danersen

Hello, Time to repost this. This is essentially a high-end best-period Lachenal MacCann Duet with a slightly modified (Chidley) layout so that the pattern is uniform throughout by consistently repeating in all octaves rather than shifting in the upper octave. The difference is minor overall, but wonderful if you appreciate a fully isomorphic layout as I do. A notation chart is in the PDF, herewith. The concertina is in excellent condition with original glass buttons. In Summary:Vintage Lachenal 65b MacCann Duet in modified Chidley layout Hexagonal Wood Ends Glass Buttons Cry Baby and Whistle Wood Handles Leather Wrist Straps The original case in poor, but serviceable, condition as one would expect. I really do want to send this along to someone else who will appreciate it. Post-op prognosis renders it surplus. Please see the PDF, herewith, for photos, evaluation and documentation of work performed by Wim Wakker, and the previously mentioned notation chart. I may be contacted directly using: danersen@gmail Best wishes to all for an enjoyable and meaningful holiday season. Dan Lachenal Chidley SM.pdf

Deleted following sale.

Hello, For details, please open the PDF, herewith, which includes a short summary, some photos, and a keyboard layout chart of this instrument. If interested, please contact me directly at danersen using gmail or via the messenger option here. Be Well, Dan Schoma CBA Unisonoric Bandonion.pdf

Hello, For details, please open the PDF, herewith, which includes a short summary, some photos, and a keyboard layout chart of this instrument. If interested, please contact me directly at danersen using gmail or via the messenger option here. Be Well, Dan Tedrow Stark PDF.pdf

Hello, For details, please open the PDF, herewith, which includes a short summary, some photos, and a keyboard layout chart of this instrument. A previous thread about this concertina can be accessed here: http://www.concertina.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=13267 If interested, please contact me directly at danersen using gmail or via the messenger option here. Be Well, Dan Lachenal Chidley SM.pdf

UPDATE: 24th September Heading to new home on the West Coast.

Per requests, separate posting for individual instruments have been created with a PDF that includes a short summary, several photos, and a keyboard layout chart. The 58b And 62b Jeffries are now spoken for. Hopefully, the Lachenal Chidley will also appeal to someone. My thanks to all who have inquired.

Thank you to each and all of you for your kind words of encouragement. Both of the Jeffries have new homes - on opposite coasts. Hopefully, the Lachenal Chidley will also have new home to be appreciated, played, and their potential explored by another adventurous sort rather than sit here dormant until eventually ending up in a indiscriminate estate auction. Be Well, Dan

UPDATE: Saturday, 24th September The 58b and 62b Jeffries are now spoken for. Still hoping for a new home for Lachenal Chidley Duet - listed separately My thanks to all who have inquired. Much appreciation for all of your encouraging messages. Be Well, Dan

Might a photo of the subject tortoise also be appropriate? Might s/he have a name?

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Hello, again, Jay-Jay, I'm pleased to hear that your Suttner acquisition has been successful. Though (as you know) my Amboyna A-5 meets none of your geographic requirements, it is (still) available - per our prior correspondence. For your (and others') convenience, it is this very one on the Wakker-Concertinas website: http://www.wakker-concertinas.com/A-5.htm Very few A-5's like this have been made as I understand it. No interest in trading as I am in the process of downsizing. Be Well, Dan

There may be a mixture of merit and wishful thinking in this proposition. I remember being given a plastic Flutophone as a VERY young child, and I played it almost incessantly and took it everywhere I could. Over time, I graduated to better instruments - eventually becoming accomplished saxophonist. It's remarkable how well that piece of black and white plastic performed and the enjoyment, satisfaction, and inspiration that it provided. On the other hand, The first mandolin that I encountered wa a POS mandolin and I was so discouraged by it that it was years before I picked up another - a friend's. Fortunately that was a quality instrument, I bonded with it immediately, and I have since enjoyed many decades of mandolin playing. All of this to say that there is a level of quality to any instrument that will generate enthusiasm and encouragement or frustration and discouragement. Where that "break-point" is in a concertina, I don't know; but I do believe that it exists among all instruments including concertinas - especially for a child who is initially being introduced to it and is unlikely to have the perseverance to overcome the shortcomings of an instrument not knowing what pleasure could lie ahead with a finer one.

