AnnC

If you're at Whitby next year use the no.91 bus ( Castle Park ) that stops outside the Rugby Club (ask for White Leys Road ). It's a circular which will take you past Stakesby School ( one of the other campsites ) and down into town, it's a half hourly sevice on week days but a bit sparse on weekends. See you at Horwich's 30th do Cheers Annl

Here are a couple of snaps of the massed 'Scratch side' concertina's, there was another Anglo player but he was busy dancing when the photo was taken. Concertinas outnumbered melodeons 5 to 2 this year

I used to have a Gremlin almost identical to the one on e-bay and it was an excellent instrument, I only sold it after getting the Dipper as it wasn't getting played and that seemed a waste of a good concertina.

There are concertinas all over the place this year, there are 4 of them with the Scratch side alone! 1 English, 1 Ideophone and 2 Anglos. I'll try to remember to take the camera out tomorrow and get snaps. I followed Clive's directions and found him amidst a throng of Rose & Castle but he'd not got his concertina with him. Cheers Annl

AAAaargh....... it's tommorow and I've not played any Cotswold scince last year with the Scratch Queue the sound of frantic practicing.....

I'm with them too, touch wood I've never had to claim but they've always been very good about raising the 'sum insured' figure to reflect the increasing cost of replacing the instrument and you talk to a person in this country, not someone in a call centre in far flung foreign parts. I insured my concertina with them as soon as I got a final delivery date and like Woody my cover includes theft from a car, while abroad and accidental damage. I did think of putting it on the house insurance but when I looked at the pros and cons having a specialised insurers, although more expensive, was much the better as it covered more eventualities.

Clive It was nae problem pet, there might be the odd thing I've missed off it by accident but most of it's there. Always nice to know what's planned in advance and which sides will be around. There seem to be fewer and fewer morris sides each year, I remember playing in the parade one year and it was the best part of half an hour before our side got to the ' starting post' in Cresent Gardens, the queue snaked to and fro around the flower beds with impromptu music sessions starting up as bored musicians flexed their fingers, lately it's been a case of blink twice and you miss the parade completely. Cheers Annl ( We've got Morris men in the attic for Folk week, it's nearly the same as having bats but house trained )

And for those interested in Real Ales and Ciders...... The Shambles Bar in the East Side market place will have 6 Real Ales and at least one 'cloudy' cider. Shame that I can't drink and play...... if I do the tunes that come out at the fingers are not the ones that the dancers are expecting

I'll be the short, plump, cheerfull concertina player with the scratch side. Look for the tall moustached chap ( hubby ) and let your gaze drop a foot or so........ unless of course he's popped to get a beer refill, in which case look for the hair in a bun and a broad grin.

Looking through the programme your side is down for the following...... Saturday 12.45- 1.30 Dance display at the Scoresby monument with Boojum, Flag and Bone Gang and Redbournestoke 2.15- 3.00 Dance display up by the Whalebones with Boojum, Flag and Bone & Redbournestoke 3.15-4.00 Dance Display at the Bandstand, same sides as before Sunday 1.00- 1.45 Dance display at the Bandstand with Ouse Wash Molly and Sciorr 2.15- 3.00 Dance display at Scoresby Monument , as above with Stone Monkey too 3.30- 4.15 Dance display at the Whalebones with Sciorr and Stone Monkey Monday......Free Tuesday 11.30- 12.50 North West workshop at the Metropole ( funnily your side is not down for the whole weeks worth of workshops ) 1.30- 2.30 dance display at the Bandstand with Ouse Wash, Redbournestoke and Sciorr Wednesday 11.30- 12.50 North West workshop at the Metropole 2.15- 3.00 Dance display by the Whalebones withSciorr, Stone Monkey 3.30- 4.15 Dance display, Scoresby monument, sides as above Thursday No workshop today, Rivington are down to take it 12.45- 1.30 Dance display Scoresby monument with Mortimers and Ouse Wash Molly 2.00- 2.30 Dance display at the Bandstand with Boojum 3.00- 3.45 Dance display Scoresby monument with Boojum and Dukes Dandy Friday Rivington still have the workshop at the Met 12.15- 1.15 Dance display at the Bandstand with Boojum, Mortimers and Ouse Wash 1.45- 2.15 Dance display Scoresby monument with Boojum 3.00- 3.45 Dance display Bandstand with Boojum, Mortimers and Ouse Wash 4.30- 6.00 Final parade starts from Crescent Gardens to the Banstand for dance displays Hope this is of use, I'm taking a friends daughter to some workshops most mornings but will keep an eye out for other concertina players around town. I put a short resume of concertina related events in the News etc. Forum which may be of interest. Cheers

I thought it was called a 'grace' note ( but I could well be wrong ) it's a lovely name for a note anyway

We've just downloaded Skype on our computer and the speech quality is superb, chatting to my brother-in-law in Australia was much clearer than on the ordinary phone. It would be interesting to see how an online session would work.

