Tuesday, January 31, 2017

Read something a little troubling - neck/shoulder pain

As I wait patiently for the box(es) to arrive, I read up about different things. Out of curiosity today I read up on shoulder and neck pain. I did this because I have an injury to my right shoulder I acquired it in a weird fluky way about 5 years ago and after lots of physical therapy and an MRI it was determined that I have a very slight tear deep in the shoulder that would be more harmful to surgical repair than leave it, but it causes me problems as the other muscles try to compensate for that muscle with an injury. I mostly do OK, but I sometimes get tingling in that arm/fingers and it's only certain movements that cause problems.

But, I also have symptoms of carpel tunnel too, but I'm SUPER careful to always keep my wrists straight - even when I sleep. I use an ergomic mouse, I use my laptop and desk, etc. so that my wrists can remain straight and I've been successful at not creating big issues with my wrists/inner forearms.

I was happy to learn that the push/pull was on the left side as the damaged shoulder is on the right shoulder, but now I just read about the sharp edges of the older instruments and finger placements that it leads to some people having carpel tunnel issues because of the wrists needing to be bent too much for too long. I did not like reading that!?!?!? Both the boxes I have coming in are sharp edged boxes! Let's hope that I won't run into that problem.

I've found some discussions about the fear and some suggestions to help. This first one is about playing a button box - the fear and some suggestions given by other players: https://thesession.org/discussions/17338

This next one is on a concertina site, but it mentions melodeons too. http://www.concertina.net/kc_ortho.html/

This last one mentions the problem for all sorts of musicians and gives some exercises and stretches to try: http://makingmusicmag.com/carpal-tunnel-musicians/

This page here gives some good advice for straps and how to hold it. However, I think it's old and is without visuals, but good information: http://www.geocities.ws/kozulich/holding.html

From what I've read and gathered - I should get really decent double straps to ease the weight off the hands and the one shoulder, but is that helpful? or is better with one strap? And I am thanking everyone now at melnet for specifying that I should get small boxes to learn on. Now I'm beginning to get it.

Of course, some people play with no straps:



This is a typical strap for a diatonic accordion:



Here is a more deluxe version.




Then there are double straps.



And they can get quite beefy (as piano accordion and club accordions can get quite heavy).




Sunday, January 29, 2017

Developing the MADness very early

One of the reasons I went with diatonic accordion is that there is a very active site in the UK called Melodeon.net where the people there are very helpful in about every way. There are novices and pros - including shop owners and refurbishers too. It's a wealth of information and experience to draw on.

I am going to try to learn this without taking lessons professionally because a. I don't have time to be having lessons (remember, my time, my way to ease stress) and b. I don't want to spend money on lessons if I don't need to because we are paying for college tuition and housing currently too!

They often discuss MAD, or MADness, etc. It stands for:

Melodeon
Acquisition
Disorder

And I must admit I have an advanced case of it already and I haven't even gotten my instrument yet and won't for another week or so.  

You see... I've written all of these posts - all of them so far in one day. It's how I spent the bulk of my last free day from work before the whole Inauguration crap, I mean festivities began of which I had a lot to be present for. I decided I needed to get this all written out as much as possible so that I can return to some sort of normalcy.

Want proof? Here you go.... look at all those drafts? That is 1 post that I created. The rest I wrote between 5 pm and 12:38 am... After a day of some work, some home-schooling, making dinner, doing dishes, and taking my older son out to practice driving. That is a sure sign of MAD.



What am I MAD about? Well, I already have a list of instruments I would like to try/have if I get a hang of this and want to get better. I would like a really nice Castagnari - perhaps a small one and a bigger one:


A beautiful Stierische accordion would be fun to try too:


And then there is the Hohner Morino Club for fun too.


Maybe it's best I don't like to play and find it so frustrating. If that's the case, this will be a very short-lived blog. It will start all jubilant and end in my pulling my hair out.

Starting and and ending like this. Let's hope not!





Friday, January 27, 2017

Waiting in a queue - my instrument

Because I am on a budget and because I'm wanting to do this in a logical, smart way. I didn't want to spend a fortune on a beginner instrument and on something I didn't know if I would continue with or not.

As I mentioned in a previous post, I found on my own and was later directed to a person who refurbishes button box accordions as well as plays. He helped me choose an instrument and now it's just getting tuned up and cleaned up for use once again - bringing life back to an old accordion. That brings him joy to do and brings me joy to re-use and repurpose too. Need a box? or want to learn more about different diatonic accordions? Scott can help you out and his prices are very reasonable.


