What kind of concertina is this?

[Jody Kruskal]

Seems like an Anglo, but with too many buttons, eh?

 

 

[Shuenhoy]

It should be a standard 40b Concertina with Wheastone layout. The brand is Bastari, produced by Stagi/Concertine Italia.

[Alex West]

Jody, you should know better - an Anglo can never have too many buttons!

 

Alex West

[David Barnert]

Interesting. I’ve never seen one. In addition to the 3 rows of keys we can see initially (6+6+7=19), once the fingers start moving out of the way two more keys appear closer to the hand rest, making 23 keys on the right side. Given the frequent bellows reversals at times, it is certainly an Anglo of some sort, but the occasional extended scale passages without bellows reversal is intriguing.

 

Edited to add: Just noticed on the original Youtube page it is identified as an Anglo in both English and Japanese. Doesn’t say how many keys, though, in either language.

Edited January 7 by David Barnert

[hjcjones]

I agree, it looks like a 40 button Wheatstone system anglo.  Here's an unencumbered view of one.

[Geoffrey Crabb]

New Years Greetings to all.

The attachment may be of interest, it's a bit 'busy' I'm afraid.

 

40 & 41 Button CG Anglo Crabb Typical.doc

 

Geioff

[Don Taylor]

And here is the amazing Sonny Brazil playing a 56-button Wheatstone Anglo:

 

I think that it is filmed in the Hobgoblin store in London where he works.  Also a fine example of "Slow is More" at the end of the Princess Royal.

[Shuenhoy]

Here is the page for this instrument from a Japanese retailer. It seems to have been out of stock for a long time, though. The appearance differs slightly, probably due to it being from a different production period.

https://www.taniguchi-gakki.jp/product/bastari-w-40-ms-ダイアトニック式※ダイアトニックコンサー/

 

It is also the main instrument of the influential Japanese concertina player, Prof. Toru Kato (https://www.youtube.com/@catotoru1963).

Edited January 8 by Shuenhoy

[Jake Middleton-Metcalfe]

On 1/7/2026 at 4:41 PM, Geoffrey Crabb said:

New Years Greetings to all.

The attachment may be of interest, it's a bit 'busy' I'm afraid.

 

40 & 41 Button CG Anglo Crabb Typical.doc 110 kB · 33 downloads

 

Geioff

 

41 keys! Very nice. I recently did one of those and the extra button was in the exact same place! How original I thought I was - ah well if it's a good idea someone is bound to have had it before.

Edited January 23 by Jake Middleton-Metcalfe

[Jesse Smith]

I have a Lachenal "Special Model" anglo with 41 keys for proper notes (and then an extra two for a whistle and baby cry that I've taped over). Having the extra buttons definitely comes in handy frequently. If nothing else, having G4 and A4 on the right hand is fantastic for playing in the English/harmonic style without having to cross to the left hand for those notes.

[jkmelb]

Here a Japanese chart for a 38 button concertina, similar to the one in the first post ...

 

[wschruba]

I have a pre-Stagi Bastari version of that anglo, with metal ends.  There is one different note on the left side, bass notes, that is different from what I have on one of my Lachenals (extra pull D) a 38 button with squeaker/whistle in the 39/40 spots.   As it sits, those extra notes are not used much at all--the only one that I "miss" is the extra D# for playing in e-minor.

 

It has a pleasant enough sound, though it is a hybrid, through and through.  Interestingly, I find the bellows to be of excellent capacity [careful word choice], and the sealing of the instrument is quite good.  I would enjoy it more if the button spacing was a bit closer, as I have small hands; the instrument is a solid 1" or so larger across the flats than the Lachenal.  The metal ends/buttons/lever arm attachments make for a rattly/metallic playing experience.  Bastari had put a piece of punched synthetic felt under the endplate in lieu of bushing a piece of wood with felt, but the button holes are closer than a whisker to the diameter of the buttons, so it really needs some fine tuning to be a "good" instrument.

[doodle]

Just a footnote to Don's picture of Sonny Brazil - Sonny suggests in the comments on another of his vids. that his Wheaatstone is a converted duet, hence the large number of buttons.

Love his playing, too.

[Alex West]

2 hours ago, doodle said:

that his Wheaatstone is a converted duet, hence the large number of buttons.

Wheatstone did make a number of special anglos with a large number of buttons, as well as duets (though most of these were the McCann system which would require huge modifications to the fretwork and action to change to a conventional Anglo layout.  Having said that, I've seen and worked on a Wheatstone Engilsh Bass which in a former life was a McCann duet).
I've heard Sonny's instrument attributed as a duet by a well known maker/restorer.  However, the ledgers clearly refer to it as a type 62 (an Anglo designation for a 40 key instrument) and call it an A. G. (Anglo-German).

 

Alex West