Aldon Sanders

I tend to think of the repeated notes as 'drones' (like bagpipes) and accent (push or pull harder) on the melodic, moving notes. Maybe that will help.

Thank you David. I used the thank you button on your reply but wanted to say it with words here. I went ahead and put in an order and a $200 downpayment with Concertina Connection for the Busker. They put me on the list. The lead time is six weeks so I should have it by my birthday in June! I'll post my thoughts on it after I've had some time playing it.

I'm seriously considering buying a Busker to be my travel/take anywhere instrument because my 64 button Wheatstone TT (with amboyna ends!) is so dear to me and also irreplaceable. It is only played at home & church. I've found I actually like the sound of CC's hybrid instruments. I've played (and have) the 30 button EC and an Elise. I guess I just need some positive re-enforcement to take the final plunge! I'd like to hear from anyone who's played or owns the Busker model EC from Concertina Connection. Please tell me what you like or don't like about the Busker and if you think it's durable enough to be a go-anywhere instrument. Thank you! Aldon

That's really nice. It seems as if the tune were custom-made for the duet! How much adapting did you have to do to make the arrangement work on the Elise duet? Is this straight off of the dots? I love listening to the videos you post. Thank you!

Very cool. I've been looking at harmoniums online and would like to have one some day. I still need to learn more about which brands are the better made instruments. The pictures of the shirtless builders reminds me of growing up in Hawaii. My mom had two rules for the dinner table (in order to keep her kids civilized): 1) No eating at the dinner table without a shirt, and 2) No singing while eating! The photo of the tabla maker working while talking on his cell phone is an interesting juxtaposition of age-old skills and modern life. Thanks for posting this!

Sweet. Lovely chords.

Wow! That grooves hard! Loved it.

Welcome Gregory! Of course you already know that this site is populated by beginners, amateurs and pros, and is a fountain of knowledge! I played a Stagi English concertina for qute a few years before I came across my 64 button Wheatstone and never looked back. The Stagi served me well! Once you can play music on a Stagi, any of the finer instruments you play will be an absolute breeze! My advice to my students (guitar, ukulele & flute - not concertina, though it applies) was that you never get better by not playing. Seems like you're already on the right path. Looking forward to your future threads! Aldon

I emailed CC last night and had this response waiting in my inbox this morning: ________________ Hi Aldon, Back in 2002 we produced a few experimental models before settling on the current layout. You have a very early model... Regards, William Concertina Connection Inc. Wakker Concertinas ____________ Mystery solved. I'm glad it's not a fake. In a couple years it will be a 'rare early vintage classic'! Thanks to all for your input.

I've seen these before, for auction online, and always wondered if they were played like the harmonium - with the keyboard across the lap (like Olivia is playing), or with the keyboard upright like accordion and melodeon. Any scholars here have an explanation?

No there are A flat buttons where you'd expect them to be and a G sharps in their expected location. This happens in the middle & high octaves - not the low octave. Aldon

C.net won't let me upload the lefthand side, but it's different too.

I'll try to post some pictures. The button layout is different. Here's the righthand side:

So everything I saw on the web said the range goes from G below middle C to the c 2 octaves above middle C. I bought a used Jackie thinking that range would be fine for what I am playing. The used Jackie arrived today & needs the middle Bb reeds tweaked which I'll do tonight or tomorrow. The thing that puzzles me is that even though I have 30 buttons the range is smaller than what all the charts on the web show. It only goes from G below middle C to the A above the staff. I also noticed that there are both Ab & G# keys in the 2 higher octaves. Did the design change at some point? Can anyone shed light on why the note layout is different on mine? Thank you, Aldon Sanders

(FYI) The link didn't work.

Just found and am reviving this oldish thread to say thank you to Peter Dunk for doing this! I'm going to download the pdfs (couldn't get abc to work on my phone) and give them a go. Good stuff here!

Wow, that was fun! I love the dramatic pauses! Your playing is inspiring. Aldon

Thank you for the informative posts. I'm leaning toward having it done professionally. I plan to get it tuned, so maybe the buttons could be swapped or replaced then. Lots to think about. Aldon

Hi All, I have a 64 button Wheatstone Aeola TT with raised amboyna ends. She's a pretty thing and has a lovely voice. According to the ledgers she was born in the 1950s. My problem is that the buttons around middle C are corroding from overuse and after playing for a while they turn my fingertips black. The buttons were like that when I bought her, so I have been wiping the buttons after each playing session before putting her back in the case. My idea is to move the corroding buttons up to the top of the instrument & move the more pristine buttons at the top down to the middle C area. I've never messed with the buttons on my concertina and have no idea if this adjustment is even possible. Has anyone here done something similar? Is this something best left to professionals? Can the buttons just be swapped around without too much ado? Thank you for enlightening me! Aldon

Bummer. It looks like the New Mexborough Concertina Quartet's album is only available as an LP, which I am unable to play (no record player). I'd happily purchase a CD or mp3 (wma, itunes) if someone can point me to a link. Maybe I should start another thread?

Thank you Paul_Hardy! I found the abcs for Liberty Bell on your link and got it converted to pdf sheet music. The chords are included! Excellent! This is going to be fun to play around with. Thank you John Wild for the additional information. I'm going to look for recordings of the New Mexborough Concertina Quartet. Aldon

Thank you Doug & Takayuki!

Hello fellow concertinists, Does anyone here know the names of the themes from Monty Python's Flying Circus & The Benny Hill Show? I mean other than the blantantly obvious names. Any historic knowledge of these tunes is also welcome. Does anyone know of any concertists playing these songs? They both sound like they would be fun to play on EC. Thank you for any leads and pertinent information! Aldon

Hello everyone, I've been playing my EC off of standard SATB piano arrangements of hymns and have labored over the finger twisting arrangements -- all pure enjoyment for me, mind you. I mainly play the soprano and alto parts together, but add the tenor parts or try to include other moving voices when the chance comes up. So far, the keys of Ab & Db have been the most difficult because of the irregularities in the standard left/right scale patterns and the multiple choices (enharmonics) available for several notes. Though I haven't encountered the key of Gb/F# yet, I'd like to include it in my question: Are there 'standard' fingering patterns on EC for the scales Ab, Db & Gb that would be helpful to practice? Thank you!

Oh, and I forgot to mention, the duet that has the right hand notes upside-down is the Jeffries Duet. If anyone can explain the logic of why an upside-down right hand keyboard might be beneficial I'd appreciate the input. Also, can anyone explain the thinking/logic behind the button layout on the Jeffries duet? It makes my head spin.