Backup Instrument

[Kelteglow]

I play two concertinas G/D and a C/G which I carry with me most of the time .I also have a spare C/G which I keep as backup.I know this may be personal choice do any of you do the same as all the time I have had the backup concertina ,I have never used it and always managed to repaire my other two.I am tempted to offer my spare for sale.

 

[JimLucas]

I play two concertinas G/D and a C/G which I carry with me most of the time .I also have a spare C/G which I keep as backup.I know this may be personal choice do any of you do the same as all the time I have had the backup concertina ,I have never used it and always managed to repaire my other two.I am tempted to offer my spare for sale.

 

A backup instrument is like an insurance policy. You pay for it, hoping that you'll never actually need it.

 

Some folks would even warn that "the day you no longer have it is the day you'll need it." Sort of like the joke/belief that your car will fall apart the day after the warranty expires.

 

I don't consider any of my own instruments to be simply a "backup", i.e., to be used only in the event of the failure of my "main" one of that type. They all get used, even if not equal time and even if I usually only take two to a gig. (Only two is because I normally use public transport and must carry everything with me at all times. "At least" two is just in case one actually would break down. Not everyone in the audience can be expected to enjoy an instrument repair workshop in the middle of a musical concert.)

[Bill N]

I have a "back-up" Rochelle, but I haven't seen it in a while. I keep lending it out to people wanting to give concertina a try.

[David Barnert]

My main squeeze is a 46-key Wheatstone Hayden. Before I got it (in 1994) I played a Bastari (also Hayden 46, bought in 1987). I still keep it around for the same reasons. I don't carry it with me as a 2nd instrument, but I do use it when my Wheatstone is indisposed for whatever reason. And it plays very nicely.

[Mikefule]

Instruments need to be played. If a box sits there unplayed, the bellows may become inflexible, valves may sag, and so on. It is good to have one more box than you absolutely need, but not so good if one of them justs sits there waiting to be needed.

 

Each of my three boxes has a specific role: the 30 button is my preferred Morris box; the 37 is my "complicated tunes" box, and also gives me the chance to hear the same tunes in different keys. The 20 is my "back to basics" box which encourages me to work on certain specifics (like accompaniment in octaves), different fingerings because there is no "bonus row", and which allows me to take an instrument on city centre Morris tours because it is the only one that would be easy to replace if it were to be stolen. There is no spare box in its case "just in case".

[Jim Besser]

More or less what Mike said.

 

I play C/G and G/D Anglos, and have 'backups' for each. But not really backups - I use different instruments for different purposes. I use Morse hybrids for most Morris dance playing because they are incredibly durable, loud, and replaceable; I don't get nervous playing them on crowded city streets, in inclement weather or in chaotic pubs.

 

I play my traditional reeded instruments, which are much more valuable and much harder to replace, at contra and ceilidh dances, where the potential for damage is much less.

 

But it's reassuring to know that I have backups should the need arise. All my instruments get played on a regular basis.

Edited October 26, 2015 by Jim Besser

[Bob Michel]

It's good to have a workaday spare, an instrument that will get the job done minimally in an emergency, or under tricky conditions. It's better, if you can manage it, to have a couple of fine instruments, each with strengths of its own, either of which may suit you better in a particular context, but both of which you play regularly.

 

At one time I owned three good Anglos (all C/G). For various reasons I found that the Herrington sat idle most of the time, so I sold it to a friend. It's a beautifully crafted instrument that deserves to be used, and it's better off where it is.

 

For years after that I regarded my Wheatstone as my primary instrument, my Lachenal (which needed some work) as a plausible backup, which only came out on rare occasions. But after a couple of overhauls (and a lot more experience), I find that I give them close to equal time, with the Lachenal having perhaps a slight edge.

 

What all this has taught me is that "spare" or "backup" needn't be a life sentence. Needs, tastes and skills evolve. The one constant is that a quality instrument ought to get its share of playing time.

 

Bob Michel

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