Richard Mellish
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Everything posted by Richard Mellish
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scatesconcertinas.com
Richard Mellish replied to Chris Flint's topic in General Concertina Discussion
With any luck the web pages will remain available on the Internet Archive. -
Same here. Having been accustomed to 40-key Wheatstone-layout instruments for 40 years, I would find the missing buttons frustrating. But it should be a great acquisition for anyone who's used to 30.
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How many concertinas have you owned/tried?
Richard Mellish replied to LR71's topic in General Concertina Discussion
I currently own nine. I think I have previously owned and then passed on only another four. -
Looking to buy intermediate concertina
Richard Mellish replied to Nollaig McBrien's topic in Buy & Sell
Did you mean C/D? Edit: That's was what it said, hence my query. Now corrected. -
The more I look at the charts of the notes, the stranger they seem. I mentioned the two D4s in the same direction on the LH end. In fact the standard Wheatstone 40-key layout would have two, but this concertina has three in the same direction on the LH end (plus one on pull as normal, but no pull D4 on the RH end). I am posting this partly to make that correction to my earlier post but also to bump this thread in the hope of prompting someone across the Pond (from me) to take it on.
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My southafrikan concertina collection
Richard Mellish replied to Jacokotze's topic in General Concertina Discussion
FWIW my 1965 Wheatstone D-A, which I bought on here from a chap in South Africa, has black baffles. -
Playing an English concertina surely requires the brain hemispheres to talk to each other even more intensely.
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Kevin, Although you said you'd like it to go to a museum, many of us believe that musical instruments deserve to be played. So I am hoping that someone on here will offer it a home, and preferably someone in North America, to save the hassle and expense of overseas shipping. If however no-one comes along, I will seriously consider adding it to my collection. I justify buying concertinas even though I don't play them as much as they deserve, because they retain their value and can be sold if necessary to support me in my dotage. If it does come here I will certainly want all the notes restored to the standard Wheatstone 40-key pattern, but that is a manageable job for a competent concertina maker/repairer.
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That seems very plausible, and might explain the Xs against some of pad holes. It would be helpful for the OP to post pictures of the reeds, both to show their condition and possibly to reveal their original pitches. I hope this instrument finds a home with someone on here who can give us a full report on its condition and, preferably, get all the notes restored to the usual Wheatstone ones. As I said, I am half tempted to buy it myself. However I do already have a Wheatstone (Dickinson) G/D which has served me very well for nearly 40 years ...
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Big list of Anglo layouts
Richard Mellish replied to Luke Hillman's topic in Instrument Construction & Repair
As the owner of two variants on Wheatstone 40-key layout I could contribute those, but how do I do that? -
The "Wheatstone (ish!) layout" description is spot-on. The extra buttons beyond the standard 30 are in the same positions as standard Wheatstone, but the two D4s in the same direction on the LH end and the two D#5s in the same direction on the RH end seem a very strange waste of buttons unless someone had a strong wish to use particular fingerings. Possibly it was built as a special or someone had these notes changed for their particular requirements, or perhaps some reeds have drifted badly. But some notes seem much too different to have drifted so far, e.g. on the RH end, middle row, first button push D#5 instead of C5, and G#6 instead of A4. If I were to buy it (which I am half tempted to do) I would certainly want it re-tuned and/or reeds replaced as necessary to convert it back to standard. Questions for the OP. How did you identify the notes? Were they close to those you have marked or were some of them many cents out? If it is to be shipped to the UK or Europe, import tax is likely to be a much bigger deal than the cost of shipping.
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The use of shellac as an adhesive
Richard Mellish replied to Famuswood's topic in Instrument Construction & Repair
I'm wondering whether the OP forgot to include a smiley. -
Transition from Anglo to English or ???
Richard Mellish replied to mike_s's topic in General Concertina Discussion
Irrespective of the ease or difficulty of the transition to a different system, might the load on your thumbs be a problem if you already have some arthritis? -
I have no connection with this, but it was mentioned on the Anglo Wizard thread and seems worth a mention here. https://detroit.craigslist.org/mcb/msg/d/washington-40-button-anglo-concertina/7655943887.html It could be useful for someone to see how they get on with the extra buttons without spending much money.
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I had clear priorities when playing for morris. Top priority: play loud enough to be heard above the sound of the dancers' clogs and sticks and general street noise. (Rationale: if they can't hear you, you might as well not be playing at all.) Middle priority: keep the rhythm. Bottom priority: play the right notes.
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Tedrow has arrived and it is FANTASTIC!!!
Richard Mellish replied to Sandra A's topic in General Concertina Discussion
That chart is mind-boggling, with all those different chords just for A. I have been playing for over 50 years and have never felt the need for very many chords. When I was a child my grandfather showed me a few chords on the piano, which I now recognise as what guitarists call the "three chord trick". Those are essentially what I use on the Anglo, though usually not all the possible notes of a chord at the same time. A one-row melodion has just two chords, one on pull and one on push, and those serve well enough. I'm not saying no-one ever needs some of those chords, but I think I am saying Walk before you run. -
Replacing a reed on a cheap concertina
Richard Mellish replied to Kumatina's topic in Instrument Construction & Repair
Clarification: "accordion" to me implies piano accordion or 3- or 5-row chromatic. What some call a diatonic accordion I think of as a melodion. If an accordion repairer deals with the latter, then a reed plate with different notes should be no problem. -
Replacing a reed on a cheap concertina
Richard Mellish replied to Kumatina's topic in Instrument Construction & Repair
A spare accordion reed block will have both reeds tuned to the same note, so you will need to explain to the repairer that you need two different notes. -
My Bb/F baritone, which was made for me by the Dippers in 2009, cost me then just under £4000. It is 40-key, slightly modified Wheatstone layout. Reduce that figure somewhat if you only want 30-key, then add on a lot for inflation. I don't know if any of the makers of hybrids do or could offer a Bb/F baritone, but it seems worth asking all of them. And you could ask all the dealers what sort of price they would want if and when they get hold of one.
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