Sean Minnie

This is awesome! Keep up the good work!

There is something very peculiar about the position of the air button on your diagram. It is generally played with the RH thumb. Are you sure you have it the right way around? The highest notes should be under your RH pinkie and the lowest notes should be under your LH pinkie

I play them because I find their distinctive sound delightful, especially the chords. With the exception of models made in South Africa, the rest are of somewhat inferior quality compared to more traditional construction techniques. That hasn't stopped me playing them, you just have to replace them ever so often. LOL Here is an example manufactured in East Germany https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIj4xcTtdXQ Here is an example manufactured in South Africa https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smUvH3H1icw

Could you perhaps post pictures?

It depends on how attached you are to your instrument. Valuables in checked baggage is never a good idea, particularly due to the airlines' liability limitations. When packing my bag I ask myself if I could accept the contents being lost or damaged. Good quality vintage instruments that are almost impossible to replace with insurance money do not make it on the list for me. Expect severe rough handling and I have personally seen an accordion fall off a conveyor.

I'm on the same page as Stuart, my first thought was about the shape of the box. Was it square or shaped like the instrument. I say shame on their music program if the band director does not know "whether the instrument belongs to an individual student or whether it might possibly belong to the school district, even though the instructor had never seen the box previously."

Speak to Greg Jowaisas (who incidentally works with Wally Carroll), he made a very nice custom case for me.

Attached this time

Here is the group picture that was taken on Saturday afternoon. Pity that we didn't take one on Friday as well to capture some of the other participants.

Remember to mention Kurt's kazoo which, I thought, fused rather well with the sound of the concertinas.

Hello, I travel to York quite frequently. I could bring my instruments along when I come again on Monday. Please message me in private with a phone number and we can set something up.

I'm in the Detroit area so it is about 250 miles for me, not too far for something every now and then.

I'm available, where abouts where you thinking? (and I can drive a bus)

It was a delightful weekend filled with great music and great people. It seemed way too short to fully appreciate everything that was going on. I enjoyed talking and playing with other duet aficionados and in particular I was impressed with the skills and abilities of Jody Kruskal to teach us how to better utilize our beloved instruments.

It seems legit to me. Try their facebook page http://www.facebook.com/?ref=tn_tnmn#!/usconcertina

I know of three players: Myself, David Cornell and Bob Gaskins (in order of largest instrument to smaller, not proficiency) There are others here on Cnet and I am sure they will be on this topic like a hawk and present themselves to be counted.

I tried to purchase a shirt from the site and it does not accept American credit cards. (only Brazil, Denmark, South Africa or United Kingdom) How many people would be interested in buying one of these shirts? Being South African, I could set up a bulk order. The price is R180.00 (about $22-25) excluding shipping. Please contact me directly and we can come to some arrangement.

How would this work with an acoustic instrument like the concertina?

Contact Rachel Hall. Her group website is here http://www.simplegiftsmusic.com/ They can be seen in action here

This is probably the best place to post a question since it is more than just buy/sell, so my apologies in advance for posting in the wrong category. I am looking for a midi concertina with an anglo keyboard layout to purchase. My attempts at building one myself is not producing sufficient results to meet my project deadline. I see three possible options and I have no preference. 1) It can be home built 2) It can come from a factory (like Wakker) 3) You can convert one of my instruments I would appreciate any help. Thanks Sean

You are correct about South African Boeremusiek (Boer Music). More information can be found at http://www.boeremusiek.org.za with an overview of the different types of concertinas here http://www.boeremusiek.org.za/English/Boermusic/instruments.htm There are also some video on at http://www.youtube.com/konsertina. Besides your interest in music, I also find an uncanny resemblence to your username. I think you are on to something here! You are welcome to contact me directly for more information.

I have been pondering how to calculate the increase in effort. Say that one can equate "sound volume" to internal pressure within the instrument as a result of the force that the player applies. The relationship between force and pressure is determined by the area from the equasion P = F / A In order to maintain the same internal pressure between a smaller instrument and bigger instrument, the force applied must be greater to the ratio of the increase in Area Because P = F1/A1 = F2/A2 My 72-Button is 9.5" which gives it an area of 74.76 square inches (not taking the thickness of the bellows into account) A 81-Button instrument is 10.75" which gives it an area of 115.56 sq in. Thus the increase in force is given by the ratio of Areas, which is 115.56 / 74.76 = 1.54 In other words 54% more force is required to apply the same internal pressure to a 81-button instrument than would be required for a 72-button instrument. If you upgrade from a 6 3/4" instrument to a 10 3/4" instrument you would need to apply twice the force.

I have a 72 button MacCann and find it just that little too big for comfort. A person tends to overlook the size of the larger ones when they are seen individually. When viewed side by side to a 7 1/4" instrument it becomes obvious exactly how huge 9 3/4" is. (See the comparison here ) The 81 button model is even bigger at 10 3/4" and how Percy Honri managed to control it so well is beyond me. (See him here and watch quickly before it gets flagged for some copyright violation) Besides the increased effort that is required for music expression maneuvers there are other things to consider. When traveling on regional airlines it seldom fits in overhead compartments or under the seat. If you are lucky you will evade detection from cabin crew by keeping under one foot. I have been refused going on board with "that thing" even though it is within the prescribed size for hand luggage. You seldom, if ever, use the entire range of the instrument and you are better off, in my opinion going for something a tad smaller.

I wondering if the Boooo-ing comes from the audience or the instrument?

1. DO NOT CHECK IT - TAKE IT HAND LUGGAGE 2. Place the case in a back pack or some other bag to disguise it a bit and make it less obvious what you are carrying 3. DONT LET IT OUT OF YOUR HANDS. If you sit down, wrap the back pack strap around your leg 4. Do not place it in the overhead bin, place it under the seat in front of you