Newbe Wondering About Reeds

[rlgph]

Hi guys. This is my first post. Though i still haven't gotten a concertina yet, i have decided to go the Hayden/Wicki route, and have ordered an Elise to see if this old guy is up for learning another instrument. (I'm a mediocre guitar and Scottish smallpipes player.)

 

In reading a number of posts on the forum i've seen reference to concertina reeds vs. accordion reeds (hydrid system?). Can you give me an idea about the difference in sound between the two? Thanks.

 

(Curious. I just discovered that my avatar from the Acoustic Guitar Forum was automatically moved over to here.)

Edited August 7, 2014 by rlgph

[Geoff Wooff]

Welcome rlgph.

 

Very difficult question .. how to describe the difference in sound between Concertina reeds and Accordion reeds.

 

It so much dépends on the box they are fitted to. I tried to compare the sounds produced by the Elise and a Wakker 46 Hayden that I own. Very different instruments in construction and sound.

Although these two types of reeds work on the same principle the accoustic cavites ( for want of a better phrase) that they are designed to fit will give a very different effect to the sound.

 

Perhaps a simple explaination of the way the sounds feel to me:

 

The Elise produces a note that sounds as if you would sing the note in the back of your throat, with your lips three quarters closed... so you get a hollow 'boooohhh' tone .. the sound is somewhat contained and appears to make much of its tone internally.

 

The Wakker 46 more imediately lets the note out... as if you sing it with an open mouth so as to project the sound... it is more 'eeeeh' than 'oooh'....the air pressure is stronger at the reed but less effort is needed to produce this.

 

But that is just two instruments with different reed types and the Elise is very much made down to a price so it is designed for production ecconomies and the Wakker is very much made to emulate the sound qualities of fine vintage instruments. Almost every concertina will have different sound characteristics, although we can choose models because they are known to sound in a particular way.

 

Using words to describe sounds is a futile pass time for the most part.

 

Good luck with the new instrument.

 

Geoff.

Edited August 7, 2014 by Geoff Wooff

[rlgph]

Using words to describe sounds is a futile pass time for the most part.

 

Guitarists on the forums have no hesitation in trying to describe sounds of not only individual guitars, but categories of guitars based on the woods used, applying ambiguous terms such as "warm", "woody", etc. So i am pretty much, though not entirely, in agreement with your sentiment. Thanks for making the effort though. I have a bit better understanding. I think i'll search out some online recordings to compare, keeping your description in mind.

 

And thanks for the welcome and good wishes. I'm looking forward to starting on this new adventure.

[Wolf Molkentin]

From my experience there is a huge difference which however might be reduced to some extent by clever constructing the instrument as a whole (f.i. like the more pricy "hybrid" concertinas).

 

Concertina reeds have a powerful, persisting tone even when single lines are played, whereas accordion reeds seem to sound kind of shallow and indifferent, at least to my ears. You can give a concertina reed a dynamic peak resulting in a very lively change of tone colour, a thing which concertina reeds doesn't seem to be capable of...