Hello Jay-Jay, I have been toying with the notion of parting with my W-A5. As-new condition. Now, please understand that I am in the USA, so it will be a bit of an effort to get it to you in Ireland - and, thus, it will have to be a final sale which may be an unnerving proposition. Please advise if your interest is serious enough for me to upload photos. Be Well, Dan

... Or spinning that another way - One that is difficult to put down rather than difficult to play.

Jim, Congratulations on your accordina and your enthusiasm. Perhaps a reasonable "somewhere" to start is this: Given the nature of a CBA layout and that you have only three rows, the requirement to master "crossing-over" is essential. And you will have to cross-over in different sequences. Experiment to determine whether it initially feels more comfortable to you to cross your middle finger under your ring finger to play the next ascending tone or if it is more comfortable/natural to cross your middle finger over your ring finger. Start with a C major scale on the first row (the row closest to your palm) and play the ascending scale INDEX, RING, MIDDLE, RING, MIDDLE, INDEX, RING, INDEX. Then play the ascending scale INDEX, MIDDLE, RING, MIDDLE, RING, MIDDLE or INDEX, RING, INDEX. Then play the ascending scale RING, INDEX, MIDDLE, INDEX, MIDDLE, RING, INDEX or MIDDLE, RING Using the most comfortable and fluid sequence for you, master the C major and C minor ascending scales. Then do the same with the next more comfortable, then the least comfortable. Then take a similar approach to the descending C major scale. After that, do the same for the F major scale starting on the third row (the one farthest from your palm) by working out different crossover sequences and advancing the most comfortable first through the ascending then descending F major and F minor scales. Don't overlook starting with your RING finger as well as your INDEX finger on this row! Then repeat for the G major and G minor scales starting on the middle row. HINT: This is the easiest of all starting on your MIDDLE, then INDEX finger. Having worked through the others, this one will flow like a spring mountain stream. Go SLOWLY! Perfect your crossing technique, patterns, and fluidity. If it sounds boring, it need not be. There are many melodies that can be played within one eight-tone major and minor scale that you can incorporate rather easily and quickly once you get the flow and your crossing sequences in your brain's and fingers' muscle memory. Try to keep all extraneous motion and movement to a minimum from the very beginning. And above all, find and maintain a comfortable position for your hand and wrist so that your fingers are nimble. That's "somewhere" to start - and keep you busy for a while, too. I hope this makes sense. Be Well, Dan

John, FWIW ... PayPal protection coverage depends on a variety of factors. One that I'm quite confident about, however, is this: If you use the "gift" option or "send money to a friend or family" option, as is sometimes proposed to avoid paying transaction fee/s, there is NO (read: zero, zilch, zip, nada, gornisht) protection. Hopefully, the specifics of this matter can be sussed out more privately to mutual satisfaction, but it is curious to me that you mention $2500 and Jenny's eBay listing is $3575 for Buy-It-Now and $2750 for the opening bid. Be Well, Dan

RE: As I want him to be totally happy with his new concertina, I have let him know that I will immediately pay his money back, if he asks me to!! And, THIS is an extraordinary way to conduct business! Bravo, Robert!

A friend in Oz owns a 45 key Lachenal in 4 rows, the only one I've ever seen. Unfortunately, I don't know the original tuning as he had it converted to A/D/G/C (though not in the standard octaves nor the full range). I have seen one Jeffries duet system (4 rows) made by Wheatstone, offered to my (then) wife by Neville Crabb in the early 1980s. I believe it had belonged to a long-standing ICA stalwart who had recently passed away, though I can't recall his name. Hope it hasn't become an anglo.... (Off topic, but perhaps of interest....) Nor I, Malcolm. If you or anyone else has any information or indication about the whereabouts or availability of the Wheatstone duet to which you refer, I will appreciate receiving that information. This would be a grand addition to my family of remarkable duets. Be Well, Dan PS: Still seeking these: 55+ buttons each - Crane Wheatstone Aeola and Crane Lachenal Edeophone!

