Boney
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Posts
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Posts posted by Boney
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But I get these crackling noises. I've tried different things, but the quality is still bad.
I'm on iBook, where do I go fot the right settings?
Digital audio recording is a finicky thing. I think the technical issues with this project are the main reasons it's been slow to happen, not a lack of interest. Your problem could be many things. Post ten seconds or so of your recording that includes some of these "crackles" and maybe we can figure it out.
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Okay, I was fooling around and decided to finally give this "big band" thing a go. So I've recorded a whistle track to Henk's "Polska 19." Nothing fancy, just playing the melody. I'm playing low Ds instead of the low Gs, but it's quiet and harmonizes anyway.
The process was a little convoluted, by the way. Playing along with Henk's track while recording in Audacity didn't work. The recorded track slowly slipped out of sync with the original. I thought maybe it was because the original was 22.05K, so I changed it to 44.1K, but it still didn't work. So I played the clip in Windows Media Player while recording the "Wave Out" in Audacity. I could then play along with the resulting copy -- both being recorded in Audacity I guess made it happy. I dunno.
But! The result played in synch with my copied copy, but not Henk's original MP3. So, I played with the speed a bit (leaving the pitch intact), reducing it by .63% (which seemed to get it pretty much in synch, as much as my somewhat sloppy playing could be).
A bit of a bother. Here's the result, if you want the unslowed-down copy for any reason, let me know.
http://whistle.JeffLeff.com/audio/whistle.mp3
http://whistle.JeffLeff.com/audio/combined.mp3
Jim, to record in one channel in Audacity, go to "Preferences..." in the File menu. Select the "Audio I/O" tab, and in the pull-down menu in the "Recording" box under "Channels," select "1 (Mono)".
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Thank you very much for the music for Whistling Rufus. I enjoyed reading your posts and following your progress as you learned this tune. Now I know this isn't strictly a concertina question, but I'm having a problem trying to print out your music.
You're welcome! It will fit on a page if set to 150 DPI. Most printing programs will scale it to fit a page automatically, although some default to 72 DPI. If you're running Windows, try right-clicking on the file, choose "Preview," then click on the printer icon and it should fit it on the page for you automatically.
By the way, I mainly use sheet music as a memory aid. I'm terrible at remembering things quickly, I have to really drill them to memorize them. So I don't "read" off the sheet music, but I use it as an occasional reminder until I can get rid of it (as soon as possible).
Another by the way, I updated my recording a few days ago (same link), it's a bit smoother and I used less edits this time.
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But, of course, when it comes to actually writing out the piece in 5/4....
...forget it!! Way too hard. Too many ties and holds and whatever.I don't understand...if it's in 5/4, then it should be easy to notate in 5/4. If there are a lot of ties across bars, it's probably not in 5/4.
I'll add there are a lot of odd beats thrown into American old-time tunes and songs. You'll often see a note held for an extra beat at the end of a phrase, which I'd probably notate as a single bar of 5/4 if the piece is in 4/4 generally. You could use a fermata, but to me that implies the rhythm isn't strict, and the note can be held for an indeterminant amount of time. In the tunes I'm talking about, the rhythm is steady, there's just an extra beat here and there. I've seen this in some Irish songs too.
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I would love to see some chords, counter melodies or bass runs written down in conventional notation.
Well, when I made my simple arrangement of "Whistling Rufus" for Anglo, I did it on a sheet music program, so I can post my Whistling Rufus sheet music. No button numbers, but no surprises there, I think -- if anything is confusing, just ask. Of course the exact rhythm and "bounce" aren't notated, and I'll generally make a few variations whenever I play it. Here's my own audio rendition of Whistling Rufus (as on Henk's Recorded Tunes Link Page). Oh, and I play the first part once through (use the first ending) after the second part and before the third (that's in the original 1899 sheet music too).
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David, I tried sending you an email through the link here on concertina.net, and it bounced, you might want to check that. I tried again using the email address on your website, I hope that came through.
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Thanks for all the suggestions. I'll give a couple of the a quick go, and see how my fingers like them. I've already started a little on the Heather Breeze, I have Jacqueline McCarthy's recording of it, she says it's one of the first tunes she learned. The Mary Haren version is very interesting -- there's quite a bounce to that one, thanks Peter.
