Chris Rose

Hi David, I did not know about the Oraghallaigh website...very nice! Thank you. I appreciate the reminder regarding proper celtic session etiquette. I am accostomed to American old-timey sessions, where for the most part all levels of players are welcome to play along-which, of course, can have its problems. Some of my celtic session friends say something to the effect of: 'With old-time music, you know (learn) the tune by the end of it being played, with celtic, you know the tune before you play it.' Chris

Greetings David, I am learning my way around my anglo, recently introducing myself to the key of A. I get your message loud and clear about getting the basics down; I find myself tempting to be impatient and learn ornamentation before I learn the tune. When you say that tunes need to be "mapped out," I think you are suggesting note by note, with consideration, for example, which G or C to use?? Then, once that is done, practice it until the tune becomes muscle memory???....which at my age is a LOT of times. At this early stage of my learning, that is what I have been doing with some success. Does anyone practice technique: scales, appegios, intervals, etc..or is it all about building a repetoire of tunes? I ask because it would also be nice to learn to improvise, such as during a session when a tune I don't know is being played. Many thanks...and great discussion. Chris

nobody owns ideas. but i respect what he does own, which is the copyright to his scale sheets, sheet music and recordings. besides, a stupid video online could never replace spending a week learning from someone as gifted a teacher and player as noel. which reminds me... chris, did you ever think of making it out to one of noel's camps? you could ask him how to play in A major instead of us! you bet, i WILL be attending one of his workshops, although probably not until 2008. i have to spend my time/resources in 2007 in building a cabin on some acerage i bought when acerage was still dirt cheep (i digress). anyway, yea, ive been listening intently to noels recordings and have decided i really, really, like his playing and would like to put time, effort and resources into attending one of his courses. i currently live in california (acerage in wisconsin), there's a workshop in oregon, but am considering making a trip to ireland (never been) for a great concertina adventure. i have a wakker anglo that sounds really nice, but at this point im simply playing "notes." so, id like to learn more keys, besides g and c, and also want to learn the inflections that noels music so pleasant. for example, the apparent bowed triplet (as referred to by fiddle players)...how does noel do that on the concertina??? not sure, but am looking forward to attending the workshops. by the way, i think the video is awesome.... im practicing scales daily. chris

wow...how cool is that ! thanks Mick. ill need to spend some time with these...what a great old mail. it will be fun to compare these with the other info sent. once again i used a term loosly...modal. there are several old time tunes we play locally here that are referred to as modal; kitchen girl, cold frosty morning, cluck old hen. they are played with out any sharps or flats but centered around A. so, an A-scale with all naturals. is this not the "relative minor" of C...? probably is not truly a modal tune. john...now thats tempting. i have a couple fiddles that are all tuned differently. a banjo player friend of mine now has 4-banjos he has tuned in different keys.

wonderful! thanks so much. i just watched the video. i will use that as well as the fingering charts dana so generously provided. yes, i do have a wheatstone layout, but i think between your video and the chart i can make a lot of headway. foxhunter sounds like a nice tune, ill scrounge up the transcription and perhaps use it to practice this key. thanks again for taking the time david. chris

I wasn't clear..sorry about that. I meant A-major. D would be great too, of course, as the fiddle players love this key. The A-modal is another highly used key by local players. I'm actually glad for the confusion in my first posting because it reminds me that I could pick up a few of the modal tunes played in sessions around here. I guess Im simply playing a C-major scale beginning on the A, LH middle row index finger, and work my way up the scale for the A-modal?? I sent you an email Dana. Thanks to you both for replying. Chris

I've been playing in G using the fingering pattern taught by Noel Hill. I learned this from a guy (not local) who was fortunate enough to attend of of Noels workshops. I think I'm ready to move on to another key, and a lot of my local fiddle friends play in A. Do I need another instrument, or do I need to cross over rows to play in A on my c/g? Any thoughts on this? I tried the search engine for the forum, but no luck. Ciao, Chris

Im really a novice. But someone told me that they thought you could play the same note three times quickly using three different fingers, in a quick tapping like motion. For example, by first using the ring finger, then middle, then index finger. Perhaps this is not a "roll," but rather a graced triplet.

I'd love to meet and jam with any C-net members who might be going to the Summer Solstice gathering on June 23-25. You can check out the website at: http://www.ctms-folkmusic.org/festival/Solstice/Schedule.asp Mike Eskin is leading a workshop on the anglo. I suspect it will be celtic music based. If anyone is heading that way, let me know and I'll watch out for you. Chris

Glad you're up and about Geoff... Happy playing during your recovery.

Ive been searching historic threads on this subject, but am still a bit puzzled. i.e., an inexpensive method of digitally recording a concertina. I would like to record my new Wakker W-A2, Amboyna flat ended and post it. However, Ive found that some of the interesting overtones are simply not captured. I can get the metal reed sound that a harmonica makes recorded, but the instrument also has an organic reed sound like an oboe as well, that just doesnt come through the recording. It is the latter sound that, to me, is the interesting and pleasing aspect of the instrument. Ive got two microphones. A Sony stereo mic that I use with a Sony MiniDisc. It has an AA battery. I also have a Shure-SM58 mic that sounds better than the Sony, but the recording lacks volume. This mic does not have a battery. I also need to go from a 1/4 inch plug to an 1/8 inch through a reducer when using this mic. If I want to use the Shure, do I need to get some sort of a pre-amp between the mic and the computer? Also, is the resulting sound quality also a function of the computer sounds card?

And a sustained silence drifted over the thread...... Ive always wondered how this worked. Jim, Ill have to read over your explanation a few times to fully understand. When I was a kid I started playing music on the trumpet...a Bb instrument. Then of course there were the Eb instruments in the band, and so on. I didnt understand why, but realized my C was a Bb on the piano. Thanks for putting this great explanation in one tidy place. Its now up to me to figure it out once and for all.

Yes, Im with you on this subject. Not to insult anyone who has used it, but... I've spent some considerable time at the C.net recorded tunes page. Im a beginner, and was looking for the right instrument for me. The recorded page is a great source for getting some idea of the voices of various concertinas. I must say, however, that whenever I came across a recording packed with reverb, I simply clicked the stop button before the tune even ended.

Beautiful! Congratulations Henk.. Not to take the moment away...but I just thought I would mention that I received mine as well in this batch. It is the W-A2 with flat amboyna ends and a Wheatstone layout. I believe the voice is a little different, perhaps a bit more "woody" sounding. I'm not really a good player, but will get a sound clip up for comparison sake. I think the difference can be heard. I really love it, it's keeping me awake! Cheers everyone, I'm sure we all love our individual instruments.

i managed to sqeeze out "haste to the wedding." i chose that because i knew the tune and could figure it out on the concertina. i still like that tune.