Category Archives: Music

Repairing my Concertina

UPDATE: 7 Jan 2023 – Another repair

15 Feb of this year my Concertina was deliverd on my doorstep.

It is a Wren 2 Anglo C/G Concertina by McNeela. A affordable good instrument.

Features

  • 30 button Anglo Concertina in the key of C/G
  • Fully chromatic
  • Measures 6.3″ across the flats (16cm)
  • 8 fold bellows
  • Steel reeds
  • Loud, crisp tone
  • Durable black buttons
  • Wheatstone/Lachenal layout
  • Excellent response
  • Easy to play
  • Lightweight concertina – easy to handle for all ages
  • Traditional size – unlike other bulky beginner concertinas
  • Softer, more comfortable, adjustable hand-straps – suitable for both children and adults
  • Finished with improved stylish gloss exposed-grain wood
  • Comes with a complimentary Concertina Padded Hard Case 

The word concertina refers to a family of hand-held bellows-driven free reed instruments constructed according to various systems, which differ in terms of keyboard layout, and whether individual buttons (keys) produce the same (unisonoric) or different (bisonoric) notes with changes in the direction of air pressure.
It is weird playing two notes with the same button, but i gives you a broader tonal range. Some notes are double, one on the pull action and one on the push action. When playing for a while it is possible to switch between those two to be able to play faster.
Because you can use the same pull or push as you already where playing, or the button is close by the one you already play.

A little diagram i drew myself using inkscape to learn the buttons i needed. (Blanks also have notes)

So i had a little problem with the pull motion of the right hand A’ B’.
I didn’t want to send my Concertina back (Still has garantee, i know)
But sending it back to Ireland will take a while and has postal costs.
(I’ve fixed my Accordeon also, so why not try to fix it myself?)
(… aaand i was curious of the insides )

I had to look at the inner workings for a minute, and finding the right reed.
The middle picture above shows a white plastic strip, one of them was stuck. Moving it a little and carefully bending it, got it free and moveable again.

On with the lessons from Caitlin Nic Gabhann again!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3tPzc6kKM0

2023 Repair:

One of the reeds fell off! It was not glued properly. A 5 minute fix!

Folk band instruments 2021

Today newest addition Concertina

Bert Visscher and Herman Finkers

Colleage at work brings a Freecom Internet Radio

Big mistake 😉 It a Linux ARM system with Busybox

Less do some searching on the web.
Ah .. enable telnet

Open in a browser:

http://192.168.1.x/admin/cgi-bin/debug.cgi

I was controlling my colleage’s music from the next room

Enable telnet:

Connect and install Pong:

telnet 192.168.1.x (username root)
# wget http://agilo.acjs.net/files/mppong/setup.sh
# chmod 755 setup.sh
# ./setup.sh
# ./start.sh
# ./start.sh musicpal # For the normal player

Links i have to look into:
https://www.qemu.org/docs/master/system/arm/musicpal.html

Music Page Turner

UPDATE: 20230320 new version

My first version of the Bluetooth page turner.

This was made using an Arduino and some buttons.
I’m using Fbreader and Ebookdroid on the tablet.

Code:

Note: Volume buttons work for both apps, if you want to use other keys, you need to put a keymap.xml file in your fbreader books directory on your android device to remap those!

#include <BleKeyboard.h>

#define RIGHT_TURN 4
#define LEFT_TURN 5

BleKeyboard bleKeyboard("fashpageturner", "Bluetooth Device Manufacturer", 100);

void setup() {
  bleKeyboard.begin();
  
  pinMode(LEFT_TURN, INPUT_PULLUP);
  pinMode(RIGHT_TURN, INPUT_PULLUP);
}

void loop() {
  if (bleKeyboard.isConnected() && !digitalRead(RIGHT_TURN)) {
    bleKeyboard.press(KEY_MEDIA_VOLUME_UP);
    delay (100);
    bleKeyboard.releaseAll();
  }
  if (bleKeyboard.isConnected() && !digitalRead(LEFT_TURN)) {
    bleKeyboard.press(KEY_MEDIA_VOLUME_DOWN);
    delay (100);
    bleKeyboard.releaseAll();
  }

}

NEW Version

Stupid bagpipe tricks

Playing two chanters at the same time.

Made a bagpipe octopus

I think it was Burns Night 2005. We took one pipebag, took the drones out. And added one blowpipe and three chanters.
We were struggling to play the damn beast with 4 people.

A picture should exist somewhere, add it when found.

Smallpipe adaptor for two chanters.

Xmas tree lights in the drones

I’ve seen some do this, but never with xmas balls also.

