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CrP

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  1. One additional observation, this time about the handrests. The photo shows (indistinctly) but a small portion of the R hand handrest beneath the strap, which looks to me as if it's made of (maybe perforated?) metal -- rather than the same wood as that seen in the frame of the instrument. If that's so, then I think that's mighty unusual for a Jones, yes?
  2. I concur with Jake's observations and conclusion, based on comparison with a 34-buttom metal ended Jones with which I am acquainted. The presence of 2 very small screws on each of the flat sides is virtually identical to the one I know, as is the patterning of the metal fretwork. Can we call it "fretwork" if it's in metal? not sure.
  3. Hi, Jim: That's a really nice, interesting arrangement. You've done a lovely job of sustaining the very slow crescendo while at the same time gradually increasing the complexity of the ornamentation and harmonisation. I particularly like the feel that comes across thanks to ornaments on the downbeats; it would have been easier & simpler -- less interesting, however -- to steal the fractional bits of time for ornaments from preceding notes just prior to the downbeats, but you didn't. Nice sense of ensemble there, too. Craig
  4. Hey, cool, Jody and thank you for the note. Now you've really aroused my curiosity to see the film character "translation" -- or is it transposition?
  5. There's a book about the evolution and history of the many approaches to tuning -- not specific to concertinas, admittedly. It's called "Temperament" by Stuart Isacoff, Alfred A. Knopf, NY, 2001. Yes, it goes into great detail about the many ways that musicians dealt with tuning over the centuries -- philosophical, practical, aesthetic, mathematical, and so forth. Can be rather heavy reading, tho' it does cover a lot of the ground discussed above.
  6. How timely -- for me, at least. I'm negotiating with a leatherworker right now for a case to fit my Jones anglo, so I have referred him to your case as a model to follow or copy. Thanks a lot; It's really nice, handsome, functional, possessed aof a certain -- what shall I call it? panache? I like it, particularly the side-mounted handle. Side-mounted rather than top-mounted.
  7. Bravo. The Molique piece does indeed sound very challenging, and musically sophisticated. Nice job, Wim.
  8. With abject apology for any offense committed against the intricate rules of this game, I venture to comment as a novice player. I draw on my long-unused knowledge of London arcana to call for a ruling on one player's use of a move to Balham. Noting the reference to the famous travelogue [pace, Peter Sellers], and being a somewhat rule-obsessed person, I thought it appropriate to to double check his reference. Voila!! The proper name of the place is "Balham - Gateway to the South." The first sentence of the travelogue is, ipso facto, a confirmation of its location outside the London Underground system, viz. "We enter Balham through the verdant grasslands of Battersea Park." It is thus obvious that one may enter Balham via -- and only via -- the grasslands, not via The Tube. This move is de facto suspect if not downright illegitimate.
  9. JoshWoodward once sang a song called "The Last Slice of Pecan Pie." http://www.joshwoodward.com/song/thelastsliceofpecanpie
  10. Found another one: Pecan pie: http://www.lyrster.com/come-back/Pecan-pie-song-lyrics/www.lyricshuddle.com/g/golden-smog/pecan-pie.html
  11. How about "Shoo Fly Pie"? See: http://www.metrolyrics.com/shoo-fly-pie-and-apple-pan-dowdy-lyrics-dinah-shore.html It was once sung by Ella Fitzgerald, amongst others.
  12. That's a handsome instrument. Maybe just a bit of an eyecatcher, too.
  13. Thank you, Don. For those of us who take tunes from other instruments (tunes not always written or played in concertina-friendly keys for C/G anglo, for instance), this looks to be very useful.
  14. Thanks for the mention of possible notes for LH "drone" button -- particularly its use as an "F" push. I never thought of that, tho' I can visualise and hear some possibilities immediately. I've got 1 (or in some cases 2) LH drone button on my Jones C/G and find I rarely use the C push.
  15. Nice job! I note some good corner protectors there, too.
  16. Same as Matt, I'd love to see & hear some examples. I'm curious to know if anyone these days has incorporated any of the novelty sounds into more than a single or occasional "show-off" piece.
  17. Thanks, Mike. I recall seeing a documentary called "Bandoneon" a year or so ago that seemed to do a very respectful job of describing, showing, tracing the history of said instrument. What struck me then was that it (the film) included pleas from some of the players and repairmen to the world at large -- mainly sounvenir hunters, I guess -- NOT to buy the vintage German original bandoneons to take home as souvenirs, thereby removing them from circulation. Seems that the instruments were being bought up by wealthy tourists [accuracy of that statement I cannot attest to] and thus depriving players in Argentina of the best instruments. Did anyone else see that film?
  18. Yes, good question. I'd love to see a Video or learn of a recording that demonstrates the use of the novelty sounds. Surely there must be some old 78's of Vaudeville or (more likely) British music-hall comedy performers who used concertina as part of their "shtick".
  19. A quick search of C-net discussion archive turned up only one thread on this topic, as best I can determine, namely, 21 August, 2004 : http://www.concertina.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=1444&hl=%2Bbird+%2Bcall&do=findComment&comment=13484 So, allow me to pique your curiosity, if I may -- does anyone nowadays still use the novelty buttons? I'd appreciate hearing some guesses -- or informed research, for that matter -- on how they were used in the past. My guess is it would have been in connexion with song accompaniment, probably in popular/folk/non-classical settings, e.g., music hall, comedy, dialect and folk culture [with a small "c"] genres. Of the instruments I've seen & played, admittedly all anglo concertinas -- Jeffries, Lachenals, Jones -- many if not most of those from the late 19th century through the first decades of the 20th seem to have the novelty buttons/sounds as standard on anything much more than 30-key anglos. So, comments. anyone?
