The Freest Reed

Contributions to the Concertina Library by Neil Wayne.

The Wheatstone English Concertina
by Neil Wayne: Survey article covering the Wheatstone English Concertina, the only published source for much of Neil Wayne's path-breaking research. As published in The Galpin Society Journal 44 (1991), 117-149. (The online version does not yet perfectly match the printed version.); Posted 01 January 2005; » go to website

An Outline History of the Concertina and Related Instruments
by Neil Wayne: Published in The Concertina Newsletter, No. 4 (no date): 10-12.; Posted 01 January 2005;; » read full article in pdf

Wheatstone, His Sighing Reed, and The Great Regondi
Presented by Bernard Richardson: BBC programme on the history and music of the English concertina, focusing on its inventor Sir Charles Wheatstone and the first concertina virtuoso Giulio Regondi. In addition to the presenter, Bernard Richardson, the program features (in order of appearance) Allan Atlas, Neil Wayne, Brian Bowers, Alistair Anderson, Douglas Rogers, Jenny Cox, and Dave Townsend. BBC Radio4 programme broadcast 27 November 2007. Includes links to audio files of the entire programme in WMA format and MP3 format.; Posted 27 November 2007; » read full article

The Tommy Williams Story
by Neil Wayne: Interview with Tommy Williams, Maccann Duet concertinist and former Lachenal employee. Published in three parts in Free Reed: The Concertina Newsletter, 3 (January 1972): 5–6; 5 (May 1972): 6–7; and 7 (August 1972): 10–12.; Posted 15 November 2001; last updated 15 January 2004; » read full document in pdf

A Wheatstone Twelve-Sided 'Edeophone' Concertina with Pre-Maccann Chromatic Duet Fingering
by Neil Wayne, Margaret Birley, and Robert Gaskins: A duet concertina (serial no. 35074) with a unique fingering arrangement, made by Wheatstone in 1938, turns out to be a realization of a design from Wm. Wheatstone's patent of 1861. The instrument is twelve-sided, a Registered Design feature of Lachenal & Co., and it turns out to be one of at least sixteen twelve-sided instruments made by Wheatstone between 1934 and 1941. The instrument is now in the collection of the Horniman Museum, London. As published in The Free-Reed Journal 3 (2001): 3-17. This HTML version of the article adds a number of additional photographs and active links to many of the sources cited in the published article. Updated 15 August 2003: Footnote 11 updated to record that Randall C. Merris has located instrument serial #33301, another of the set of three twelve-sided 40-key Anglos.; Posted 15 November 2001; last updated 15 August 2003; » read full article; » read original article (without updates or additions) in pdf

Free Reed Records & Music
by Neil Wayne: For nearly thirty years, Neil Wayne's Free Reed Records has provided access to the music of the "folk revival", including the re-discovery of concertinas and their music largely through the efforts of Neil Wayne himself. This site offers CDs of interest to concertinists (and many others!).; Posted 01 January 2005; » go to website

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Neil Wayne with concertina and
glasses of concertina-oil
at Éigse Mrs Crotty,
Kilrush, 2004 (Shay Fogarty)

Neil Wayne: The Freest Reed