Gluggy

Hi Eddy, have you looked at the On line Academy of Irish Music http://www.oaim.ie/ . Its not real time teachers but I've found it very good for beginners like me.

I hope someone can help me with suggestions or ideas on this one. I am currently using the ABC notation software to listen to and learn tunes but I find it difficult to practice a piece and have to constantly take one hand out of the strap to hit replay or stop on the computer keyboard. I've looked at voice activation thought windows for these controls but they don't seem to work on the ABC application. Is there another product, software, technique that can be used to make this a "hands Free" operation? Cheers Glyn

Just a special thanks to Chris Ghent for taking the time to give me some valuable direction and insight to the world of Concertina. I'm off to a flying start now. Thanks Chris and cheers

Wow, thanks Mike, Chris and David this has now set me on the right path. I was able to copy and paste some notations across last night and I understand the letter notations from Chris Walshaws website. It is truly amazing how clever people can develop such simple (not really there is a mountain of code beneath that surface I know) yet such a valuable tool for the greater good. My hat is off to the inventor. Thank you also for the kind welcome and I hope to be an avid reader, quiet learner and occasional poster to these golden threads. In way of introduction, I have acquired a not so authentic 20 button Anglo (read cheap mass produced) that will see me through my discovery period. I didn't want to wait until I could afford a good instrument and I think this one will keep me going for a while anyway. If its like my passion for Banjo, I'll end up with more than one in my back room. I have listened to quite an array of different styles so far and I think I am being drawn to the clean crisp sounds of the Irish traditionals. I don't know if any of you use on line streaming services for music (we have a service over in Aus called Spotify) where, for a few dollars a month you can stream any music you like as often as you like. A simple search for Concertina gave me hours of titles from all over the world. I play it on my mobile phone and on my PC at home, it is marvellous for tasting many types of music with little outlay. I live in western Sydney, at the foot of the mountains on the city's outskirts. I enjoy all kinds of guitar, banjo and Uke music and try to play all with varying degrees of success. I am an avid technology user and live and work on line so the cyber world is my other home. I am looking forward to the challenge with this little gem and I can already see it is working its magic on me with a few late nights under my belt on my first few tunes already. Again, thank you all for the gracious welcome. Cheers Glyn

Apologies first up if this is not the right place for this post. I have done quite an extensive search through to see if there was a more appropriate spot (such as introductions or Helpful Tips etc.) but alas. Anyway... I am from Sydney Australia and a complete novice. I mean I've just received my first Concertina and am now on a mission to learn how to play it. I have done the obligatory you tube searches, website scans and joined a few threads such as this one to get as much information as possible. I know I have a long way to go but as they say each journey starts with the first step. I have a few very basic questions I'm hoping some of you could help me with or suggest the best places to find the answers to: 1. What is the ABC system and is this the same as people refer to here as "the system"? 2. Can someone explain or point me to a tutorial on how to work the ABC Navigator 2 or the Easy ABC applications (I've downloaded them both but I'll be darned if I can work them out. 3. Is it worth paying for on line tutors when you first start out or is it best to try a little self help to get the basics then try the professional help? 4. Finally, are there any Sydney siders on here that know of local tutors or events / workshops that may be helpful in our local area? I again apologies if this is not the place for this but I really did spend the time to read through a lot of what is relatively new on here (as you can see from the questions I have) but would love some tips on where to start on the very basics. Appreciate any help I can get. Regards Glyn (Gluggy)