Finger Placement and Button Press

[TimPiazza]

As a new student to the Anglo concertina for ITM, I would like to know something specific about the contact point between my finger and the buttons before I develop a bad habit.

 

How do you strike the buttons? Straight on with the tip of the finger or with a flatter part of the finger, just shy of grazing the button in the row outside? As a beginner, I am probably pressing buttons too hard when I strike straight down on the middle of the dome with the tip of my finger, so maybe it's a matter of developing more control, but right now it seems I play faster and with more control if I use the edge of the dome as a guide.

Edited February 2 by TimPiazza
Typos

[davidevr]

I would say the 1st photo shows the way I play.
I aim for the very centre, the tip of the finger, like a marksman aims for the center of the target, even when he misses it slightly.
When you play fast some notes might be a miss, if you miss and aimed for the centre you have a much higher chance of producing the correct note anyway.
By the way, with smaller buttons you really have no choice, you need to play with the tip of your fingers. My concertina have thin metal buttons, if I hit them with anything other than my finger tips I just miss them. I could never play the way you show in photo 2, it would not work at all.
 

[davidevr]

Ok, after reading this question I was very conscious of my finger placement while playing 😄
After observing my playing, I can confirm my finger are centered, but honestly they're not exactly like photo 1, they're probably in a position that is 80% like photo 1 and 20% like photos 2. So centered, but not as centered as I thought 😅

[Matt Heumann]

As long as your finger position does not cause you to hit unwanted notes, it shouldn't matter, even on Anglo. Everyone has different size hands and fingers and each approach should be tailored to those factors, as well as which positioning gives you the the best articulation/speed. Personally, I tend to not use the "tip" of my finger, but the "pad" because it allows me to gently tip my finger forward from one note to its 5th note, allowing me to play 2 notes with one finger. Jody Kruskal once told me he also occasionally uses one finger to play 2 notes on Anglo. I've watch Frank Edgley when we play together and he is somewhere in between, not using the very tip, but not using the flat underside of the finger either. He always looks like he's playing with rather straightened finger (but not arthritis). Its a very relaxed movement. The only caveat I find with my style is that by hitting some buttons slightly off center, the bushing may compact asymmetrically, eventually resulting to premature replacement but its only a 10 minute job for a single note.

Edited February 8 by Matt Heumann
missing text

[TimPiazza]

In a sense I am looking at this as a fretted instrument player. A string needs only to be pressed just enough to make good contact with the fret, and just behind the fret is where you produce the lightest touch. Many beginners aim for the middle, between the frets and press much harder than necessary.

 

it seems I shouldn't be mashing the buttons all the way down as I tend to do as a newbie concertina player. But maybe a lighter touch comes with time?

[wunks]

I think as you get better you'll encounter situations where swiping the pad of the finger across the button on the way to it's next engagement is much quicker especially when the movement is toward the wrist.  Helps with voicing and grace notes as well.

[davidevr]

I am not 100% sure about mashing and the related force.

On the one hand you're 100% right, too much force is wasted...

A couple of months ago I saw a clip where a piano accordion builder was explaining to beginner players that they are not supposed to tap too heavily, for it damages the instrument: that made me think, but I am not sure this applies to the concertina. Maybe some builders can pitch in...

 

A lot of ITM ornamentation relies heavily on percussive taps, the rolls (or cranns) being the obvious example.
A lot of accomplished players have a forceful, super rhythmic way of making rolls, and it really sounds as if they are tapping forcefully on their instrument. If you are familiar with Cormac Begley's playing, he even uses tapping sounds as a distinct  feature...
Think about the guitar, would you blame a guitarist for tapping too heavily while performing a hammer on? Of course not.

In any case, as you rightly guessed, it take practice to recognize the "right" amount of force. I think it'll come by itself in due time.

Edited February 3 by davidevr

[TimPiazza]

6 hours ago, davidevr said:

On the one hand you're 100% right, too much force is wasted...

The Irish fiddler James Kelly pointed out to me once that if you put too much energy into one action, you also waste energy returning from that action. His reference was, of course, to fiddle playing, but I have found it generally applicable to many aspects of playing different instruments. 
 

These comments about technique are very useful. Please keep them coming!

[davidevr]

I generally agree, meaning, there's an appropriate amount of force, use more than that and you're less efficient.
The problem is knowing how much that right amount is...

 

For a beginner, I am not sure underemphasizing the tap is a good idea.

I learned (well, I am learning) that if your notes are crisp, well-separated and well-timed the musical flow is so much better. The concertina allows a lot of legato, especially if you play across the rows, and legato is kind of easier, but I think to reach a certain level, to play reels fast and clearly, you must be able to articulate all notes distinctly.

My reasoning being, since staccato is harder than legato, maybe as a beginner you should not focus too much on restraining the force of your taps. Maybe it's more important to stay on time, and tapping those buttons like a hammer kind of helps that.
I guess it depends on your taste, but when I listen to concertina albums I love hearing the keyboard sounds; they are very present in Caitlín Nic Gabahnn or Cormac Begley's stuff, but generally speaking in most players records. To me the concertina is like a typewriter, playing a tune involves a lot of ta ta ta ta

Of course, take all this i with a grain of salt, that's a beginner talking  

[Clive Thorne]

On 2/4/2026 at 6:58 AM, davidevr said:

For a beginner, I am not sure underemphasizing the tap is a good idea.

I learned (well, I am learning) that if your notes are crisp, well-separated and well-timed the musical flow is so much better. The concertina allows a lot of legato, especially if you play across the rows, and legato is kind of easier, but I think to reach a certain level, to play reels fast and clearly, you must be able to articulate all notes distinctly.

My reasoning being, since staccato is harder than legato, maybe as a beginner you should not focus too much on restraining the force of your taps. Maybe it's more important to stay on time, and tapping those buttons like a hammer kind of helps that.
 

I am having lessons in harmobic style from John Kirkpatrick. Playing staccato and slowly is one exercise and learning technique that he repeatedly comes back to. Even when I asked advice on speeding up a particular tune so that I could play it for the Morris side, his advice was to play it slowly and staccato - both the tune and the chords. I mean really slowly. I haven't measured it but I guess at about a tenth of "Battle" speed.

[davidevr]

Coming from the fiddle, I'd tend to look at legato with awe. Staccato is easier on the fiddle (down bow, up bow, down bow and so on) and so using legato the right way is an accomplishment: knowing which notes to slur together is an art on itself.

On the concertina staccato is another story, it means you are articulating the notes well, and that means you have a better control of accents. Of course you can also accent with legato, but that requires a much finer control of the bellows.
BTW, if you listen to historical recordings of Irish players, the one thing they have in common is a super clear articulation.

[Michael Eskin]

I think it's important to be able to have complete control over the instrument, to use staccato or legato exactly as you choose to achieve the sound you want. 

Neither is inherently better, all depends on what you're going for.   

An analogy is closed (generally more staccato) vs. open (generally more legato) Uilleann piping (an instrument I also have played for over 20 years).  

As I would on the Uilleann pipes (or really any of the other instruments I play), I play with a mix of legato and staccato, depending on the phrasing of the tune.