I travel in my job and have kids spread to the 4 corners of the US of A, so I stay in hotels. I sometimes bring my box so I can practice if I know I am going to have time to kill.
Problem is where. Since not all travelers are connesieurs of fine Irish accordion (don't have a clue why love of the box is not universal), I try to find somewhere where I won't bother anyone. It's tough. In Port Lavaca Texas (2 lefts and a two hour drive from Ganado-basically where God lost his socks) I ended up at the far reaches of the swiming pool facing miles of ranch land.
I am going to DC next month and plan to practice extensively on the tank traps Homeland Security put up in front of the White house. I am sure eejit 1 and eejit 2 love button box music. Herself hasn't weighed in on this plan yet.
I just usually bring a whistle. it has been heard in the Australian outback, the Morrocan desert, in the high Andes, a coffee plantation in Nicaragua and a camp site just next to Mont Blanc, among other places.
> no problem with mandolin - it's made for travelling
Unless you're traveling on foot.
Whistle is pretty darn loud, but that's the one I'm resolved to bring since everything else is just too darn big and heavy.
I'm not sure I understand why bringing an accordion would be a big issue. I haven't come in contact with very many of them, but they don't seem to be terribly loud. I would think a little Irish accordion outside in a park somewhere would be a lovely thing to encounter. You might get some tips in your hat, too. Nobody ever plays an accordion just for the fun of it, do they?
When we travel, I usually take my electronic keyboard with me. Since it has a volume control, I turn the volume way down on a low setting and can practice without bothering anyone else in the hotel.
i suppose it depends on how advanced you are on the box, if you can bash out a tune, then i agree with sbhikes.
i carry a small very heavy tenor banjo. its easy to dull it by jamming a wooly hat down the back, would this work on an accordian?
if the banjo was too loud for the hotel room, i would possible take it to the park.
the main problem for me is weight,
when i'm away for work i carry too much equipment as it is, I simply dont have a spare hand to carry the banjo, but if i dont take it i feel its a waste of down-time.
i have just ordered a celtic kazoo, if i enjoy it i may stop carrying the banjo on jobs and take that instead.
It you decide you will play in public, it would be a nice touch to take a friend. Sometimes having someone else with us gives us enough courage to face the public.
I'll have herself sitting their probably reading one of her Maeve Binchy novels. She is unbelieveably tolerant of the box...probably because it is better alternative than a sweet young thing
Try asking the hotel you're staying at if they have an empty conference room or some place suitable. You might find some music lovers who would be happy to help.
Either that or buy a truck load of ear plugs and hand them out to the staff and guests.
that's why I enjoy my flute- I think the flute is the softest instrument in ITM. I always take it with me, and I already keep two whistles in my car, just in case.
When I travel ( and its about once a month, now) I bring my Bb whistle and practice in the exercise room of the hotel. No one is there at 9 o'clock (after dinner) and if they are, they don't care. Having been to Belt-Buckle, Texas, I can certainly appreciate wanting to practice. If I know there's even a hint of music, I'll try to bring my fiddle. I won't bring my pipes unless its an uilleann piper friendly destination.
Yes Max, heard in all of those places *simultaneously*, not dependent on the speed of sound or even the speed of light. The sound vibrations slipped through wormholes in the fabric of the space-time continuum, and simultaneously reappeared in those locations. Quite amazing what Overtons can do these days.
Washington DC told me I had to get a PERMIT in order to play in one of their parks!
I think for the h**l of it I will see if I get arrested for disorderly conduct. What sacrifices we make for our music. It will also make for a great party schmooz story
Have you tried the Streb for a quiet practice button box. Details (from melodion.net) are as follows.
For the uninitiated a Streb is a reedless midi melodeon. It has 128 different voices and amps and speakers for both the treble and bass.
First place to look for info is www.streb.co.uk
Steve Rouse, who appears here now and again, produces the Streb as a sideline when not teaching physics.
So what does a Streb let you do (please note this is what mine (Streb eMelodeon.2 2.5 row 12 bass) does, if you want anything else just ask Steve):
Keys:
It will play as a diatonic in E/A, A/D, D/G, G/C, C/F, F/Bb and Bb/Eb
Or in Irish in B/C and C#/D
But if you want really strange it is possible to tune it up or down a semitone so Db/Gb to D#/G# and anywhere in-between. I find it useful playing against my chums harmonium which is pitched a bit below concert.
