LDT

when I read the title I thought you meant it was like the talking clock... lol! I've got a metronone on my phone.

I can give you a clue its not how I hold the concertina.....or anything practical like that....its more how/why I play in a certain way..... Lets just say I've been running before I could walk because I had the wrong end of the stick. and now I've realised how to walk. thank you.

lol! Does it count as a concertina now?

I don't want to play fast I want to play competantly without looking at the music...which has always been my goal whatever instrument.

Thank you....exactly what I was trying to say...but more elequantly put

I talk a lot of gibberish Numbers of post doesn't nessasarily mean lots concertina/music exsperience. lol! I've actually had something dawn on me in the past week.....that I didn't realise that I was doing something wrong on the concertina till I started to concentrate on the melodeon. weird huh? (and no I'm not telling what it was)

I don't not look forward to practicing itself (even if it is a means to an end)...its just the aching muscles and the doorslamming/complaints I can't stand. When all I get is negativity I just get really disheartened. I don't think I've had one compliment since I started. And its more like..I've got 30mins-1hr max to squeeze in as much practice as possible before everyone gets home and I get told to be quiet. I think that's why I'm prefering melodeon...I can play quietly and don't get the backache. I tend to sit bolt upright and stare straight ahead so I don't get travelsick (I find if I look out the side windows it doesnt help). Sorry going off topic there. I don't find breathing fun...but I'm not gonna just stop because its not 'fun'. Why must things be fun in order to do them? I don't like being in social situations but I have to face that dislike in order to go to workshops etc. As you can can see I'm ever so slightly...mental

i like this. you put it better than i could with 8 pages! It seems this is what I'm doing, but not because I'm smart, only because I'm lazy. ditto... thing is though I don't enjoy practice.....I enjoy having a routine and a structure though.... Kinda like walking so many miles each day to reach the top of everest.....its all about reaching the peak. When I get to that point..then I can enjoy it....as I won't have to put so much concentration/struggling into it.

are we keeping you awake?

tiffs won't show on the web....has to be jpg, gif or png...and it has to be in RGB not CMYK. what are you using to scan/edit it? If you still have trouble email the tiff to me and I'll sort it for you.

isn't that like putting a tape recorder in a box? I find that a CD player does well. Nobody can tell the difference until the drum solo comes on. Or an I-pod....

isn't that like putting a tape recorder in a box?

The shortest I can have them before I start dropping things is about 4mm above the top of my fingers....for me that's short...used to have them a minimum of a centimeter above. I think I'm too much of a perfectionist....I'm never good enough...or do it right....and I keep starting again..each time getting worse and it winds me up. Its like my fingers are deliberately ignoring instructions from my brain. What is the most disheartening is when I start to play and others walk out the room.

Avoid playing with chilly fingers. If necessary run your hands under warm water before playing to loosen-up any stiffness in our finger joints. Might just help. Worth a try. I don't think heat is the problem as my hands get sweaty when I play...nerves I think or concentration. my fingers are..double jointed...so they do this wierd bending back thing if you check out my videos you can see what I mean. Well I'm still practicing both so thats double the practice time and double the strain.

It looks tempting....but I shouldn't be doing any more spending....not after last months splurge.

Rock on! does it go all the way up to 11?

Glad they were useful

My fingers have begin to click after I've been practicing concertina (and melodeon) and no it isn't the buttons...it is my fingers. Is this normal? Should I be worried? Should I have a rest from practicing?

what were they shouting?

I'd go for it....at least then I could remember what note what button plays.

My point exactly Will - but expressed much more eloquently! I agree with an earlier poster that to get a master level instrument of any kind is going to cost but there are more steps between beginner and master level instrument than in the world of the concertina. Which is a darned shame as I have fallen in love with concertina playing and want very much to progress. I know I will stick with it, it is not a passing fancy, but to buy even the next level concertina (still not the very best) is going to rip holes in my already patchy pockets. But, the love is there, so I have started saving my pennies.... As a newbie I didn't want to invest more than £50 initially....and found paying over £100 painful knowing my habit of discarding instruments like used hankies once I've found them too tricky. I think the price is a big barrier for people who just want to 'try' and see.

Hi, LDT, That's a wise move, imposing a limitation on your melodion habit right from the start! However, just in case it doesn't work, and the melodion starts to suck your soul out of you, we have to think about that autoharp as your next acquisition. It really is so easy to play that you'll pick it up sooner than the melodion, and it's fairly quiet, so you can keep your friends and neighbours happy, too! The perfect antidote! Cheers, John ah but do I have to tune a autoharp? I can't tune stuff.

Do you know where the CD might be available from and what the price might be?

Its a picture of me taken by fidjit at melodeons and more.

Thank you for all your answers. I will have to digest everything that's been said. Music never comes easy to me. *takes deep breath* *starts to turn red then blue* I'm relieved that I wasn't going mad and that it can happen to others.