Noel Ways
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Posts posted by Noel Ways
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Dean,
Wim has a nice trade in program where he will give you the full purchase price for the instrument if you upgrade to a professional model. I imagine that this would include trading up to get an English. Just a thought. You might be able to get a great concertina for a very reasonable price this way. The Concertina Connection web site explains the trade in program.
http://www.concertinaconnection.com/
Noel
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Has Inventor posted any youtubes?? I've looked and looked, but alas, find none.
I'll keep looking, though ....
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I had put together a document with which to make some flash cards to fix in my mind primary chord options for each note - sort of like the times tables of way back when. What just caught my eye is that the mathematical patterns for primary chords associated with each note are all identical. I thought it was intriguing. If interested, I posted the file here:
http://www.noelways.com/Concertina/Chord%20Study/Chord%20Study.pdf
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Please listen carefully to everything written above !!I
I think we would all go into mourning, if you attempted
anything yourself.
The previous posts are wisdom speaking, borne out of
years of experience by seasoned concertina players.
You are one lucky person to come across such a concertina.
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I get this with the changing of the humidity with seasons. At this point, I just wait it out and attempt to regulate humidity within the case. It always works out for me. It is a seasonal phenomenon, and although frustrating at time, it always works out.
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Don,
thanks for the tip. 6 3/4 " is workable for a backpack.
I just put a bid on one of those - we'll see. I'm now
determined !!
If it works, I'll start another forum. If it doesn't, well,
I know it can - just try again.
Your not a grinch, your the silver lining
of the cloud.
Hope you got my email earlier.
Got to get back to work, this has been
way to consuming !!
PS, what do you think of the following from previous post:
" ... the fact one could make a limited Wicki/Hayden with no more effort than an Anglo might encourage one of the Anglo makers to do so and increase the choices of Wicki/Haydens available." - rlgph
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!!!!! YES !!!!!
" ... the fact one could make a limited Wicki/Hayden with no more effort than an Anglo might encourage one of the Anglo makers to do so and increase the choices of Wicki/Haydens available." - rlgph
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Goals to this project
• Keep it SMALL
• Keep it INEXPENSIVE
• Anyone can do it using "cheepo Anglo" and Accordian Reeds from ebay (or where ever)
• Keep if FUN
• Protect one's primary Hayden Instrument from adversity.
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Good point.
I had an Elise for a few years. Do not want to do back to that again - for lots of reason; further it is too big. The goal is a small compact inexpensive traveler concertina. If I do this I would look for a concertina 5-6 inches across the flats. Perhaps it would be only 20 buttons. One can find them readily, and accordion reed are likewise readily available on ebay.
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http://www.noelways.com/ANG_HAY_04.jpg
Perhaps. But if Wim were to do this, it would be expensive, and in this case one should just buy a Peacock. I wonder if Wim would even consider it !?!?
The goal here is a do-it-your-self inexpensive "hayden key layout" on some cheepo Anglo, that one would not mind backpacking with or playing in the rain !!
Or don't mind taking to such places as Bogotá, Colombia !!, Remember the context of this forum. Matt Vanitas, who started this forum, already has an excellent hybrid Hayden Concertina, but he does not want to take is much beloved Baumount to such places as Bogotá, Colombia; so his goal here is to acquire a very inexpensive hayden concertina that he is comfortable having in such places. My interest here is that I like to hike in the forest and would like to have a inexpensive concertina to carry in my backpack. I have a Peacock, and I do not want to cart my much beloved Peacock where it might start to rain !!
Anyone out there willing to try it ?? I'm giving it some serious thought ....
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With some trepidation, here is another image which I think far better shows what I am thinking about.
I note that I can also play many tunes with just the first two rows !! Therefore, a 20 key Anglo, could certainly be used.
I confess, I have never touched an Anglo concertina in my life, but I think, I hope, that this image correctly shows the way the Anglo keys are and how I think reed arrangement can be adjusted to make a very inexpensive, do-it-yourself, Hayden type concertina for travel / compact purposes; using, perhaps, a Stagi or other inexpensive Anglo concertina and getting a hold of some accordion reeds.
Hope this helps somebody somewhere ... Matt ??
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Hmmm, good point! OK, how about this arraignment:
http://www.noelways.com/conc_03.jpg
One could still play in several keys, and keep
the all important uniformity of the Hayden Key Layout in tack.I think I could work with this, in a pinch; and Matt is in a
pinch at the moment...