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I've dabbled only slightly in stringed instruments over the years, and never really got along with them. But recently I came across the Dobro Tenortrope. Besides having a cool name, it looks cool -- kind of like a wooden tenor banjo with a metal face grill. Besides looking cool, it sounds cool too -- kind of a cross between a guitar and a banjo, with that Dobro nasal twang. They're not very common -- so in one of those "If I don't get it before someone else does, I'll probably regret it forever" moments, I bought it. It has 4 strings and a 21.5" scale, and I've tuned it GDAE like an Irish tenor banjo. I got it just two days ago, and it's a lot of fun! I figured out the D Major scale, and started fooling around. It seems easy to pick out tunes -- I occasionally accidentally hit a few notes which reminded me of a tune, then figured out large parts of the rest of it. I decided to learn "Over The Waterfall," the first tune I could play decently on whistle (before I got a concertina). I can get through it slowly with only a few mistakes, so I decided to record it for posterity and practice, not worrying about roughness, slapping a few extra strings here and there, keeping it loose and fun but steady -- here's the (unedited) result:
http://concertina.JeffLeff.com/audio/water1.mp3
So I wondered how it would sound with concertina, and a few minutes later, I had overdubbed my faithful Geuns-Wakker C/G anglo concertina, while realizing how slow the tempo really was, but it sounded kinda cool and lopey:
http://concertina.JeffLeff.com/audio/water2.mp3
Well, why not add whistle for old-time's sake, this is a Busman wooden D pennywhistle:
http://concertina.JeffLeff.com/audio/water3.mp3
At this point I couldn't resist adding bones (buffalo and cow ribs):
http://concertina.JeffLeff.com/audio/water4.mp3
Make what you will of it, it made me giggle listening back to it, and it was a learning experience (otherwise it wouldn't be in this forum, would it?).
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Your sound files are in stereo, but there's only a signal on one side. This makes listening to them on headphones rather uncomfortable.
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does not seem to work - 404 file not found - has it moved or is there another one?
A quick guess led to this working link: http://hmi.homewood.net/sounds/baritoneanglo.mp3
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I don't play a lot of Irish music, but I do play a few jigs. I've noticed some seem to fit the layout of the Anglo better than others. I've tried to learn a few reels, and either I've picked ones not easily played on the Anglo, or reels are just generally too fast for my ability right now. The ones I can get through slowly are Drowsy Maggie and Saint Anne's Reel. (Are those actually tricky ones for the more experienced players here?) I'd like to improve my confidence by attacking an easy but well-known (although hopefully not completely cliché) Irish reel that I could play up to speed. Any suggestions? Something I could download a good recording of on eMusic would be a plus.
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Howdy Aldon, keep up posted on gigs with your new band.
Smythe's Accordion Center in Oakland works on concertinas. He had a nice 24-button Lachenal there when I dropped by last fall.
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Slightly of topic, but thought that I'd ask--does anyone know if there's a way to do that with included XP software (Paint, etc.)
Yes, in MS Paint, under the "Image" menu, select "Stretch/Skew..." and change the horizontal and vertical size by equal amounts. I guess it's a bit counter-intuitive to "stretch" to 50% size, but that's the way computers think (and many programmers think that way too). It doesn't scale as well as Photoshop though, probably most recent free programs would even do a better job.
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I had one just like it.
And now I have it! It's almost the same, the accidental layout is Wheatstone, and it has seven bellows folds. I agree, it's a very nice box, looks gorgeous, and sounds better than the other accordion-reeded boxes I've played (although the difference is subtle, and others might have different preferences). I posted a review of the Tedrow tour concertina a while back, and compared it to my Geuns-Wakker. Here are a few short samples, comparing the Geuns-Wakker with first the Tedrow, then a vintage Lachenal:
http://concertina.jeffleff.com/audio/AmsGeuns.mp3
http://concertina.jeffleff.com/audio/AmsTedrow.mp3
http://concertina.jeffleff.com/audio/SalmonGeuns.mp3
http://concertina.jeffleff.com/audio/SalmonLach.mp3
Have you sold it yet, Henk?
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Yes, you can post it to the RTLP. The ABC is already in the C.Net T-O-T, No. 860 yonder: http://www.concertina.net/tunes_detail.html?rec_id=860
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Here's another recording, I tried to get a nice clean take with no edits. I'm playing it as a simple melody-line-only tune, a break from working on full anglo arrangements. It's nice to work on subtlety, phrasing, dynamics, and note separation on a melody like this. I still need a lot of work on that stuff. I also experimented with adding a little artificial reverb. It does smooth the sound out a bit, but give me a nice-sounding space any day over the fake stuff.
http://concertina.JeffLeff.com/audio/gateshead.mp3
I got this from Pauline Cato's 2005 album "New Tyne Bridge" -- she played it on Northumbrian smallpipes. It's her arrangement of a traditional Northumbrian waltz from the Bewick collection. I've recieved her permission to post this arrangement in the Tune-O-Tron. I've entered it without repeats in order to add a few variations that Pauline uses. I like the elegant feel of it, and the unusual key in part C.