And for this year one of the early morning venues is no longer under the management of the people he lists as being the landlords and while the present landlady, who has had the tennancy for just over a year and was 'in post' last folk week, was aware of an early morning event she was did not know that it ran past her opening time and on each morning from Sunday through to the Friday.......... It should be interesting as the usual clientel are hard swearing trawlermen. Looking forward to seeing any concertina players who can get to the festival Cheers

I've splashed out on a programme and there are a fair few concertina related items, I'll list them as they appear in the programme (apologies in advance for any I miss ) I'll put the cost in pounds of each event in brackets. (These are just the highlights, I'd be typing until August to get everything in ) Saturday 19th Aug Music concert in the Rifle Club, 2.30pm - 5pm John Kirkpatrick is amongst those appearing ( £ 7 ) Music session, Fishermens Rowing Club, 5pm -7pm Alistair Anderson ( donations encouraged, no set cost ) Family Club, Rifle Club 6.30pm - 9pm Tim Laycock is one of the artists listed ( £ 5 ) Concert, Resolution Hotel, 7.30pm - 11.30pm Dave Townsend is on the list of artists (£ 9 ) Concet, Rifle Club, 9.30pm - 12 midnight John Kirkpatrick on the artists list ( £ 8 ) Sunday 20th St. Mary's Church 9.45am Church Service, Alistair Anderson and Dave Townsend are among those taking part, this is a religious service not a 'folk do' as such so please respect this. Anglo Concertina, Yacht Club, 10am - 11.20am Andy Casserley workshop for beginners ( £ 5 ) The English Tradition, Rifle Club, 1pm - 3pm Alistair Anderson on the guest list ( £ 7 ) Concert, Metropole Hotel, 3pm - 5pm Tim Laycock is one of the artists ( £ 8 ) Acoustic Concert, Whitby Football Club, 7pm - 11pm guests include John Kirkpatrick ( £ 6 ) Concert, Rugby Club, 7.30pm - 11.30pm Iris Bishop is among the artists ( £ 8 ) Monday 21st Concertina Care and Troubleshooting, Rifle Club, 11.30am - 12.50pm Dave Elliott ( £ 5 ) Ceildah, Metropole Hotel, 7.30pm - 11pm, Iris Bishop is one of the artists ( £ 9 ) Concert, Football Club, 7.30pm - 11pm, Alistair Anderson is one of the artists ( £ 6 ) Stories in words,song and music, Yacht Club, 8pm - 11pm, John Jirkpatrick is on the list ( £ 7 ) Tuesday 22nd Song accompanment on English Concertina, Yacht Club, 10am - 11.20am, Dave Townsend ( £ 5 ) Northumbrian Ceildah, song and music, Metropole Hotel, 7.30pm - 10.30pm Alistair Anderson is one of the artists ( £ 8 ) One in, one, one out, Yacht Club, 8pm - 10.30pm TimLaycock and others ( £ 7 ) Concert, Rifle Club, 9.30pm - 12 Dave Townsend is on the list ( £ 8 ) Wednesday 23rd Anglo Concertina, Yacht Club, 10am - 11.20am, Andy Casserley workshop for beginners ( £ 5 ) One at a time please, Yacht Club, 1.15pm - 2.45pm, John Kirkpatrick and others ( £ 6 ) Music session,Fishermens Rowing Club, 5pm - 7pm, John Kirkpatrick ( donations requested, no set fee ) Thursday 24th Song Accompanment on English Concertina, Endeavour Pub, 10am - 11.20am Steve Turner ( £ 5 ) Tunes of Scan Tester, Yacht Club, 10am - 11.20am. Will Duke ( £ 5 ) Concert, Rifle Club, 3pm - 5pm with John Kirkpatrick and others ( £ 7 ) Friday 25th The Works of Henry Lawson, Consevative Club, 10am - 11.20am Iris Bishop & MartynWyndham Read (£5) The heritage of the Lakeland Fiddlers, Consevative Club bar, 10am - 11.20am Dave Townsend ( £ 5 ) Concertina Repair Workshop, Rifle Club, 11.30am - 12.50pm, Dave Elliott ( £ 5 ) The Dorset Sailor, Royal Hotel, 1.15pm - 3.30pm, Tim Laycocks' one man play ( £ 7 ) All Butoned Up, Metropole Hotel, 5.30pm - 7pm, Alistair Anderson, Andy Casserley and others ( £ 8 ) practically very evening concert on the Friday has a concertina player in there somewhere. If you're coming it's worth buying a programme as there's so much to do and see, there'a a beginners Ceildah band workshop with Alistair Anderson that runs though the week as well as a Village band workshop run by Dave Townsend. Oh for a tardis and deep pockets to get to everything I'd like to Cheers Ann

