This little instrument is one of the oldest American instruments in my collection, it was made by C. Austin, in Concord, New Hampshire circa 1844-45. This "melodeon" was a precursor to the foot pumped organs that became so popular from the 1850s to 1910s. It operates by pressure wind, and is often called a rocking melodeon, an elbow melodeon or a lap organ. It is a little awkward to play. I chose to provide a small sample of two songs which this instrument would have been used. The first one is square dance tune from the 1840s called "Skip to My Lou". The second piece is a hymn called "Sweet Hour of Prayer", the words were written at the same time period as this instrument was made, and the tune was later composed in 1861. The other reason I chose these is because I am just starting to learn how to play this thing, it has taken a lot of practice already! :) It was recently restored, from very poor condition - to see the restoration story, be sure to visit: https://www.rodneyjantzi.com/index.ph...
