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Steve Turner’s concertina


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I recall him saying (at a concert) that it was indeed a baritone treble, although several of the keys/reeds have been altered to more easily facilitate a drone effect.

 

He does play it incredibly well - these are relatively heavy, bulky instruments to wrangle if one is more used to a treble/tt.

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Looks like  a model 15 or 16 to me...  62 or 64  keys  from top of  the normal  Treble 48 range  to one octave  below  it.

 

How to recognise  a Baritone-Treble  from a distance :     the  thumb straps  are siituated  on the centre line of the  Octagon .

Edited by Geoff Wooff
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I don't know exactly what it is, but I discussed it with him last time he came to our folk club. An unusual feature is that the bottom row is anglo-style with reeds tuned an octave apart. So it has some really low notes but a short gap before you reach the lowest eight notes.

 

LJ

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I've seen him play twice .......once in Cornwall and once in Devon.I really enjoyed his playing.i think I shall make the effort to see him again this year.i might even pluck up the courage to ask him for a go!!

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I've spoken to Steve on a few occasions about his beautiful and unusual concertina. Steve refers to his concertina as a Bass-Baritone-Tenor, although Steve Dickinson says that Wheatstone referred to such instruments as 'Cello Concertinas'. I believe it is a 64 key Aeola but the bottom 4 keys have anglo action (i.e. they play a different note in each direction). The lowest note is a Bb which is nearly 2 octaves lower than the usual G bottom note of a treble English concertina. The concertina is still tuned in old pitch so its about 12 cents sharp of standard concert pitch. He said it came from a former salvation army musician from Doncaster. 

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The last time I saw Steve Turner playing a year or so ago, I also asked him about his unusual instrument and while I can't remember everything he told me about it, what Cohen has posted seems to fit in with some of what I remember he told me and especially it being still in old pitch and that it had previously belonged to  a former salvation army musician from Doncaster. Of course, as he uses it solely to accompany himself singing, it doesn't matter that it is tuned to old pitch.

Chris 

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