ethornber

I think it's a case of the highly variable quality of cheap instruments. My D40 also came from Musician's Friend, and has none of the problems you describe (except the exposed plywood edges in the fretwork and the thin hand straps). It looks like you have an example of poor quality control - I'd see about a possible replacement.

Two further suggestions: Charcoal: Acquire chunk charcoal (not briquettes) and pulverise a few ounces into a fine powder. Wrap in fine cheesecloth and leave in the box for a few days. Be careful of dust, however, as it is abrasive and if any is left it may wreak havoc on your instruments when they reside in the case. Baking soda: Depending on the base of the perfume, this may or may not work. But rather than charcoal powder, substitute common baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) in the above directions. The charcoal will provide a large porous surface to absorb the perfume molecules, and the baking soda may compound with them directly to neutralize them.

I am not an instrument builder, so please be gentle if this idea is completely mad. To those of you who ARE builders out there, how possible would it be to build reed pans that can be replaced? A few weeks ago my wife and I went to the Galax Leaf and String bluegrass festival in Virginia, and were exposed to some very very skilled session players. As bluegrass instruments are almost entirely stringed instruments, key changes were accomplished either by capo-ing the neck of the instrument, or quick retuning of the strings, and it got me thinking. Access to the reeds in a perpendicular mount (as the Hohners) is trivially easy, but what about other styles of concertina? Would the expense and difficulty of swapping between, say, a C/G set and a G/D set outweigh the expense of simply keeping two instruments handy?

If you're patient enough to enter notes by hand, Finale Software has a great free program called 'Notepad' that will churn out all the sheet music you could desire. I use it because I have much the same problem with converting sheet music to a melody I can practice. It's been a great help for me in getting the 'tune' right while I polish my sight reading skills.

I picked up a D40 a short while ago to try to teach myself to play. The price was definitely right, as I didn't know at the time how successful I'd be. However, I'm already looking longingly at 30b instruments. My last trip to the House of Musical Traditions had me experimenting with one of Mr. Tedrow's constructions, with a little voice in my head telling me 'someday....' My advice as an admitted total beginner is to recognize the fact that the D40 /is/ a lower quality instrument, but it remains playable and an acceptable introductory instrument, especially if it's a gift and you don't know how well you'll take to playing it. Five to six months seems a reasonable lifespan for this particular instrument, and by then you'll have a very clear idea of your intentions. In addition, that's five to six months to budget for a higher quality instrument, and instead of having no practice, you've had six months to familiarize yourself with basic concertina concepts, which I think would be key to getting the most out of a better instrument.

Skin pH is fairly variable, due in part to (not as disgusting as it sounds) skin bacteria. Normal skin flora includes staphylococcus epidermidis, which secretes weak acids to create a more hospitable environment for itself, and to create a less hospitable environment for other bacteria (including harmful types) that may try to inhabit the skin. As everyone's levels of these bacteria are different, everyone's skin oils have varying acidity. Latex gloves are a great answer, or you may also try using alcohol wipes on your fingertips before handling the reeds.

After much pondering, I made the decision to learn the concertina. With the collection of strange musical instruments in my house, it was inevitable. I took a cue from my wife, however. When she decided to learn the banjo, she picked up an ultra-cheap model to see if it appealed to her, and upgraded a few months later. The logic was that if she wasn't going to stick with it, better to waste the least amount possible on an instrument that sat at the very bottom of the playable range. Sure enough, she stuck with it and upgraded a few months later to a much better instrument. With that pattern established, I picked up the D40 from Musician's Friend. I've been noodling on it for about a week now, getting used to it. I know that I'll want to upgrade, but the D40 is certainly playable (although I wouldn't want anyone but myself to hear my playing right now) and I think it'll serve fine for learning the basics. If a six month lifespan is normal for the instrument, mine should be wearing out just in time to add a better instrument to my Christmas wish list.