wunks

Try Wexford Carol in a couple different keys . I'll bet you can find a key other than C/G that it fits!

I don't know much about music theory or how an anglo is set up but try A minor and E minor (relative minors for C and G). I know from messing around with a 2 row melodeon trying to play Quebecois music that lots of tunes fit that are not in either full scale row. You just won't be able to play chromatically in every key. If your box has some accidentals try playing in those keys and see what fits.

I think any acoustic solution should be internal because the instrument is so beautiful. What comes to mind is the banjo tone ring. The examples of concertinas with perforated ends recently shown here don't in my opinion improve the looks of the instrument and aren't constructed like a tone ring. For an excellent article by Barry Hunn on the function and materials of banjo tone rings see: blog.deeringbanjos.com/what-banjo-tone-rings-do .

It occurs to me that part of my difficulty is that this (Wexford) is a song as well as a tune and when the two are paired it's very smooth. For me the ornamentation puts the melody in a strait jacket and it just sits there unable to move.

Sounds lovely. My only (subjective of course) suggestion would be not to play the same roll in the same place every time and use phrases of the tune without ornament on occasion. The harmonies are beautiful but the melody might flow more. 🙂

It's complicated because it involves this Wheatstone Jeff duet which is a bit of an oddball itself and I don't want to hijack the thread. I'd need to get some pictures together and maybe start a new thread later but I'll send you a brief PM.

I Think it makes sense for my box which has three empty pairs of reed slots at the low end. It seems relevant to this thread also that one could view the section of overlap on a duet as constituting a pair of mini ECs, one for each hand. Playing arpeggios and triplets in a side to side manner when playing mid-range is easier and I think sounds better than switching sides abruptly when you run out of buttons.

Perhaps to become more complex. I'm thinking of adding a bisonoric bass row to my Jeffries......😲

Nice looking 18 button EC craigslist western Mass.

I find a good way to add interest when practicing is to multitask by playing tunes that modulate. The switch to another key snaps your brain back into focus. lots of tunes adapted from 2 row melodeon have this feature.

Just found it on u-tube. "Shepherd's Rocking Carol" nice simple piano rendition by Philip Aaberg. remarkably similar to "twinkle Twinkle Little Star". Merry Christmas!.......😊

Hmmm... The arrangement is written in 5 parts: Soprano, alto, baritone, flute and handbells/glockenspiel with optional parts for bells and glockenspiel. Lyrics are included. To be played "softly slowly". Key of G with a 2/2 time signature. I'm assuming the soprano part is the lead. I'll bet it would sound gorgeous with a concertina or two and maybe a dulcimer or bowed psaltry. Lets see if anyone else responds. I'd mail it to someone willing to work it up for a presentation for the holidays! How would I "provide the dots" Wolf? I'm fairly archaic as to my tech. skills......😏

I've been thinking about tunes to play for the holiday season. While rummaging about in the thrift shop I found an old piece of sheet music for a "Shepherds Rocking Carol" It says it's a Czech folk song. It would take me a couple of hours to parse it out as I don't sight read and then I wouldn't know how it should really sound. Does anyone here know it and , if so would you play it?

I recently stumbled upon an article in Concertina Magazine from 1985 written by Polly Clap concerning The Jeffries duet system. In it she states that examples were produced by other makers, specifically Crab, Wheatstone and later Colin Dipper. She includes a note chart for a 58 button example and says boxes with up to 88 were produced. I have a rather large Wheatstone Jeff pattern, and a Jeffries 50 button that I acquired in the late 60's early 70's. I also have a chart for a 44b. The Jeffries is a match for Nick Robertshaw's chart but the Wheatstone at 53b is significantly different and the 44b is different from either. It's reeds (Wheatstone's) are arranged in a (conventional?) radial pattern as opposed to the lateral set up of the Jeffries. there are empty spaces for 3 pairs of reeds at the low end which would bring it into compliance (sort of) with the 58b. I'm considering adding these notes and making a couple of other changes to make it match the 58 button, but there seems to be a lot of variation even within Jeffries made instruments. Does anyone have information about other makers of Jeff duets? If there are owners here of these duets by Jeffries or any other maker I would be grateful for a note chart to the end of establishing a loose standard for instruments of various button counts. You can simply type the notes in lines followed by a / for end of row, or stack them. Indicate a thumb key with a th. You can PM me so as not to clutter the site. Thanx.

www.concertinaconnection.com is listing bushed chrome over wood buttons. Flat or domed.