dabbler

It's always handy to have an extra guitarist hiding in the bushes. Seriously though, sounds great. Nice to hear an unmicced performance with such balanced instrument volumes. -George

Both sound great. More similar than I expected. I did a blind listen and guessed wrong. Thanks for posting these. -George

Adding to an old thread to note a recent success. A couple of pivots on my Beaumont started seizing after much playing. Applying "Dupont Teflon Non-Stick Dry-Film Lubricant" with a fine brush appears to have fixed the problem. I use the bottle (non-aerosol) version of the product. -George

Hi Luke. @inventor explains the reason for the slant in this post. I happily play a Morse Beaumont which does not have a slant. I haven't found the lack of a slant to be a hindrance though I have never had the chance to compare. -George

On my Beaumont I measure about 44.5mm from the button centers of the lowest row of six to the nearest edge of the palm rest. The palm rest itself is 13mm wide. -George

Interesting dilemma. Adding to Łukasz's thought experiment, I'd also consider if any doors are closed by particular choices/outcomes, e.g. future gigging opportunities. -George

As a Beaumont player I'll add a few thoughts. I've had previous experience with guitar and, long ago, saxophone. I found the non-mirrored Beaumont to be intuitive, and never once thought that the asymmetry was frustrating. I'd think that the relative difficulty of Maccann to Hayden would dwarf any trouble related to a non-mirrored versus mirrored layout. To me (and at least a few others) Maccann looks completely nonintuitive yet I've heard some really great Maccann playing. If you think you'll ever sell your instrument the mirrored layout may be a harder sell. Finally, on guitar people visualise chord shapes. I find myself doing the same on the Hayden. It's a helpful mnemonic when I'm playing a tune by memory. The chord shapes concept wouldn't work as well on a mirrored layout. Good luck! -George

The idea of busking during the holiday season and spreading Christmas cheer helped inspire me to pursue this instrument. Of the Christmas tunes I've learned my wife likes this one the best. Shchedryk (Carol of the Bells) Here's a link to the sheet music. Happy holidays to all. -George

Congratulations on your decision to get a Beaumont. It's a great instrument. I was in your situation several months ago and went with the Durall reeds. Never have I thought that the reeds lack any brightness. Recently I baffled the left side with thin cardboard and am enjoying the warmer tone and improved balance. -George

I seem to recall, maybe from his instagram, @alex_holden building an instrument with long-scale reeds. Is this the one? -George

Very impressive. I wonder what type of reed was used. -George

I had been wondering if Bach's inventions could sound satisfactory on the instrument given its limited range. Sounds wonderful!

I have been using the octave treble clef because it suits the range of the 52-button Hayden. I'd be interested in hearing what other duet players prefer. Maybe we could post a poll. -George

Great tune, Didie, and excellent performance! Looking forward to any sheet music you're able to share. Do you use the bass clef for the bottom staff or the octave treble clef? -George

Thanks for these. I have learned a few instruments over the years and consider myself reasonbly good at self-teaching but still need these reminders. Sounds like a great book. I will check it out. A mindset that helps me is to relish the struggle, because learning something challenging is a way to relive an aspect of childhood. -George