RE: How about a link? Try this: http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&alt=web&id=331570923596

Hello Jim, Well, given your examples, I'll suggest somewhere between a recorder and a harmonica ... ... Depending on your recorder's chamber bore and length ... Depending on the size of the harmonica and quality of the reeds (think closer to a Suzuki chromatic 64 round hole - not exactly Dylan) Marcel's instruments are well built, efficient, and incorporate excellent and responsive reeds. It might actually be more likely to overplay and squawk the reeds than underplay them. The number of reeds that you are playing and where you are on the keyboard also affects this. It's different if you are playing a four-note chord or a single note melody and if you are playing closer or farther from the mouthpiece. But it's not that difficult if you go slowly, go softly, ease into it, relax, and pay attention. In time, your brain will process it and take command so you won't have to think about it so much - sort of like developing your embouchure on the trumpet. Hope this helps - at least a bit. Dan

Congratulations, Jim. Marcel is a terrific person. I'm guessing that you will be quite pleased with one of his Accordinas. The uniform or mixed buttons are little more than way finding and aesthetics decisions. Enjoy! Dan

Hello Jim, RE: I am going to order a Dreux instrument. Am I correct in thinking that if I want I can change the location of the mouthpiece myself (if I have the necessary mouthpiece)? A: I do not think that this is a correct assumption. The side and end mouthpiece models are not "interchangeable" and are built to accommodate either a side mouthpiece OR an end mouthpiece. RE: I wouldn't want to have to send the instrument to France just to change the mouthpiece location. A: You would need to exchange it for a completely different model as they are constructed differently. RE: I've heard that each instrument is special ordered and it can take a few months for it to arrive. Is that your understanding? A: My last correspondence with Marcel was several years ago. At that time he built each instument when ordered and carried no inventory or stock. I don't know if that is the case today. RE: Any further suggestions apprciated, including any method books that might be helpful. I might be able to struggle through the Galliano book. A: I think that most any CBA c-griff tutor which addresses right-hand technique will serve you well. The trick is finding your own comfortable way to hold and balance the little bugger. That part is very personal and involves some experimentation RE: Hopefully there are excercises to help my fingers get used to the most common movements, A: Yes, the same as for all of the other instruments you list - PRACTICE YOUR SCALES AND ARPEGGIOS in all keys - over and over and over, again. And learn the chord patterns (for maj, min, 7ths, 6th, dim and aug) in all three positions, I.e., with the root tone in each of the three rows RE: Suggestions on how to make a nice sound breath/embouchure-wise. A: I know of nothing that relates to this in print. I think this might also be more a matter of experimentation. RE: If you don't mind...why do you have three accordinas? A: The truthful answer is unwarranted excess. I have one to take out and one to remain safely at home (and also serve as a back-up if anything happened to my traveler). An acquaintance wasn't getting along particularly well with his and decided to part with it to address some financial needs. Given how difficult they can be to acquire just when you want one, I bought his at market price with no specific purpose in mind for it. If you have definitely decided to pursue a Dreux with a long Nicolas mouthpiece, I might be persuaded to part with it for a price fair to both of us. Be Well, Dan

Hello Jim, I have limited experience with original Borels, no direct experience with a Carrel, and extensive experience with Marcel's (Dreux) Accordinas. There is definitely allure to a Beuscher/Borel instrument, but with that comes the complications associated with age, deteriorating components, few who can maintain, service, or repair them, and virtually none in as-new condition requiring both effort and further investment of time and expense after acquisition. The Carrel design is generally consistent with conventional Borel, but has less appeal to me in its materials, construction, and playability. Marcel's instruments are substantially akin to the Borel, but have some improvements. That said, Marcel's are heavier, thicker, and a tad bulkier. Perhaps, this contributes to what I consider more depth and resonance in tone. All take some getting used to and feel awkward at first. There is a learning curve and an adjustment period. I found the end mouthpiece location (in particular with the long Nicolas mouthpiece on Marcel's) preferable to the side location - both for comfort and stability. The mechanism of Marcel's Accordinas is superior to any other that I have played, the reeds are superb, and the tuning is precise. I also like the aesthetics of Marcel's fretwork which I think also contributes to the character of sound. I own three Dreux Accordinas and they are virtually indistinguishable except for the one which has a brushed rather than shiny finish and is different both visually and to the touch. If you have more specific questions, I will attempt to share any experience that relates directly to them. I hope this general reply is helpful in some way. Be Well, Dan

Hello Jim, At least one if us here plays the Accordina. I'll respond more fully when time permits. Short version: Marcel's instruments are superb. Be Well, Dan