Pre-wheatstone History

[Daniel Hersh]

Wow. Is he doing circular breathing?

 

If someone had brought a few hundred of these to Ireland in the mid-19th century, this could have become the standard ITM free-reed instrument...

 

Wheatstone was certainly familiar with the related khaen (from Laos and Northeast Thailand) and experimented with instruments of that type.

I heard a few khaen and talked with a khaen player, back when I was living in St. Paul and in contact with the Hmong community there. To us, my English concertina and my acquaintance's khaen seemed like distant cousins, at best.

Brian,

 

They are indeed distant cousins, but if you take a look at figures 43 & 44 of Wheatstone's 1829 Patent, you will see diagrams of an instrument that looks remarkably like a cross between the two! (And it employs "English concertina" fingering! )

 

 

I'm thankful bellows were invented

 

jig;the gold ring,played on khene//khaen

 

2 jigs in g played on khene

 

The rest are here:

 

Thanks

Leo

[Stephen Chambers]

If someone had brought a few hundred of these to Ireland in the mid-19th century, this could have become the standard ITM free-reed instrument...

Can you imagine Noel Hill playing one?

 

No, me neither...

[Michael Marino]

Stephen,

 

Would enjoy a long chat with you sometime if we ever cross paths as i have had a few e-mail conversations with Pat and he is a true fountain of knowledge that has helped me a lot with harmonicas and his site explains a lot of things that might seem arcane to many but with which I find much joy. From what i have read there was a lot of experimentation with free reed instruments at the beginning of the 19th century (1800's for those of us that prefer straight numbers).

 

I find alot of information that smacks of bias from Seydel to Hohner to the Russians (whose claims all seem to come to the for front during the USSR, when they where trying to lay claim to inventing everything). So I read and take it with a grain of salt (large grain about a kilo in weight) and keep digging and hoping to learn more. It is sad that large portions of the research is being set aside or discredited by those with agendas (have run into that with the bandoneon already). Hopefully more honest research will hold the day and stand up the test of time. Best of luck and I will gladly buy you a pint if able when we meet sometime.

 

Michael

[drbones]

I hope THIS hasn't already appeared around here somewhere. I found it while googling for the fishtail pivot post mystery in another topic.

[wes williams]

I hope THIS hasn't already appeared around here somewhere. I found it while googling for the fishtail pivot post mystery in another topic.

Your link takes me to a blank page - perhaps Don N's server is down. But I think its Neil Wayne's Galpin article - another copy here. And the answer to the fishtail a.k.a. bell a.k.a. gaussian distribution pivot mystery can only be found on this site

[Dirge]

I hope THIS hasn't already appeared around here somewhere. I found it while googling for the fishtail pivot post mystery in another topic.

Your link takes me to a blank page - perhaps Don N's server is down. But I think its Neil Wayne's Galpin article - another copy here. And the answer to the fishtail a.k.a. bell a.k.a. gaussian distribution pivot mystery can only be found on this site

 

Personally I know what Wheatstone pivots look like and that's ALL I need.

[drbones]

Your link takes me to a blank page - perhaps Don N's server is down. But I think its Neil Wayne's Galpin article - another copy here. And the answer to the fishtail a.k.a. bell a.k.a. gaussian distribution pivot mystery can only be found on this site

Yes, it's the same.

Thanks.