Dale has graciously agreed to entertain the idea of adding yet another forum. My interest is in button accordions as used in Irish music and I'd like to see a forum on them because, believe it or not, there isn't one anywhere else on the net. Not that I'm aware of anyway.

There are well established concertina forums at http://www.concertina.net/, and forums dedicated to the Vienna accordion (which Brits insist on calling melodeons) at http://melodeon.net/, and there are Yahoo groups devoted to Irish boxes (2 of them), and diatonic boxes of the non-Irish variety, not to mention French diatonic boxes... but no forum specifically aimed at Irish squeezeboxes.

I'm not worrying about how many people currently on here actually want a forum. Put it up, and they will come, I'm quite sure. The question is rather, should the forum cover other free-reed instruments (concertinas, harmonicas, piano accordions) as used in Irish trad?

I should mention that Dale clearly stated that he didn't want to step on the toes of the people at concertina.net so if we decided to include tinas, he would clear it with my neighbour Paul Schwartz first.

Let's have your ideas...

Well, look at the string forum. It is open to any Stringed instrument even those nt used in ITM. I think considering this a Free Reed Forum should include tinas, PAs, and Harmonicas. Now about Concertina.net confliction, Mandolin Cafe and The Fiddle Forum exist and people still talk about both those instruments here.

That is my 2 cents, other than that I am all for the idea.

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Avery LeVine
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can it be that bellows must be attached to the free reeds? not to dis the harmonica players out there... i have only heard a few good ones so this may be a bias.

the uilleann pipe forum is very specific as is the flute forum.

Crystal flutes and shakuhachis get discussed on the flute forum. Yes, they are flutes, but arguably far afield from the normal run of things, there. On the pipes forum, bagpipes other than the uilleann do indeed get discussed. No one seems to get too het up about it.

Free reeds as a category would be inclusive. After all, harmonicas sound kind of like accordions. You could discuss the khaeng and the sheng (or sho), there, too. Those are free reed instruments.

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"Time is the wisest counselor of all." - Pericles

"I remain not entirely convinced of it." - Nano

I agree with Avery on this; even though i post to Mandolin Cafe (which is a great forum), i have to say that the Trad String forum is a cozier atmosphere and the discussion is a little more focused on ITM. I don't see any conflict between them... and it would be a real drag if somebody decided that the String forum should be limited exclusively to fiddles or guitars (or even mandolins or banjos).

I don't really understand why one would want to limit participation to "proper Irish" boxes... is concern that the forum will get ploughed under by hordes of concertina or PA players? I tend to doubt that will happen... and what if Edel Fox or Jimmy Keane happens onto the forum and decides to post -- who's going to show them the door?

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"Last night, among his fellow roughs,
He jested, quaff'd and swore."

They cut me down and I leapt up high
I am the life that'll never, never die.
I'll live in you if you'll live in me -
I am the lord of the dance, said he!

okay okay, we'll let ITM harmonica players from NORTH Cornwall in, but the ones from South Cornwall -- forget it.

maybe concertina players too but only if they DON'T use their pinky fingers.

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there is no end to the walking

My bellows are my lungs, my good person. How could I not be interested if the harmonica was included. How could I be interested if it wasn't.

I don't play anything else, though I do have a bodhran...

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"Last night, among his fellow roughs,
He jested, quaff'd and swore."

They cut me down and I leapt up high
I am the life that'll never, never die.
I'll live in you if you'll live in me -
I am the lord of the dance, said he!

A curious aside perhaps, Rob, but in fact there isn't a "south Cornwall." There's a north Cornwall, a west Cornwall and an east Cornwall, but no south. Don't ask me why - I've only lived here for 20 years. Just thought I'd mention it!

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"Last night, among his fellow roughs,
He jested, quaff'd and swore."

They cut me down and I leapt up high
I am the life that'll never, never die.
I'll live in you if you'll live in me -
I am the lord of the dance, said he!

well then, they shouldn't feel too put out when we exclude them from the forum...

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there is no end to the walking

Even if there were a south Cornwall there wouldn't be any harmonica players in it. Have you seen how sparsely-populated we are?

_________________
"Last night, among his fellow roughs,
He jested, quaff'd and swore."

They cut me down and I leapt up high
I am the life that'll never, never die.
I'll live in you if you'll live in me -
I am the lord of the dance, said he!

Paul Schwartz, who has run concertina.net forever, is a terrific guy and I really wouldn't want to pull traffic away from his forum. So, I don't know that we want to ban concertina discussion, but I would hope people would actively refer people to his forum, particularly if they are unfamiliar with it. I'd establish a "sticky" with a banner and plug for his site on the new squeezebox forum.

Apart from that, I don't see any reason to do much limiting on the species of boxes on the front end.

Hm. Don't you guys wish you could turn a phrase like "limiting on the species of boxes on the front end." ?

English is my first language.

i look forward to the first "B/C players all sound alike" vs. "C#/D players are a bunch of effete bourgeois non-Irish* revivalist snobs" thread.

*unless they come from Cork or Kerry, or they're Conor Keane, Tony MacMahon, Eoghan O'Sullivan or Andrew MacNamara, then they're okay.... oh yeah, maybe Dermot Byrne too but he's got SERIOUS B/C tendencies....

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there is no end to the walking

Nah. I already pre-locked it.

Dale

Please, can we just make this free reed instruments and be done with it? I play several and don't see why it should be restricted. There are interesting similarities and differences. I take an active part in other (concertina) groups and I can certainly say that I don't know of anyone whose nose would be out of joint if we included concertinas. On some we even discuss accordeons