Roger Hare Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 I'm stuck up a river in France with a very dodgy internet connection, so I'll keep it simple - someone just asked me, "what was the highest price ever paid for a concertina?". Ta. Roger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lakeman Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 I heard - or read somewhere- that a very good Jeffries anglo made around £10,00, either in Ireland or the USA. The really good Jeffries instruments - favoured for ITM - frequently go for £5/6/7,000 apparently.I was talking to someone in Sussex last weekend who was bemonaning the fact that there are so few Jeffries duets left in the world ( rare in themselves)One of the reasons for this is that Irish-style players rate the Jeffries machines so much that they will pay top dollar for a rare Jeffries duet ( fiendish as it is ) and then pay a craftsman to convert it into an anglo.Sort of sacrilege, because it robs the original instrument of its " integrity." ( if, like me, you are a duet player, albeit Crane)- but then again, perhaps not, because these adapted, vintage instruments are still amongst the best out there and it means they are preserved and continued to be played. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Chambers Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 I heard - or read somewhere- that a very good Jeffries anglo made around £10,00, either in Ireland or the USA. The really good Jeffries instruments - favoured for ITM - frequently go for £5/6/7,000 apparently. You're inflating prices there, giving them in £ when it should be €, and at present rates €10,000 is about £7,000. I've never charged anything like that heady figure, though I did have an encounter, some years ago, with a lady in Ireland who wouldn't buy a top-quality Jeffries off me for one of her granchildren because it was only €7,000, when she'd paid €10,000 for one for another grandchild!!! But that was back in the days of that mythical beast "The Celtic Tiger" when prices of houses got very inflated here (they're only around one third the price these days) and people seemed to have "money to burn" (that some may be paying off for the rest of their lives). I'd reckon vintage Anglo concertina prices have dropped to more realistic levels, by anything up to a third. I was talking to someone in Sussex last weekend who was bemonaning the fact that there are so few Jeffries duets left in the world ( rare in themselves)One of the reasons for this is that Irish-style players rate the Jeffries machines so much that they will pay top dollar for a rare Jeffries duet ( fiendish as it is ) and then pay a craftsman to convert it into an anglo.Sort of sacrilege, because it robs the original instrument of its " integrity." ( if, like me, you are a duet player, albeit Crane)- but then again, perhaps not, because these adapted, vintage instruments are still amongst the best out there and it means they are preserved and continued to be played. Actually, Irish players don't seem to rate 4-row Jeffries Anglos much these days (though Packie Russell, Bernard O'Sullivan and Tony Crehan happily played them), let alone buying duets to convert them (though I know of at least one oldtimer in England who got Jeffries to convert his 4-row Anglo INTO a duet - it's happened both ways, and been done by Jeffries!) Whilst "a certain well-known Irish teacher/player" keeps insisting that they (like him) need only 30 keys, and the large Jeffries duets are not being sought at all by Irish players because (even if reduced to 30 keys, like one I've seen) they make appalling Anglos! However, certain dealers in England have been known to create such monstrosities and try to fob them off on the unsuspecting Irish - who know better... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Eskin Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 I have a friend who I believe payed $12,000 for a phenomenal Jeffries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lawrence Reeves Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 Michael, I have played that Jeffries, and it is one of the best concertinas I have ever touched regardless of maker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lakeman Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 Yes, well I note all of Stephen's points and he is bound to be more knowledgable, being where he is. But the question was- what's the most someone has paids for a concertina ?( not, " how much are people paying now") And the other answers on this forum seem to indicate that £10,000 HAS ben paid at least once. And then that mention of $12,000 US equates to somewhere around £10,000 ( depending on the exchange rate at the time) But, I agree with Stephen... really good machines can command 3, 4 and £5,000 but that's all people are willing ( or are able to afford ) to pay these days.It'd all relative Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolf Molkentin Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 If you look upon the prices asked by some online booksellers (say, at the Amazon marketplace platform) you will find in some cases asking prices which are obviously excessive, however I've always been thinking that a person who would be seriously looking for a rare antiquarian book which is not available for a decent price at that time might be willing to pay the extra price of a further 100%, 200% or even more if he can just easily afford it. So realizing a top price - for a book, a "machine" for music-making or whatever - may just be prompted by a very temporary lack of supply with what a certain person had been looking for... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Wooff Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 For the original purchasers of our classic concertinas I'd like to bet the prices were Record level. I remember well the day I bought my first 'good' concertina and it costing me the best part of two months gross pay!