StephenTx
-
Posts
297 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Posts posted by StephenTx
-
-
To put it lightly I am more than upset with Adam Parthrige Auction house. The item went for a price below my commissioned bid with them and the FORGOT (sure) to place the big. So much for the integrity of Adam Partridge he offered nothing more than "mistakes happen"!
-
SoYes the auction did occur. I watched it live was quite fascinating. Never knew such a site existed. When I saw this discussion I checked it out and unlike many of you I could not resist low balling a bid on the site for the Baritone of 1000 GAP? I was shocked when it came up for bidding and the hammer dropped at 820 GBP. That's the good news. Late Friday I got an invoice for a cigar cutter at 100 Pounds. Which I assume is a clerical error. Will keep u posted. The bass sold for 900 #9/35*8:&
So, these seem like below reasonable prices? Do you think this is a less advertized auction house? wrong time of year? PS I hope you did not accidently bid on cigar cutter! it sounds like something that would happen to me! Michelle
-
Leo Thank you so much, I was wanting something with more than the melodic line in treble...will be a challege working on all three notes at one time! You all are the best. Appreciatively,
Stephen
-
Hello I have been looking for an arrangement of O Sole Mio with more than just the melodic line in the treble cleft. Does anyone have one by chance as I would love a copy. I have searched the Internet to no avail....I'm sure I must not know where to look. Thank you from Texas. Stephen
Hi Stephen
Does this PDF work?
Thanks
Leo
Leo Thank you so much, I was wanting something with more than the melodic line in treble...will be a challege working on all three notes at one time! You all are the best. Appreciatively,
Stephen
-
Hello I have been looking for an arrangement of O Sole Mio with more than just the melodic line in the treble cleft. Does anyone have one by chance as I would love a copy. I have searched the Internet to no avail....I'm sure I must not know where to look. Thank you from Texas. Stephen
-
SoYes the auction did occur. I watched it live was quite fascinating. Never knew such a site existed. When I saw this discussion I checked it out and unlike many of you I could not resist low balling a bid on the site for the Baritone of 1000 GAP? I was shocked when it came up for bidding and the hammer dropped at 820 GBP. That's the good news. Late Friday I got an invoice for a cigar cutter at 100 Pounds. Which I assume is a clerical error. Will keep u posted. The bass sold for 900 #9/35*8:&
-
I'm reminded of this thread English Concertina with useful EC keyboard guide by Geoffrey Crabb.
-
Isn't that true the balance between "need" vs. "want". Tell me about your custom. By the way to you know the range of a wheatstone treble 56 key?
-
Need is such a tricky word.
I think the fact that I ended up with a custom layout has saved me a great deal of money over the years...
-
Thank you ....Im sure it is pricy. You mentioned the Morse is that the same one made by the Button Box? Are you pleased with it? I have listened to a couple and they have a different sound...I guess due to the accordian reeds...but quite pleasant. I would appreciate your evaluation of such. Thank you. Amigo
-
OK Stephen. My friend, Stephen O'Sullivan ... who I bought my Morse Baritone from ... has an exceptionally lovely Dipper Baritione that he must sell since his arthritis is getting in the way of his playing. It's not cheap .. but I thought of you and your search for a baritone so I wanted to mention it.
-
OK Stephen. My friend, Stephen O'Sullivan ... who I bought my Morse Baritone from ... has an exceptionally lovely Dipper Baritione that he must sell since his arthritis is getting in the way of his playing. It's not cheap .. but I thought of you and your search for a baritone so I wanted to mention it.
-
Thanks, I am not planning on buying it, but ask the questions for educational purposes....and thank you so much for the detail. I am working with Greg...at this point being a newbie I really don't need another concertina as I have a steel reed Wheatstone and a Lachneal brass (which I am very anxious to get my hands on as Greg has restored it and it is in the mail back to me). Thanks again Stephen
-
I would be interested in what you think the price range might be.
The key thing about the price of any vintage concertina is condition. Here's one possible way to approach the price issue:
- contact a dealer such as Barleycorn Concertinas and ask what they would charge for a similar instrument, fully restored
- try out this concertina and check it out very carefully - are the bellows tight? is it in concert pitch? do all reeds sound? do notes sound even when no buttons are pressed? does it still have the original pads and valves (if so, they'll probably need replacement)?