Here is a link to his website, where he demonstrates all his instruments (so crucial to buying): Bellinger's Button Boxes. You can see all his videos of current instruments for sale and sold instruments here.

As much as I'm excited to get my instrument, I am yearning for the beautiful instrument I just want to stare at and pet - as much decoration as useful instrument. Like these:




But to ever justify that level of instrument, I'll have to be quite good and really love it. Though there are smaller, less fancy ones that will do just fine by a couple of brands - like these:


But what I have on the way, and I'm so excited about is this below. I should get it in about a month. See, I can be patient!


The seller has sold one nearly identical to it and once the keys are cleaned up and such, it will look more like this:



And now I wait... and dream...

___________________________

Addendum: I wrote this post the day I put a deposit on it. That was over a week ago. Since then I've learned more. Started to worry a bit more and my life has gotten super busy again, but way more stressful again. I am hoping this is a good stress reliever as things here in the US if you are a liberal are pretty bleak feeling right now - one week into Trump's term in office.

Thursday, January 26, 2017

What key? Oh my goodness why are there so many decisions to be made?

After weeks of researching and listening to tons of music and instruments, I was getting things narrowed down. I now knew I was getting a two row/diatonic melodeon - not clubbed*. I was going to go with a simple layout with 23 keys for right hand and 8 bass keys for left hand. I even found a seller on the east coast who would tune an instrument for me (he has several waiting for customer requests). Now I just needed to decide which key.

The keys: The commonest are CF, DG, BbEb, AD, GC. There are more, but it should be one of these for a beginner wanting to play "whatever". Most common key in the US and in Germany is CF. Most common in the UK (where the site is that I'm using for learning to play this thing) is DG (very uncommon in the US).

It was recommended I listen to different pieces I knew were in different keys. More googling. But this was quicker to find my preferences. I prefer lower tones. I find the higher tones harsher to the ear (perhaps the horn player coming out in me a bit too - and someone who has listened to my son's tuba playing all through middle school and high school). I found this site and liked the sound of everything she played - just a woman enjoying her music:  The above is linked to her whole collection of videos. Here's the first one I watched.


Here's another instrument and player and a completely different style, but completely, unabashedly, marvelous:


These are both French musicians and French key of GC. Beautiful. So, GC is what I went with. Wait. I had made a decision? What did I get? Wait for tomorrow!

*turns out I got one of each for trying out on - possible got a clubbed one. This is still tbd.

Wednesday, January 25, 2017

To club or not to club. That is the question?

There are two main ways (well, three, that I know of) for using the bellows on the diatonic accordion. On most of these instruments, you change notes by direction of the bellows. To me, that adds a complication to playing.

Look here at this finger chart (This is GC):


How can you get two notes from each key? By how you push and pull. First note is when you push the bellows in and second note on the button is when you pull the bellows out. It's explained well here and you can see in the intro tune he plays how he is pushing in/out quickly between notes:



So that is another decision to be made -  what style of diatonic accordion to get. There is the traditional diatonic accordion which you switch the bellows direction to get different notes and there is the club diatonic accordion which allows you to play notes in either direction by using a special key called a gleichton. I don't understand it all - especially not having even touched the instrument yet, but I think this is good information about the club system here.  With just starting out, I'm wondering what will be easier to learn?

Right now I think not having to worry about which direction the bellows are going might be easier. Besides being another thing to learn (switching bellows direction) learning on a traditional diatonic accordion then makes it difficult to switch to club style - which, to me, with never laying my hands on a melodeon yet, looks simpler.


Maybe that isn't easier, but as a novice observing, it appears to be. And, I'm still eyeing a club instrument as a future possibility (though I'm beginning to not be so sure). Here is playing on a club instrument (way too much tremolo for me, but note the smoother action of the bellows and only switching to keep the air moving across the reeds and the fingers crossing over to other rows for the other notes.



As side note, if you are now intrigued about playing a diatonic accordion, this series of videos is great for someone starting out. And it's super great because he's a beginner learning and sharing as he goes - doing some of the homework for you!

I wrote this before I purchased my first instrument and now I'm going back for edits. I have now purchased two used instruments and I am waiting on both. I have no idea now what i will like to use for a main instrument. Many more people play traditional diatonic accordions, so keeping to what is more common will probably be easier for learning as there will be more resources. At the beginning I was drawn to what I heard from the Club systems as they have more voices, but with researching more and finding more, I'm beginning to think a lighter instrument with high quality instruments with dry tuning sounds the best.

