Last updated 15 December 2004

Cumulative entries to last date: 172

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for the Concertina Library, 2004

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15 December 2004

duet-advert-1854dec20 Earliest-Known Advertisement for the Duett Concertina (1854)
by C. Wheatstone & Co.
An early Edinburgh advertisement for the Duett system duet concertina, from late 1854. The Scotsman (Edinburgh), Vol. 38 No. 3647, Wednesday, 20 December, 1854, page 1, column 3 (entire page). “Concertinas at Fryer & Thomson’s, 7 and 11 South St Andrew Street. THE DUET CONCERTINA. In Mahogany (24 Keys), £1 11 6; In Rosewood, Superior Finish (24 Do.), £2 2 0. Instruction Books, 2s.”
Posted 15 December 2004
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patent-collection Historic Concertina Patents
Directory
A portfolio of full copies of nine historic concertina patents. Includes the early Wheatstone English patents, Maccann's Duet patent, Jones's Anglo patent, the Crane Duet patent, Kaspar Wicki's patent for the Wicki-Hayden system, and Brian Hayden's much later patent for the same system. Includes: C. Wheatstone 1829; C. Wheatstone 1844; Wm. Wheatstone 1861; Maccann 1884; Jones 1885; Alsepti and Ballinger 1885; Butterfield 1896; Wicki 1896; Hayden 1986. None of these patents has any current force, all have either lapsed or been abandoned.
Posted 15 December 2004
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cornell-christmas Christmas Music for Concertina
by David Cornell
Christmas music arranged for Maccann Duet concertina. Includes Coventry Carol (with comments), Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, Joy to the World, and We Wish You a Merry Christmas.
Posted 15 December 2004
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22 November 2004

concertina-man The Concertina Man
Presented by Peter Day,
Produced by Neil Koenig
BBC programme on the history and music of the concertina, focusing on its inventor Sir Charles Wheatstone as a somewhat belated recognition of his bicentenary in 2002. In addition to the presenter, Peter Day, the program features (in order of appearance) Bob Gaskins, Brian Bowers, Margaret Birley, Stephen Chambers, Frank James, Douglas Rogers, Sean Minnie, and Steve Dickinson. The program was produced by Neil Koenig. BBC World Service programme broadcast 07 September 2004.
Posted 22 November 2004
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27 September 2004

maccann-how-to-play How to Play the Concertina
by John Hill Maccann
A newly-discovered booklet, reliably dated to 1902. The text of the document consists of two parts: (1) a part of the "how to play" text from Maccann's earlier publication The Concertinist's Guide (1888); and (2) an interview with Professor Maccann reprinted from The Era theatrical newspaper of London, issue of 25 January 1902. In addition to the text, the booklet contains some new photographs of Maccann, including the first known photographs of him playing the concertina. There is a sample program of a recital by Maccann, a list of phonograph records for sale recorded by Maccann, and a catalogue of some of Maccann's published music compositions. This copy was discovered in the National Archives of Australia, where it had been deposited for copyright registration.
Posted 27 September 2004
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15 May 2004

pricelist-wh-english-anglo-duet-1947 Wheatstone English, Anglo, and Duet Pricelist circa 1947
contributed by Mike Eichner
Wheatstone & Co. list of models and prices for English, Anglo, and Duet concertinas. Dated c. 1947 by internal evidence.
Posted 15 May 2004
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pricelist-wh-english-anglo-duet-1955-us Wheatstone English, Anglo, and Duet Pricelist circa 1955
contributed by Jim Lucas
Wheatstone & Co. list of models and prices for English, Anglo, and Duet concertinas. Dated c. 1955 by internal evidence. (Prices in sterling and in U.S. dollars.)
Posted 15 May 2004
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pricelist-wh-english-anglo-duet-1965 Wheatstone English, Anglo, and Duet Pricelist circa 1965
collected by Chris Algar
Wheatstone & Co. list of models and prices for English, Anglo, and Duet concertinas. Dated c. 1965 by internal evidence.
Posted 15 May 2004
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01 March 2004