- contact a repairer/restorer such as Greg Jowaisas or Wim Wakker (since you're in the US) and ask for an estimate of what they would charge to address the issues you noticed when you checked out the concertina
- subtract the amount in #3 from the amount in #1
- subtract another $150 for repair costs of additional problems you may have missed when you checked out the concertina
- offer that price.
I've done this myself with reasonably satisfactory results - though you run the risk of eventually irritating the dealer in step 1 if you keep making inquiries and never buy anything. I eventually wore out my welcome with a US accordion dealer that way several years ago.
Hope that helps.
Edited: I just noticed that the original post said that this one was fully restored. In that case I would try to find out who restored it and when, and possibly contact the restorer to find out what was done. It's still really important to try the concertina out before making a final decision if there's any way to do so.
-
Steve, Obviously you have seen one....are the older Wheatstones all six sided? Is the Baritone larger? It has steel reeds. I would be interested in what you think the price range might be. Btw I just noticed that I said 1854 the ledge is for 1855
Thanks
Stephen
-
Steve, Obviously you have seen one....are the older Wheatstones all six sided? Is the Baritone larger? It has steel reeds. I would be interested in what you think the price range might be.
Thanks
Stephen
-
Once again I would like to pick the expert minds. Through a private seller I have the opportunity to purchase a Wheatstone English 48 key Baritone Serial #7186. I have gone to the Ledgers and have the attached page and it seems to have been made around 1854, what does the " 9 9" refer to? It is being sold fully restored. What can you all tell me about a Wheatstone baritone of this vintage? This individual is sending me pictures would it be a six or eight sided instrument, size wise would it be larger that the treble concertina of this era. And finally what would you expect the price range to be? Looking forward to hearing all of your thoughts. Thank you.
-
Fantastic Customer Service from the Button Box USA Doug owner. This is where I bought the above referenced Stagi Baritone. I spoke to the owner this morning and although it is ultimately my mistake for not asking (and being dumb) that this key layout is the only on Stagi makes in the Baritone. Doug was gracious and without my asking was willing for me to return the instrument. By the way Jim, Doug did mention you knew one another. HERE HERE FOR GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE!
Stephen
-
Jim, Yes thank you so much I truly appreciate your taking time to teach and answer questions. I purchase this Concertina from a very well known and reputable retail store here in the States. I asked for a Baritone and no one suggested that I would be getting anything other that a standard Baritone. I will be calling the owner first thing in the morning and I trust there will be no difficultly in returning it, although your answer to my questions will influence the decision. As you know I also have a Wheatstone (steel reed) and a Lachneal (brass reed) EC's. I am going to primarily use the concertinas to accompany myself, I have VERY BIG TENOR OPERATIC voice and I also like classical, but am rather ecletic in my music choices. I have a question. The lower notes on this Baritone-treble seem very low to me (almost fog horn sounding) and what I am wondering is what there utility would be vs. the quid pro quo of not having the upper two rows? Your thoughts are appreciated. In other words would have the capability of this Concertina be a pro or con relative to what I have?
I also have another question for you. My Wheatstone has rosewood ends and I have heard that the metal ended Wheatstones are much louder, considering my BIG VOICE if this would not be a better suited instrument for me? What are the pro's and con's?
Finally, as we have been communicating, I thought to myself that this guys seems to know one heck of alot about concertinas....so I Goggled you and my thoughts were validated as I found and read your website http://www.nonce.dk/Concertina/about.htm which I have made one of my favorites. Thank you for being so generous with your knowledge and time.
I look forward to your reply.
Stephen
-
I read a 2004 thread that Jim Lucas participated in regarding the Baritone key layout however I am still confused. I definitely ordered a Baritone and was not told I would have anything different as what I had read was the key layout was the same. Below is the key layout for my Stagi...your input etc etc will be much appreciated.
The difference, in my terminology (which I didn't originate, but derives from Wheatstone's), is between a "baritone" and a "baritone treble". You appear to be in possession of the other side of the difference (your Stagi) from what you had before (your Morse).
Specifically, your Stagi is set up as a baritone-treble, not as a standard octave-transposing baritone. If the latter is what you want/need, you should return the instrument and request/demand a proper replacement. But if it's currently your only English and you don't want to go to that trouble, it should be easy enough to get used to. The symmetries are still the same.
To reiterate the difference:
- The layout on the plain baritone Englsih is identical to that on the treble English, except that the note sounded by each button is an octave lower than on the treble.