Like listen to this beautiful sound and there are choices of many voices - which is what I'm drawn to with the Hohner Ouverture Club and the Hohner Morino Club too:





But even those without so many voices - the instruments themselves sing:



By the way, if you are now getting an itch, Daddy Long Les has great tutors for beginning as he is a beginner too. However, he does have a lot of musical background, so keep that in mind if you feel you a bit lost in some of the talks of minor chords and major chords. He's also a guitarist, so he brings that knowledge in with him, whereas you may not.




Tuesday, January 24, 2017

And the things I don't particularly like listening to: wet/dry tuning

Something started to become apparent to me. There were some things I started to not like listening to. It wasn't style of music. All of it could be lovely. But there were certain instruments that sounded off to me - but not off like an untuned piano as it was "off" for the whole instrument, not just individual notes. Like below. These are being played just fine -  but the instruments themselves bug me. These musicians are quite good actually. 


Here's another:

I want to make it clear - the playing is FINE... I hope to aspire to either of these player's abilities. I started to get a bit concerned as then I found a few of the same instruments that sounded so very different from each other. Oh my goodness...

It's hard to replicate what I was finding, but this is the closest I can find to share easily in a post.

These three are playing the same tune on the same brand and mostly the same make of instrument (though differently keyed instruments):


Again, everyone is playing so beautifully and I can only hope I can play so beautifully!

I thought, maybe it's just these older instruments don't hold their tune well or something, but it wasn't their instruments being out of tune.

Here's this newer wood, accordion with that same wa-wa-wa sound, followed by the same brand of accordion and similar makes (differently keyed). They sound so completely different from each other in sound.


None of these accordions are "testable" by me. I will have to buy one sight unseen. Yet, my ear cannot tolerate (for very long) the sounds of the wa-wa-wa on some of these instruments. I think my years of band and playing the horn drove all tolerance of major dissonance out of my head. I know I have a very sensitive ear to things being out of tune. I donated after listening one time the Three Tenors Christmas CD because on several of the pieces the singers and players were out of tune. It simply gets on my nerves and practicing with an instrument that has a lot of tremolo/dissonance? I couldn't do it.

So, back to researching, what was up with that? Turns out that there are different methods of tuning accordions. Dry tuning there is little to know tremolo, wet tuning there is a lot. Then there is everything in between. Here's what I found on the melnet sight about it:
Tuning and tremolo

Beats 
As already mentioned, a 2-voice instrument will typically have its two sets of reeds tuned slightly apart from each other, which creates the characteristic, pulsating tremolo sound. These pulses are known as ‘beats’, and are caused by the sound waves from each reed alternately reinforcing and diminishing each other. The number of beats per second is equal to the difference in frequency between the two reeds; for example, for the note A, if one reed is tuned to concert pitch at 440 Hz (Hz = Hertz, the number of vibrations per second) and the other reed is tuned slightly sharp at 444 Hz, the resultant rate of beating will be 444 minus 440 = 4 beats per second. 
Amount of tremolo: dry and wet tuning 
If the two sets of reeds are tuned exactly the same as each other, there will be no beating and hence no tremolo. This is known as ‘dry’ tuning. All other tuning will give a certain amount of tremolo. A marked tremolo – say 5 beats per second or more is usually described as ‘wet’ tuning, and of course there are all sorts of degrees of wetness in between. Different manufacturers and different nationalities will describe the tremolo in different ways, usually with a certain amount of overlap; but mainly can be summarised thus: 
  • Wet: 5 or more beats per second ( >20 cents at A=440)
  • Tremolo: around 4 beats per second (15 cents at A=440)
  • Demi-swing: about 2 to 3 beats per second (8 - 12 cents at A=440)
  • Swing: a light tremolo of 1 to 1½ beats per second (4 - 6 cents at A=440)
  • Light swing: very light tremolo, slower than 1 beat per second ( <4 cents at A=440)
  • Dry: no beats at all
  • Musette tuning generally refers to three-voice instruments tuned M- M M+ with a wide spread of tremolo (5 beats or more per second).
The amount of tremolo is a very personal thing; some people like the warmth and fatness of sound of a wet-tuned instrument, and believe that it helps the sound carry better in an outdoor situation. Others prefer the much ‘purer’ or even austere sound of swing or dry tuning. As a rough guide, most factory-tuned two-voice Hohners e.g. Pokerwork, Erica, Corona, etc., tend to be wet-tuned at 5 or more beats per second, Castagnaris swing-tuned at around 1 – 2 beats per second, and Saltarelles, Dino Baffettis, etc., somewhere in between, in the demi-swing to tremolo range. The M reeds of one-row four-stop Cajun and Quebecois instruments are often tuned dry (no tremolo) or just a light swing. However, it is sometimes possible to specify the degree of tremolo when ordering an instrument, otherwise a reputable tuner will be able to tune your instrument according to your particular wishes. 
Remember that the values quoted above refer to the tremolo for the note A4 = 440 Hz. Rather than having a constant rate of tremolo over the range of the instrument, the lower notes are often tuned with much less tremolo, and the higher notes with more tremolo, the rate gradually increasing as you go up in pitch. Why? To most people, it simply sounds better that way.
However, if you are not sure what you want, listen to as many different instruments as you can, either on recordings, or preferably live; and if you are able, try them out for yourself.
Ok, now I get. I learned that I needed a dry tuned instrument for my ear sensitivity. One more "check" on what to buy. Next!

