[Attention Geoff Crabb]

 

I am afraid that I have no further information on these at the moment. Unfortunately, these would have been made as 'one off' instruments or 'specials' to the requirements of the customer and any plans as such may not have been saved. However I will look through the miscellanous plans that I have and post if I find anything.

 

Geoffrey

 

Thanks very much. Can't ask for more than that.

[Attention Geoff Crabb]

Just spotted on ebay!Crabb

 

Thanks Paul.

Not sure how they can sell these unless the copyright has been bought. I have a large collection of press photos re. the 'firm' but don't own the rights.

 

Not sure of the instrument as cannot see the ends properly but may be one of the rare Crabb 'single voice' Bandonions.

 

Geoffrey

 

 

Mr Crabb, do you have any record or recollection of what layout would have been used for the Crabb 'single voice' bandonions?

Thanks very much

[bandoneon]

i guess i should add, we are coming full circle here, because the really early-wearly tango from the rancheros often was just a couple of flutes, maybe a harp, AND CONCERTINA, as in, the little old hexagonal ones we love so well!!!!

 

Would you happen to have a link or reference to a recording of such an early grouping?

Thanks very much.

[Button Sizes And Spacings]

How much button spacing variation is common between makes of anglo concertina? Within one maker's work?

 

I have a Kensington Anglo, of which I am very fond, and a Wheatstone 48-button English c. 1920. It seems pretty clear that the difference in approach to playing between English and anglo accounts for the significant difference in button spacing, but I am hoping that someone with wider experience and exposure would be willing to comment on the factors which go into deciding how far apart to put the buttons on an anglo. Are there any recognized or established practical limits as to how close or far apart the buttons may be?

[Chamber Tuning]

Thanks for making these very interesting photos available. How much effort have you put into learning how to play these instruments? Particularly with the bawu, do you play western music with them? It seems you also play pipes. How would you compare playing the bawu with playing the pipe cantor?

 

Best regards,

Tom

 

I worked on the sheng very seriously, and was the only westerner in the municipal trad orchestra in the city I was living in. (That actually says more about how desperate they were for sheng players than about how skillful I became.) I was only playing Chinese music in that context, although I did get to the point where I could knock out a good few ITM tunes on the sheng.

 

The bawu was more of a curiosity for me. It's not much like playing an uilleann pipe chanter, in that the fingering is "open," and there is considerable dynamic range on the bawu. I suppose there are similarities to the Northumbrian smallpipes chanter, in that it plays only in one register. The bulk of the traditional music for the bawu has a fairly small compass, generally not more than a tenth or so, but like the NSP chanter, there are keyed versions which extend the range by adding tone holes above and below the fingered range.

[Chamber Tuning]

I studied the sheng and bawu while living in Taiwan, and accumulated a good few of both. Here is a link to an Imagestation album of photographs of several types of sheng

 

Sheng

 

and another which shows some close-up shots of the reeds from bawu and hulusi

 

Bawu and hulusi reeds