1985 (Steve Dickenson) Wheatstone Aeola 56 Key Tenor Treble Serial number 60085

[Christopher Yerke]

I purchased this lovely instrument in 2021 when it appeared on The Barleycorn Concertinas web site.  Chris Algar said at the time that they were not quite sure how to price it as they so rarely show up on the market. They were asking 5k pounds sterling for it (about $6850 at the time), as it was about a minty as a 35-year-old instrument could be.  I had been eyeballing Steve Dickinson’s wait list and figured this was the closest to instant gratification I could find, as I wanted a new concertina.  I am not one who wants to contend with aged parts breaking or needing frequent tweaking…  especially in a world where there are only a handful of qualified technicians and most of them are across the pond.  I was simultaneously on the Wakker Parnassus list. Chris Algar commented that appeared to have been played very little, if at all.  I sent it off to Wim Wakker to get the cobwebs out. He too said it appeared largely unplayed. He replaced the valves and evened out the spring tension on the buttons and tuned and voiced the reeds for me.  It sounded nice when it arrived, but sounded even better after Wim tweaked it.  I am a specialized architectural woodworker and designer, and have a thing for spares, so I asked Steve Dickenson for a full set of spares for repairs should they arise in the future, knowing that he will retire at some point. Thus, I have a full set of spare valves and other parts that might want replacing someday, including new thumbstraps, springs, bushings, pads, valves etc. I also have wrist straps for it.

This instrument is like a time machine to what a classic Wheatstone would have looked and played like when new. It is good to go for a very long time without major repairs or maintenance.  I played it for a year and a half until the first of my two Parnassus instruments arrived in the fall of 2022. The Parnassus gave me a whole new idea of how I want a concertina to sound for the repertoire I play, and so this guy has not been played very much since Fall of 2022. I prefer the sound of wooden ended instruments. This concertina plays and sounds fantastic, but I describe it as my little box of trumpets.  It has that very bright sound that metal ended instruments have, and so it is great at cutting through a lot of other instruments at a session, but I play in a quartet and prefer the warmer, more blended sound of the Parnassus.  The action is very fast, light and even, so it is a marvelous player.  It should be in the hands of someone who will play it regularly.  It looks just as it did the day I got it.

I am asking $7500, in consideration of its tremendous condition, the money I put into its tuning and voicing and the spares and parts it comes with.  When last I spoke with Steve Dickenson, he offered to build me a wooden ended Aeola TT, but the cost then was 12k pounds, and it was quite the wait.  This is a clean way to cut the line and almost end up in the same place. It is a lifetime instrument.  I love the case. It is a solid, molded affair that is the most compact case I have ever seen.

Payment is up front, with 72 hours’ time for approval. I will make a donation to the site if the buyer comes to me through here. Please contact me with offers or questions but be advised that lowball offers will not get much attention.