Has anyone looked at the grey Paolo soprani on ebay?
I have been looking for one for years and just wanted to know is there anything I should be looking out for before bidding?
Not cheap but looks good.
Thanks John.
new bellows is a pity. it takes years and alot of playing to loosen them up and has a huge impact on the 'playability' of a box. It looks like it has new buttons too and a new grill. Some of these boxes have very little original parts left and are virtual shells. The fact that they are grey is the big attraction. A true original is rare but not impossible to find and might command a price like this. Too many new parts for me.
$7000 US! For a rebuilt? Very pricey indeed. I might save the money and search for something with a bit more of the original equipment. I saw a fellow with one last summer. The outside was immaculate, but the guts were all new, and he had it tuned so dry and uniform, it sounded like a concertina.
If I mentioned it, Herself wouldn't divorce me....She'd kill me!
In a conversation with a friend who owns one of these he said that he knows somone who sold one of these to buy a new (french?) accordion that was being made with 2 and a half rows.Thats all I know.Any adeas on the accordions
The old grey ones..... I owned a few of them over the years when an Irish fellow I knew used to bring them over to the US, then wanted to trade them toward concertinas. Wish I still had the old Paolos, as much as the concertinas have appreciated, the old greys have gone up more! This may be because excellent concertinas are being made today. Now maybe the Jubilee model will put a brake on escalation of the prices of the old greys.
Still, though I am not much of a player I could tell there was something very special about the balance and resonance of the ones I have played. All are in the hands of players now who really love them.
I hope to try one of the Jubilees sometime if I can get back up to the Northeast or maybe even over to Ireland again. I hope they are as good as the reviews; if a lot of them get ordered and made maybe they will keep a great accordion sound going in Irish music for another half century or more, like the old greys have done.
BTW, there were some other Paolo models made in the 1940s that look a little different from the old grey 3 voice boxes but can be converted (e.g. from stepped to flat board)....I saved a couple of those (a 2 voice, 8 bass; a 4 voice, 4 bass; a 4 voice, 12 bass) and when properly tweaked they are just as warm and ghostly in their own way as the "iconic" grey model we associate with Tony MacMahon et al. These may be sleepers to watch for on ebay and at the car boot sales etc.
Wow these boxes are so rare. its not often they come up on ebay like this. It looks in good shape too and tuned by the great J brosnan...the king! Its a far superior box than any saltarelle or any modern made box as Ive played many of them and they dont come near. The grey soprani is the ultimate box if thats your style. Many top musicians are looking like mad for them but cant find them. I say its a lucky musician that will get this one and I hope its someone that will play it and not buy it to collect it because this is a sin.
What else has been done to this box over the years. You would need to play it, record it, listen to someone else play it and be happy with the sound before parting with your cash. If it was something special John Brosnan would have a buyer waiting and it would not be on Ebay. Beware of trying to buy quality on Ebay!!!!
Grey Paolo soprani
Grey Paolo soprani
Has anyone looked at the grey Paolo soprani on ebay?
I have been looking for one for years and just wanted to know is there anything I should be looking out for before bidding?
Not cheap but looks good.
Thanks John.
# Posted on April 20th 2008 by john coyle
Re: Grey Paolo soprani
go to www.allaboutaccordions.com. Sean garvey has a wide range of grey paolo sopranis
# Posted on April 20th 2008 by today
Re: Grey Paolo soprani
Thanks i will have a look there first.
John.
# Posted on April 20th 2008 by john coyle
Re: Grey Paolo soprani
What grey Paolo Soprani? I could only find two red ones on E-Bay.
# Posted on April 21st 2008 by upmine3
Re: Grey Paolo soprani
http://cgi.ebay.com/vintage-paolo-soprani_W0QQitemZ230245035531QQihZ013QQcategoryZ157QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
# Posted on April 21st 2008 by dinn2
Re: Grey Paolo soprani
new bellows is a pity. it takes years and alot of playing to loosen them up and has a huge impact on the 'playability' of a box. It looks like it has new buttons too and a new grill. Some of these boxes have very little original parts left and are virtual shells. The fact that they are grey is the big attraction. A true original is rare but not impossible to find and might command a price like this. Too many new parts for me.
# Posted on April 21st 2008 by boxman2008
Re: Grey Paolo soprani
$7000 US! For a rebuilt? Very pricey indeed. I might save the money and search for something with a bit more of the original equipment. I saw a fellow with one last summer. The outside was immaculate, but the guts were all new, and he had it tuned so dry and uniform, it sounded like a concertina.
If I mentioned it, Herself wouldn't divorce me....She'd kill me!
# Posted on April 21st 2008 by zippydw
Re: Grey Paolo soprani
In a conversation with a friend who owns one of these he said that he knows somone who sold one of these to buy a new (french?) accordion that was being made with 2 and a half rows.Thats all I know.Any adeas on the accordions
# Posted on April 21st 2008 by dinn2
Re: Grey Paolo soprani
French, 2 1/2 row would more than likely be a Salterelle Connemara II or III. Right now over 3000 euro.
There are a couple of 2 1/2 row club boxes, but they are usually not Irish style.
# Posted on April 21st 2008 by zippydw
Re: Grey Paolo soprani
The old grey ones..... I owned a few of them over the years when an Irish fellow I knew used to bring them over to the US, then wanted to trade them toward concertinas. Wish I still had the old Paolos, as much as the concertinas have appreciated, the old greys have gone up more! This may be because excellent concertinas are being made today. Now maybe the Jubilee model will put a brake on escalation of the prices of the old greys.
Still, though I am not much of a player I could tell there was something very special about the balance and resonance of the ones I have played. All are in the hands of players now who really love them.
I hope to try one of the Jubilees sometime if I can get back up to the Northeast or maybe even over to Ireland again. I hope they are as good as the reviews; if a lot of them get ordered and made maybe they will keep a great accordion sound going in Irish music for another half century or more, like the old greys have done.
BTW, there were some other Paolo models made in the 1940s that look a little different from the old grey 3 voice boxes but can be converted (e.g. from stepped to flat board)....I saved a couple of those (a 2 voice, 8 bass; a 4 voice, 4 bass; a 4 voice, 12 bass) and when properly tweaked they are just as warm and ghostly in their own way as the "iconic" grey model we associate with Tony MacMahon et al. These may be sleepers to watch for on ebay and at the car boot sales etc.
Paul
# Posted on April 22nd 2008 by Paul Groff
Re: Grey Paolo soprani
"warm and ghostly"
That's a nice phrase Paul, is it your own?
# Posted on April 22nd 2008 by TomB-R
Re: Grey Paolo soprani
Wow these boxes are so rare. its not often they come up on ebay like this. It looks in good shape too and tuned by the great J brosnan...the king! Its a far superior box than any saltarelle or any modern made box as Ive played many of them and they dont come near. The grey soprani is the ultimate box if thats your style. Many top musicians are looking like mad for them but cant find them. I say its a lucky musician that will get this one and I hope its someone that will play it and not buy it to collect it because this is a sin.
# Posted on April 22nd 2008 by csparpd
Re: Grey Paolo soprani
What else has been done to this box over the years. You would need to play it, record it, listen to someone else play it and be happy with the sound before parting with your cash. If it was something special John Brosnan would have a buyer waiting and it would not be on Ebay. Beware of trying to buy quality on Ebay!!!!
# Posted on April 25th 2008 by bordglas
Re: Grey Paolo soprani
Thanks for all the advice everyone but it looks like the box was sold before end of auction.
John.
# Posted on April 25th 2008 by john coyle