James McBee

Thanks Dave. I'm not surprised if it is a common question, but I certainly couldn't find anything on the subject. Then again, my web search skills may leave something to be desired. And I figured that this was probably a question that no one could answer definitively without seeing the instrument in question, but I thought I'd try to find out if anyone had done it before on any concertina, and if so, what results they achieved. Hi Matthew. I've thought about that as well. It's a little early for me to say for sure, but I would add that I am not solely interested in Irish music. Playing in genres where one doesn't normally hear the concertina, is no small part of the appeal. I'm looking forward to seeing where the instrument takes me. 26 buttons might prove all I will ever need, but I would feel a lot more secure in making a purchase, if I thought I could add the remaining accidentals at some point down the road.

I was thinking in terms of concertina reeded Anglos. I'm currently hunting for an Anglo, and most of the better concertina reeded instruments are beyond my means. The 26 button instruments, however, seem to often go for less than half what the 30 buttons do. Of course, I could take what seems to be the usual route, and buy a 26 button Anglo, save for an upgrade, and hope to get back everything I put into the 26 when it comes time to sell; but that approach has some drawbacks. Personally, I don't enjoy the process of selling, and I have a tendency to become attached/accustomed to an instrument. In other words, while there is a certain thrill to trading up, I tend to prefer to dance with the one who brought me, as long as it can be made to meet my requirements. Anyway, this thought struck me, and I'm hoping to get an idea of what the practical obstacles would be. I too figured there would hypothetically be room on the reedpan. But hypotheticals often fail to account for unknown factors (I couldn't even find a picture of a 26 button's reedpan). Like you, I also wonder about the levers/action. Anyway, if the long and short of it is, that it would end up costing more in the long run than a 30 button, or if the result would likely be a poor player, then obviously I should abandon the whole idea. But if there's a good chance that it might work (and save me some money), I'm definitely interested in exploring it. I know some people might bridle at the notion, and perhaps I have insufficient reverence for the original designs, but it seems like adding the full row of accidentals to a quality vintage instrument, would be a worthwhile improvement.

Forgive me if this is a foolish question, or if it has been discussed before (my searches haven't turned up much), but I'm wondering how difficult it would be to add reeds and buttons to an existing concertina. It's obviously possible to some degree, as the Button Box currently has a 20 (now 21) button Jeffries with an added C, but would the modifications become prohibitive to go from say, a 26 button layout, to the standard 30? I'm guessing the answer is yes, but it seemed worth asking. Cheers.

I should add--a number of people inquired as to what type of music I am interested in playing. As I alluded to in my original post, I listen to a lot of Irish music, but I'm certainly not interested in Irish music exclusively. I am, however, primarily interested in playing melody. Throwing in the odd chord or harmony would be nice, but I think I prefer a simpler (less keyboard like) rendition on the concertina...which would be more in keeping with my musical abilities anyway.

I want to thank everyone again for the incredible outpouring of thoughtful responses. I can't say that I've reached any decisions other than to try all three systems if possible. Thanks Jim for the advice, and for the incredibly generous offer. I'm not in VA all that often (I don't know how you all deal with that traffic), but it it wouldn't be an intrusion, I'd definitely be interested meeting you all, and observing, next time you have a get together. I likely won't be making a purchase before the middle of summer, and even if I do, I will certainly have a lot to learn. Hi John, That's an excellent point, and perhaps the opposite side of how I was looking at it. I'm still not certain though. What really hooked me was a certain kind of concertina sound. Based on the videos, I'm not sure the hybrids really have that. But, buying a hybrid would certainly allow me to figure out whether the technique is within my abilities, before I sell off all my worldly possessions to get the tone I am after. Thanks Doug. I'm definitely leaning towards the anglo. As I said in my original post, the bisonoric thing worries me a bit, as I am not renowned for my coordination, and the logistics of the bellows work seems like one more thing to keep track of, but as you point out, the anglo is the sound that grabbed me, so it probably makes sense to give it a try. Greg is right about my being a fellow Baltimorean (or Baltimoron, as we sometimes say). I live in Waverly, if that means anything to you. First, congratulations on starting such an avalanche of responses on your second post! Of course, list members love to offer advice, and all that they've offered you is good. I could probably arrange for you to get together with a few people to try their 'tinas. I don't know any local duet players, but I know ango and EC players. We tend to be evangelical about concertina playing, of whatever system. One of us might even be able to lend you something. I play EC, for a number of reasons, but one of the most important is that there is an excellent EC teacher in Baltimore (Hampden). Having no experience in playing an instrument before I started at age 68, this was tremendously important (indeed, crucial) for me. It might be less necessary for you. And, yes, consider renting from the House of Musical Tradition in Takoma Park. It won't be a top of the line instrument, but it will give you entry. BTW, you can find YouTube videos of people playing entry-level instruments beautifully. Myself, I need a good instrument to play tolerably. PM me if you want. I'm also in the phone book (I know, archaic information technology). Mike Hi Mike, It's definitely Baltimoron...or at least it is amongst ourselves. I lived in Waverly for a while growing up, and I live in Hampden now. Small world. I'll definitely send you a PM. It would be great to meet some players in the area.

