Bizarre Old German One On Ebay (19-Button Rows)

[Daniel Hersh]

This one is at http://www.ebay.com/itm/1840s-One-of-The-First-Antique-Rare-Bandoneon-Accordion-Concertina-/161943212338. Does anyone have any idea what the note layout might be?

[alex_holden]

Caveat emptor: look at the seller's feedback.

[Wolf Molkentin]

O.k., and it's rather M.O.T.S. than M.O.P. (and rather later than advertised I'd guess)...

 

(and not blackish in any way either)

 

But still, has it sort of a piano layout?

 

(edit: corrected to "advertised")

Edited January 13, 2016 by blue eyed sailor

[JimLucas]

Caveat emptor: look at the seller's feedback.

Not sure I'd try to draw any conclusions from the feedback itself. There's not enough of it. With only five responses in all, that negative 20% is really only a single response, and we don't know why.

 

The description of the instrument, though, does seem more enthusiastic than informed.

 

O.k., and it's rather M.O.T.S. than M.O.P. (and rather later than adviced I'd guess)...

 

(and not blackish in any way either)

 

But still, has it sort of a piano layout?

Doesn't look piano-ish to me. That would have fewer buttons in the "upper" rows than in the "lower", no?

 

I'm wondering whether it's unisonoric or bisonoric. Also curious about the size.

[alex_holden]

Not sure I'd try to draw any conclusions from the feedback itself. There's not enough of it. With only five responses in all, that negative 20% is really only a single response, and we don't know why.

They've only had one feedback as a seller, it was for a valuable collector's item ($300 baseball card), and the buyer (who has a very high feedback rating) took the unusual step of describing it as a fake and a fraud. Personally I wouldn't risk dealing with them.

[Wolf Molkentin]

Doesn't look piano-ish to me. That would have fewer buttons in the "upper" rows than in the "lower", no?

 

Naturalmente!

[JimLucas]

Not sure I'd try to draw any conclusions from the feedback itself. There's not enough of it. With only five responses in all, that negative 20% is really only a single response, and we don't know why.

They've only had one feedback as a seller, it was for a valuable collector's item ($300 baseball card), and the buyer (who has a very high feedback rating) took the unusual step of describing it as a fake and a fraud. Personally I wouldn't risk dealing with them.

 

Ah. I didn't see those details. (Where should I have looked?) That definitely puts a different face on it.

[alex_holden]

 

Ah. I didn't see those details. (Where should I have looked?) That definitely puts a different face on it.

 

If you click on the feedback number after their username, you get a page that shows a lot more detail.

[Daniel Hersh]

Back to the instrument itself...I e-mailed Harry Geuns, who had an answer right away:

 

"This is called a "Hand Harmonium" probably made by Emil Probst from Zürich Switzerland in the 1930's.

It's lay out is based on the "Janko" system dividing the range of tones in one octave in a two row concept.
The hand harmonium in the auction has single action ( push reeds only ) also see large automatic operated air valve openings in the
bellows intersection frame.
Also interesting detail is the belly support on the bellow's rear of the instrument

There also were three row versions ( maybe an extra coupled row added)
I found a lay out for a larger ranged Handharmonium (R50 + L52 buttons) from which I attached the lay out principle to this mail."

[Wolf Molkentin]

So it would not be unfair to say (even without having the instrument at hand and being able to evaluate its condition) that the avertising could hardly be less reliable...