The
Duet Concertina
I
play a 55 key Wheatstone Crane System Duet concertina, and
also a 65 Key Wheatstone Crane System Duet Concertina. The
basic principle of the instruments is that you can play
completely independently on either side of the concertina,
in any key. The instruments are double-action, so that the
note is the same on the push and on the pull, unlike a
harmonica, melodeon or Anglo- concertina. It’s very easy to
play a drone accompaniment, and also to play chords on one
side and melody on the other. The only limit that the
instrument has is the ability and imagination of the
player!
There are at least 4 different fingering systems for Duets,
but the Crane or Triumph system is the simplest. Duets were
regarded as the Professionals’ instrument in the heyday of
the instrument just before the First World War, and the
repertoire and style of playing from that period is very
appealing. Big influences on my playing are Percy Honri,
Alexander Prince and Tommy Williams. I also admire the
playing of Mike Hebbert on Jeffries Duet and Iris Bishop on
McCann duet. I was lucky enough to appear in Nigel
William’s play ‘Country Dancing’ with Peter Honri, Percy’s
grandson, and learnt a lot about the history of concertina
playing during that tour.