Thanks to you all for taking the time to respond. It sounds like I really need to try and lay hands on a few different instruments. A good point, but I have some reservations. With a stringed instrument, it always seems to me that the better part of the tone is up to me. But with a stringed instrument, I can bend a note, or mute it, or alter the attack in any number of ways. With the concertina, I know that one can alter the bellows pressure or introduce a little tremolo and such, but on the whole the tone seems a bit more built in. I could be wrong about that, but that's the way it seems. I just haven't taken a real liking to the sound of the accordion reeded instruments that I've heard. And in some of the clips of Lachenals, it seems to me there is almost...I don't know how to put it...almost a delay between the depression of the button and the sound. I think I would lean towards Anglo, but it worries me that I might have to sell off all my instruments, just to buy something that I still wouldn't find wholly satisfying. I firmly believe that a great instrument can make one a better player, if only insomuch as it rewards one with a beautiful sound, and so encourages one to practice. Well, I'm thinking you all are right that there's no substitute for trying the thing out. As I said, the bisonoric thing is a little terrifying. I may need to take Matthew's suggestion, and see about renting an Anglo. I doubt an afternoon would be enough for me to figure out whether I can make it work. Yesterday, when I wrote my original post, I was really leaning towards English. Watching more videos on Youtube, I'm increasingly thinking there is something about the ornamentation on the Anglo, that I really love, and would have trouble replicating with another system. I thought a bit about the duet. Two things give me pause: a number of posts on the internet reference a lack of learning material, and then there is the size of the instrument. Most duets seem to be a bit on the large size as concertinas go. I have to admit, part of the appeal of the concertina is its diminutive nature. I like the idea of something that I can travel with, or even haul about town just in case an opportunity to play arises. But I would definitely entertain the notion of a duet.

Hi All, I'm new to the forum, though I've been reading it obsessively for a few weeks. A little background: I only discovered the concertina recently. Or rather, I was aware of the existence of such an instrument, but thought of it only as a small accordion, associated mostly with a sort of cartoon notion of a sailor. Then this past Autumn, I heard Niall Vallely in concert. I was there to hear his brother Cillian, as I love the pipes (though, for a multitude of reasons, I would never attempt to play them). Anyway, I was blown away. Niall is clearly a wonderful musician and a great writer of tunes, but I was also immediately taken with the concertina itself. I played violin for a while as a child but never had the ear/intonation for it. Later I took up fretted instruments, but I always wished for an instrument with infinite (or near infinite) sustain. I thought about the accordion, but the sound didn't quite do it for me. Don't get me wrong, the accordion can be wonderful, but the tone of it seems a little limited somehow. To me, it's always either sort of joyful/raucous, or on occasion bluesy. The concertina is capable of all that, but also of a clarity which seems a bit more poignant, for lack of a better word. Perhaps its the double vs single reed thing. Anyway, I've been doing research, but I'm having a bit of trouble deciding whether it's the English or the Anglo for me, or indeed whether concertina is the right instrument at all. I've bought a number of CDs, and have been watching videos on Youtube, and the stuff I like best is almost all on Anglo. With that said, much as I might like to, I'll probably never be ripping through blistering jigs the way some of these folks can. O'Carolan is probably more my speed. And I have to say, the bisonoric thing scares me a bit. I love playing music, but I'm not particularly gifted. The level of coordination required with the Anglo seems formidable. The other side of that equation though, is that perhaps it is the push pull thing that makes the sound appealing. It's hard to say. The other consideration is price. Frankly, it was shocking to see how much a decent Anglo goes for. I don't have any extra money to throw into what, for me, will only ever be a hobby. So I will have to sell or trade some of my current instruments to make a purchase possible. I have a very nice mandolin that I wouldn't mind parting with, though the mandolin market is very soft now, and I wouldn't get close to what I paid for it. In order to get to even a decent Anglo I would probably also have to sell my tenor guitar, which I would be truly loath to see go. Even then, a Jeffries or better Wheatstone would be out of reach. In contrast, the mandolin alone should be worth a Wheatstone model 21 or 22, either of which seems like it might be closer to the sound I'm after than the hybrid Anglo that would probably end up being my other option. Anyway, any thoughts or guidance would be greatly appreciated. And on the off chance anyone is looking to get into stringed instruments, and has a steel-reeded metal-ended concertina that they would like to trade for a fairly unique, luthier made, archtop mandolin, send me a PM. Thanks very much for your help. Cheers, James