfather still managed to play piano accordion.

My grandmother played piano, my father played accordion and my son now plays accordion (and everything else he can lay his hands on), has dabbled on concertina, and plays tuba in the brass band.

Who says being musical isn't hereditary, even though they didn't all play concertina?

[bill_mchale]

Well lets see, my Dad could play a few tunes on Button Accordion, and indeed when I got started on Button Accordion I borrowed his 30 year old Hohner Black Dot. That being said he rarely plays and only knows a few tunes total. I understand that there was a Melodeon in his house when he was growing up in Galway but I don't know if he could play it at all. My Uncle Mike made sure his sons got lessons in Button Accordion when they were kids, and I think both have started to fool around with button accordion again now that they are adults, but I think at the moment I am the only one in the family who takes it seriously. To my knowledge no one in my Mom's family plays anything. For all that everyone in my family, on both sides have been very complimentary about my efforts and I get requests to pull out the Button Accordion at family functions now.

 

My parents are less enthusiastic about the concertina; in large part because they prefer the wetter sound of the accordion (And indeed greatly prefer a big heavy Gaurinni that I have to the dryer Saltarelle that is the box I play most often). Also my Mom thinks I spend too much money on my hobbies already (And she doesn't even know anything like the real figure ).

 

--

Bill