Review: Charles Wheatstone and the concertina

Subject: Review: Charles Wheatstone and the concertina
From: Shanghaiceltic
Date: 07 Sep 04 - 08:45 PM

Just listened to a programme on the BBC World Service (1.00 a.m. GMT, 8.00 a.m. Beijing, and whatever in 'Ull time) about Charles Wheatstone and his development of the concertina.

I only knew of Wheatstone and his development of the so called Wheatstone brigdge which was further developed into a method of measuring an unknown resistnace in an electrical circuit.

Here's the link

Charles Wheatstone and the concertina

I am still trying to fnd out if the actual programme has been archived as it was very good and probably interesting to any box players.

Subject: RE: Review: Charles Wheatstone and the concertina
From: GUEST,T-boy
Date: 08 Sep 04 - 08:03 AM

Interesting geezer.
I gather he also wrote dances.

Subject: RE: Review: Charles Wheatstone and the concertina
From: treewind
Date: 08 Sep 04 - 08:14 AM

There's far more about Wheatstone HERE
(link found from http://www.concertina.info which has lots more about concertinas)

Anahata

Subject: RE: Review: Charles Wheatstone and the concertina
From: Bob Bolton
Date: 08 Sep 04 - 11:43 PM

G'day shanghaiceltic,

Of course ... he didn't invent the "Wheatstone Bridge" ... as head of the Royal Society he introduced and explained the invention ... actually by ... er ... um ... well, nobody else seems to remember his name either! Wheatstone did actually invent almost all of the applications and techniques for the bridge ... but not the device that now bears his name!

And ... the German Konzertina [Uhlig's ... ?] was on sale before Wheatstone's English Concertina ... Wheatstone's 1827 patent was for the "Symphonium", which did introduce the fingering pattern later used for the English Concertina - but was mouth-blown! Wheatstone was experimenting with bellows by the early 1830s ... but didn't "publish" .. or sell ... (rather like Fox-Talbot's work on the real basis of modern photography ... but Daguerre published his beautiful ... but impractical - indeed deadly (mercury developed) - daguerroptype and is credited as inventor of photography).

I recently noticed a 1950s edition og the International Concertina Association which had run a quiz in the last issue ... and the given answer for "Inventor of the concertina" was "Wheatstone". In this next issue, they apologised and corrected the question to: "Inventor of the English concertina"!

Regards,

Bob Bolton