Butttons19

I have now upgraded and looking to sell my Rochelle. It has a buzz on one of the left hand buttons (I'm not knowledgable to fix it) and one strap is held together with black tape! It's served me well. I'm in Hastings, UK. Might anyone be interested? It comes with a soft case too. I will upload some photo's later. All the best Emma

So I eventually bought a second hand Rochelle from Concertina Connection in the U.S. I had no idea that I'd have to pay almost £70 to get it through customs!! So, that kind of brought the price up A LOT for me! I had a quick go on it at work (it got delivered there) and have finally managed to bring it home on my bike today. Having had a tinker on it, I noticed that one of the notes is really fuzzy - so I'm a bit disappointed that I wasn't told about the condition of it before I bought it. Is there anything I can do about this, in terms of getting it fixed? Looking forward to properly having a go tomorrow - I'm following OIAM online at the moment and learning Maggie in the woods.

Hi Latetothegame - I didn't see the video of the Tina, but I was almost about to buy one actually. You've probably now seen my post above. But I did give the Tina a lot of thought.

I'd like to say a bit thanks to everyone that contributed to this post After much deliberation and discussion I've decided to go with a Rochelle and have one on the way from Concertina Connection from the U.S. They have sold me a preloved one for £290 pounds that includes postage and packaging. To say I'm excited, is an understatement!!

Thanks so much everyone. Im not looking at 26 buttons online. I did do a bit more research on the Rochelle and there was some discussion with regards to the physical distance between the buttons. I have very small hands and some said that it was a bit on the 'clunky' side. Although I'm currently using a Scarlatti...so that's pretty clunky I think?!

HI JimmyM - thanks for you reply. Although I've had this 20button for what seems like forever, I've not actually got to play it much. Mainly lack of confidence and not being able to find anyone in my town or beyond who plays one, enough to get mega enthusiastic about it. But now I have!! And I've found a folk club in my town!! Hooray!! What a good suggestion about getting a 26 button. Id never even thought of that. That would work, right? I just looked up Barleycorn - thanks. Yeah, I'm starting to think the concertina named 'Tina' is probably not the one, as no one seems to have heard of it.

I really do appreciate the replies here - thank you so much. Apologies to Mikefule who clearly is not a heavy weight boxer!! So I have looked at the Hobgoblin Scarlatti 30 button (which is where I purchased my 20 button, at Cambridge Folk Festival 8/9 years ago!) and it is a lot cheaper than the Rochelle. I'd like to ideally purchase a second hand restored 30 button, not a Chinese model, but wouldn't know where to start so think its safer for me to either purchase a second hand (ideally) or a new Rochelle or Scarlatti. I think once I've mastered a few tunes and I've really, truly given this a go, I can then upgrade. However, I will look at Bastari/Stagi. Many thanks again - really appreciate the help

Thanks Heavyweight Boxer (are you really??!) Ooh yes, well I just looked up Marcus...a bit (a lot!) out of my price range for now. I'm pretty sure I'd like to play Irish. Im very excited about this! I started following OAIM with Edel Fox and realised I couldn't find my C sharp...because I don't have one on my 20! So, yes I really need a 30 button. Any ideas about the 'Tina' from The Irish Concertinas?

http://www.theirishconcertinacompany.com/products/beginner-concertinas/ I found a 'Tina' which is sold by the above company (Im in the UK) at 350 Euros which equates to about £310 Has anyone used one of these? Thanks

Hello there, I've been on this site for several years and owned my 20 button anglo concertina, a cheap Scarlatti for around 8 years now. Every now and then I have a real pop at trying to play it and then I get really disheartened. I'm really serious about it this time and have managed to make some good connections in my home town. So, with this is mind, I'd like to get a 30 button C/G anglo - my funds are really, really limited. I'm learning from scratch. I'm signing up to the online Irish Music Academy to learn and then meeting other potential players once a fortnight. My budget is tight - I can stretch to £300/400 if I start to save a bit more. I know this isn't much, and I will be selling on my 20 button with hard case so hoping to get approx £100 for it. I've look at Concertina Connection Rochelle's that I've heard are much better than 'Made in China' (like mine!). I wouldn't know whether something had a good sound or not, because I've only ever heard professional concertina players at good Folk events who clearly have amazing instruments. Any ideas? I know this topic has probably been covered to its deaths end! Thanks all Emma

Hi, thanks a lot for your help. Im in the south, Hastings, nearish Brighton Hobgoblin (its an hour away).

Do you think its possible to get a second hand Jackie? As a beginner should I be looking for a Jackie or a Jack? Thanks

Hi Kaz, Thanks for your reply - I'll have a look at those! I thought about borrowing one, theres a local folk club that I've just got in touch with and they've invited me a long to watch..perhaps I can at least hold one to know if it feels good. Cheers, Emma

Hello there, I am extremely interested in purchasing and learning the English Concertina. I already have a 20 button anglo Scarlatti but struggle to play it effectively. I thought an English may be more suitable? At least, Id like to try it and find out. I have only a small budget unfortunately - I see there is an Hohner 48 button on ebay for starting price 200 pounds (no bids yet) - in very good used condition. I also see at Hobgoblin they have Scarlatti 30 button for around 250 new. I know these dont have a fantastic reputation and they are very basic and probably flimsy with many faults but im unable to afford anything more at the moment! I've never played or tried anything apart from my Scarlatti anglo. I've read that it might be better to get a used Stagi but again, I've not found one in my budget. Any thoughts would be gratefully received!! Thanks, Emma