What are /r/Accordion's favorite Products & Services?

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Are you looking for concertos simply for solo accordion? Or are you interested in concertos for solo accordion + orchestra? Or both?

"Manhattan Concerto" by Eugene Ettore is a piece I've been learning to play recently. I don't have the full arrangement with orchestra, but I know it was written to be played that way.

Pietro Deiro also wrote concertos for piano accordion with Stradella bass, such as his Concerto in E.

You might check some of these commissioned pieces out as well.

I purchased "The Mighty Accordion" from Amazon. It's a book just for learning the Stradella bass system. I'm still a beginner in general, but the book seem very helpful for positioning, and slowly learning the layout.

https://www.amazon.com/Mighty-Accordion-David-DiGiuseppe/dp/0786688394

It's actually a Frank Marocco arrangement modified a little by me and it is subject to copyright. That's why I can't post it here, but here is a link to the book https://www.amazon.com/Marocco-Frank-Jazz-Accordion-Acdn/dp/8850716362

It's always worth it in my opinion on any instrument really. Even if experienced players can have something to gain by reading back through simple beginner books and sometimes ironing out small weakness in their playing that they might not realize they even have.

I've often seen and even caught myself in the trap of thinking, "that's easy" at first glance. But I find that it's important to actually put your fingers down and run through stuff like that. Sometimes you'll surprise yourself with some small issue that might trip you up. It's worth smoothing out all of those rough edges and making sure you can play confidently and consistently.

Best case scenario, you clean up some problems. Worst case scenario, you breeze through and get some good siightreading practice.

I was not actually familiar with the books myself, but keep hearing about them, so I recently decided to read through the first one. It took a little under 20 minutes to read down and it was mostly just good sightreading for me, but sure enough I found a couple of places where phrasing and bellows control wasn't where it should've been and my reading wasn't quite solid enough, so it definitely wasn't time wasted and they books themselves are very inexpensive on Amazon.

Another book I highly recommend is The Mighty Accordion. It's particularly fantastic for those with a piano background. It's just a left hand book and it's a fantastic, progressive approach that really get your left hand in very solid shape. It starts out fairly simple and gets up to very complicated concepts touching into pretty complex jazz chord ideas. It's a bit on the more expensive side, but a fantastic resource. I mention it since you made a comment about a bass book.

https://www.gumtree.com/p/accordians/frontalini-accordion/1137939315#ad-title

The six pack chiller looks a mute setting. Looks like it could be a fun instrument.

Hadn't seen this site before, and it didn't appear in r/Accordion search... the creator's name isn't highlighted on the site, or I'd credit here... more interesting links at http://www.dmoz.org/Arts/Music/Instruments/Squeezebox/

> As an accordion lover and film addict, I can't help but notice squeezeboxes when they make a film appearance . I started this list in 1996, the "Year of the Accordion", as a tribute to the contributions these bellowed wonders have made to the cinematic arts.

> My list of "SqueezeBoxes on the Silver Screen" includes any film made for the big screen (feature, short or animation) in which a piano accordion, bandoneon, concertina, button box or melodeon is seen, heard or both... Special thanks to the wonderful people at: rec.music.makers.squeezebox!

It's an old Hal Leonard published book. Long out of print unfortunatelyhttps://www.amazon.com/Leonard-Beatles-Greatest-Hits-Accordion/dp/B0007MXCLU. I found it on eBay for about $15. Most of the songs are pretty easy to get a handle on. It is really great to take a break from PH and play some Beatles.

FYI, there are other folk songs like this from Macedonia and other countries in "Eastern European Folk Tunes for Accordion."

(The song sounded familiar enough that I had to check, but they are different songs.)

I started on accordion a few months ago and it’s been a blast. I recently got this book as a gift

https://www.amazon.com/dp/3864340780/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_bRxiFbK7C3E2N

I’m not far into it, but so far it seems like a great book for French-style musette. The composer (Michaela Dietl) has a few videos on YouTube with Liberty Bellows if you want to give one of her compositions a listen.

Good luck with the search! Find that low-middle-middle (LMM) and get rolling.

This song is from "Eastern European Folk Tunes" (amazon). I have this book too. It's a good book that starts out quite easy and gets harder. I got about halfway through before moving on to other things.

However, I don't know anything about how the pieces in the book relate to other Eastern European accordion music I've listened to on YouTube, which often seems quite different, even when it's from the same country.

Empieza a tocar el acordeón: Método fácil para acordeón de teclas con 8 bajos (Acordeón Fácil) -- Patricia Garcia Vargas, Francisco Javier Patricio Bordomás

https://www.amazon.com/Empieza-tocar-acorde%C3%B3n-Acorde%C3%B3n-Spanish/dp/1974249123/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVWuTEjv3nc

Hey bud! I have toured around with the accordion playing everything from festivals to empty bar rooms (alright there was one German guy...) and I use this.

