Shas Cho

Not yet, alas. I feel as if Christmas has been postponed :/ I'll be sure to post my first impressions when it arrives!

It's a good path, Al, and evidently an inspirational one. Speaking of inspiration, your rendition of "Summertime" (yes, yes, I know I haven't gotten that far yet) had me grinning from the first evocative bar. I couldn't resist, and didn't move on until I had it down pat. What fun. You said "I ... thought I would record it to help a good friend" My description of your tutorial as " like having a trusted friend inviting one to join the fun" was bang on. It's nice to hit the bull's eye now and then. Thanks again, Alan, for this gift. With it, you've done more to promote peace and happiness than any politician I can think of. And good luck, Pete! The more people there are playing un-electrified music, the better world we all live in.

I agree completely, Peter. We have to work with what we've got. When I was a young pup I lived and worked in Europe for a few years. Growing up on a remote ranch in Colorado I had no opportunities to learn a foreign language by interacting with native speakers, so I got a Berlitz course from the nearest library. The many hours I spent with those cassette tapes did not, of course, make me a fluent speaker of German. When I stepped off of the plane in Frankfurt everyone knew I was a tourist... but they could understand me. It was, as you say, a start.

Ha! I did not realise that Audacity could do that. You just select the tune and click on "change tempo". Brilliant! I've never successfully interacted with Garage Band. It's still bundled with Mac, but I think I would need to take a course to understand it. Thanks for the tips! Just brilliant!

Haha! Yes, ceemonster, it would be difficult to be immersed in a single CD. That was never my intent, of course. I wanted folks to try to single out the CD (or two) which they felt was most helpful, after which I have always intended to use the combined advice to choose a small selection of CDs. As the various artists have been suggested I have looked them up on-line, and have been fortunate to find a number of them at the Comhaltas Traditional Music Archive. By downloading samples when the kids are in bed I've managed to hear a variety of players. Hopefully all of this will enable me to spend my nickels in the most effective (and fun!) way possible. I'm lusting for the Anglo International CD set. Not so useful for immersion in ITM, to be sure, but it looks like a very enjoyable overview of what the anglo can be and is used for. Thanks very much to everyone who has generously shared their thoughts and suggestions. BTW, has anyone found a free or inexpensive programme similar to the Amazing Slow Downer for Mac?

Here is a specific question that I'll put in a seperate post: Has anyone here used the Foinn Seisiún books and CDs? As the advert says, "This series of books and CD sets was produced to provide those learning to play Irish music with a virtual session to play along with" That sounds about perfect, but in my experience good ideas do not always translate into effective results. Anyone?

Thank you to all who have given me the benefit of their experience. I agree that I'm looking more for the traditional music than the 'latest and greatest.' The remarks about Mary MacNamara make sense to me, too- I'm not impressed by blinding speed and tune-burying ornamentation, and even if I were, it will be a long while before I can attempt that style. Jihela, I agree with your advice as well. The problem is that I cannot access youtube videos with my dial-up connection, so I need these suggestions to get started with. Any other comments? Agreements? Alternative thoughts?

So-called 'immersion' has proved to be a powerful way of learning a new language. And what is music, if not a cultural language? Until I began to play the penny whistle I had virtually no experience of Irish music. I've learned a number of tunes on the whistle, mostly via the midis and scores offered by abc notation. While I am grateful for the availability of abc, I am painfully aware that even the tunes I play 'fluently' lack the authentic phrasing and accent of a native player. Now that I am learning the anglo concertina I would like to learn this expressive new language as well as possible. I think that, given my isolation from ITM sessions and groups, the best method for me would be to have a selection of authentic recorded Irish music to listen to. Please consider my low budget and slow dial-up internet access. This means that I will be limited to purchasing two or three CDs to form the backbone of my elementary education. The obvious temptation is to order a K-Tel collection, thereby obtaining hundreds of tunes for a relatively small outlay. The problem with that, of course, is that I would have a collection of low-budget K-Tel music... So here (at last!) is my question: What recording would you recommend for a novice anglo player who wants to absorb the musical accent as spoken in Ireland? Please don't list a dozen recordings, as that is beyond my reach. Try to narrow your dozen suggestions to the best one, or at most the best three. Any observations would be most welcome, too, such as WHY these recordings would be helpful, and WHAT I should attend to in each. Thanks for your help. Shas

I did indeed. This 20-button Stagi is a lot of fun, but the sticking buttons and general lack of playability demand that I have a better box if I am to keep playing. And the only options open to my budget for a playable anglo are a Rochelle or a cheap and good used instrument. The problem with a used instrument is that if it's both playable and in my price range the seller would have to be as ignorant as I am. And I am far too ignorant to assess and evaluate a used concertina. So I have purchased a first generation Rochelle unseen from a member of this forum halfway across the continent (isn't the internet a wonderful thing?). I'll post a review when I've had the chance to play with it a bit. I'll keep my eyes open for the opportunity to play a second-generation Rochelle, and if that happens I will post a side-by-side comparison as well. I only hope that someone much more knowledgeable will beat me to it, as that will be a much more valuable report.