Playing the THX sound

Alternative playing

Above in the movie with two chanter you can see tape.
You can tape other notes, for accidentals.

I’ve started a set with our folkband with my hands reversed.
(Left on the bottom part of the chanter, right hand toppart)
After playing amazing grace, I switched hands every few bars.

Playing high A gracenote with tophand index finger.

Play a tune and slide bottomhand over your top hand down.

Tape or block the bottom sound holes.

A old old movie (2005?), when we lift our knees we close the bottom sound hole on the side of the chanter.

Playing with the holes on the inside

Best of Einaudi (lying down)

Music by Ludovico Einaudi, pianist Jeroen van Veen.
And you could lie down in the big “Werkspoorkathedraal” in Utrecht.

Ludovico Maria Enrico Einaudi (Italian: born 23 November 1955) is an Italian pianist and composer. Trained at the Conservatorio Verdi in Milan, Einaudi began his career as a classical composer, later incorporating other styles and genres such as pop, rock, folk, and world music.

Einaudi has composed the scores for a number of films and television productions, including This Is England, The Intouchables, I’m Still Here, the TV miniseries Doctor Zhivago, and Acquario (1996), Nomadland and The Father.

He has also released a number of solo albums for piano and other instruments, notably I Giorni in 2001, Nightbook in 2009, and In a Time Lapse in 2013.

Coline plays some of Einaudi on keyboard, and we play I Giorni with our Folkband.

Update 2023

Working on my Autoharp

I’m missing some chords on my autoharp, so i took it apart and refitted it using simular felt.

Cutting places with a penknife and placing new parts.

C E G – Cmaj
A C D F# – D7
B D G – Gmaj
B E G – Emin

A C E – Amin
B D F# – Bmin
B D F G – G dom seventh
A C# E G – A dom seventh

A D F# – Dmaj
A C F – Fmaj
A D F – Dmin
A C# F# – F sharp minor / G flat minor

Personal BWW music files search engine.

I’ve a lot of bagpipe writer music files, many are the same tune but a little different.

find -type f | egrep -i "bww$|bmw$" | wc -l
34565

Most contain information about composers, complete title, arrangements and information about harmony and seconds/thirds/whatever.

So I made a PHP search script and a BASH indexer.
(This is NOT a safe script to use servers with internet access)

PHP

Strict Search: <form method="post" action="?"><input type="Text" name="words" size=40 value=""><input type="Submit" name="submit" value="search"></form>
Fuzzy Search: <form method="post" action="?"><input type="Text" name="words2" size=40 value=""><input type="Submit" name="submit" value="search">Fuzzy-ness<input type="Text" name="words2key" size=1 value="3"></form>
Parsons Search: <form method="post" action="?"><input type="Text" name="words3" size=40 value=""><input type="Submit" name="submit" value="search">Fuzzy-ness<input type="Text" name="words2key" size=1 value="3"></form>

<P><PRE>
<?PHP
if ($_POST['words']) {
$words = preg_replace("(\r\n|\n|\r)", "", $_POST['words']); 
$words = preg_replace("/[^0-9a-z]/i",'', $words);
$command = "/bin/cat /var/www/html/findbww/bww.list |/bin/grep -i $words | sed 's/*\w\+//' | sed 's/\\/private\\/Private\\/Henri\\/save\\/move\\/cds-uitzoeken\\///g' ";
$blah=shell_exec($command);
$blah=str_replace("$words", "<b><font color=red>$words</font></b>",$blah);
print $blah;
}
if ($_POST['words2']) {
$words=$_POST['words2'];
$words2key=$_POST['words2key'];
$words = preg_replace("(\r\n|\n|\r)", "", $words); 
$words = preg_replace("/[^0-9a-z]/i",'', $words);
$command = "/bin/cat /var/www/html/findbww/bww.list |/usr/bin/agrep -$words2key -i $words | sed 's/*\w\+//' |  sed 's/\\/private\\/Private\\/Henri\\/save\\/move\\/cds-uitzoeken\\///g'";
$blah=shell_exec($command);
$blah=str_replace("$words", "<b><font color=red>$words</font></b>",$blah);
print $blah;
}
if ($_POST['words3']) {
$words=$_POST['words3'];
$words2key=$_POST['words2key'];
$words = preg_replace("(\r\n|\n|\r)", "", $words); 
$words = preg_replace("/[^0-9a-z]/i",'', $words);
$command = "/bin/cat /var/www/html/findbww/bww.list.parsons |/usr/bin/agrep -$words2key -i $words | sed 's/*\w\+//' |  sed 's/\\/private\\/Private\\/Henri\\/save\\/move\\/cds-uitzoeken\\///g'";
$blah=shell_exec($command);
$blah=str_replace("$words", "<b><font color=red>$words</font></b>",$blah);
print $blah;
}
?>
</PRE>

