JimLucas Posted October 13, 2004 Share Posted October 13, 2004 ...unlike any other instrument I can think of, every second note in the scale is on opposite sides of the instrument... Though not quite as separated as the English concertina, if you consider "side" to mean either side of center, I believe the standard kalimba (African "thumb piano") alternates the notes of the scale from side to side. Split in a different direction, the Andean pan pipes have two rows of pipes, with the notes of the scale alternating between the front and back rows. Except in the bass pipes, where the two rows are split into separate instruments. It's like having two people play a concertina... either one for each end of an English, or on a anglo one with only the push notes and the other with the pull notes. I remember one concert where the group Tahuantinsuyo started a number which suddenly sounded bizarrely discordant, and they stopped in apparent confusion. Then the bass pipers tested their instruments, swapped them, and they started afresh with an arrangement that sounded lovely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuart estell Posted October 13, 2004 Share Posted October 13, 2004 (edited) To quote: "Then there's the English concertina ... The hidden catch is that, unlike any other instrument I can think of, every second note in the scale is on opposite sides of the instrument, and is played with opposite hands. I don't know enough about harps in general to know if this applies across the board, but I do know that the Kora (African harp) is played in a very similar way to the English in terms of the alternation between the hands up the scale. A friend of mine who plays it also exhibits the standard vacant stare while playing. Edited October 13, 2004 by stuart estell Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geoffwright Posted October 13, 2004 Share Posted October 13, 2004 As usual, Samantha is not far from the truth - why look down when playing? If you are not alone, have a look around the room while you play. Watch the audience asleep, watch the other concertina players grimace - you are guaranteed to have a smile on your face. And if you are following other players, it is a must to look up and watch - don't just rely on ears. You can also signal to other players if you have eye-contact - "look at him, snigger snigger". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimLucas Posted October 13, 2004 Share Posted October 13, 2004 (edited) ...exhibits the standard vacant stare while playing. What a great idea!! (???) An exhibit! A photo exhibit of different musicians' blank stares. Edited to add: Say Ken, can you give us a blank stare "smiley"? Edited October 13, 2004 by JimLucas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuart estell Posted October 13, 2004 Share Posted October 13, 2004 What a great idea!! (???) An exhibit!A photo exhibit of different musicians' blank stares. Somewhat less enthralling than a gurning competition, I fear... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Dickey Posted October 13, 2004 Share Posted October 13, 2004 English concertina players usually look not-at-home when playing." "When playing"? Most of the English-players I know seem to look like that all of the time. Perhaps the look becomes locked in position after so long. Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martyn Posted October 16, 2004 Share Posted October 16, 2004 As we all know concertina players are not the only ones to pull faces. At the session last night was a banjo player playing some really fast Irish tunes. While he was playing he seemed to "mouth" every note. It was rather reminiscent of a bulldog chewing a wasp. Martyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helen Posted October 16, 2004 Share Posted October 16, 2004 Oh Martyn, What a descriptive analogy. Ugh, I can almost taste the wasp! Helen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helen Posted October 16, 2004 Share Posted October 16, 2004 Samantha, I like the smiling idea. When I was taking tap dancing, yes tap dancing - think of it as a percussive instrument - anyway, the teacher said to smile when you made a mistake. That way, the audience would think that EVERYONE else was wrong. Nice perspective. Helen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henk van Aalten Posted October 16, 2004 Share Posted October 16, 2004 It was rather reminiscent of a bulldog chewing a wasp. Oh Martyn,What a descriptive analogy. Ugh, I can almost taste the wasp! Helen Hmmm.. Helen I did not know you are "almost" a bulldog Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helen Posted October 17, 2004 Share Posted October 17, 2004 Weeeeeellllllllllllllll see Henk, That is why we respond to Concertina.net. So people can learn more about us. Hee hee hee as Sharron would say. I really like that response of Sharron's and have stolen it for my own use. Thanks Sharron. Helen Woof woof Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimLucas Posted October 17, 2004 Share Posted October 17, 2004 Hmmm.. Helen I did not know you are "almost" a bulldog Look at her avatar photo. It's a lot of bull to say that she's that kind of dog, even "almost". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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