Is this the thread you mean? Shas Cho was the last poster there. It notes the technical difference, but I get the impression that he wants to know what the difference is in how it feels to play the two. And I don't think that has yet been covered. Thanks, Malcomb, I have searched and read every reference to the Rochelle, but nowhere can I find any difference but the new reeds. There has been a lot of speculation, and a few recommendations such as a larger air valve, but no description of other changes. Jim, could you list the technical differences noted on that thread? I've read it again and can find no differences noted besides the reeds. I'm not looking for a subjective review, though that would be fun to read. I'm not even asking for a technical review, though I would have thought that was more or less automatic; one of the most innovative and arguably important (and certainly discussed) lines of concertina being built today is released in a newer, pricier, and presumably better model. That's news, isn't it? An anomaly in serial numbers in pre-WW1 Wheatstones would generate reams of discussion and research. I understand and appreciate that many of the forum participants are in the way of being concertina connoisseurs and are interested primarily in high-end or vintage instruments, and I hope this never becomes a beginners-only pub. Yet there has been a large and sustained interest in both iterations of the Rochelle. I was quite surprised when my searches turned up nothing in the way of comparisons between them. I'm just asking if anyone can tell us what has changed. Is it just the "Italian Cagnoni reeds, which improves both balance and the quality of sound" (Wim Wakker quote) , or is it also a larger gasper hole? More folds in the redesigned, more supple bellows? Adjustable handles, to fit all sizes and ages? I've recently come down with a bad case of concertinitis. The comments here at C-net made it pretty clear to me that the only realistic and reliable choice of anglo for a cash-poor patient to obtain and enjoy is the Rochelle. I promptly sold a rather special ukulele and used the proceeds to buy a second-hand, first edition Rochelle. I'm absurdly eager for it to arrive. I'm having nightmares about indifferent postal handlers. And I'm wondering what I might be missing by not spending more money for Rochelle 2.0. Or is that merely Rochelle 1.1? Nobody know but Wim, and he's not telling I've counted six folds on some Rochelles and seven on others, but as I've seen both on what are said to be second generation instruments I am more confused and curious than ever. So I'm wondering, what ARE the changes in the new Rochelle as compared to the laudable and popular original Rochelle?

Doggone it, Ken, you've stolen my thunder! My Rochelle is (hopefully) en route, and although I haven't even had it in my hands yet I had decided a few days ago to use beer labels as unique bellows papers. And now I find it's already been done Good job, though- your Ceili looks great!

Being new to the concertina, I've thus far been limited to asking advice and learning from my musical elders. I notice that the topic of nautical music has surfaced from time to time, and am hope that for once I can offer some new information. I used to build small wooden boats, and inevitably got tangled up with sailors and singers in the longshore pubs here in BC. I got to know a very interesting Irishman named Tom Lewis who, after a 24-year career in the Royal Navy, has embarked on a second career as a shantyman. Tom has written, performed, and released a number of albums (www.tomlewis.net) and performs at festivals and events around the world where he seeks out songs and traditions from aging seamen. In between tales and rants he sings his original songs, accompanying himself on the ukulele, button accordion, and (you knew there must be a connection, right?) concertina. While Tom's songs range from rowdy to sentimental, and from modern to traditional, they are all infused with the unmistakable authenticity of a life spent on the sea. An offering that might be of particular interest to buskers or to those relatively new to the concertina is his book Worth the Singing. Packed with crowd-pleasing songs and nautical trivia, it includes a CD on which Tom performs one verse from each of the forty songs in the book, all of which are presented in conventional sheet music, making them easy to learn and to play along with. (One of my personal favourites is Christmas at Sea, in which Tom sets to music the words of the poem by Robert Loius Stevenson) For the gregarious and travel-minded musician, Tom leads an annual 2-week narrow boat trip in England with nightly musical sessions in canal-side pubs, all of which is fore play to a musical festival. Sounds like fun to me!

