Concertinas are free-reed instruments similar to accordions and harmonicas, featuring bellows that expand and contract, a reed pan, an action pan and buttons at both ends.
Concertinas come in various sizes, with the most commonly seen models being treble and baritone concertinas spanning G below middle C to C three octaves above middle C.
Keys
Every button on a concertina causes a different note to play when you push or pull on its bellows; all major types of concertina operate this way.
An Anglo concertina stands out from other instruments in that each button produces two separate notes when its bellows are drawn open or pushed closed – known as bisonoric playing style which provides additional challenge for newcomers learning the instrument.
Starting out? Consider beginning your concertina studies with a 20 key concertina; these instruments are easy to play in their home keys while often performing well even when being tuned minor keys.
If you are serious about music and looking for an instrument with more versatility, a 30 key concertina might be worth exploring. An ideal 30 key will feature an accidental row which allows for you to play songs across multiple keys beyond those found within its home keys.
Size
The 30 Key Concertina offers a full three-octave range with notes alternating between both hands, making it an invaluable instrument for fast folk and classical tunes. Furthermore, with its additional row of accidentals from C# scale, making this model more flexible than its English equivalent (20 Key Concertina).
Diatonic instruments produce different tones depending on whether the bellows are pulled open or closed, creating an Anglo type’s distinct sound and making it popular with traditional Irish musicians.
This guitar model is an ideal starting point, being simple to learn and sounding fantastic. However, it is essential to select one suitable for both you and your music style.
Brass or steel keys can be found on keys for pianos. Both materials offer distinctive properties which affect their sound; brass is typically softer and requires more frequent tuning while steel produces louder notes.
Weight
A standard 30 key concertina features four parallel rows of buttons with support for thumb and little finger on either end, along with thumb-and-little finger supports at either end of each concertina. Larger baritone and bass English concertinas often come equipped with wrist straps as well for added support when handling heavier instruments.
An instrument may feature multiple small steel screws to secure its tongues on its bellows and reduce weight while making the instrument easier to carry, yet many instruments we’ve seen lack this feature.
Wheatstone’s “AEola”, an elegant 48-Key English system fashioned of high quality ebony fretwork with two small steel screws securing its tongues and bearing no annular pan label, first appeared around 1896/98. Still sporting the “By Her Majesty’s” label and its new pattern of “Dot and Comma” fretwork bearing “AEola” stamped into its section below bass keys with chamfered edges; still sporting an annular pan label for good measure.
Price
Concertinas consist of expandable bellows that expand and contract, connected by bellows. At either end are keys with buttons (or keys) for pushing air through reeds to produce sound; there are different types with differing layout and function for their keys.
In the UK, Anglo and English models are particularly popular, both using a “bisonoric” system with 20 key concertinas having two rows of buttons and 30 key instruments offering three more rows with additional buttons for more complex sounds.
Concertina prices depend on its condition and whether or not it has been retuned; generally speaking, older instruments that have been restored tend to cost more.