MitfordRI

This won't amuse anyone but me. But there is no one outside of this forum to whom I can tell this tale. Besides, who doesn't love a good flame war. Recently, I organized a local alumni association for a bunch of MBA's. (Stay with me, it gets better.) It was all very nice and I swopped a lot of cards with loads of people. Very nice people. But, umm, very business-like, not my usual crowd. As it turns out, one couple live in the same town as I do. After several email exchanges, we decided to get together for dinner. I was prepared for a pleasant, if dry evening discussing the Wall St. Journal, the future fate of the neo-cons (is crucifixion too much to hope for?) and, if things got crazy, local taxes. The couple hadn't arrived but five minutes when M. spotted my concertina box. He picked it up. Almost reverently. He said, "I need you to open this. I need to know what's in it." Okay .... "It's just a concertina ..." "I PLAY THE ACCORDION!!!!!" Like he had been waiting his whole life to tell someone. Turns out that Mr. MBA doesn't just play the accordion ... he plays the PIANO ACCORDION. Hard core. Has been studying for six years. Picked it up in his 40s. Four hours later his wife and my husband were wondering why they had bothered to come to dinner. You just never know when or where you will meet a fellow squeeze box enthusiast. Lucy (Feel free to flame away -- but I still maintain that a piano accordion is way way WAAAAAY geekier than a concertina, which is practically rock star cool by comparison.)

For those of you who haven't tried the Irish Music School in Boston (CCE), I highly recommend it. Chris is a terrific teacher. Patient, kind (never rolls his eyes) and pushes you to learn more (in a good way). I swore I could never, ever, ever learn to play by ear. And in a few weeks I'm sure Chris will tell me that I haven't. But he did inspire me to spend the summer 'trying' to learn to play by ear. The classes are fun, informal, cheap and convivial. Lucy

I don't know which sound files you have listened to on the web. But you can listen to a number of different players and different instruments on this site: http://www.anglo-concertina.net/links.htm Bob and Frank both have recordings of themselves playing their own instruments. Lucy

Partly due to that we would have to charge about 3 times as much for a Morse than a Stagi - and we don't think many people would go for such a price... and partly because it isn't a very good financial move to slow down our income when so many people are clammering for them. We've certainly considered rental Morses - several times. And maybe one of these times we might decide it's the time to do it.... -- Rich -- Well, I can only speak for myself and I might not be representative ... but I would have been willing to pay a 3x standard rental fee to rent a Morse instead of a Stagi. But I take your point about slowing down income. I guess my thought is that people would rent Morse concertinas while awaiting one they had already ordered. Cheers, Lucy

Allison: I spent a few days thinking about this before responding ... and here is what I came up with. RICHARD MORSE (if you're listening) ... why rent Stagis when you could rent MORSE CEILIs? I realize there is a backlog of both rentals and Morse Ceilis on order. But if the BB manufactured 5 Ceilis just for rental purposes ... well, more people would buy Ceilis. Allison, call Doug and see if they have any Ceilis being resold that Richard and Doug might consider converting to "rental stock". The caveat, of course, is that if you lose it in Ireland (or it gets nicked in a pub - has been known to happen), you officially "own" it. Worth looking into. Just my two cents, Lucy

I should have mentioned Mr. G. Jowaisis! He does restorations too. Don't know if he does customization but it would be worth asking him. He gets rave reviews too. (See reviews from just today/yesterday in this same section of the forums.) Lucy

So you already know the Morse Ceili is the lightest instrument out there. (Having gotten mine this week, I am a big fan of its action and lightness.) IF they can't alter the layout (I would call Doug who made only a half dozen changes in 16 weeks to my own order recently) ... then I would ask Mr. Tedrow if he would consider altering the Morse to suit your needs. Mr. Tedrow gets rave reviews for his work on older models. Would love to know what you ultimately decide, Lucy

Are you calling me a Bunny???? (Don't say no! Just let me be a happy bunny for five minutes!! Maybe ten ...) Lucy Flattering herself to no end

