RP3 Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 When I saw your famous Shantyman on the Button Box sales page, I feared the worst. Glad to see you're still with us, but it is a bit worrying when one sees a fellow squeezer part with an old friend. Wish you the best up there in the Commonwealth, Ross Schlabach Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikefule Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 The Jeffries I already have, which is beautifully restored, except I sometimes wish it was in G/D so I could play it wth other people. In the Morris world, G D melodeons rule by weight of numbers. My Jeffries is B flat/F, which causes some consternation: the general view appears to tbe that it is an unnatural abomination. The fiddler sometimes makes the effort, and one of the lads now has a Roland electronic melodeon that can transpose to any key! Or failing that, my friend and teacher's G/D Dipper is a work of art: light, nimble, beautifully finished, with a lovely tone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RP3 Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 Mike, Your Morris friends may have condemned the Bb/F but there's many a Irish piper with some C pipes who'd love to share a tune with you on that box!! And I, for one, believe that Bb/F is about the best pitch combination there is-- much mellower than C/G -- and consequently I have a 28 b. Jeffries on its way to me from Greg J. Regards, Ross Schabach Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Edgley Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 Another vote from me on the Bb/F. Just as fast, and mellower than C/G. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asdormire Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 Another vote from me on the Bb/F. Just as fast, and mellower than C/G. you know, it is funny, last night I almost posted that you had highly recommended to me a few years back that I get a Bb/F as my next concertina. I am still thinking in that direction. Alan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikefule Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 Oh, I don't dispute it's a lovely key. But when in Rome and all that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Besser Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 Oh, I don't dispute it's a lovely key. But when in Rome and all that. Ditto here. Bf/Fs are my favorite concertinas - but I almost always play with others who seem to believe those keys are forbidden by law. The F/C at the Button Box has a glorious tone, but I'd rarely use it for the same reasons. The "ideal concertina" question is sort of specious; to me, different concertinas work best in different situations. When I"m playing solo Morris, nothing beats my C/G, which plays like a dream (or did, at least, until I blew out the bellows) and can be heard above the clatter of sticks, clanging of bells and street noise. In my ceilidh band, on a good sound system, nothing beats my G/D Jeffries. Same when I'm playing French dance music or for contra dances. And I've played in some interminable Morris parades; in those situations my Morse G/D hybrid is "ideal" because it's so light and because of the feather action. So "ideal" depends on what I'm doing. That said, if I was marooned on a desert island where matching keys with others wasn't a factor and could have only one concertina, it would be a Bf/F Jeffries, maybe 38 keys or so. Or the low F/C Dipper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikefule Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 That said, if I was marooned on a desert island where matching keys with others wasn't a factor and could have only one concertina, it would be a Bf/F Jeffries, maybe 38 keys or so. Coincidentally, I was asked this very question for an interview in a works newsletter last week, and gave the same answer, but with the word "my" somewhere in there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
graham else Posted October 31, 2011 Share Posted October 31, 2011 Difficult to choose between my two Dipper anglos. I invariably choose the C/G for accompanying the morris but prefer the more mellow tone of the D/G when playing for ceilidhs Take Chris's advice and get your order into Colin now!!! Graham Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tootler Posted October 31, 2011 Share Posted October 31, 2011 (edited) Bf/Fs are my favorite concertinas - but I almost always play with others who seem to believe those keys are forbidden by law. I play alongside clarinets, trumpets and saxophones so a Bb/F would be very useful. I'm getting quite familiar with the accidental row on my C/G Edited October 31, 2011 by Tootler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikefule Posted October 31, 2011 Share Posted October 31, 2011 I'm getting quite familiar with the accidental row on my C/G Positive thinking: it's the "bonus row". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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