Monday, January 23, 2017

Learning all the unique voices

So I kept searching through Youtube videos to figure out what I liked in tone and style. I was listening to these beautiful pieces:

There was that post from yesterday with this gorgeous piece:


And I found this one:

 

Then I found this beauty that showcased 13 different instruments with the same player playing the same pieces. It really gives a feel for how they different voices/instruments compare and I know it's the instruments and not the player:




And this one, similarly with 12 different instruments, almost all of them different from what was shared above:


Oh my goodness! So many freaking choices! Then, I stumbled onto something completely different, but still a diatonic accordion with the base I love. This style of diatonic accordion is called a steirische button box/accordion. How can you not love this?


So, on melnet people kept asking me, "What do you like?" All of it???? OK, maybe not all of it. I do not like this... (next post).

Sunday, January 22, 2017

I thought I was all set... and march (standing still)!

Just when I thought I knew what I wanted to get - a large Hohner V Club accordion, melodeon.net became active again after days and days of it being down. Now I could look at all the articles and recommendations that had been unavailable and double check on my decision. By now I thought I had a plan. I had decided that I really liked the full sound of this instrument that I saw for sale, used, "fairly" locally.  It has so many options and lots and lots of voices and a nice deep base line. It is in two keys, but all the accidentals were on the third row - and - the clincher for me I thought was that club accordions use the bellows in a simple back and forth motion whereas traditional diatonic accordions play different notes by some being played on push and some being on played on the pull of the bellows (more on that in another post, I promise). Here is the Hohner Ouverture V Club being played.



So, I searched on more info and a lot of people liked them, but liked this one even better (of the same maker and club type) and I agree - the tone is sweeter - Hohner Morino Club What a tone and so many options!



But... nearly everyone said, "Wait. don't start with that." Why? it's heavy. (I find it a bit funny as piano accordions are just as heavy if not heavier.) and it is more than I need for learning basics which makes it more difficult to learn. I was also told I shouldn't think about a one and only instrument for all times. I would probably want another one for different tones and different keys if I really got into this. Their recommendation was that I should pick up an inexpensive, used one now to learn how to work it all without breaking my back and shoulders and bank account, and then if I want, venture on to other types once I knew I liked it and could get a hang of it.

This sounded like a reasonable plan. I'm somewhat of an aesthetics snob, so getting an old instrument in not the prettiest condition was a bit of a bummer, but I also know that there is a good chance I might hate this thing and quit (though I'm getting pretty obsessed... this just seems up my alley!)

So, I kept listening to different music, different types of diatonic accordions/melodeons. Again, the more I learned, the more I realized I didn't know. Isn't that always the case?

By the way, at this point my older son (20) said he now wanted to learn to play too as some of the things I found and had him listen to were pretty darn amazing! (more on that later).

______________________________________________

Addendum:

I wrote these posts several days ago and it's funny to go back and read them and tweak them with new info. Also today was the Women's March on Washington, D.C. and, basically, the world. Wow... it was amazing. I've never been and probably never will be part of something so empowering and uplifting as a group again in my lifetime. While I was there no marching happened as there was no room to march. I know there had to be close to a million people there (and possibly more). We basically stood shoulder to shoulder for hours together to make a point about our thoughts on so many things we think need attention in America (and the world). I know a few people had cheered me on in real life and on the forum. Here's a couple videos:

An Aerial view - not even central to the Mall - it spilled over that much.