gaskins-wicki-system The Wicki System—an 1896 Precursor of the Hayden System
by Robert Gaskins
The concertina keyboard system known today as the "Hayden" system, which was independently discovered by Brian Hayden and patented by him in 1986, had also been discovered and patented 90 years earlier by a Swiss inventor named Kaspar Wicki. Wicki's 1896 Swiss patent (CH13329) is clear and unambiguous, including a keyboard diagram labeled in standard musical notation.
Posted 01 March 2004
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wicki-patent-1896 Tastatur für Musikinstrumente (1896)
by Kaspar Wicki
Switzerland Patent Nr. CH13329, dated 30 Oktober 1896. 2 pages, 1 illustration. This patent describes a keyboard system identical to the Hayden system which was independently re-discovered 90 years later. “The keys or buttons … are arranged in such a way that one can play in all key signatures using the same fingering. The notes which are adjacent left-to-right on one row are always one full tone from each other. Notes in the adjacent row are the associated fifths (in the other direction the associated fourths) and notes two rows away in each direction are the octaves.” [Translated from the German original.]
Posted 01 March 2004
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janko-patent-1883 Klaviatur für Tasteninstrumente (1883)
by Paul von Jankó
German Patent Nr. DE25282, 1883. A piano keyboard design related to the Wicki concertina keyboard.
01 March 2004
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janko-patent-1885 Neuerung an der unter No. 25282 patentirten Klaviatur (1885)
by Paul von Jankó
German Patent Nr. DE32138, 1885. A piano keyboard design related to the Wicki concertina keyboard.
01 March 2004
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wesley-patent-2002 Sensor Array MIDI Controller
by William Casey Wesley
United States Patent 6501011 (2002) An electronic keyboard design related to the Wicki and Hayden concertina keyboards.
01 March 2004
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gaskins-which-duet Which Duet Concertina—Hayden or Maccann?
by Robert Gaskins
A comparative review of two concertinas: a Stagi Hayden Duet concertina (c. 2003), and a Lachenal Maccann Duet concertina (c. 1900). Each instrument has 46 keys, and each cost £500 ($800) ready to play. On almost every measure, the antique Lachenal Maccann Duet turned out to be preferable to the modern Stagi Hayden Duet—by a considerable margin. The advantages frequently mentioned as belonging to the Hayden system (uniformity of fingering in all key signatures, automatic transposition) turned out to be significantly compromised by the restricted size of the Stagi. If you want to play a duet concertina, at present you will probably do best to buy a Maccann Duet.
Posted 01 March 2004
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hayden-playing-chords Playing Chords [for English, Anglo, and Maccann Duet]
by Brian Hayden
"I would like to explain the system that I use when teaching players about chords, their structure, and placement. Chords are what I am most requested to explain at folk music workshops or gatherings as I tend to use chords a lot in my own playing." (From the introduction.) Includes a novel notation for chords which is used elsewhere on this website. As published in Concertina Magazine (Australia) in three parts, 12-14 (1985), 12:5-7, 13:12-14, and 14:8-10; with corrections in 15-16 (1986), 15:14 and 16:1,6,9.
Posted 01 March 2004
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15 January 2004

chambers-annotated-catalogue An Annotated Catalogue of Historic European Free-Reed Instruments from my Private Collection
by Stephen Chambers
A very important paper describing nineteen instruments which illustrate key points in the development of European free-reed instruments, with large color photographs. This paper was presented at the 20th Musikinstrumentenbau-Symposium at Stiftung Kloster Michaelstein, held 19–21 November 1999, to coincide with an exhibition of the instruments. As Published in Harmonium und Handharmonika (Michaelsteiner Konferenzberichte 62), edited by Monika Lustig, Michaelstein, 2002, pp. 181-194.
Posted 15 January 2004
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chambers-lachenal-part1 Louis Lachenal: "Engineer and Concertina Manufacturer" (Part 1)
by Stephen Chambers
Discussion of the sources of information available about Louis Lachenal, his early career and immigration to England, and his involvement with the design and manufacturing engineering of Wheatstone & Co. concertinas up to the year 1848. As published in The Free-Reed Journal, Vol. 1 (1999), pp. 7-18. There is also a scanned copy of the original publication in PDF format.
Posted 15 January 2004
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jones-recollection-english-trans Recollections of the English Concertina, from 1844, by George Jones, born February 29th 1832
by George Jones
A full transcription of a manuscript now in the British Library, catalogued there as: Additional Manuscript 71124 Q, Recollections of the manufacture of the English concertina from 1844, by George Jones; [1912]. Presented by F. E. Butler, Esq., grandson of George Jones, 29 Aug. 1988, and incorporated in 1993. ff. 331 x 207mm. As published in Concertina Magazine, 13 (Winter 1985): 4–5, and 14 (Spring 1985): 4–7. Previously published (with heavy editorial additions) in FreeReed: The Concertina Magazine, No. 16 (November 1973): 14–20. A link is provided to PDF scanned versions of both publications.
Posted 15 January 2004
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jones-musical-opinion-1885 Men We Have Met: George Jones
by George Jones
Historical sketch of the business career of George Jones, published at the time he had just introduced his patent 42-key chromatic Anglo. As published in Musical Opinion & Music Trade Review 88 (1 January 1885):203.
Posted 15 January 2004
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jones-patent-1884 Improvements in Anglo-German Concertinas (1884)
by George Jones
British Patent No. 9314 of 1884, 23 June 1884 with two figures. 2 pages. Jones describes a 42-key Anglo concertina, which is a fully chromatic Anglo “ to enable the performer to play music in every key”, based on the older diatonic 10-key and 20-key German models.
Posted 15 January 2004
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jones-tutor-1946 Tutor for the Chromatic Anglo Concertina
by George Jones
London: Wheatstone & Co., Reprinted 1946. (This is a very late reprint edition of George Jones, The Chromatic Anglo-German Concertina Tutor, London: G. Jones, 1876, entry A40 in Merris's bibliography.) This scan was made by Wes Williams.
Posted 15 January 2004
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wheatstone-pricelist-1848-C824 “The Concertina, A New Musical Instrument”
by Wheatstone & Co.
Promotional brochure and price list, dated 1848. 2 pages. This copy is in the collection of the Horniman Museum, no. C824.
Posted 15 January 2004
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wheatstone-music-1848-C823 “Music for the Concertina”
by Wheatstone & Co.
Catalogue of printed music (January 1848, dated 1848. 2 pages. This copy is in the collection of the Horniman Museum, no. C823.
Posted 15 January 2004
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