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Laban Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 If you look upon the prices asked by some online booksellers (say, at the Amazon marketplace platform) you will find in some cases asking prices which are obviously excessive, The algorithms generating the prices on second hand books sites are perhaps are different issue altogether. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolf Molkentin Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 I was just trying to say that "record" prices not necessarily reflect the value or even longer-term market situation of an item... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimLucas Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 I'm stuck up a river in France with a very dodgy internet connection, so I'll keep it simple - someone just asked me, "what was the highest price ever paid for a concertina?". I'm wondering why the interest in a "record" price instead of an "average" or "reasonable" price, and why for the classification "concertina", rather than either the broader "musical instrument" or the narrower categories of "English", "anglo", "duet" (probably should be further broken down, if only because of Jeffries), "Chemnitzer", etc. Meanwhile, fitting the topic title, though not the question in the text, might we wonder about a record low price? I know folks who have received instruments for free, but do you know of anyone who was paid to take a concertina? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolf Molkentin Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 I know folks who have received instruments for free, but do you know of anyone who was paid to take a concertina? In case there might be such an offer - I'm applying! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conzertino Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 Stephen, as far as I know, the highest price I heart about was Alf Edards golden Aeola ( ES )!? Do you remember? Jim, I payed 10 Pound for my first Jeffries 1977;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Laban Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 I was just trying to say that "record" prices not necessarily reflect the value or even longer-term market situation of an item... I realise that Wolf but I think concertina (asking) prices are perhaps influenced by other mechanisms than pries on Amazon, which are subject to the whims of automated algorithms that can, even more than some hopeful sellers of concertinas, quickly loose sight of reality and set prices that are really silly money. The biology textbook that a while ago ran up to 23.6 million a while ago being case in point (if an extreme one). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greg Jowaisas Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 I'm stuck up a river in France with a very dodgy internet connection, so I'll keep it simple - someone just asked me, "what was the highest price ever paid for a concertina?". I'm wondering why the interest in a "record" price instead of an "average" or "reasonable" price, and why for the classification "concertina", rather than either the broader "musical instrument" or the narrower categories of "English", "anglo", "duet" (probably should be further broken down, if only because of Jeffries), "Chemnitzer", etc. Meanwhile, fitting the topic title, though not the question in the text, might we wonder about a record low price? I know folks who have received instruments for free, but do you know of anyone who was paid to take a concertina? My wife would be a prime candidate to contact if someone wished to be paid for taking (many) a concertina. It would be wise to make sure I was not home!! Perhaps there are a number of significant others of like mind? Best we never allow them to meet. As the baseball manager Casey Stengel said, "The secret of managing a ball club is to keep the five guys who hate you away from the five that are undecided." Greg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimLucas Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 My wife would be a prime candidate to contact if someone wished to be paid for taking (many) a concertina. And her private phone number is? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoffrey Crabb Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 (edited) Bearing in mind the original question posed, "what was the highest price ever paid for a concertina?". I suppose, historically, from the records, Wheatstone No 18522 could be in the running, see below. Wheatstone Sales Ledger. C1053 1867 May 29th 18203 £63-0-0 Page 035 1867 Nov 25th 18301 £60-0-0 Page 039 1869 Aug 31st 18522 £70-0-0 Page 057 Wheatstone Production Ledger C1054 (Description ) 18203 48, Best Ebony. Gold fittings. Page 138. 18301 48, Ebony, Gold Fittings. Page 142. 18522 Baritone. Ebony. Gold Fittings. Page 150. All sold to Brisco? Possibly a Wastel Brisco (1793-1878), Magistrate and, later, Deputy Lieutenant (Sussex) of Bohemia House, Hastings & 15 Mansfield Street, Portland Place, London. (Estate Valued at death, £60.000). Or, his son*, also Wastel (1824-1891), a life bachelor and eventual Farmer residing in Reading, Berkshire. *Although, no indication of this relationship is directly obvious in the available Census records, it could be assumed so because, The Probate record for the latter indicates that administration of his estate was granted to Sarah Brisco of Bohemia, Hastings, Spinster and Sister. Sarah was the daughter of the former Wastel. (Census) The Christening details indicates his mothers name as Maria, the known name of the former Wastel's wife. (Census) His Birthplace, Catsfield, Sussex (Census) is, geographically, very close to Hastings. I leave it to others to calculate what those prices equate to today. Geoffrey Edited June 17, 2015 by Geoffrey Crabb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolf Molkentin Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 My wife would be a prime candidate to contact if someone wished to be paid for taking (many) a concertina. And her private phone number is? Nice try - but unfortunately too late, Jim! Wrapped up the deal some time ago... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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