Here's one I took while trying to work my way through the Mall.


Here are some photos:


My husband Sven and I. A daughter of a member of the organization I work for finished the hat while waiting to start the march. I wore it initially, but my balding husband needed it more.

Part of our coningent. About 1/4-1/3 of our organization's membership was at the March - not all could get to us or find us before we started out (as it was already that crowded). Some stood with other friends/groups.

My favorite photo I got of the day. Two women of color in the middle (standing for their rights!), a pink pussy hat, a rainbow flag wrapped around a lady's shoulder's, masses of people with signs, and the Capitol Building in the background.

Atop a garbage can view of our little group in the middle of the mall .

My husband and I feeling empowered and having fun.



Saturday, January 21, 2017

What's easiest? And Resistance!

All this time I am googling and googling things on accordions. There are so many types and so many voices. One thing I kept noticing was that a lot of advice for playing kept popping up from a site called melodeon.net However, their site was down. I had no idea if it was just recently down, or if it was like many old sites that still will show articles, but you can't click on them to read the articles.

The more I googled, the more I wondered about diatonic accordions. Sites say they are easier to learn. Youtube videos showed me that they could be played with just a few notes. Most of the time you play one note with the right hand and one note with the left hand. You still work the bellows, and there is some unique bellow movement you need to do with many types of these accordions (not all - more on that in a future post), but it was making me be more curious.

Another thought that kept coming to my mind is that piano accordion is half piano. My luck with piano is so terrible, so there was so hesitation there, but also I noticed a couple of other things - accordion playing and melodeon playing, while there is over lap. It's not the same. Like listen and pay attention to this waltz on the piano accordion.




And now this one on a melodeon.




See the difference? Both are lovely. Both are simple tunes... but look how much of a beast a piano accordion is and how much she has to move her fingers compared to the melodeon? PLUS side to that is that piano accordions can play in any key - unlike melodeons, but then there is the Chromatic Button Accordion that is more intuitive for this layout that can do it all. The piano accordion is really only easier if you already play piano - I do not and most of the stuff I think I'll ever play will be simple tunes. I am 47 years old, after all! Not such a spring chicken to be learning a whole new instrument!

Here's a waltz on a chromatic Button Accordion (CBA)



So, I googled and googled and learned more and more what I liked and didn't. What I thought would be a simple "I'll just get an accordion" opened my eyes to how much more there was to it! But, that's the next post!
______________________________________

Another addendum: Yesterday was inauguration day. I didn't watch it. I couldn't. But I did help with childcare at work so that adults could have a discussion of what Resistance to do now. And then I attended and helped out with this Resistance Un-Ball. There was open mic... I have never been able to do open mic - how lovely it would be to pick up an instrument and play a piece to unite people and bring strength and joy. I think that will be a future post.

As soon as I send this blog post off, my husband and I are off the the Women's March in Washington, DC. Of my circle, every single local woman I know is planning on attending - several are flying or driving in. I'm about positive the gathering will be bigger than yesterday's Inauguration - and it's happening around the globe. RESIST!












Friday, January 20, 2017

MAD, but fearful?

As I have mentioned already. I already have a case of MAD (Melodeon Acquisition Disorder). I haven't even received my melodeon yet, and I'm already scouring the used sites for my next acquisition.

You see - this is a hobby of mine - buying things used, on the cheap. The entirety of my home furnishings save our mattresses and a few IKEA bookcases are used. I have gotten quite good at spotting bargains. People list things without complete names or with misspellings, or list them so poorly that their descriptions steer people away.

However, with an accordion, you simply do not know what you are getting for a playing condition without looking inside and hearing it play. And since the vast majority of them (especially?) in the United States have sat in basements and attics in old people's homes, the chances of it being in bad condition is really high. The older person dies and then the family liquidates the property and it's contents and they list things like, "I don't play accordion, but all the buttons/keys work and sound comes out of it." That tells you absolutely NOTHING.


Like right now there is a highly sought after small melodeon for sale on eBay. Don't get too excited to buy it as I'm writing this post more than a week in advance of it's posting date to Blogger. Of course, it's possible it's still not sold as this is the third time it's been listed and the seller drops the price by $50 each time. This club accordion is called the Liliput Hohner. The seller has the starting bid at $149 and buy it now at $199. It is listed as "accordian". Not even button accordian, or diatonic accordian. I found it by searching for Liliput Hohner.

