Instrument Survey

[Christopher Quinn]

I have a 30 button C/G Hohner. It's my first instrument and I've been playing it over the last 5 years. I don't suppose anyone is particularly interested by that though.

[dbowers]

Morse Ceili

 

Lachenal 30-button, metal ends (date & provenance unkown, playable through the efforts of the Button Box)

 

Lachenal 20-button fixer-upper (ca. 1895)

 

Old Scholer 20-button

[Dan Madden]

I have three great Englishes:

 

Tenor treble edeophone,

A Jefferies

A Geuns-Wakker Baritone

 

I also have a very early bottom end Wheatstone not currently (perhaps never to be) playable

 

I am also 1/2 way through the wait for a Suttner

 

 

Dan Madden

[Old_Squeezer]

Over the past dozen years or so, I managed to get four concertinas:

 

1996 (?) Suttner 31b Anglo, my mainstay

 

1938 Wheatstone 72b MacCann duet (the latest), still struggling to learn

 

Lachenal 46b MacCann duet, A=452. Excellent condition, except not enough buttons, hence the Wheatstone.

 

c. 1903 Lachenal 30b Anglo, so ill it reminds me of the collander I use to drain pasta. I can't believe I learned on this.

 

I regularly play the first two (like daily). Like many others, I can't believe the collections amassed by some. I also can't believe that I haven't amassed a collection greater than what I have.

 

K

[tomlaw90]

Wow, I thought I had a lot with 3:

 

A Morse Albion (#140)

A late Wheatstone E1 Standard English (#35507)

An anonymous Lachenal Anglo (i.e. no serial number on it)

 

I'll bring the 1st and 3rd to the Squeeze-In...

 

Tom Lawrence

Edited September 3, 2003 by tomlaw90

[Rhomylly]

*I* am interested in other folks' Hohners! I currently have:

 

*a new Hohner 20-button

*a small piano accordion of unknown vintage/name but my parents took it to Denmark twice with their high school morris team, and I just can't bring myself to part with it. I have ambitions of learning this, too.

 

I *want*

 

a 30 button Norman

The Nobel Prize for Literature

 

(I figure they're equally attainable goals, at the moment...)

Edited September 2, 2003 by Rhomylly

[RoyJanik]

Morse Ceili 30b C/G, Jeffries Layout, #0009

Stagi 30b C/G, Wheatstone Layout

Gremlin red & green plastic 20b, C/G

[bazza]

I have,Anglos,30b c/g Jeffries

32b LachenalBb/f

32b Lachenal C/G

38b LachenalA/E under repair

 

English.

Aola 1910

Lachenal 1860,s

Wheatstone1852

George Case Double reed pan

56 button edeophone extended treble

wheatstone baritone

Lachenal tenor

Edited October 23, 2007 by bazza

[Samantha]

I have a Scholer type 20 button in Eb/Ab - which got me hooked in the first place;

a Norman 30 button C/G which I HAD to buy two months after the Scholer;

a Conner 31 button C/G, recently acquired.

A Jeffries 30 button F/Bb just been tuned to CP but hasn't been sent to me yet;

AND

the only Russian Hayden in existence (currently in the care of Brian Hayden himself, but he'll be sending it back to me soon!).

Samantha

[Daniel Bradbury]

An early Crabb C/G, an interesting instrument stamped J. Pollitts, Peerless Anglo, Oldham, England.

 

A C. Jefferies Bb/F.

 

My first was a 20 Button Rigolletto C/G. Sticky Buttons and all....

Edited October 23, 2007 by Daniel Bradbury

[John Nixon]

 

Hi Friends,

My collection of English Concertinas is all Wheatstone :-

48 key Treble. No. 11244 and is probably Mid Victorian. I purchased it purely and simply to hire it out to the B.B.C. or I.T.V. I removed the reed Pans so that actors could pretend playing without sound. It has appeared in a number of programs.

48 key Treble No, 28630 which my Fether bought new direct from Wheatstone in

1920. I have the original set of High pitched reeds which my father used only if the Piano that was to accompany him was pitched high. It was a very simple job to change over before a concert began. The current *low pitch " set is probably older than the original set & certainly sounds better.

