G'day Bob,
I gather Mike learned the mouthorgan when at school in Lincolnshire; I got the impression that it was then the default instrument for schoolkids the way recorders are (in Oz) now. From my own experience, the only instrument I ever got near when at primary school was a rather cheap type of fife that was probably in C and probably had the same fingering as a tin whistle; I can't really say because I never got even a note out of it.

I recall Arnold Dolmetsch arriving in Oz (~1958?) and barnstorming around the country flogging the notion that every schoolkid ought to be taught recorders (or, in his case, altblockflaut) and was thankful (being young and ignorant) that I had escaped.

While at Uni I was riding my pushbike to lectures and found a harmonica in the middle of the road, took it home and cleaned it up. All the notes worked (from memory it was a Hohner ~5" long diatonic in either D or G) but I couldn't get the hang of how to play it and put it away. When Mike told me that it, the box and the concer all worked on the same system I pulled it (and the box) out from the cupboard and checked his notion. I found I could play the same tune on all three instruments.

So you're right for the traditional approach but I got it the reverse way round. As you've noticed I am usually carrying the Anglo and that is the instrument I pick up when trying to get the hang of a novel tune, but I still carry the harmonica around in case I want its tone and I love the melodeons for theirs. I did support Kurt Jacob to the extent of getting a Corona III in A/D/G but I only use it occasionally and locally.

Cheers, Rowan