This is the listing description:

Vintage Hohner "Liliput" small (miniature?) accordion from the 1940's with original case.

Accordian measures 9" X 9 1/8" X 5". Good condition with little wear. Plays well but I'm not familiar with the sound of this instrument so it may need to be tuned. Original leather hand and neck strap, straps have light wear. Hohner name and "Liliput" on top surface of accordion, on the colored surface, The cloth screening behind the metal frill appears to be a little loose at the bottom and the wood front has surface wear to the black paint, from use (see fourth and seventh photo). All the buttons work well, with none sticking and the center ballast has no holes and no deterioration. No chips, cracks, marks or damage to the marbleized colored surfaces. The case has some interior and exterior wear, the metal front locking latch has surface rust, the latch does work but I don't have the key to lock the latch. The original carrying handle is firmly attached to the case.
This tells me nothing but the exterior cosmetics. Absolutely nothing. It's also being sold by someone who sells for a living I think - buying things at flea markets or estate sales which I can glean from the sheer quantity he sells and his seller's name.

When I was talking with Ron Uhlenhopp when I was first starting my journey of finding an accordion, he told he that refurbishing one could by $300-$600 in repairs - depending on the internal damages/wear. Well, all of a sudden that $149 instrument doesn't seem so cheap!


And that is going to be difficult for me as I will need to rely on refurbishers to get any accordions and there goes some of the savings. I wonder how much of the guesswork they make too in purchasing these older instruments? Like, do they buy it low and "hope" they can flip it for profit? Probably.

And what is a bargain then - Most of the time the Liliput is listed on eBay for around $400 USD. On secondhand sites that refurish them, they are listed (and sell) for between $650 and $750. So, it is true this one at $149 is very likely to be a good deal.

I'm tempted by this one for another reason too - it's a club version and is small and lightweight. It could be a good learning instrument that has the different bellow action that I may or may not prefer. It's also good for resale (without losing much on it) as there is a market for these when they are in good condition.


See, I have MAD before even starting to play. It is taking everything in my power to not buy it! And we will see if I do or not. I might ask Scott about it to see if it's worth buying and him refurbishing. He might buy it for his shop for resale!

Lest you think I don't have my eye on other ones, you know me so little. Here are others tempting me:


This one for $199:





This one for $359




This one for $999.


This one for $1020


__________________________________________
Editing to add... That Hohner Liliput now on it's way to getting refurbished. I bout it for $149. I could not resist. The good news is, I am now no longer wanting to try another new box. I have a traditional 2 row on the way and a club style on the way. I will learn pretty quickly which way is easier for me to learn from.

It's a small world

Now that I had a bee in my bonnet about getting an accordion, I was ready to research. I never dive into anything without giving it careful thought and attention. And wow, there was a lot more to the accordion than I thought.

My first search was to see if there were accordion lessons available anywhere nearby. Yep! There was - two miles from where I work! Then I looked to see if there was anywhere local to buy used accordions. Same place as lessons - 2 miles away. Wow...this was beginning to feel like fate! (and I don't believe in fate!)

The local store didn't have much in stock, but they did have a few. They had several piano accordions and some funny looking thing with a row of buttons. Off to google that. Oh, that is called a button box accordion, or diatonic accordion. In the UK it's called a melodeon - interesting.

So I google more. What I learned is that in the US, diatonic accordions are rarer, harder to find instructors to teach, but easier to learn to play. A downside is that they only can play the one key if they are one row melodeons, two keys if they have two, etc. With that information I ditched the idea (for now). I didn't want to be limited by what key I play in, but "easier to learn to play" did stick in my brain.


I went back to the site that was selling accordions locally. That site also had a link to another online site called, Reverb. It's where people sell new and used musical equipment. I started to look up accordions that were affordable. I found one almost immediately. It really piqued my interest because this one was being sold by a refurbisher of accordions which was important because I had learned in my googling research that a lot can go wrong with an accordion. Something may look pristine on the outside, only to be completely falling apart inside.

But here was an accordion that sounded perfect. I decided to contact the seller to ask a few more questions. I went to click on the "contact seller" button and saw it said, "Cedar Falls, Iowa" for location. Whoa! Really? I'm from Cedar Falls and that is half way across the country! This was becoming like it was meant to be. To find lessons right near work and an accordion from my home town that has been professionally refurbished and the accordion is being sold for a good price? It's fate! (whatever that is!)