I've never tried any Pink Floyd but years ago I used to mangle my way through the Animals 'House of the Rising Sun'

Don't be frightened by the timescale which I have quoted; Colin would have viewed mine as a "special" (it is special). For a more standard (say 30 key C/G, wooden ends, plain black bellows), I'm guessing that Colin would quote 3 years, based upon a conversation which I had with him, earlier this year. So, my overall impression, a few years down the line is as follows: It looks absolutely stunning. It sounds wonderful. It has power, but a more mellow tone than a metal-ended box. It plays really well. So, my advice would be to canvass option (which you are doing). Form a good idea of what you think that you want. Talk to Colin, at length (might be up to an hour on the telephone, as he is very chatty). Agree a specification, and then stick with it. Posts on this Forum confirm that a change in spec. will put you further back in the queue. Finally, check with Colin about every six months to ensure that you are moving up his queue. Hope that this helps. Regards, Peter. (Happy Dipper owner) I ordrerd mine after asking a lot of people who they thought were the best makers and seeing who was mentioned most. Apart from asking for a 30 button instrument with 7 fold bellows that would be suitable for both open air morris and indoor ceildah playing and requesting a couple of notes changed on the top row everything was left to Colin as he knows a lot more about what works well than I do He recommended wooden ends for a more mellow sound and like Peter I was asked to ring regularly to check on progress. It had been ordered as a plain unornamented instrument but when I rang he said he'd found some decorative papers that would look good on it, so they went on, then next time we spoke some gold tooling on the leatherwork was added as to complement the papers and lastly gold button caps as he'd found some old stock and he thought they'd just finish it off. It arrived in only 3 years and is a delight, it's a small instrument compared to some but Colin had asked what size my hands were and it suits me perfectly The bellows are all leather as it's played in the open air a lot, it has flat handrails and the only thing I've done in the last 14 years is replace the hand straps, a friend who works leather made me new pair using the old ones as a template. 30 button C/G Anglo, 6 sided Rosewood ends ( recycled piano) Brown leather bellows first 3 buttons top row R side.Csharp(push) Eflat(pull), Fsharp(push) Csharp pull, Gsharp(push) Bflat(pull) Cheers Ann ( another happy Dipper owner)

Not unless we win the lottery this weekend. Let us know how it goes

Hope the results are better than you expect. Best wishes

How is your thumb this morning, has it improved?

I was playing in a pub called 'The Red Dragon' at the time and someone had a red dragon hand puppet so naturally...........

I used to work in a library and it was amazing the number of Americans we'd get in looking for their 'English/Yorkshire roots' unfortunately scince Finlklestein ,Shultz et al are not really usual names around here we had to point them several hundred miles east onto the European mainland

Snap It was a good few years before I came across another concertina player by which time I was playing in a ceildah band and for Morris so it was too late to change anything of my playing style. It was funny though as folk would tell me that such and such a tune was impossible on the Anglo but being self taught and not knowing any better I'd already have it in the repertoire Have a go at any tune you fancy, it's suprising what works and it's great fun trying different things. I envy you the sight reading, a skill I've never mastered.

I don't know about straps on a Hayden but on my Anglo I have both straps fairly loose, I did try them tighter once after someone commented on how slack they were but found it too restrictive and having small hands it made it more difficult to reach all the buttons easily. I suppose it's whatever suits you and your style of playing best

I recorded several hours of material from my paternal grandfather, when he was aged 90. About two hours of it covered WW1. He could talk about the horrors of it; things that you would not wish on your worst enemy. Mum said that her father was so badly affected that he often used to wake in the night, screaming with nightmares. He was a musician, and was the one-man band in "Passport to Pimlico", for which he was paid £25 per day whilst filming. This was the late 1940's and I think that the average weekly wage was about £8. Regards, Peter. I used to work with a man who's Dad had been a Regimental Piper, he was one of the few survivors from his regiment and when he got home after the war he never played in public again, he had been in demand to play for dances/weddings etc but couldn't face playing infront of people as it brought back memories of his dead friends. When he was very depressed he'd lock himself in the bathroom with his pipes and play laments then he'd pack his pipes away, not to be touched until the next time he needed to get rid of his grief.

Most of the primary/junior schools around here have Morris/Sword/Clog or Maypole dance sides, it's accepted as normal. Where they all get to once they leave school I don't know but there is a vast 'bank' of morris dancers who may well come back to it once they get past the teenage years, when they find it just too embarrasing and have dicovered other interests to occupy them