The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #124861   Message #2763259
Posted By: Alan Day
10-Nov-09 - 04:29 AM
Thread Name: English concertina 2,3 or 4 fingers
Subject: RE: English concertina 2,3 or 4 fingers
MtheGM you will find that Brian Peters plays a lot of chords on the right hand and in general it is not a common practice ,most Anglo players including myself play the tune right hand and the chords in general left. The style you play is similar to that which I play now ,more like a Duet than the push pull of the usual Anglo style of playing. You have to make full use of the accidentals and alternative note directions to solve the air problems and even out the smoothness of playing, trying to avoid the gasp of air of the Air button.
I remember investigating some of the old tutors and the style of chord playing is right hand and left. No set pattern at all,but Oh so complicated. I learnt off by heart one of the pieces from a tutor book and played it perfectly at a Folk Club, the statement I got when the compare got back on stage was "That is how to make a simple piece of music really difficult", I never played it again.
Lots of practice at scales all push, or all pull help to perfect the Duet style of Anglo playing. At all costs avoid the trap that you can easily fall into of slurring one note into the next,a common complaint I have with English System players.Clear note definition is the first step and slurring as an additional tool if you require it. Not the other way round.
The problems of breathing with the bellows direction can also be easily ironed out by smoother playing,this helps when singing with the Anglo. The breathing problem I had was solved without playing the instrument at all,but evenly breathing whilst imagining my playing.
MtheGM we have now completely taken this subject off at a tangent and a severe reprimand could well be the result.
Al