I wrote to the seller and in the end of that message I mentioned I was from Cedar Falls and listed some musical teachers I worked with there. When I sent it, I took note of the last name of the seller, but decided not to ask about it as I knew someone in the town with that last name. It's a slightly unusual last name, but I've met others with that last name too, so it was probably no connection.

The seller wrote back about all kinds of info about the accordion and also said he worked for 32 years at Holmes Jr. High with a teacher I mentioned. Well then I knew that this seller was the person I knew. Mr. Uhlenhopp! I never really knew his first name, even though it was right there in the yearbook I dug out later. 



Me the beginning of 9th grade.
Mr. Uhlenhopp as I remember him.
Ron Uhlenhopp was my 8th grade math teacher (and a really good teacher at that). I knew he taught math, went fly fishing, and in summers did roofing, (and had his own roofing company) but what I didn't know was that he was a life-long accordion player! In retirement he plays 32 gigs a month and for a hobby restores old, high quality accordions. How cool is that?



I sent him a couple of photos and we exchanged a couple more emails and he gave me some very good information on what to look for in old accordions and some pointers in what to do for starting. Here he is recently.

Now, in the end, with all my googling, I decided not to buy a piano accordion and there were a few reasons for that. More on that tomorrow!

_________________________

I'm adding an addendum to this post. Today (will be) the inauguration of Donald Trump. I work in DC. I work for a humanistic organization where we work to make the world a better place and we fight against injustices and meet on Sunday's for community, enlightenment and to help our children question that which they are told and to fight for justice. I'm the Director of Lifelong Learning. Last night I was part of a vigil all up and down 16th Street in DC for "lighting our way for justice and our planet". You can see our building across the street. While you cannot see the name of the organization, the Washington Ethical Society, it makes me happy you can see the Black Lives Matter banner and the bottom edge of the Rainbow Flag.

How is this related to the melodeon? This election result and what it means for our country and perhaps the world has added a heap of stress to my life. It put the exclamation point to let me know I needed to find something joyful - like music. And writing now and googling melodeons the last month has taken my mind off things I cannot change. Though, I do resist and fight for the oppressed and will continue for the rest of my life.

Thursday, January 19, 2017

How I plan to learn this darn thing...

... that I don't yet have in my possession. 😀

My initial thought had been lessons - and there might come a time for that, but there are not really any in person lessons available to me, and even what is available for piano accordion is $50-$75 an hour. My mind is thinking more on, "where else could that $200-$350 a month go?" It could go to so many things! Also, that then becomes a stressor - paying for lessons if I have time to practice for them or not! So, for now, no lessons.

That is one of the reasons I settled on melodeon because there are lessons and talented and helpful people I can get help with online. Also, with this particular instrument, playing by ear is common and I can plunk things out by watching fingers and/or listening to the tune. Plus, on melnet, there are people who right out music for practicing, so there is even that!

There is one set of books that has been recommended and I might get those, but they are over $100 for the set. The are called Accordéon Diatonique I think I want to make sure I like what I'm learning before I plunk that down. I've asked if any used copies are for sale, but so far there's been no one selling.

I'm also wondering if there is an app to help with practice fingering. Hmm... (In the meantime since writing this post last week, some sites have come forward for beginners. Oh how much easier it is to learn things now with the internet!)

Right now I'm in the "wait" mode while the instrument arrives (though by the time this post gets posted, it might have been sent!)

Decided to google something different then as my mind waits. Look at this cute little print?




How the idea came to me

The aha! moment!

Last year I got for myself this Christmas smoker. I got it because it was on clearance at Marshall's due to some of the gingerbread pieces being unglued. (Super simple fix!) I also frequently host a gingerbread decorating party, so it was a way to tie in the party with holiday decorations. Talk about a messy, time consuming and stressful event to plan - but so much fun!

Turns out I love this smoker. I didn't know if I would. I'm not really into incense, but these smokers are delightful as they also pick up a hint of the smell of wood they are made from too. I don't have a working fireplace, but this smoker  makes me feel warm and cozy as if we do.


But, it's truly a Christmas smoker. I wondered if there were another one that might be able to be lit for the rest of the late fall and winter. So, I started to do a search on Etsy and Ebay. (I do try to buy used - always). I stumbled upon this one.

I thought about it and decided it would be sweet (though I haven't purchased it). First, it's obviously not Christmas, but secondly, it tied to my family's history. My paternal grandmother played accordion. I never really witnessed it except for once, I think, when she had her whole set up with electronics and everything set up in her living room when we were visiting. She wrote a lot of her own music, played all over the region (Iowa) and gave lessons to children. My father hated it. He would grumble if anything was even mentioned about the accordion, but I was always fascinated.

