The Concertina at Sea - The Anglo-German Concertina

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Figure 16. The Cunard Line pioneer paddlewheel steamer RMS Brittannia. Image courtesy of Wikipedia. When the need arose, the captain or steward of a passenger ship would often put a musical sailor to work entertaining passengers, as on this 1874 Christmas party on the deck of the Britannia, a successful early Cunard Line steamer: When the fireworks were over, we improvised a ball for the crew and the steerage passengers. The captain began the dance. The orchestra, composed of a concertina and a trombone, a new and most original combination, was placed under an enormous branch of mistletoe, hanging on a rope over the deck. Lying in our steamer-chairs, we enjoyed the merriment of those good people…. 44 Often, however, the celebration was more spontaneous, as in this 1877 trip from Liverpool to Jamaica on a West Indian steamship: After tea, at eight o’clock, if the weather is not bad, and the captain is in the humour for it, there may be some singing and dancing. Half-way between two ends of the ship a lamp is strung up, the passengers collect there, the spirit of merriment awakes, and the voice of song, the loud chorus, the bursts of laughter and applause, startle the drowsy swallows from their sleep at the mast-head, and the dreamy mermaids reposing in their shell caves at the bottom of the sea. If a great occasion, the steward comes out in full ‘Christy minstrel’ dress, with banjo in hand, his face and hands negrofied to the proper colour, and you get from him a number of pathetic negro songs and grotesque negro dances. During the evening, the captain’s song, ‘John Barleycorn,’ is called for and given more than once, and no passenger who has any power of adding to the entertainment of the company will be let off by any apology whatever. The cook’s or the cabin boy’s concertina (the one or the other is sure to have one) is pressed into service, and the songs give way to dancing by those who can and will; whilst in the dim background of the light, spectators of the fun, you may discover the rough sailors from the forecastle, and the sooty faces of the firemen from the coal-pits in the regions far below. 45 Such minstrel music was very popular with sailors, as we already have seen from the discussion of the previous 14 decade. The Suffolk, sailing home to London from Melbourne in 1878, was the scene of this minstrel band of crew members: The crew had formed a band of minstrels, and they often beguiled away many hours on board. One seaman had made a tambourine from a sheepskin given by the ship’s butcher; another had an old concertina, another the bones and a triangle. Sailors like they at once consented to take part with their negro dances. So I christened them the Ocean Christy Minstrels. 46 Figure 17. The Suffolk, a passenger cargo vessel of the London to Australia run, at the Chillagoe Railway wharves, Queensland. Image courtesy of the Queensland Digital Library, Australia. The banjo became very popular on ship as a result of the global minstrel craze, and was often played with the concertina, as in this sighting on the HMS Excellent, a British warship, in 1872: There was no nook for quiet meditation where a seaman could be alone. Every place was public, every place was noisy. Here is a group playing a forbidden game of cards under cover of a barrier formed of piled-up ‘ditty boxes,’ a mess kettle, and other un-shorelike obstacles. There is a man playing his banjo with his eternal tumma-tummatumtum. In another part is a concertina in full swing playing Jack’s the Lad, while a score or more of stepdancers execute wonderful performances with their bare feet on the deck, their rough soles sounding like the rasp of a knife being cleaned on a brick-dust board. 47 Impromptu sailor’s minstrel bands, also often called ‘foofoo’ bands, were quite common. The adjacent picture of a ‘foo-foo’ band is from the Aitken and Lilburn line (1873- 1911) of exclusively sail-powered vessels, which typically sailed from Glasgow to Melbourne, but experimented with other runs, too. 48 The pictured band, ca. 1890, contains an anglo concertina, with an autoharp, harmonica, tin whistle, possible jew’s harp, and bones.
Figure 18. Impromptu sailor’s ‘foo-foo’ band, on an Aitken and Lilburn line sailing ship, ca. 1890. Note the Anglo concertina. © National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London. Sometimes the entertainment would happen in the forecastle itself, as on board the Inman Line’s City of Chester on a passage from Liverpool to Philadelphia in 1878: Yesterday we paid a visit to the forecastle, sailors’ quarters, two flights of steps leading to the apartment they occupy. Tiers of three bunks, one above the other, with rude tables in the centre, and benches ranged around. Though so gloomy and uninviting, here the jolly tar spins his yarn, and sings his song, one playing for us a jig on the concertina, while others danced. Only about two feet of space exist between each berth. ‘That’s my shelf,’ Tom said, pointing to a remote corner, in reply to an inquiry. 49 Playing the concertina on board a ship sometimes had unusual consequences. The Surprise, a Sydney-based sailing brig, was in Port Natal in 1876, picking up a cargo of wool and hides, bound for London: …while at the Port, she went within the bar to load, being a small vessel, and consequently was close to the bush. One evening, after her cargo had been shipped, while the crew were having a little jollification among themselves, one of the sailors, who happened to have a concertina, Figure 19. The City of Chester, a passenger cargo vessel built in Glasgow, 1873. Image courtesy of http://www.clydebuiltships.co.uk . was playing various tunes for the amusement of his companions. It is supposed that the music attracted a ‘boa’ (constrictor) on board, and disturbed, it must have found its way to the hold, as the hatches were off at the time, and concealed itself among the cargo, as it was not discovered till the ship was well on her voyage home. ….it is about eight or nine feet in length…It has existed during the 15
Page 1 and 2: . The Concertina at Sea: A History
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Page 5 and 6: II. A Compendium of Occurrences The
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Page 9 and 10: nder the awning, to the music of a
Page 11 and 12: and some were excellent dancers. Th
Page 13: The 1870s The Levina was a commerci
Page 17 and 18: Greenland. They made several attemp
Page 19 and 20: …we rewarded ourselves with a lit

The Concertina at Sea - The Anglo-German Concertina

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