My Hairy Accompanist

[Constant Screamer]

My Aussie Terrier Mr. Sydney could always be counted on to sing the blues when I play my blues harp, but he's never given my concertina a second thought....until last night. As I launched in to "Off She Goes" my newest favorite tune, he howled, talked, barked, and more times than I can count, slide in to perfect pitch along with the tune.

 

He became so loud I could hardly hear the concertina!

 

I can't be alone in this!

 

Perhaps we can do some busking with this act!

[Bruce McCaskey]

This needs to be captured and posted on YouTube!

[Jody Kruskal]

Stick it on Youtube and get a million hits. I for one would love to hear and see your dog sing.

 

Last weekend I was playing on the street here in Brooklyn with fiddler Paul Friedman. We were part of a city-wide music festival with 1000 outdoor concerts all over the city called Make Music NY. Anyway, we were having a great afternoon when up walks this woman with her dog on a leash. I looked at the dog, looked at the woman and said "Have I got a song for you!" and launched into "How much is that doggie in the window". With perfect timing and in exactly the right place the dog loudly barked, "Woof Woof" I tried not to register my surprise and continued with the song... "The one with the waggly tail" and again perfectly placed and with great enthusiasm... "Woof Woof" At this point everyone broke down laughing and the magic moment was gone. Though we tried, the dog would not sing again.

[fearfeasog]

hey i'm new here and plan to introduce myself, but i saw this and had to chime in. i just got a rental concertina today, first time ever holding or making noise with one. one of our cats who is quarantined upstairs started meowling pretty gustily when i started playing. maybe i'm that bad, maybe he's that good, i dunno. cute little bugger anyway.

[Rod]

My Aussie Terrier Mr. Sydney could always be counted on to sing the blues when I play my blues harp, but he's never given my concertina a second thought....until last night. As I launched in to "Off She Goes" my newest favorite tune, he howled, talked, barked, and more times than I can count, slide in to perfect pitch along with the tune.

 

He became so loud I could hardly hear the concertina!

 

I can't be alone in this!

 

Perhaps we can do some busking with this act!

 

Others will disagree, but don't kid yourself. This is by no means unusual. The dog is not enjoying the music. In all probability the sound is actually painful to his particularly ultra-sensitive ears and the kind thing would be to desist from enabling him to become intimitely involved.

[Dirge]

Others will disagree, but don't kid yourself. This is by no means unusual. The dog is not enjoying the music. In all probability the sound is actually painful to his particularly ultra-sensitive ears and the kind thing would be to desist from enabling him to become intimitely involved.

 

I agree it's not unusual but the rest I most certainly disagree with, sorry Rod! We had a spaniel in England; now he lives with my parents. He started 'singing along' with my concertina when I was in the early stages of learning. I persuaded him that 'his tune' is The Iron Duke a morris tune I'd just learned at Kilve; I would say "No, that's not your tune" and he would wait until I played iron Duke.

 

Anyway the point is when I go to see my parents if I take myself off into an empty room to practice, Pickles will be waiting outside the door to come in. He could just stay with the rest of the family but no, he forms an orderly queue. And when someone cracks the door to let him in that is not a distressed dog entering the room, oh no. It's a dog coming to enjoy something he hasn't been able to do for 10 months. I can tell an excited happy dog from a suffering one. He sits patiently until I play The Tune then wakes the dead.

[Geoff Wooff]

My dog likes to sing with the Concertina too. Her particular favorite is 'The Entertainer' which has a lot of high note chords. Really I feel that she just does not like those penetraiting sounds but enjoys trying to out-sing me to get me to stop. Sometimes 'Band Practice' will be in our kitchen, and there have been as many as 14 players involved, this does not appear to bother the dog because she will lie on the floor with her legs in the air and go to sleep.

 

Years ago we had a Cat that would jump up on my lap to sit behind the concertina and then start to crank her neck around to stare in one end... looking for the mouse who was squeeking within perhaps ?

[JimLucas]

The dog is not enjoying the music

It's a dog coming to enjoy something he hasn't been able to do for 10 months.

Dogs, like humans, are individuals... even to their taste in music.

Also in their sensitivity to different sounds.

 

I've told before of one friend who plays a baritone concertina because he can't hear much in the treble range, another who neglects the bass on her melodeon because she can hardly hear it, and a third who couldn't come into my office because my computer terminal emitted a high-pitched sound that was literally painful for her, though I was completely unable to detect it, try though I might.

 

I would be amazed if dogs -- which in other respects can be as different as chihuahuas and Saint Bernard's -- didn't show a similar variety in other characteristics, including how they react to sounds.

[Rod]

Others will disagree, but don't kid yourself. This is by no means unusual. The dog is not enjoying the music. In all probability the sound is actually painful to his particularly ultra-sensitive ears and the kind thing would be to desist from enabling him to become intimitely involved.

 

I agree it's not unusual but the rest I most certainly disagree with, sorry Rod! We had a spaniel in England; now he lives with my parents. He started 'singing along' with my concertina when I was in the early stages of learning. I persuaded him that 'his tune' is The Iron Duke a morris tune I'd just learned at Kilve; I would say "No, that's not your tune" and he would wait until I played iron Duke.

 

Anyway the point is when I go to see my parents if I take myself off into an empty room to practice, Pickles will be waiting outside the door to come in. He could just stay with the rest of the family but no, he forms an orderly queue. And when someone cracks the door to let him in that is not a distressed dog entering the room, oh no. It's a dog coming to enjoy something he hasn't been able to do for 10 months. I can tell an excited happy dog from a suffering one. He sits patiently until I play The Tune then wakes the dead.

 

A nice story Dirge but can't you persuade Pickles to extend his repertoire, or perhaps teach him to dance along to 'The Iron Duke' ?

[Constant Screamer]

I'll try to record my vocal accompanist this weekend...then sit back and reap the massive amounts of money to be made via Youtube. Meanwhile, here's Mr Sydney

[Dirge]

A nice story Dirge but can't you persuade Pickles to extend his repertoire, or perhaps teach him to dance along to 'The Iron Duke' ?

 

Well Picklee may love a good howl along but I'm quite happy to keep him rationed.

 

Now a morris dancing dog? That would be unusual.