Shortly after New Year's I took a Friday out of work and drove to Sunderland, Mass to see what concertinas they had in stock. And to order one if possible. Never mind that I had never played one. I wanted one. Yesterday. Doug, who has been running the shop for, well, a few years, is absolutely charming. And gentle, patient and not the least bit snobbish about newcomers. To whit, I went in to order an English, came out with an Anglo, having just ordered the English. A week later I ordered the Anglo. With Jeffries layout. Four weeks later I called and said, "I WANT WHEATSTONE LAYOUT!" Two weeks later I called and said, "Can I have two C sharps on the top right?" I think they made the Ceili just so I would stop calling. Last Friday, I took another day off work and drove back to Sunderland. I traded in the Stagi Doug let me rent. And came home with a Ceili. My Ceili. Wow. What a difference!!! SO MUCH EASIER TO PLAY. Tunes just whistle along. Playing the Stagi was like dancing with a mannequin. A mannequin with emphyzema. Suffice it to say that I am thrilled with the new 'box' and can't say enough about my experiences with the staff of the Button Box. As Ebert would say, Two Thumbs Up!!! Lucy

Paul: Looks like someone informed Ebay. I can't find the three listings, only the original one. Nice work! Lucy

I have a question related to this issue ... is it just Stagi's that have an imbalance in sound between the left and the right? I have a 30 button Stagi (turbo Stagi! worked on by Mr. Tedrow) while I wait for my Morse Ceili (and eventually an Edgley ... sooner or later). The G row on the left hand side is slightly more muffled than the C row on the Right. I.e., D on the left and D on the right, and B in particular, do not sound the same. It's not terrible - perhaps not very noticeable to the listener - but I hear it. I should note that I am right-handed but I don't think my ears are lying to me. Lucy

Try the Button Box in Sunderland, MA. www.buttonbox.com Lucy

Lucy, Not everybody buying uses PayPal (or can use it), and there are plenty of sellers who have had bad experiences using PayPal, or who find them very difficult to deal with. It is not uncommon to find sellers who refuse to accept PayPal payments at all, especially in Europe. Stephen: You are absolutely right, of course. My father had terrible difficulty with Paypal. After you have spent xxx dollars with them, they will not let you pay by credit card anymore until you get verified. He, understandably, was not interested in sharing his bank account information with Paypal. The net effect is that I have to run to the bank every now and then for sterling/euro bank drafts for silly amounts like 41 pounds or more for books across the pond. The drafts cost as much as their net worth ... I am feeling a little sheepish not having realized that Mr. Read is in fact the seller/lister of the concertina. I thought perhaps he was just bringing a very attractive Edgley to our attention. For the usual collective ooohs and aaaahs. (Which I did!!!) Did not mean to ask provocative questions. Thank you again for responding. And for responding with temperance. Lucy

Well this and the subsequent response have been very helpful. Many thanks! However - and I'm honestly not trying to be a complete and utter noodge - wouldn't it just have made more sense to estimate the anticipated Paypal fees and build that into his reserve price? Thanks for the help! Lucy It is a beauty

Having spent half the work day staring at this particularly pretty Edgley, I have two questions. 1) Does anyone know the seller? I only ask because he doesn't like PayPal but doesn't offer Buyer Protection either ... 2) Why is it listed with Ebay.co.uk and not Ebay.com or even the Canadian Ebay? (And is that a completely stupid question? Lucy Pining away

I am late joining in this thread but did want to say that - at least from my own perspective - the dealers and manufacturers don't seem to be driving the revival. These aren't cars and/or the marketing of cars we are discussing. I think the sound of the concertina is infectious. (In a good way.) I came home from Dublin this past Christmas having listened to my aunt's best friend play her concertina. I wasn't sure I could even get a concertina in the US. I was delighted to discover the Button Box think that if there is any aspect at all of the dealers 'driving' the revival, it is simply in superb customer service. But I wouldn't buy a trombone because of excellent customer service. (And no, that's not a slam against trombones. i just wouldn't suddenly, desperately need one.) Lucy Sighing over the Edgely in the Buy/Sell forum

