Henrik Müller

Thanks, Alan - I now got a name to a tune I've heard over years and years. But what's that clicking noise? You aren't banging your keys like that man from Azerbaijan in Australia, are you? /Henrik

Hahaaaa - I like that one. I treasure it for future use /Henrik

Yes, I have also wondered about the funding. The only thing (apart from a "heavy" Saturday night concert and the classes) everything was absolutely free. I never went to the Saturday concert, since there would always be a brilliant and free "Concertina Recital" concert Saturday (and Thursday and Friday and Sunday) to keep me happy. If the number of instructors and the number of students is balancing financially, fine, but drop the "heavy" Saturday concert and charge something reasonable for the Concertina recital concerts. But - in the end, if it only becomes a question of pulling a crowd to town then nothing matters. It does seem like there are two forces in play: a business force and a traditional music force. Just a shame that a fine tradition should be lost so easily. /Henrik

Oh, I would definitely attend. I consider myself an unusually usual suspect Maybe it is a chance to re-start a smaller, more humble concertina-centric event? /Henrik Edited to add a sentence -

Leo already spotted this video last week. (http://www.concertina.net/forums/index.php...ost&p=89500) This was the only answer to your question: Blast! I should pay more attention... Thanks - curiosity satisfied! /Henrik

That's the trouble with today's thinking - everything has been so darned fast /Henrik

Apart from the problems with "to wide-screen or not to wide-screen", this is a lovely clip - and it fills in some names on my photograph from 1981: (Found here) First, one correction - it has finally dawned on me that the woman exactly behind the microphone stand is Jaqueline McCarthy. The playing style and the small instrument is unmistakable. We are talking 25 years... And now I've learned that on her left side it is Ursula O'Dea and on the far right end of the the stage Yvonne Griffin (with her sister on her right, maybe?). Myriam Collins could be the fourth from the right, but I am guessing there. But much more intriguing is what I saw when I clicked of the "Related videos"... Who is this man?! Any suggestions? I am intrigued and being a sensitive young man, I find his playing strangely moving. And his concertina is exactly like mine (apart from the little detail with the system ) /Henrik

Hmm - have you thought carefully about the media outrage ?! /Henrik

Hi, Mark - just to ensure you that you are not full of [beep] as the Christmas goose: I have been thinking of this - as Hamlet said: "To bang or not bang the buttons - that is the question"... I always have respect for people who speak from practical experience, so yes, I am sure you may do damage that way. What made me think about it was when I listened to myself playing my 48 b raised metal ended Wheatstone - which I don't do very often, due to the thumb pain problems. But when I do, there's a lot of button banging going on, which reflects the style I have developed on my low action buttons/Anglo handstraps-EC - and I realize that I feel a bit uncomfortable doing it (on the "traditional" EC). So I go back and rest my thumbs, banging away on the low action buttons... /Henrik

He, heee - I hate to be right /Henrik

Na - the only place it happens is in my kitchen . You are welcome - most often getting around in tunes is better kept off-public. But I may turn up in Hälsingborg, depending on weather - /Henrik

... ... Yup, that's exactly what it is./Henrik

Would be fun if anyone cared to comment on the clip, with over 100 downloads. I know I probably sound pitiful, but I was hoping to get at least a "congrats on the upgrade", "nice to be able to compare", "the Lachenal sounds like it needs some tuning" or "it's hard to compare the sound with such simple recording device". I guess I'm just a bit spoiled, since I've gotten such tremendous feedback on all my other posts. Cheers all! Oh right! Not unexpectedly, I am all impressed! (The sound differences in the instruments is secondary to me - they are to be expected: more clarity in the Lachenal ("nasal" as 3838 says). We are talking about instruments with vast differences in reeds and construction. What I am impressed with is the short time it has taken you to figure out cross-fingering of sorts! Now, if we could get you into the capable hands of some of the young Clare players... that would add the fluidity that I (personally) like so much. But there is this terrible rumour that Mrs. Crotty isn't going to happen this year. We may need to start a Facebook group, if it turns out to be true. We've got to meet! Lund or Höör? /henrik

I have indeed wondered about this man many times (and is a little dubious about the Azerbaijan-bit... seems like too exotic, but I am willing to be surprised ) Yes, he does hit his buttons hard and I do the same, but with probably less slapping sounds, since my buttons go all the way down ("Oh, no - there he goes again..."). If I play a "standard" English - which I rarely do, due to pain in my thumb joints - I notice that I slap much more than with my own instrument: no thumbstraps, no pinkie rests, but with an Anglo-like strap. So the explanation could be - only a theory - that the man slaps his buttons in order to get the emphasis he wants. Since I "slap less" on my "unorthodox" EC, it is because I can get a lot of the emphasis with the bellows. On the standard EC, I have to slap since I can't get emphasis by pulling my thumbs. Just a thought - /henrik Edited for spelling and clarity -

Yes - good thing. I remember seing Stephen Chambers with one similar, except I think the outer tube was thin, smooth metal, but the purpose was the same. /Henrik

Whoa, now - you just happened to press the right button, there! The first attempt actually did turn out as a banjo: It is called "The 27", for the simple reason that it took 27 years... After switching to concertinas, production time fell to 10 months /Henrik

Databases don't always agree of what they talk about - /Henrik

I believe the Norwegians has coined the expression (for string players): "pizzicato bow"... /Henrik

Whew! This is amazing! And as Dan said - free! With the search word yellowed - in the old text. A fabulous piece of work. /Henrik

Yes - it's a Stagi miniature English. I bought one just like that. Contrary to what the photos on Stagi's site shows, there is no pinkie rest - it has been replaced with a leather strap, as seen here. I' ve said it before and I'll say it again: I don't know which creature this thing is meant to be played by, but it is nothing from this universe... /Henrik

No, no - we do agree /Henrik Edited to place my comment outside the quotes ;-)

... "under the wood", you mean? /Henrik

I did - well, you have to. We aren't talking about to pieces of polished, hardened tool steel, so there must be some way of creating a seal. Unless you lock them in wax, like you see in accordions. /Henrik

Thanks for posting this, Taka. I knew that there was something special about the Edgley action and always wondered what. /Henrik

You are right - when it comes to rolling, it goes to the top of the (melodeon)class I know what you mean by "element of sadness". But Sweden is so large (=long) that the mood of tunes vary a lot between the different landscapes. You will find a lot of the minor-stuff in Dalarna, north-west of Stockholm, far from where Gusten and I live - basically the distance from London to Glasgow, to put a scale to it. Maybe minor keys are associated with geographical isolation - gets you down, you know... But here, in the deep South, tunes tend to be brighter and happier (vicinity to Denmark? Banging my own drum now ) /Henrik