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Matt, I have been giving your questions some thought and was wondering if you have considered contacting a concertina maker (they all make Anglos), and ask for a rearrangement of the reeds for an anglo to look like the image below. I believe that most concertina makers are fine with changing notes/reeds. I also note that Button Box has a Stagi with a very minor curvature and the buttons seem parallel to the hand rest. I bet they might be able to do this for you, and if they aren't, I bet you could do it yourself. I have been giving some serious thought about trying it, as I would like a very small concertina that would fit into my backpack when I go hiking, which I do frequently. Also, this arraignment would allow for the playing in at least four keys
http://www.noelways.com/conc_01.jpg
If you wanted an even smaller concertina, a 20 key anglo, could probably work as well, but it might have some limitations.
Below is the link to view the Stagi concertinas. Note keys are "parallel" to hand rest:
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Another interesting concertina jewelry piece:
http://www.sterlingcharms.co.uk/chim-accordion-sterling-silver-charm.html
Alex, have you given any thought about a small
supplemental business?
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I recently purchased two more of these so I now have three, so that when it gets real dry I'll have several going. It's probably better to have more control this way. Also, it may make a difference having the water touching the felt and not just having the water on the bottom of the tube so that the vapor can make it's way into the chamber - In other words, have it on it's side or "upside down". Perhaps David might be willing to add to this post at this point ?? -- I'll ask him ...
Oh, one more thing, if your case is not air tight, you will need to add more humidity to compensate for loss.
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I was worried about my Lachenal Crane, taking it to Colombia, but I've ended up in Bogota where it's eternally 50-70F and drizzly, basically an Andean version of Seattle. So as long as the apartment isn't too damp I don't fret it, though have a small dehumidifier tablet just in case.
If at some point I ever have a semi-custom box built, what kind of soundboard holds up well against environmental changes but still sounds okay? I thought someone mentioned at some point that one of the Afrikaaner concertina makers uses perspex (acrylic plastic?); does that actually work well? I'm debating having a small Wheatstone Duett-copy in Hayden made for me to take traveling for work, little 24-button or so mini, and having it made of climate-resistant materials would be awesome.
Hi Matt, I am not a concertina construction
expert, by any means; but I know that sound
boards may be of
• good quality ply wood (button box concertinas for example)
These are far more humidity resistant than:
• solid quarter sawn wood (concertina connection)
Note, if you do get a solid wood sound board that
will be attached another piece of wood that will
serve as the action board, you will want to make
sure that the grain of the two boards is going in
the same direction.
My Peacock has the two solid wood boards going in two
different directions. And it is that way on both sides, which
predictably causes hugh changes in the
instruments performance; and has therefore
led me to do much research on climate control
in order to keep the instrument playable. If you
get an instrument build for you, ask to have the
grain of wood for action board and sound board
go in the same direction. In this way, they will
expand and contract together and there will be
less or no difference as air becomes more dry or
less so.
Hope this helps.
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>I have been using this excellent Humidifier (Humistat #1) etc.
Very interesting. How do you use it - just pop it in the bag along with the concertina?
FWIW a quick search on Amazon reveals that these pieces of kit are currently unavailable,
at least in the U.K.
Thanks.
Roger Hare
Roger, It is very simple, just open the closure and
put water into, now replace the closure. Place the
device into the concertina case in a place where there
is room to fit. You will see well enough when it is
time to put more water into it.
I ordered mine directly from the company that
makes it. You can do it from this link here:
http://www.humistat....tat_Model-1.htm
Best to you...
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Hi Doug,
I use humistat #1. That's a good point,
I will edit my comments above !!
The larger one might work just fine as well,
but it was not a product option a year ago
when I got mine. If you email the president
of the company (David C. Berliner),
he is very prompt to reply
to all questions and comments !!
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I have been using this excellent Humidifier (Humistat #1)
made by the Humistat Co. for a year now,
and have found it to work wonderfully:
http://www.humistat.com/Humistat_Model-1.htm
If you don't have a way to add some moisture
to your concertina this winter, this is an nice
investment. It does not leak. Made in USA.
Inexpensive. Fits nicely in the case. And it works!!
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Look closely at the first concertina at the link below and you will note BOTH doomed and flat buttons. The doomed are C and E. Everything else are flat buttons. The reason that I did it this way is to have a system help me know where I am on the keyboard. (the concertina shown is the one I had purchased and use).
http://www.concertinaconnection.com/peacock.htm
Therefore, every song I play, day after day, year after year, I am using both. So what is the difference - not much !! But there are some slight advantages to both.