- The baritone-treble, on the other hand (literally, if you'll pardon the pun), has the notes of each button in the same octave as the treble, though the entire array of notes/buttons is shifted "upward" (away from your body on the ends of the instrument) by two rows to accomodate the additional notes of the baritone range. (And if it keeps to 48 buttons, like your Stagi, two rows of buttons -- an octave of notes -- "disappear" off the top.)
It's the nature of Wheatstone's fingering system that successive octaves of any given note are located at opposite ends of the instrument, thus the one-octave difference in the notes sounded by the button at a particular location is often described as "mirror image". (It's actually a little more complex than a simple mirror, but only a little.)
FWIW:
In the "English" layout, 14 buttons comprise an octave, including the two duplications (D#/Eb and G#/Ab). But two full rows on each side add up to 16 buttons. This is another way of describing why the octave appears in the opposite hand, but it also means that adding twofullrows below the treble range on a baritone-treble leaves two "extra" buttons beyond the octave-lower low G. That's where your F and F# come from. (And in the pattern of the English layout, their identities are unambiguous.) In fact, old Wheatstone price lists indicate that (at least on 56-button instruments), the standard range for baritone-trebles ended at the low G; those two additional buttons were left off. But my 64-button baritone-treble does have them, and its array of buttons (though not the notes they sound) is exactly the same as my 64-button tenor-treble. - The layout on the plain baritone Englsih is identical to that on the treble English, except that the note sounded by each button is an octave lower than on the treble.
-
Colleague, I purchased a new Baritone - Stagi (not to mention the Wheatstone and Lachneal---another story). Anyhow in taking my Skype lesson today with Pauline deSnoo, I discovered that the layout of my Baritone is not standards and amoung my concerns is the easy of transitioning between instruments. Can anyone shed light on this for me? I read a 2004 thread that Jim Lucas participated in regarding the Baritone key layout however I am still confused. I definitely ordered a Baritone and was not told I would have anything different as what I had read was the key layout was the same. Below is the key layout for my Stagi...your input etc etc will be much appreciated.
StephenTx
PS the jp is a little hard to read. on the left the lowest notes are G# G B bflat the right F# F A Aflat
-
Jim , Thank you so much. This is exactly what I was looking for. By "the lowest notes" do you mean the buttons closest to the body when holding the instrument? I can read the music but when one starts talk about "up or dow a fifth"...I have a knowledge deficet at this point. But hey I am only having my second lesson this Saturday. I really appreciate your time as I know this will help me tremendously.
StephenTX
Hi Stephen.
The highest notes in pitch are the ones above your finger tips, and the lowest below the heel of your hand ... I would call that the "bottom" of the concertina, and it'll be the closest to the body.
if you're just concentrating on the key of C ie no sharps or flats, you will just be using the two central long lines of buttons on each side. Jumps of third (literally 3 semitones) are what you get if you concentrate on one hand at a time and these middle long rows and zigzag up the concertina from lowest to highest pitch. Walk up the rows with your first and second fingers. Jumps of a fifth (doh -soh in solfa, or the first notes of "baa, baa black sheep") are what you get if you just select one of the middle long rows and move a finger along it . This means taking the finger off a button and placing it on the next one up, so it's harder not to lose your place.
Thank you. I have printed this also. It is so great being with (as we say in Texas) ya'all. I have always wondered how the different "keys" are determined....now I know what the key of C is. Thank you Jim and once again as we bastadize the Queen's English in Texas-I am fix'in to go practice. :-)StephenTx
-
This post is in response to StephenTx asking for help with locating the buttons on an EC.
I found that following the suggestions of Jim Lucas was very helpful for me.
Thank you Mary for remembering and suggesting.
Stephen Tx
-
Jim , Thank you so much. This is exactly what I was looking for. By "the lowest notes" do you mean the buttons closest to the body when holding the instrument? I can read the music but when one starts talk about "up or dow a fifth"...I have a knowledge deficet at this point. But hey I am only having my second lesson this Saturday. I really appreciate your time as I know this will help me tremendously.
StephenTX
Understand Chord use and the English Concertina
in Teaching and Learning
Posted
I am getting pretty good and being able to play the melodic lines even with two notes on each side BUT I am have a hard time understanding how chords are used when you are playing? For example if I have the melody how and when do I know what chord to play if the music is just written as the melody? Any illumination will be appreciated.