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At least you didn't jump from a wooden action in an ancient italian box to a Tedrow, like I did. Not that the old style action doesn't have its charms. After all, it has to be very similiar to what was played in most of the US in the nineteenth century, and probably Ireland as well.

But lets face it, the Tedrow boxes are a pure joy to play, quick, responsive, and I really enjoy the extra ten buttons allows me to add a more bluesy feel to some of the traditional american music I've been playing. Plus, it is far easier to set down with that box and just read the music off the page now, then it ever was with the other box. Those of you that were at NESI, when I had the Tedrow for only a month just will be surprised at the progress I've made.

A

and another.....

I've had my new Tedrow for about a month, now (Thanks, Bob!) and the experience has been far more educational than I could have expected.

For those of you who have been considering an upgrade from Stagi or a box of similar quality, I have to say DO IT!

The first thing that one notices is the volume and tone. I was totally unprepared for how loud and clear this instrument is. Stagi, having their reed blocks mounted projecting into the bellows space, have a much softer, muted sound, that I had become so used to that I just assumed that this was the typical concertina sound. Wrong! I am reminded of the first time that I played amplified harmonica; so many of the lazy little short-cut techniques that I had been able to get away with just playing acoustically, and all those tiny mistakes that the listener couldn't hear, were laid out, bald as my Uncle Henry. I had to go back a long way and do much relearning.

Such is the case here. This machine is a paragon of clarity. It demands, therefore, that I (attempt to) become one too. The action is so immediately responsive that I've had to make many adjustments to my fingering and attack. I have found that even how firmly I hold the instrument, and how much pressure I apply to each button is very different from what I have spent the past few years learning. I've had to change how I hold it to give each button the proper attention and to review most of my bellows work.

But boy! how my playing has improved! Since it is so much clearer and louder I don't have to play as hard to get a full sound. That lets me play with a subtilty that the Bastari would never have allowed. Staccattos come off crisply, legatos flow more smoothly than ever before,the slightest change in bellows directions are instantly communicated to the reeds.

I shan't disparage the Stagi or the Bastari, for they caused me to fall in love with the concertina and the various musics in which it excels, but if you long for an upgrade, trust your instincts.
Nothing could have consolidated my love for music and playing more than a good quality instrument.
Thanks again, Bob; it's a beautiful instrument.

Any other upgrade stories?
R

and again

It came. What can I say. It's GORGEOUS!
Thank you!
I'm taking to afternoon off to go play with it.
Love it,
XXX

And thanks for the case.