Keyboard layouts:
3rd button start
3rd button start with accidentals
4th button start with low notes
4th button start with accidentals
two minor key layouts courtesy of Sqeezy
Half Row Layouts:
Standard Saltarelle
Standard (?) Castagnari
Andy Cutting
Irish
Bass Layouts:
Standard
Standard with Bmin
Irish
Low Octave
There is a switch to take out the thirds
Voices
Each end of the melodeon can be allocated one of 128 midi voices these are mostly from the standard set by mine also has the following melodeon/concertina samples:
Mory middle octave Swing
Mory Bass (low reed) Full fundamental
Mory Bass (no low reed) Full fundamental
Hohner Club
Club Bass Full fundamental sample
Wiener
Wiener Bass
Pokerwork
Pokerwork Bass
Other stuff:
You can set up the following to your hearts content:
Bellows Sensitivity – Light, Medium, Heavy
Bellows Response – Flat, Linear + 3 more melodeon like curves
Treble Octave – 2 octaves above normal to 2 octaves below normal
Treble Pan – moves sound from treble end speaker to bass end speaker
Bass Octave – 2 octaves above normal to 2 octaves below normal
Bass Pan – moves sound from bass end speaker to treble end speaker
Balance – Balance between Treble and Bass volumes
My favourite The Knob Function – Sets what the second control knob does – Fine Tune, Chorus or Reverb
For the ones not selected for the Knob Function you can set the Fine Tune, Chorus or Reverb
I did a quick calculation and found taking all the variables into account there is something like 2,000,000,000 different settings so don’t try them all.
How to Play
The Streb comes with the ability to play one of eight user-settable patches these are selected by one of the rocker switches. So after hours of harmless fun you can set up your 8 favourite patches which contain treble and bass voices and all the other parameters above.
The other rocker switch has two functions, one end changes the key of the instrument the other the keyboard layout.
Other controls are the Volume, On/Off, the Knob as described above, the Thirds Switch.
There are also sockets for:
Headphones – really useful if, like me, you spend a lot of time in hotels, loud as you like and no neighbour disturbance
Midi Out - to control other sequencers/midi boxes
Mono Out – to drive a separate amp
Combined Stereo – to drive a separate amp with Treble on one channel and bass on the other
Separate Stereo – on two sockets to drive a separate amp with Treble on one channel and bass on the other
DC in for the supplied power brick.
Power
The Streb takes 6 x “C” cells which last a remarkably long time. I use rechargeables (NiMH)
sbhikes: Whistle is pretty darn loud, but...
Blu-tak in the fipple! You can take it down to surprisingly low volumes and only muck the pitch up slightly - ok for solo practice.
You can even do the same for the flute, but that will help you practice your hands and breathing - obviously it is a mess as far as embouchure is concerned.
Just for completeness...
An electric fiddle is nigh-on silent in itself and can be handy for practice (subject to a bunch of drawbacks, purists!)
It would be quite handy to have a folding bow..... It surely could be done, but I've never seen one.
No, but it sounds good and can be played when a proper one will wake she-who-must-be-obeyed!
(PS. I can't afford one anyway!)
By the way, I like the idea of a folding bow. I think the only problem would be what to do with the hairs when it was folded - you might be able to gather them up on some sort of reel, but I'm no engineer. Folding the stick itself presents no problem.
I'll be taking the box pochette fiddle I made recently with me to Ottawa and Washington DC next week - I use a quarter size bow and the whole lot is only 22" in length. Might take a mute for the pochette though - it's actually quite loud.
Practice while away from home
Practice while away from home
BB's great adventure to DC set me to thinking.
I travel in my job and have kids spread to the 4 corners of the US of A, so I stay in hotels. I sometimes bring my box so I can practice if I know I am going to have time to kill.
Problem is where. Since not all travelers are connesieurs of fine Irish accordion (don't have a clue why love of the box is not universal), I try to find somewhere where I won't bother anyone. It's tough. In Port Lavaca Texas (2 lefts and a two hour drive from Ganado-basically where God lost his socks) I ended up at the far reaches of the swiming pool facing miles of ranch land.
I am going to DC next month and plan to practice extensively on the tank traps Homeland Security put up in front of the White house. I am sure eejit 1 and eejit 2 love button box music. Herself hasn't weighed in on this plan yet.
How do others handle this situation?
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by zippydw
Re: Practice while away from home
no problem with mandolin - it's made for travelling
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by Bren
Re: Practice while away from home
I just usually bring a whistle. it has been heard in the Australian outback, the Morrocan desert, in the high Andes, a coffee plantation in Nicaragua and a camp site just next to Mont Blanc, among other places.
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by Key Maniac Lad
Re: Practice while away from home
> no problem with mandolin - it's made for travelling
Unless you're traveling on foot.
Whistle is pretty darn loud, but that's the one I'm resolved to bring since everything else is just too darn big and heavy.
I'm not sure I understand why bringing an accordion would be a big issue. I haven't come in contact with very many of them, but they don't seem to be terribly loud. I would think a little Irish accordion outside in a park somewhere would be a lovely thing to encounter. You might get some tips in your hat, too. Nobody ever plays an accordion just for the fun of it, do they?
