Ross/Date: 19 Jul 12 - 10:20 PM
"Its not just "pure conservatism" that determines how makers produce concertinas".

RE: I have asked most of the present makers and the most common answer is that they would make what users ask for in these respects.
There are some constructional restrictions but many of these are surmountable but to some cost of course.

"Both Anglo and English patterns evolved to provide settings both economical in space and convenient to the hands. The continued use of these layouts is a tribute to the success of the designs".

RE: "Economical in space" - YES. "Convenient to the hands" - definitely NO. The ergonomic knowledge of today was basically non-existing 1830 - an epoque when technical innovation "explosion" flooded the general market with devices that were NOT tried by the users.

".. may be found on Chemnitzer concertinas and bandoneons, but those instruments, besides being much bulkier and heavier, don't sound like concertinas and they don't play like concertinas".

RE: This is a potential subject for another debate but they all are concertinas or Konzertinas according to common use of the terms.Even small 6 or 8 sided German Konzertinas with the common 20 key layout like British style 20k "Anglos" by tradition have 6+mm diam buttons.

"The fact that these instruments remain rare suggests that the customer is (still) always right".

RE: An attractive thought but history prooves the opposite.The producer mostly makes something which seems cost-effective and hopes to sell it by marketing *some* usefulness. This NEVER means that the initial product is ideal or even optimal.Can find any tool which has not been subject to some kind of improvement during history?? Why should British style concertinas be exceptions?

"But if you think you can make a better instrument, by all means do. If you're right, people will beat a path to your door. You can't prove this point by talking (or writing) about it".

RE: A minor example but still: 30 years ago I met about 30 former concertina players who had stopped playing because of age or health related problems to manage their instruments. About 20 of them started playing again after modifications of their instruments.6 of them specifically after changing from 5mm domed buttons to 6mm flat ones with slightly rounded edges.All together I have changed buttons and modified the handles on 20+ different size and model instruments -Anglos, Duets and Englishes.