Beginner English Concertina in PDX

[David M. Dahl]

I have been a lurker on this forum for the past three months as I waited not so patiently for my Busker EC from Concertina Connection. Yesterday it arrived, and I am thrilled. I don't have anything to compare to, but it seems very light and responsive. I got it loaded with metal-capped buttons and the Wakker bellows, so it is probably much like a CC Rose with fewer buttons. 

 

During the wait I have listened to a lot of great concertina music, and especially enjoyed Simon Thoumire, and the Leveret CDs. Now I have a lot of patient work to do with much simpler tunes. I would appreciate knowing about EC teachers and players in the Portland, Oregon area. This is a hotbed of Irish music, so I expect Anglo is more plentiful. 

 

I look forward to learning more about concertina, and sharing the journey with you all!

 

[mdarnton]

Don't get discouraged! I am a slow learner, but eventually things do come together.

[RWL]

If you find someone in the Portland area, great.  Many of us are self taught and used the Butler tutorial on the English concertina:  http://www.concertina.com/butler/butler-the-concertina-tutor.pdf

[David M. Dahl]

Thanks for the responses. I have the Butler and Anderson tutors, but so far am preferring the Absolute Beginners tutor by Wade and Mallinson. Of course I will cross-check the tutors as I go. I have also found some YouTube videos that look promising. Has anyone tried out the materials from Pauline de Snoo?

[Wolf Molkentin]

Hi David - I felt like chiming in just to suggest that apart from eventually finding a teacher and going through available "tutor" material you shouldn't totally rule out finding your ways across the keyboards yourself, as the English (and not only the Anglo) appears to be, at least for some of us, contrary to popular belief, quite intuitive...

 

Talking of Simon Thoumire, he has an "iPhone tutorial" online which I'm sure is of great help for the learner.

 

Have fun with your English concertina - it's a fabulous instrument!

 

Best wishes - Wolf

[David M. Dahl]

Thanks,  Wolf. It's not quite intuitive for me yet, but I am trying to find my way around the buttons. 

[Mike Franch]

David, you've got a good beginning, buying yourself a good concertina.  That will make learning easier, and you've saved money by not starting with something cheaper and having to upgrade.

 

I don't have advice, other than to enjoy each level of proficiency as you go along. I was thrilled to be able to play "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" (hey, the tune was good enough for Mozart!), even as I aspired to do better and experienced frustration along the way. The frustration moved along as I moved along, of course, but a helpful realization is that my sense of frustration was not saying, "damn, this is too hard for you," but "this is a challenge that you'll surmount and is part of the fun, part of the sense of accomplishment." That by and large, has proven true.

[McDouglas]

I purchased a Jackie EC preowned from Concertina Connection in December.  I've played a few minutes almost every day for a little more than six months now.  This is a great community to ask for advice and help you on your EC journey.  

 

Paul Hardy's tune books  are an invaluable resource.  http://www.pghardy.net/concertina/tunebooks/

I would recommend you find a few tunes you enjoy and then play these almost every day.  The frustration at the beginning of finding the right buttons with the right fingers and managing the bellows eventually gives way to more intuitive playing.  I even wonder how my brain was rewiring over days and weeks as I began to develop a new sort of muscle memory.

 

Be patient with yourself.

Good luck!