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by sbhikes
Re: Practice while away from home
O-ho! sb with the accordion jokes! Fair play, well done!
I'm not much of a traveling man, zippy, sorry. You're welcome in SW Florida with your box anytime and anyplace I'm at, however.
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by SWFL Fiddler
Re: Practice while away from home
When we travel, I usually take my electronic keyboard with me. Since it has a volume control, I turn the volume way down on a low setting and can practice without bothering anyone else in the hotel.
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by fauxcelt
Re: Practice while away from home
i suppose it depends on how advanced you are on the box, if you can bash out a tune, then i agree with sbhikes.
i carry a small very heavy tenor banjo. its easy to dull it by jamming a wooly hat down the back, would this work on an accordian?
if the banjo was too loud for the hotel room, i would possible take it to the park.
the main problem for me is weight,
when i'm away for work i carry too much equipment as it is, I simply dont have a spare hand to carry the banjo, but if i dont take it i feel its a waste of down-time.
i have just ordered a celtic kazoo, if i enjoy it i may stop carrying the banjo on jobs and take that instead.
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by bambi
Re: Practice while away from home
It you decide you will play in public, it would be a nice touch to take a friend. Sometimes having someone else with us gives us enough courage to face the public.
http://members.aol.com/mariszaz/accordion.jpg
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by feardearg
Re: Practice while away from home
I take the mandolin in a small webbing backpack-type gig bag.
It's no trouble walking, or cycling for that matter
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by Bren
Re: Practice while away from home
I'll have herself sitting their probably reading one of her Maeve Binchy novels. She is unbelieveably tolerant of the box...probably because it is better alternative than a sweet young thing
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by zippydw
Re: Practice while away from home
or a red sports car
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by zippydw
Re: Practice while away from home
Try asking the hotel you're staying at if they have an empty conference room or some place suitable. You might find some music lovers who would be happy to help.
Either that or buy a truck load of ear plugs and hand them out to the staff and guests.
: )
Mary
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by Antikhntr
Re: Practice while away from home
that's why I enjoy my flute- I think the flute is the softest instrument in ITM. I always take it with me, and I already keep two whistles in my car, just in case.
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by Greg the Piano Tuner
Re: Practice while away from home
I didn't mean to make a joke about accordions. But it's true I don't think I've ever seen anybody play one outside who wasn't soliciting donations.
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by sbhikes
Re: Practice while away from home
Greg, You haven't heard _my_ flute...
But yes, It can be played quietly but fo rseriously silent practice, I use one of these:
http://www.thesession.org/discussions/display/16974
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by Crackpot
Re: Practice while away from home
When I travel ( and its about once a month, now) I bring my Bb whistle and practice in the exercise room of the hotel. No one is there at 9 o'clock (after dinner) and if they are, they don't care. Having been to Belt-Buckle, Texas, I can certainly appreciate wanting to practice. If I know there's even a hint of music, I'll try to bring my fiddle. I won't bring my pipes unless its an uilleann piper friendly destination.
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by I_Fel
Re: Practice while away from home
Danny, was your whistle heard in all those places at the same time (last 4 words in italics)?
Please don't bring it down the Blythe...
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by maxF
Re: Practice while away from home
Yes Max, heard in all of those places *simultaneously*, not dependent on the speed of sound or even the speed of light. The sound vibrations slipped through wormholes in the fabric of the space-time continuum, and simultaneously reappeared in those locations. Quite amazing what Overtons can do these days.
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by Key Maniac Lad
Re: Practice while away from home
Why don't you do what Joshua Bell did. Play in a DC Metro station during rush hour.Like him hardly anyone will notice you
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/04/AR2007040401721.html
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by Pirate-Fiddler
Re: Practice while away from home
thanks for the advice.
Washington DC told me I had to get a PERMIT in order to play in one of their parks!
I think for the h**l of it I will see if I get arrested for disorderly conduct. What sacrifices we make for our music. It will also make for a great party schmooz story
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by zippydw
Re: Practice while away from home
Have you tried the Streb for a quiet practice button box. Details (from melodion.net) are as follows.
For the uninitiated a Streb is a reedless midi melodeon. It has 128 different voices and amps and speakers for both the treble and bass.
First place to look for info is www.streb.co.uk
Steve Rouse, who appears here now and again, produces the Streb as a sideline when not teaching physics.
So what does a Streb let you do (please note this is what mine (Streb eMelodeon.2 2.5 row 12 bass) does, if you want anything else just ask Steve):
Keys:
It will play as a diatonic in E/A, A/D, D/G, G/C, C/F, F/Bb and Bb/Eb
Or in Irish in B/C and C#/D
But if you want really strange it is possible to tune it up or down a semitone so Db/Gb to D#/G# and anywhere in-between. I find it useful playing against my chums harmonium which is pitched a bit below concert.