  20. About topic #2, I have a couple of observations that might well be as appropriately discussed on the "Ergonomics" forum as on this general discussion. As one who has done a fair bit of music teaching in his lifetime, I've concluded that one very important principle that applies to all instruments as one begins to learn to play concerns the question of "how much effort"? Just for instance, if one's goal is to be able to play for long periods of time (for a long square or contra dance, maybe), then it's important to develop endurance and to minimise the physical effort expended so as to conserve energy -- the buttons don't need to "bottom out" in order for the instrument to produce good sound, I think. So, in this regard, I heartily second Ted's comment to "avoid the beginner habit of pressing the buttons excessively HARD at the bottom." An even more important principle, though, IMHO, is developing a consciousness of tension versus relaxation in the fingers. Relaxation is the musician's friend (as a general rule) and tension a hindrance or an interference in making music that flows without causing injury to the parts of the body that move fingers, wrists, hands, arms, etc. So, when it comes to learning how best to use button travel and the force required to press a button down, I favor spending a lot of time just getting the feel of your instrument and focusing on the minimum effort required to make notes sound for the required length of time and at the desired volume (use bellows control to get more or less volume). I've found that it's usually wise to begin with learning the minimum effort required, then to proceed from comfortable command of that light, relaxed, minimum effort basis on up to other aspects of playing, e.g., "more volume" and careful use of damper openings (which, crudely speaking, depends on the extent to which one presses down a button). I think it's easier to proceed from less effort towards greater effort than to go in the reverse direction when the goal is to develop good musical technique. We could also take this in the direction of discussing what distinguishes a melody note from an ornament, let's say. Forgive me if I tread on contested ground when I say that it's good to be able to consciously decide to use a very light flick or touch on a button to get an ornament. For that (i.e., ornament), you don't want to press the button all the way to the bottom, so to speak.
  21. Thank you Mark for posting to the C.net for me. If I may say, I think the case worked out well, the hesitation being that it's a bit less protective than, say, a hardshell case. It's lightweight, for sure. The bottom piece (you can see part of it, covered in light-blue ultrasuede) in the lower (2nd) of the 2 photos, is fairly stiff foam, cut to fit the Jones anglo that lives inside the basket -- a tight enough fit that it holds the bellows closed, with the basket top pressing lightly down on the concertina to hold it in place, kept tight by the two leather straps. In terms of reproducibility, well, it's a one-of-a-kind and would be fairly impractical to copy unless one were very (just for instance) obsessively focused on doing all the fitments by hand and taking hours to get them just right.
  22. Those of us with old concertinas indeed are worried, since so many of them did use now-banned or restricted woods, the exact nature and provenance of which can be disputed. Then there are issues with ivory, bone, mother-or-earl, and so forth. I have aJones with bone buttons that is probably best kept here in the country, since I don't want to risk having it confiscated or destroyed by a zealous customs officer for lack of proof concerning the button material. Yes, I have an appraisal from "Button Box" to the effect that the buttons are bone rather than ivory. So, I'm following this issue, as are several friends who are violinists with bows that may be subjected to confiscation. Here are some recent articles discussing the topic that appeared in the NYTimes. Has anyone actually followed the recommended path by contacting Fish & Wildlife ["Musicians traveling abroad with ivory instruments are still required to obtain a federal certificate that serves as a passport of sorts for their items. Mr. Hoover said musicians should apply online at the Fish & Wildlife service website at least 30 days in advance of travel.]? See: http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/author/tom-mashberg/ [specifically, the 3rd item in this "Arts Beat" series, from May 15, 2014]; and (Tom Mashberg reporting in the NYTimes, June 20): http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/21/arts/design/law-to-impose-tough-limits-on-sales-of-ivory-art.html?_r=0 NB his statement: ""Crucial to the bill is a section that outlaws the sale of all ivory objects unless an item is both at least 100 years old and consists of less than 20 percent ivory. Federal rules require that items be 100 years old but do not set any content restrictions." Stay tuned; I predict more confusion to come.
  23. Well, that attempt to post a photo of the basketry case didn't work. I have a couple of good photos but can't figure out how to attach or post them. BTW, to reply to RWL's query, yes, I think the name "ultrasuede" is kind of a generic (or maybe a brand?) name that's applied to the fabric that comes close to imitating suede leather.
  24. Having made a couple of cases for my concertinas -- two "gig-bag" nylon carry cases and a custom-made basketry case, handmade to order by a fine basketmaker/craftsman, I can tell you a couple of my solutions. One fabric that has worked very well is ultrasuede. Yes, I found it difficult to sew, since it's pretty dense. However, it has some advantages, in that it seems to wear well; stands up to the abrasion that comes with frequent insertion & removal of instrument. It's supple, and gradually adapts/conform to contours of an instrument. I found it was easy to glue it to foam or to other materials. Available in colors, too. I don't think it emits any gaseous fumes that might harm a fine wooden finish, but that's a question worth asking. I've used some cotton napped cloth that once was part of an L.L. Bean "chamois" cloth shirt, also with good results. If you know anyone who works with upholstery fabric, you might seek his or her opinion about suitable properties for something that will need to stand up to a lot of abrasion from wooden ends; wooden handrests; metal ends; screw heads; and so forth. However, in this department, there must be more than a few experienced cases-makers who can weigh in on the subject who also are members of C-net.
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