Any comments welcome!
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Thanks to postings elsewhere, I've found quite a few on-line versions of Whistling Rufus. Here are some of my favorites:
by the Skirtlifters: http://www.aca-dla.org/WarrenWilson/image/2727.mp3
by the Jaudas' Society Orchestra: http://cylinders.library.ucsb.edu/mp3s/100...sb-cyl1021d.mp3
with singing! by Daniel W. Quinn: http://cylinders.library.ucsb.edu/mp3s/200...sb-cyl2511d.mp3
There are several more versions on the Digital Library of Appalachia website, mostly old-timey fiddle adaptations, with a reel feel, or a bluegrass flavor.
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I do like it! I don't tend to like bellows shakes much, but you keep them pretty smooth and subtle. I like the simple, moving harmonies. I need to hear more stuff like that to help develop my own harmonization. Thanks. The concertina seems to have a sweet sound, you should get a better microphone to take advantage of it. There's a lot of grit in the sound and a limited frequency response. And what are those various clicks and bump sounds in the recording?
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I've experimented a bit on my anglo to see how I can regulate finger pressure while playing. While pulling, it's not much or a problem. I can sort of lever the heel of my hand against the palm rest, and press the buttons harder while keeping quite an even pressure on the bellows. While pushing, it's difficult to press harder without giving the bellows a little "goose" of volume at least. But it's easier than I suspected. I think it's doable. The little volume might actually mesh well with the bending to give an organic combination, a little breath to the playing.
For me, not having used it, I think bending up would be more fun, like a guitar or clarinet. But I don't play blues -- more of a mix of traditional and funky old tunes from around the world.
I don't know about English concertina. It might be more difficult to regulate pressure without the palm rest. Also, I know some concertina players prefer a very light touch on the buttons, such as Jim Lucas here who mainly plays English. He says while playing quickly he rarely even presses the buttons in all the way. I tend to press the buttons all the way in, though not with too much force. I've tried the other way several times, and I'm glad it works for some people, but not for me. So the issue of different amounts of force being used on the buttons is a very real one.
I'm sure there's a player here that would like to try to develop this, and who is skilled enough a player to give good feedback.
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Looking at the picture, it seems to me you wouldn't want the bottom row any closer to your hand. I'd be wary of moving the palm rest. Some sort of lever that would pass over the air button and help you reach it seems a much better idea.
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Yes, Jody, exactly! I'm wondering if a more straightforwardly laid-out instrument would be easier to gain a natural proficiency on -- even though I know it'll take a long time on any instrument.
I'll add that even simple "natural" instruments with tubes and strings can have more-or-less artificial layouts. Adding keys to a flute, and how you decide to tune adjacent strings on a guitar, for example, has a large influence on how natural and direct the instrument feels to play. The brain is an amazing thing, it can adapt to these artificialities and "feel" like it's playing something straightforward after a time -- up to a point. I think the anglo layout stretches that ability, outside of the simpler keys at least.
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I've looked a bit more closely at the BluesBox page. The bending is accomplished by pressing the keys harder, which probably wouldn't work on a concertina, since the buttons travel the same direction of the bellows. But it seems they've tuned it so that full pressure brings the note a half step flat, so you could accurately play accidentals if you wanted to try to do it that way. It still seems to me that would be an awkward way to play, and tunes would be filled with unintended swoops and wobbles. I think it's much more useful as a device you would only use when you actually WANTED to.
There are many more ways to misuse a pitch bend effect than there are to use it well. But I trust given time talented musicians with taste and restraint could make good use of it.
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Does anybody know how to get these files to open in something other than Quicktime? My PC has MP3s associated with Itunes, but that dumb Quicktime keeps popping up. Same on the recorded links page.
You mean it pops up in Internet Explorer? If so, go to the Tools menu, select "Internet Options...", click on the "Programs" tab, Click on "Manage Add-ons", find the QuickTime plugin, click on it, then click on "Disable."
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I've added the Tedrow 52-key Hayden and a 55-Key Crane to the chart at the top of this thread.
G Rolls.
in General Concertina Discussion
Posted
I've heard them called "twiddles." As here: http://www.johnkirkpatrick.co.uk/wr_Anglo3.htm