Keyboard layouts:
3rd button start
3rd button start with accidentals
4th button start with low notes
4th button start with accidentals
two minor key layouts courtesy of Sqeezy
Half Row Layouts:
Standard Saltarelle
Standard (?) Castagnari
Andy Cutting
Irish
Bass Layouts:
Standard
Standard with Bmin
Irish
Low Octave
There is a switch to take out the thirds
Voices
Each end of the melodeon can be allocated one of 128 midi voices these are mostly from the standard set by mine also has the following melodeon/concertina samples:
Hohner 1 row mid 8ve dry
Hohner 1 row mid 8ve wet
Hohner 1 row low 8ve, mid 8ve dry
Hohner 1 row low 8ve, mid 8ve dry, high 8ve
Hohner 1 row low 8ve, mid 8ve wet
Hohner 1 row mid 8ve wet, high 8ve
Hohner 1 row low 8ve, mid 8ve wet, high 8ve
Lachenal Edeophone concertina
Mory middle octave Dry
Mory middle octave Swing
Mory Bass (low reed) Full fundamental
Mory Bass (no low reed) Full fundamental
Hohner Club
Club Bass Full fundamental sample
Wiener
Wiener Bass
Pokerwork
Pokerwork Bass
Other stuff:
You can set up the following to your hearts content:
Bellows Sensitivity – Light, Medium, Heavy
Bellows Response – Flat, Linear + 3 more melodeon like curves
Treble Octave – 2 octaves above normal to 2 octaves below normal
Treble Pan – moves sound from treble end speaker to bass end speaker
Bass Octave – 2 octaves above normal to 2 octaves below normal
Bass Pan – moves sound from bass end speaker to treble end speaker
Balance – Balance between Treble and Bass volumes
My favourite The Knob Function – Sets what the second control knob does – Fine Tune, Chorus or Reverb
For the ones not selected for the Knob Function you can set the Fine Tune, Chorus or Reverb
I did a quick calculation and found taking all the variables into account there is something like 2,000,000,000 different settings so don’t try them all.
How to Play
The Streb comes with the ability to play one of eight user-settable patches these are selected by one of the rocker switches. So after hours of harmless fun you can set up your 8 favourite patches which contain treble and bass voices and all the other parameters above.
The other rocker switch has two functions, one end changes the key of the instrument the other the keyboard layout.
Other controls are the Volume, On/Off, the Knob as described above, the Thirds Switch.
There are also sockets for:
Headphones – really useful if, like me, you spend a lot of time in hotels, loud as you like and no neighbour disturbance
Midi Out - to control other sequencers/midi boxes
Mono Out – to drive a separate amp
Combined Stereo – to drive a separate amp with Treble on one channel and bass on the other
Separate Stereo – on two sockets to drive a separate amp with Treble on one channel and bass on the other
DC in for the supplied power brick.
Power
The Streb takes 6 x “C” cells which last a remarkably long time. I use rechargeables (NiMH)
# Posted on April 23rd 2008 by Ebor_fiddler
Re: Practice while away from home
sbhikes: Whistle is pretty darn loud, but...
Blu-tak in the fipple! You can take it down to surprisingly low volumes and only muck the pitch up slightly - ok for solo practice.
You can even do the same for the flute, but that will help you practice your hands and breathing - obviously it is a mess as far as embouchure is concerned.
# Posted on April 24th 2008 by Lingpupa
Re: Practice while away from home
Just for completeness...
An electric fiddle is nigh-on silent in itself and can be handy for practice (subject to a bunch of drawbacks, purists!)
It would be quite handy to have a folding bow..... It surely could be done, but I've never seen one.
# Posted on April 24th 2008 by TomB-R
Re: Practice while away from home
Ebor_fiddler
Joe Cooley must be rolling over in his grave after seeing that post!
Does it work as a micro wave?
# Posted on April 24th 2008 by zippydw
Re: Practice while away from home
No, but it sounds good and can be played when a proper one will wake she-who-must-be-obeyed!
(PS. I can't afford one anyway!)
By the way, I like the idea of a folding bow. I think the only problem would be what to do with the hairs when it was folded - you might be able to gather them up on some sort of reel, but I'm no engineer. Folding the stick itself presents no problem.
# Posted on April 25th 2008 by Ebor_fiddler
Re: Practice while away from home
I'll be taking the box pochette fiddle I made recently with me to Ottawa and Washington DC next week - I use a quarter size bow and the whole lot is only 22" in length. Might take a mute for the pochette though - it's actually quite loud.
# Posted on April 28th 2008 by ijerry