Rounded: when I have a finger on one button, but am going to need that same finger play another note (but not interrupt the sound playing), I will need to quickly replace the finger with another. A rounded key makes this transition easier.
Flat: When it is hot out, and one's hands begin to get a bit sweaty, the moistened fingers can more easily slip off of rounded keys than flat keys.
Regarding using both way I did in the image shown, this has been minimally useful for navigation purpses, but I do think it looks nice. And I do suspect, if I really trained myself, it could be much more useful as a navigation tool.
If I were FORCED to choose one over the other, I would probably go with flat keys as my fingers will be more apt to on the keys and not slip off.
Hope this helps.
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Hi
It sounds to me like you have a humidity problem that is effecting the wood reed pan by ever-so-slightly changing shape with changing humidity. I do have this problem with my concertina, where I will get buzzing sounds when it is really dry or very humid. The way that I control this is that when the concertina is not in use, I will store it in an air-tight container with a Saturated Salt solution in another small plastic container in an isolated area to control the relative humidity. Here is a chart that will help to determine what salt to use for a maintaining a desired relative humidity:
http://www.omega.com/temperature/z/pdf/z103.pdf
There are many more articles on the web for this subject, and several that addresses musical instruments, such as violins. (Google: "relative humidity saturated salt")
The fact that this is happening to a cluster on notes on one side strongly suggests that humidity is the issue; and if it is happening on the push and pull - then think HUMIDITY !!
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I started out renting an Elise from But.Box, which I eventually purchased. This was followed by the Peacock two years later. While the Peacock was certainly an improvement, it has not been an easy road. I live in New England in an older home that does not have good environmental control inside. Therefore, when it is dry outside, it is dry inside, and when it is humid outside, it is humid inside. Now the Peacock. The sound board is one solid piece of choice wood ideal for the purpose for which it is used, except that this piece of wood is quite sensitive to humidity changes. At the beginning of this winter, when things began to really dry out, the sound board responded by changing it's shape and allowing air to pass other notes, causing multiple notes to play, as well as other tonal changes - to the point where the instrument became unplayable. I contacted Wim, who immediatly diagnosed the problem, and I sent the instrument back to him which he corrected and then sent it back me; with instructions that I had to control the humidity carefully. To this end, when the instrument is not in use, it is kept in an enclosed air tight container with a satruated Calcium carbonate salt solution in a remote part of the chamber resulting in a relative humidity that is maintained in the low 40s%. This has worked very well. When I do take it out to play, which I do daily, if it is VERY dry out, the instrument will handle this for close to an hour until tonal changes again begin to occur, at which point I must put it back into the chamber and "let it rest". I know that other concertinas (such as the Baumount) will use a plywood for a sound board, which is less succeptable to humidity changes. So, when choosing which instrument to use, consider the environmental conditions that the instrument will be subject to. If you live in fairly stable environmental conditions, a traditional sound board may be best. If you live in an environment with wildly fluctuating envonmental conditions, perhaps a sound board made of quality plywood would be best.
Finally, the left side of the Peacock would often drown out the right side. So to fix this I placed into the concertina a baffle on the left side that has proved extremely effective.
With the two above issues addressed, the Peacock has been an instrument that I now enjoy playing; but it has been a learning curve for me on how to care for and work with a musical instrument. I have never played the Baumount, but perhaps the above would help in figuring out what to choose.
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Hello Mathew,
This is the first time in my life ever responding to a forum or blog, but I think I can contribue here. I too play a hayden concertina (Peacock). And the instrument is the first concertina pictured on:
http://www.concertinaconnection.com/peacock.htm
If you look at the picture closely, you will note that the C and E buttons are doomed and the others are flat - this for NAVIGATION purposes. The difference in feel is minute, but discernable when one is focused and looking for it.
I have also considered gluing some "diamonds" similar to the what is done on the C chord on the accordian base. These can be found at:
http://www.beadaholique.com/c-64707-crystal-rhinestones.aspx
This I have not done, but may consider this in the future.
Hope this helps !
Prevent Your Sound Board From Cracking This Winter, 2015
in General Concertina Discussion
Posted
Hi,
I have been using this humidifier for several seasons and find it excellent.
If you have a questions whether it will fit in your case, just give them a call, if interested.
https://humistat.com
-Noel