Thanks to Gusten, Jim, and Leo for their friendly and helpful responses. I still hope that someone will give us the benefit of their experience with both iterations of the Rochelle. It looks like I'll soon have a Rochelle 1.0 of my own (I'm pretty excited!), and maybe one of these days I'll post the answer to my own question. In combing through various sites for this information (thesession.org, chiffandfipple.com, theirishconcertina.com...) I find a great deal of enthusiasm for Wim's line of entry level instruments. It is evident that a lot of aspiring concertinists have gotten their first foot-hold in the world of traditional music by means of these inexpensive yet entirely usable boxes. I must have read two hundred testimonials, out of which perhaps two individuals have been dissatisfied with the instruments and not one of which was unhappy with Wim or with the dealer from which the box was obtained. That's a very remarkable set of statistics. We may look back in twenty years to find that the Rochelle and its siblings were responsible for a boom in concertina players that literally saved both the ethic and the industry. Wim Wakker and his little network of distributors are true benefactors of humanity. *applause*

This is sort of amazing to me- The Rochelle is one of the more popular topics around here, yet of the hundred or so who have read my question not a single person can compare the two incarnations? Maybe it's just my meds, but I have this feeling that the old-timers are reading my question and looking at one another from under their eyebrows, thinking "I'm not gonna tell him. Are you gonna tell him? Hell, no, I'm not gonna tell him..." Wim? Bob? Ted? Jim? Anyone?

I realize the credits were showing before I got to the theatre, but I want to add my applause here, Dirge. I listened to this piece three times through with great pleasure and no little astonishment. I had no idea that this sort of music could be performed on a concertina, and your playing seems quite wonderful to me. I have no aspirations to such accomplishments (I'm pleased just to be playing "Summertime" a'la Alan Day's tutorial) but I enjoy and admire yours enormously. Thank you very much for sharing it with us. Shas

I second that question. What set-up and adjustment is a Rochelle in need of? (you can also read that as, what should the potential purchaser of a used Rochelle be watching for?) Thanks again.

Good on ya, Wim! I hope they are a huge success. Were there any other changes with this new iteration? Do I detect another fold in the bellows? I'd really like to hear a bit more boasting on your part; tell us just how much improved Rochelle 2.0 is! Thanks

Hear! Hear! That would be a valuable posting.

Moderators, feel free to move this topic if you feel you must but it is very much a part of my buying and selling. I've been offered a good deal on a first generation Rochelle. My primary consideration to is acquire a functional, responsive concertina (at a price I can manage, which is just barely perhaps the going rate for a new Rochelle) on which to learn and develop my skills. I don't want to save a few bucks and find myself discouraged, nor do I want to spend dollars without significant gain in playability. I am aware that the Rochelle has been given new and, presumably, improved reeds, but beyond that I have been unable to find a nuts-and-bolts description of the changes from generation 1 to generation 2. Can someone give me (and no doubt others with the same question) a simple run-down on the differences between the two iterations of the Rochelle? Has anyone here played the two versions side-by side? A description of that experience would be most enlightening. And as I have taken up this much of your time, please let me offer sincere thanks to Wim Wakker for providing an accessible yet functional instrument for us beginners to commence our concertina journeys. I appreciate it very much, and I hope it leads to many sales of his high-end instruments. In fact, I would expect it to benefit ALL of the makers of quality concertinas. Shas

I agree, Jim. Just couldn't resist the quip. This anglo is teaching me a bunch these days!

Ha! As the feller said, "I learn something new every day and, frankly, it's starting to @iss me off!"

"I also understand that there are actually people who can play off an abc but not read music. " I'm not understanding this dichotomy between abc and sheet music. I use BarFly on my Mac, and by simply selecting Split Screen Mode the abc IS displayed as sheet music. Better yet, by listening to the midi version of the tune and following with my eyes on the score and my fingers on the buttons (well, on the holes of my penny whistle, to be accurate) I have actually learned to read sheet music from abc! The files are so small and easy to download and store, even on my glacial dial-up service, that I never hesitate to try any piece that catches my eye. Another powerful learning tool is that by simply typing in a halved value for "L" (note length) I can slow down a tune to learn the fingering, then by replacing the original value I'm back up to speed at the stroke of a key. It's fast, it's free, it provides written scores as well as providing a basic audio rendition, and it requires no trees to be cut and processed. What's not to like?

Now that I've sold my ukulele I'm in the market for an as-new Rochelle. It's important to me that the instrument I buy has been inspected and perfected by an expert such as Bob Tedrow or the techs at Concertina Connection as I live in an area far too remote to be running for help with a wonky reed or a gasping bellows. I'm prepared to buy a new Rochelle, but I would consider a used one, IF it has no functional problems. Thanks, Shas

Well, that was fun :=) It looks like I have a deal. Thanks for the interest you've shown. Shas

I found THESE PHOTOS of the engraved and polished model. Very pretty very shiny, but a single greasy thumb print is enough to make it look tacky. The aged nickel is less flashy, but looks like Clint Eastwood's hat- like it's seen all there is to see and still looking good. Just sayin...