Golly. I have nothing to add re: critique. I have only been playing a few months, taking classes with Chris Stevens at the CCE in Boston. The Kesh is the first piece he assigned. I would say it's my 'best' piece. But Chris would fall off his chair laughing if he read that. (and d.v. he isn't). I only mean that it is marginally better than any of the other pieces I routinely torment. My point, and I do have one, is that I would never have the huevos to post a recording of my Kesh online and then invite critique. Not sure if you are a masochist or a nut. But I admire the huevos. Nice recording too! Although I note skinhead (which I listened to) has been played 4.5 times more. Lucy

Geepers. I'm just bummed I didn't warrant an email. Let alone hundreds. I guess being on the waiting list means I haven't enough street cred ... To think, some people had the nerve to complain. :-D Lucy

I found it looking for Frank Edgley's site ... and have made the same mistake twice since. Lucy

I am really grateful to everyone who has responded so far. And tickled. But I think I will not have a recording device in time for this Saturday's class. Am a little cowed by the offerings on Ebay. Even with everyone's kind suggestions. I do not ordinarily think of myself as a techno-phobic female. I am the IT go-to person at my office. Even the physicists (both male) come to me for help. I can network 20 devices in under half an hour. I know the fixed IP address of every employee, terminal and printer in the building. I'm the only one who know how to talk to the firewall. (Slowly. No sudden movements.) But all of a sudden, a simple thing like a recording device ... isn't simple. I don't want to sound like a total girl ... but holy cow! My husband, who couldn't find the power button to his laptop if I didn't label it, can talk about stereos, accoustics and ... uh ... sound stuff ... for four hours, would be transfixed by this thread. Come to think of it ... maybe he could translate it for me. Example: Sampling Rate: 44.1/48 kHz , Bit Rates: 64/96/128/160/192/256/320 kbps "Building on the success of the R-1, the R-09 takes many of the most desired features 24-bit uncompressed recording and a built-in stereo mic and shrinks it all down into a more streamlined, stylish, and affordable package." Geepers. Do I get a massage and pedicure with that? I bow before any woman not intimidated by an Edirol. And, this, I think must explain my sudden and profound infatuation with the concertina (leaving aside the music). 30 buttons. Analog technology. Gotta love it. Lucy HiFi-weenie / Aspiring Ludite

Bummer. Outbid. Sniped at the last minute. Hate snipers. Lucy

Years ago I got a Panasonic QR240 digital voice recorder which works *great* for recording sessions for learning tunes. You can still get that model (it's well out of production) on places like eBay where you can pick one up for about $30. I just checked and there's one up for grabs now. You are my new boyfriend!! (Don't be scared. I'm harmless, if hyperbolic.) Many thanks. Have placed a bid and will know whether or not I am the proud owner in a mere four hours or so. Very, very kind of you. Lucy P.S. Am on your wait list for a Ceílí. :-)

Thanks for the info. I am looking to limit my expenditure on this as electronics are of less interest to me than concertinas I can't afford. I should mention that I have a MAC. I've heard that not all the sonys interact with the MACs so will do some research tonight on the model you propose. Thanks for all the responses. Much appreciated! Lucy

Hello: I am taking the CEE course with Chris Stevens (fab teacher) in Boston. He asked if we all had portable recording devices. I said yes, thinking he was asking about dictaphones (for transcription). What he meant was small digital recorders that we could use to practice (mangle) assigned tunes. Does anyone have any recommendations? Many thanks, Lucy

"Welcome to the obsession. Most of us have day jobs to support our concertina habit. Me, I teach astronomy, for example. Ken" Ken: I attended my first concertina class this morning at CCE. And loved it!! Although I badly mangled The Dogs Among the Bushes. I also met another concertina.net poster, which was pretty neat. Having read a few more back posts, it seems that proper etiquette here is to use one's actual name. So, I'm actually Lucy. But I've had the same email for 10+ years and am known by Mit in a few places. "Basher" in others. But that's another story. re: dayjobs. So. You're an astromer. How disappointed your parents must be. What, rocket science didn't appeal? Brain surgery was out that year? Lucy