Fame and fortune from the English concertina

Press, 27 March 1981, Page 3

Fame and fortune from the English concertina

A chance find of an English concertina underneath rubbish at the bottom of a street in Wallsend, on Tyneside, in Britain has led Alistair Anderson to touring the world as one of the leading exponents of the instrument.

The English concertina, which has given him his fame and fortune, was invented by Sir Charles Wheatstone, a physicist, in 1829.

The instrument was nicknamed the “threepenny bit” because it had the same number of sides as the coin, Mr Anderson said.

The English concertina also goes under the' nickname, “squeezebox,” although this term is often used to describe the piano accordion. An old musician "up in the hills” of Northumbria taught Alistair Anderson to play the

English concertina, taking great joy in his music and sharing his experience. Since he turned professional in 1971, Mr Anderson has toured extensively in Britain, Europe, North America, and Australia, demonstrating what the English concertina can do. both for old Northumbrian folk tunes, and for American jazz and ragtime, plus classical pieces. Besides touring, he spends his time researching for old songs among manuscripts, some dating back to the 1650 s and listening to songs from old musicians ■in Northumbria. The ' research into music was historically interesting, although Mr Anderson said it was not carried out in terms of investigating!

i baroque music, where the task was to find exactly how the music was played. The early songs showed the roots of music, and he gave an example of one song, “Risty Gully,”—literally translated as “the blunt knife,” although it means something else — composed before the 1700 s, which musically was among. the most modern of songs he played.

Mr Anderson has two concertinas on tour with him—one almost 100 years old, and the second, by the Wheatstone company, about 60 years old. He is also an accomplished Northumbrian piper.

He gave a concert in the Folk Centre, at the Arts Centre in Christchurch last evening.