SIMON GABRIELOW

Mr Gloscon.. I have to say that.. I thought the "e" letter ( was not a hand slip in your typing,, it was more likely a Yorkshire expression ( "eee by gum)!😊

Thank you very much for your kind comment (Lappy) it is greatly appreciated. 😊

Get the best you can afford. There's a world of people here to give you hints. I have my one and only ( Hohner) from over 26 years old but is better made than the later ones. ( It was made partly in Italy under Hohner or Brunner Musica company auspices). They no longer exist... But there are other makes.. My one, has Steel reeds, leather bellows, mahogany veneer casing etc.. Whichever choice you make ..Best of luck 🌝

Yes, in its form the concertina ( of any kind) is really a small reed organ, but more portable, of course, than its bigger relatives, harmonium, or other 'organs".🌝

I don't know what it is..but it's very cheerful😊😊

The oddest key I tried out ( not mechanically altering my instrument at all).. is C sharp! The one with all sharps in it! So just a dozen or so notes to use😊😊

I would leave it as it is then😊..and not get overcomplicated with retuning!

I am just curious to know what advantage there is to retuning to more remote keys? Give or take a few notes., you can play in nearly any key on a more chromatic instrument as it is. Not a criticism..just interested to know the advantage.🌝

You can play almost anything you want on a concertina ..it's up to you the musician to find the music. There is tradition if you want, and then less known pieces, which may be intended for other instruments originally..and most will suit Anglo system very nicely. I have my one and only Anglo 30 key ..and have years of transcriptions from all genres ( renaissance, classical, and.. have only rarely had to alter or found music awkward to play on it. It is notes in a musical box, and it's you that can make it sing whatever tune you want. The problem is I often think that concertina is often taught like it is guitar, or violin, and really it is not these, but just as worthy. It came about a bit too late to be greatly accepted by standard repetoire composers, and so is unique in that they can hover freely about all musical genres. Adapting to suit ( n my case Anglo) is worth doing, as there is a wealth of stuff out there for you to find. Miss out the chords if you don't need them, and add a few of your own because they are after all supposed to be "Free reeds"..

Doing variations on simple musical themes can be very rewarding🙂

Yes there is a description and image of that very simply designed instrument Wheatstone symphonium number 78. The description is on the screenshot I located also. Image attatched ..

Just through interest here, isn't I the fact that Wheatstone's prototype free reed design of instrument..actually used gold reeds? I wonder how that would affect sound? I believe it still exists and looks very unlike the concertinas we know of later on.

There are alcohol free wipes these days also available. Or try microfibre cloth (and blow your breath over the surface first) and then buff over the surface lightly with cloth ? No chemicals at all.

If you have the time and the patience it is not too difficult to transpose ( by hand) tunes into other keys. From D to C is only one place lower down tonally ( to simplify it)... But you have to do the physical work to make the marks on the page. It is satisfying and a good learning process. I know, I have done hundreds of transcriptions which needed to be altered over the years. 🌝

Thanks everyone for all your input. I found that site by chance and find it has nice layout design, without the usual bland text design.(no hard to read typeface). A very interesting online 'encyclopedia' in many ways. It's a shame they always update the tech stuff, and maybe it should have been made into a hard copy instead (in print)?