Randy Stein Posted January 17 Share Posted January 17 I was contacted by a parent of a 10 year old who attends a local contra dance and is interested in learning to play the Concertina. She currently is learning to play violin in school. We had a couple of great discussions via zoom . The 10 year old is very funny and serious about learning. I sent info about Anglo, English, and Duet systems as well as YouTube views of some of the great players in the UK. She wants to play the EC. Are there any ECs for a child to start learning? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scoopet Posted January 17 Share Posted January 17 Hi Randy, Both my children have recently started learning English concertina using a ‘normal’ tutor treble lachenal , kindly lent to us by Paul hardy. They are 8 and 10….it’s a nice responsive instrument and they are progressing rapidly …no problems with it being too big. They are both having piano lessons as well and so are able to read music. Best Simon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randy Stein Posted January 17 Author Share Posted January 17 Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Thorne Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 Concertina for child?. Seems like a fair swap.😁 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leah Velleman Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 I dunno, children are of variable quality. Do you have a serial number for this one? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digver Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 I work with about 260 of them and can confirm the variable quality Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAc Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 9 minutes ago, digver said: I work with about 260 of them and can confirm the variable quality 260 CONCERTINAS? I've heard about CAS, but you do need some professional help, you know? 😁 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SIMON GABRIELOW Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 Why not start them off of one of the eternally ever available GDR concertinas, they are affordable, and always available to buy .. then if interest fades as they grow up, or change mind, not gone too expensive, at this early stage🌝 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Mellish Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 10 hours ago, SIMON GABRIELOW said: Why not start them off of one of the eternally ever available GDR concertinas, they are affordable, and always available to buy .. then if interest fades as they grow up, or change mind, not gone too expensive, at this early stage🌝 That is certainly a possibility, and it's how I started (in my early 20s, not as a child). On the other hand, as with an adult beginner, a better quality instrument can be re-sold without much loss of value if they don't get on with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leah Velleman Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 Yeah, this is sort of the eternal debate, is "cheap starter instrument" vs "invest more but get some back later." Is the kid responsible and coordinated enough to take good care of a more expensive instrument? Is she a perfectionist? (It seems like some people don't mind a kind of clumsy instrument and others are really put off by not being able to play as smoothly on it.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SIMON GABRIELOW Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 (edited) They are always there those GDR Kligenthal manufactured instruments. My first one was one of those, and really quite fond of it.. although I did open it up to see how it worked! And it had wooden and metal parts inside, and quite durable to use. I should have kept it.. but I was curious to see how it worked, and I got my. current 30 key Anglo soon afterwards anyway !😊 Edited January 23 by SIMON GABRIELOW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digver Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 What about hand size? What kind of difficultly will there be with a standard sized concertina meant for an adult sized person? Forgetting about price, would something like Marcus' Traveller be a better fit for a young person? The above is coming from someone with little more than a month of experience with the concertina, so perhaps size is not an issue. digger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moll Peatly Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 I would suggest that supple bellows would be essential, which leads me to recommend a well-played-in vintage instrument over a new Chinese one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leah Velleman Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 The OP is looking for an English, remember. One way to narrow things down would be budget. Right now, the "student level" vintage English concertinas on Barleycorn Concertinas range from £550 to £850, or around $700 to $1000. Meanwhile, for modern instruments, the Sparrow is currently on sale for $400 and the Jackie is around $450. So if your budget is $400, well, you're getting a Sparrow. If you have $1000, you've got more choices, including a vintage instrument if you're interested. And of course you could spend significantly more than that if you wanted to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oberon Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 (edited) I don't know what the cost might be, but AC Norman makes a small English Concertina model if I recall correctly. They might be a very manageable size for a young'n and worth looking into Edit- found the photo I was thinking of. Attached below: Edited January 28 by Oberon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Heumann Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 Randy: I've deliberated with my grand-daughter about this and concluded a very sensible way to find out if they even like concertina would be: If you have a I-pad device you can practice virtual concertina: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaWyJ7C3yIM&ab_channel=MichaelEskin Its only $2.99 USD from Apple store site: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/englitinaxl-english-concertina/id387316019 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul_Hardy Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 The Englitina is a remarkable app, and I've praise for Michael Eskin's work in general. It's also by far the cheapest way of trying out the concertina concept. But, and this is a big but, you get no tactile cues to keep the fingers on the right button locations - the iPad screen is flat. If the child can cope and play a tune then fine - they will be able to play on a 'proper' concertina also. However if they can't cope, then it doesn't mean that they couldn't play a proper concertina. I play many different English tinas, and I struggle to get a sensible tune out of the Englitina. I start off OK, but my fingers slide slightly off position, and I haven't got the centring cues that real buttons provide. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Heumann Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 Yes, Paul, as we are accomplished box players of fine instruments, I agree its not the same, but it only cost $2.99 to find the flaws, rather than the $500+ that beginners are shelling out for Chinese imitators that don't even work as well as the Englitina. I've had so many students that I got hooked on concertina, only to find that they they stopped playing to take up the "Next Folk Fad", leaving them with a few thousand dollars worth of box. When I taught Bodhran, all my students started on a carpet sample square or a pizza box, because it wouldn't take many lessons to find they had no sense of rhythm. ---Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now