Bash indexer (uses agrep)

#!/bin/bash
[ `find /FULLPATH/Music/Bagpipe-music-writer/ -type f  | wc -l` -eq 0 ] && exit
cd /var/www/html/findbww
: > bww.list
: > bww.list.parsons
locate -i bww |  egrep -i "\.bww$" |grep -v html.bww|  while read tunepath; do
tune=$(basename "$tunepath")
keywords=$(cat "$tunepath" |  egrep -vi "FontSizes|FrequencyMappings|GracenoteDurations|InstrumentMappings|MIDINoteMappings|TuneFormat|VariationTempo|TuneTempo|Bagpipe Reader" | awk -F',\\(' '{ print $1 }' 
| grep -v \"\" | grep -v ^! | grep -v "Converted from" | grep ^\" |tr '\n' ','| tr -d "\015")
parsons=$(./parsons "$tunepath")
echo "$tunepath,$tune,$keywords" >> bww.list
echo "$tunepath,$parsons" >> bww.list.parsons
done

locate -i bwm |  egrep -i "\.bwm$" |grep -v html.bwm|  while read tunepath; do
tune=$(basename "$tunepath")
keywords=$(cat "$tunepath" |  egrep -vi "FontSizes|FrequencyMappings|GracenoteDurations|InstrumentMappings|MIDINoteMappings|TuneFormat|VariationTempo|TuneTempo|Bagpipe Reader" | awk -F',\\(' '{ print $1 }' 
| grep -v \"\" | grep -v ^! | grep -v "Converted from" | grep ^\" |tr '\n' ','| tr -d "\015")
parsons=$(./parsons "$tunepath")
echo "$tunepath,$tune,$keywords" >> bww.list
echo "$tunepath,$parsons" >> bww.list.parsons
done
chown www-data bww.list*

Converting for parsons code.
See https://www.henriaanstoot.nl/2022/03/23/20-years-www-pipetunesearch-org/
and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parsons_code

#!/bin/bash
echo -n "\""
for f in `cat "$1"` ;do echo "$f" |  tr -cd "[A-HL]_[0-9]" ; echo  ; done | grep -v '^$' |grep _ > /tmp/parsons
let count=0
for f in `cat /tmp/parsons| tr -cd "[A-HL] \n"` ;do
  if [ "$f" = "LG" ] ; then g=0; fi
  if [ "$f" = "LA" ] ; then g=1; fi
  if [ "$f" = "B" ] ; then g=2; fi
  if [ "$f" = "C" ] ; then g=3; fi
  if [ "$f" = "D" ] ; then g=4; fi
  if [ "$f" = "E" ] ; then g=5; fi
  if [ "$f" = "F" ] ; then g=6; fi
  if [ "$f" = "HG" ] ; then g=7; fi
  if [ "$f" = "HA" ] ; then g=8; fi
 if [ $count -eq 0 ] ;then 
  echo -n "*"; 
  ((count++))
  last=$g
 else
 if [ "2$g" -eq "2$last" ] ; then echo -n "r" ; fi
 if [ "2$g" -lt "2$last" ] ; then echo -n "d" ; fi
 if [ "2$g" -gt "2$last" ] ; then echo -n "u" ; fi
 last=$g
fi
done
echo "\""

Just place all files in a directory on a php enabled webserver.
The bash script is being run daily.
(parsons bash script is called from this main script)
These will generate 2 files
One with the filename and all useful text like composers.
And a file with the filename and the parsons code.
Example:

11th of September, The.bww,"*udduddudduddudurrdudrrdudduddudrrduuuuududurrdudrrurrdududurrdudrrduddudurrduudduddudduddududdurdudrurdduddududr
urduuudrduddurdudrudrurduududdurdudrurdduddururdududduddudduddudruddudruddudduddudruddruududududududrudurddrududruddudrudduddudurddrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrrud
rrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrrudrruuduuduuduuduuduuudrduuduurduuduuurdrduuduuduuuduurduuduuduuduuduu"

Example screenshots

Sun in the stream on my Uilleann Pipes

Irmgard told me a week ago she liked “Sun in the stream” by Enya.
I found a midi file a while ago, which i edited to get the accompaniment part only, without the melody line.

I played this after 4 times practicing, and learning to use some extra keys on the chanter while doing so.

I played the midi file on my Yamaha QY-100 sequencer.

Holes and keys on a Uilleann Pipe Chanter

Merry xmas and a happy 2018