JohnPeter Posted March 19, 2021 Share Posted March 19, 2021 (edited) I was given my Great Grandmothers concertina recently which I have really enjoyed rebuilding. It’s nice to hear it play again. Can anybody help me with its age or possible maker? I have attached a couple of pictures. It’s a GD Anglo and it has 2 reeds per note separated by an octave. There are no makers marks. I would really appreciate any help. I know it has been around for a long time and it would be nice to put it in context with her life. Is it early or mid 20th century? Thanks Edited March 19, 2021 by JohnPeter Spelling 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pistachio Dreamer Posted March 19, 2021 Share Posted March 19, 2021 Hi, I don't know how old your concertina is, but it's definitely made in Germany, typically these were made in the Klingenthal region during a similar time frame to English made instruments. The zinc reed frames with brass reeds might indicate quite an age, perhaps pre-war. I love the buttons! I don't think these are original so you've done a fine job there. Paul. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnPeter Posted March 20, 2021 Author Share Posted March 20, 2021 (edited) Hi Paul, thanks for the reply. I thought it might be from that region. I have a German button accordion that has a similar feel in terms of construction. I wish I could claim that I had installed those buttons 🙂 I think it has been worked on before though so it might have been last time round. It had quite a bit of use in its lifetime. It was played a lot! The way the reed plates are fitted is interesting. They are sealed with light string and heavier turn pins. The accordion has thinner pins and it waxed so I did wonder if this indicated an earlier design. Edited March 20, 2021 by JohnPeter Poor spelling... 5/10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pistachio Dreamer Posted March 20, 2021 Share Posted March 20, 2021 5 hours ago, JohnPeter said: Hi Paul, thanks for the reply. I thought it might be from that region. I have a German button accordion that has a similar feel in terms of construction. I wish I could claim that I had installed those buttons 🙂 I think it has been worked on before though so it might have been last time round. It had quite a bit of use in its lifetime. It was played a lot! The way the reed plates are fitted is interesting. They are sealed with light string and heavier turn pins. The accordion has thinner pins and it waxed so I did wonder if this indicated an earlier design. The German multireed plates tend to be fixed in this way, rather than with accordion reed wax, borrowed form bandoneon/chemnitzer construction of the same era. Looks in good nick, and small brass reeds aren't meant to last a long time so it's done well. I like the sound of them, much softer and quieter than accordion reeds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Chambers Posted March 21, 2021 Share Posted March 21, 2021 On 3/19/2021 at 3:25 PM, JohnPeter said: Can anybody help me with its age or possible maker? Am I seeing things, or does it have a name stamped underneath the end? It's very difficult to make out, but might it read F. A. Rauner? (They were the biggest factory at Klingenthal.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnPeter Posted March 22, 2021 Author Share Posted March 22, 2021 (edited) Many thanks for the responses. Much appreciated. I had a chance to open it up again yesterday and have another look around. I also reset a couple of reeds while I was at it and it now sounds even better! Paul, I see what you mean re the reeds. The metallurgy is different to the heavier accordion reeds I have I think from the same era. They are finer and much more akin to those in say a blues harp. The accordion ones are quite industrial! Stephen, thanks for noticing those marks. I too was hopeful but ... on inspection ... it is ink overspill from when the maker was assembling. It must have come off the key levers. See photos. What is there though is what I take to be the builders mark in pencil and some brilliant freehand marking out of the button holes. Thanks for the manufacturer name (Rauner) as it lead me to the history. I have just read “The Life and Times of a Concertina” chapter 6 (a few times!) A cracking read and really interesting in terms of product placement! Edited March 22, 2021 by JohnPeter Spelling 3/10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Chambers Posted March 22, 2021 Share Posted March 22, 2021 (edited) 7 hours ago, JohnPeter said: Stephen, thanks for noticing those marks. I too was hopeful but ... on inspection ... it is ink overspill from when the maker was assembling. It must have come off the key levers. See photos. What is there though is what I take to be the builders mark in pencil and some brilliant freehand marking out of the button holes. Oh well, it was worth checking if there was a smudged name stamp there - it was unlikely, but by no means impossible. Before German concertina production shifted from the (expensive) industrial city of Chemnitz, where it was invented, to the (inexpensive) Vogtland region (especially Klingenthal), the only maker's marks you'll find were their pencilled signatures (sometimes) inside the ends. However, the pencil markings inside your great-grandmother's concertina are only the batch number 57 and D for Descant, and it'll be B for Bass in the other end. Edited March 22, 2021 by Stephen Chambers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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