maccannic

Er ... Halloween which year?

A friend of mine, hitherto an EC player, has just acquired a G/D anglo to see what he can do with it. Looking for instruction or tutorial material he's finding only C/G related stuff. Is there anything out there for the G/D? (I play Maccann, so I'm not much help).

Didn't Wheatstone also make Cranes? If so, then 'Wheatstone duet' doesn't tell you all you need to know.

Hi Dirge, make that "+2". I met you at Kilve in about 1998/9 (I think we even shared a dorm). I was just starting on my Maccann journey, and I think you were a few months ahead of me. I reached peak Maccann about 2012, since when I've been going gradually backwards owing to increasingly arthritic finger joints. So sadly, much as I would like to get my hands on the 81-key, I can't justify spending any more on concertinas.

I find it hard to imagine anyone playing concertina for any length of time and reaching a reasonable standard without also playing, or having played, one or more other instruments. But maybe that's because that's not the way I did it. Born in 1948, piano lessons from about 1955. First guitar in 1963 - I was going to be the next Beatles, but I soon changed to the next Bob Dylan. 1974 borrowed a piano accordion, inspired by the playing of Garth Hudson, and bought my own one in 1977 (I still play it). Never liked concertinas much, but then I didn't know about duets until I saw Tim Laycock in concert in mid-1990's. Bought a 64-key Lachenal Maccann for Christmas 1997, replaced it with a 67-key Aeola in 2009 which is what I play now. I no longer have a piano (except a little electric one), and arthritic fingers mean I no longer play guitar much. But I still play accordion for song accompaniment (can't do barn dance gigs any more), and tune sessions on the concertina are what I like best.

What is the range (left-hand and right-hand) of the two 72-button Maccanns please?

I have owned: Lachenal New Model 64-button Maccann duet, serial no. 1865, from 1997 to about 2014 (sold via this website, donation made). I own: Wheatstone Aeola 67-button Maccann duet made in November 1914, from 2009 to date. I have tried numerous other Maccanns, basically every time I encounter a Barleycorn stand. (Also one horrible German 20-button anglo, which I couldn't get on with at all.) And that's it.

A player of the Maccann duet, no less! And quite encouraging to this beginner about 25 years ago.

Yes, 'diatonic' doesn't mean that, and as a duet player who has never played English or Anglo I would say there are more than two main types of concertina.

Thanks for posting that, Daniel. Now I can just about make out the words of the verse. (On the record they only sing the refrain.)

I must admit I tend to avoid the flat keys. Prof. Maccann found sensible places for 11 of the 12 notes, but D#/Eb obviously was the sacrifice.

No Maccann group that I know of - we plough a lonely furrow. And please spell it Maccann, it makes searches more reliable. The late David Cornell used to run a website for Maccann players, but I don't know if it's still going. And I play with 4 fingers. 4 note chords sometimes. Also, shocking habit, I tend to jump between two buttons in the same column, as quickly and smoothly as I can. Good luck with it. The world needs every Maccann player it can get.

Mine is a photo of an angel playing a concertina (actually a stone carving in Bath Abbey, UK).

Can't remember, but it was probably mentioned on Mudcat.

That's made my day.