And then... a little light bulb went off... I could play the accordion! That is an orchestra all wrapped up in one. I started googling and my eyes started to widen at the prospect. Maybe this was it! Music - of course!!! and why not the accordion? It's so oddball, it's cool in just being that! And if you know me - uniqueness is kind of me.

As an aside - why are all the accordion smokers I found, men? I suppose you can say the ones with pipes are more likely to be men as women don't usually smoke pipes? But the top left one doesn't have a pipe (and he's the one I'm most likely to get next year. His mouth perhaps is "smoking" because maybe he's cold and playing outside and it's supposed to be the illusion of visible breathe in the cold instead of smoke? 

 


Wednesday, January 18, 2017

A need for fun and stress relief

After two and a half years of working full time after years of working part-time and before that being a stay at home mom, I'm beginning to find some balance in my life. The key word there is "beginning".

My nature is to be a very giving person. I give to my family. I give to my community. I give to my job. I get a lot of joy from that, but it's not enough. I was missing a criitcal element in my life and that was experiencing other joy that didn't involve doing for other people. That was out of balance because I get burned out. I get resentful. Like everything, too much of a good thing is still too much.

I knew that exercise was good for me, but exercise is not fun. Sure, it can be fun, but the idea of thinking about it is never fun. It's only fun after the fact. I can say, "Oh, that was really fun!" Going into exercise? "Ugh, it's 7pm and I haven't exercised yet for the day. Guess I better go do it." It's another chore, not true fun.


But what could I do for fun? My life is very, very full. I work full time. I have a second quarter time position. With my husband,  I home-school my 11 year old son. We don't have a cleaning service or a yard service (though we will probably get the latter this year to do weeding/mulching upkeep). I also do all the grocery shopping and cooking for the family - which includes for my 81 year old mother in law who lives with us. 


I could squeeze in time to join a musical ensemble or a meet-up group for crafting, etc., but then that becomes another duty - I would need to go somewhere for rehearsals and performances at times that might not work for me and I would need to practice, etc. No, I needed to find something I could do that would be fun and on my availability which is random. It needed to be something I could do at home, but what?



I used to bake a lot for fun and stress relief - cakes, homemade bread, cookies. But, I can no longer eat such things and I have tried to make such things for my family only, but that is too tempting. Not only that, it creates mess. I don't have time for adding in clean-up time. Well, I do, but that then becomes another chore. 

Hmmm... I also used to blog about baking and later about my weight loss journey and that was a stress reliever - writing about life. But I don't bake and my weight loss/getting healthy journey is a permanent yo-yo and while I write about it occasionally, I've lost my gusto for it.


I also used to craft and do home reno projects, but those too create mess. I need to find a hobby like my husband has - mess free! My husband plays chess and online trivia games. I needed to find something like that, but I hate playing games... not that!


The answer came from my son who is home from college for winter break. He started plunking away at the piano after years of never touching it. He's terribly rusty, but he's keeping at it. The years of lessons from his elementary and early middle school days were useful to him as worked on a piece little by little every day. He made it his own too. He brought up the keyboard from the basement. He hooked it up to the computer and started tinkering - adding in his passion for computer programming to music. So perfect for him. I asked him if it was a good stress reliever, and I got a typical non-answer from him, "Yes, sort of, I guess."


That got me to thinking. I used to play music for stress relief. I had filled that void after university with crafting and cooking and home reno projects. I could switch back to music, but I had tried twice before. Once quite feebly. I had gotten a digital piano to learn to play while my son learned to play. Turned out that I couldn't teach myself easily and then our second son was born and all time and energy left me. I can play super simple tunes with one hand with lots of mistakes by sight reading or by ear, but I got discouraged by the huge amount of time it would take to even get remotely acceptable.

Another time I got sheet music for French Horn with CDs to play along with. I occasionally pull those out, but French Horn is just not a "let's pick up and play" sort of instrument. It's not full enough. It needs an orchestra or band and I'm not willing to try to join one because then it becomes another obligation in my life to practice and go to rehearsals on someone else's terms. It's also not shareable that way - it's me and the horn and the CD - one piece at a time with a very limited repertoire. That going boring pretty quickly. So again, what to do for fun?


But then one day, a day or two after Christmas, an idea came to my head while thinking and searching for something completely unrelated... that will be the next post.