48 kay Baritone No.30124 (made in May 1924. My father bought this second hand

in 1933 for me when I was 6 years old . I had been taught by him using a 48 key Treble sinilar to the one at the start of my list from age 4 in 1931.

30 key Contra-Bass . This instrument was originally used in the Bolton English Conncertina Band and probably is of Victorian Vintage.

I have had the very real pleasure of playing the latter 3- Concertinas in a very large variety of studios & halls consistently thro' all the years since 1931 and particularly since the end of WW2.

JOHN NIXON

[rmerris]

As you may know that Wes Williams and I work diligently on dating the manufacture/sale of Lachenal concertinas. We have a database of over 1400 serial numbers and descriptions for Lachenals. Eventually, the results of our dating project will appear at this website.

 

All these Lachenals that are being reported in this survey, but no serial numbers.

 

Respondents: Any chance that you could report the serial numbers, along with the descriptions for your Lachenals.? If you have already posted a message, any chance of a re-posting with the Lachenal information?

 

Any sales receipts or other dating information?

 

Any information would be much appreciated.

[Tom Hall]

My Lachenal "New Model" previously listed has a serial number of 32321, raised metal ends, metal buttons, ebonized frame, new bellows, pads, valves, retuned to A440. It came with a Matusewich case which has the serial number written on the label along with another number which I had hitherto not noticed. I now see a difference in the first number. What it appears to read is:

 

32322 pan

 

44785 side

 

There is no label or number currently in the oval space on the side.

 

I hope this helps in your endeavors. I also hope it may help you explain to me this new mystery of two numbers -- Tom

[shipcmo]

A quick compilation. To this point we have:

ANGLOS

Bastari 2

Conner 1

Crabb 2

Dickenson Wheatstone 1

Dipper 2

Gremlin 1

Herrington 2

Hohner 2

Jeffries 8

Jones 1

Lachenal 15

Morse 3

Norman 3

Riccordi/Bastari 1

Scholer 3

Stagi 1

Suttner 1

Tedrow 1

Tedrow Stagi 1

Wheatstone 1

Un-named 4

 

DUETS

Bastari 1

Dickinson Wheatstone 2

Lachenal 5

Wheatstone 1

 

ENGLISH

Case 1

Crabb 2

Geuns-Wakker 1

Hohner?/Bastari 1

Jeffries 1

Lachenal 5

Morse 3

Rock Chidley? 1

Stagi 1

Trinity College? 1

Wheatstone 13

 

Cheers,

Geo.

[Dave Weinstein]

My Lachenal is Serial # 157431, 20 bone keys, steel reeds, and what appear to be mahogany ends. Originally believed to have been tuned in Ab/Eb, currently in G/D (concert pitch).

 

--Dave

[Michael Reid]

Details on my Lachenal, mentioned in my previous post in this thread:

 

Treble English, 48 silver buttons, steel reeds, rosewood ends, five-fold bellows with papers. All original parts, as far as I know.

 

The serial number on the label is 59845, and this number appears twice inside on the left end. But on the inside of the right end, the serial number is 59842. I've always wondered if the numbering was erroneous or if the parts were switched in production.

 

I purchased it in 1984 from Fred Oster of Vintage Instruments in Philadelphia. I went there because it was Alistair Anderson's answer to my question, "Where can I find one?" It was the only playable concertina Fred had on hand.

 

I wish I knew more of its provenance, but that's about everything.

[Chris Timson]

I wish I knew more of its provenance, but that's about everything.

I find it so frustrating that I know so little about the past history of the instruments we play. I wish concertinas had log books like cars, I really do. I have taken to writing inside (in pencil!) the date when I take possession of a concertina, so that future owners can at least see one stop on its travels.

 

Chris

[fnirt]

I've been playing for "about a year" and have collected the following:

 

1 Generic Red (Italian) 20 button Anglo - belonged to my late Father, some buttons stick, but in fair repair. Sentimental

 

1 Generic Red Bestler 20 button Anglo - eBay sweatshop special, understood it would be cheap and cheaper. It's the one I play by the fire, take camping, practice on, etc. It's my beater. But you know, it's not that bad!

 

1 Ernst Deffner 20 button Anglo - This is my "nice" concertina, but it's a dual reed which sometimes makes me wish it weren't, just aesthetically speaking. Very nice, though. (Anybody have experience with that brand?)