Works dandy and works every time.

It costs a pretty penny but before that I was trying all kinds of silly mic things, including making my own pickups out of cheap headphones, the problem was they would work but not reliably. I just plug this puppy in and I'm good to go.

As some have mentioned, though, the accordion is loud enough that in the smaller rooms even though everyone else is amplified I often won't be, so consider that. I've used that little pickup to parish rig lots of weird instruments for amplification too including my tagleharpas and concertinas so it's got some nice versatility. Also you can always use a single mic and face whichever side of the accordion is more important at the moment toward it, might wanna practice that before showtime though.

Here's a bonus ridiculous video I made with a wireless pickup (which is an absolute blast to have in the small rooms for performance reasons)

If you play another instrument, you could get the Galliano method book: https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Accordion-Method-Lucien-Galliano/dp/154003495X/ref=asc_df_154003495X/

(It might be hard to learn from a book if starting from scratch.)

I took piano as a kid and dropped it too, later discovering my love for the accordion a few years ago so I'll just tell you what I did. This part is optional but I bought a children's toy accordion first to sort of get the gist of how it'd work and have a bit of fun, which I did! After getting that down and being sure that I was actually interested in the instrument, I eventually bought a Hohner Hohnica with 32 bass for about $500 which is a good basic beginner... If you need a lower budget you will probably have to find a used accordion, like the other comment by AccordionBruce suggests.

Easy Accordion Solos is flawed (some pages are out of order) but it has nice versions of several French songs:

• Les amants d'un jour
• C'est si bon
• Le denicheur
• Fleur de Paris
• La vie en rose
• Le bal de la marine
• Brise Napolitaine

(Although, some of those might not necessarily be the first songs to learn.)

PS you may already know, but B/C, C/C#, and C#/D are typically used for Irish music, so some books advertised for Irish music -- e.g., https://www.amazon.com.au/David-Hanrahan-Beginners-Traditional-Accordion/dp/0946005397 -- will use C#/D system (the most popular of the 3 semi-tone systems). In contrast, English, French, and German music tend to use "4th-apart" systems -- such as C/G, G/D, D/A, F/C. IMHO, when compared with 4th-apart systems, B/C, C/C#, and C#/D systems tend to involve more right-hand activity, less left-hand activity, and more frequent changes in push-pull direction

~Melodic Adventures in Bassland~ by Palmer-Hughes. When I say "getting better at" I mean from an absolute beginner point :P.

A 12 bass accordion is a real instrument, just with a very limited range. It can indeed be a good starter.

But I think OP is talking about something like this: https://www.amazon.com/MUSICUBE-Accordion-Instrument-Professional-Educational/dp/B0995BWMGN/ It's barely usable, and not worth buying, even for cheap.

Commandant no4 cleaner

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00DZGIZYE/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It doesn't leave any residue.

I've been getting good results using Commandant no4 cleaner

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00DZGIZYE/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Sand to 1500 grit and then polish.

I've tried T-Cut, brasso, etc Commandant No4 seems to works better and leaves no residue. It's also quite cheap.

I got this fake book from amazon of christmas tunes: Ultimate Christmas fake book

'Fake book' referring to it being just the melody and chords so it is easy for those like my self who are shakey with sheet music.

I recommend!

you know trashly? awesome tunes by the way. I play accordion for One Monster After Another and we recorded 8 tracks i think in Fort Collins CO.

http://www.reverbnation.com/onemonsterafteranother

i think possibly http://www.finalemusic.com/default.aspx could help you but I haven't used it so I'm not positive. I would like to know if it does end up working though cause it would be a really neat tool to have. I might try out the free trial later and report back Good luck on your search!

For Norteño, a piano accordion might work for some of the later styles... Paulino Bernal successfully used a large Chromatic Button Accordion, and a PA is great for learning the melody and accompanying yourself.

But the smaller diatonic has advantages for the general style. The harmonica-like layout means separation between scale tones, but allows legato on chordal tones -- can be emulated on a chromatic instrument, but requires attention. The smaller bellows responds more strongly to pressure -- can wail, and high-pressure with staccato-touch lets the notes punch out in a way that's much harder on a larger instrument. And the buttonboard helps achieve the particular phrasing, particularly if you lock your thumb and use just four fingers on the buttons. A large PA or CBA can let you play the tune, but a smaller diatonic lets you play the style.

I can't find anywhere to buy it online, but the public library in Ottawa has it if that's any consolation.

I did find an e copy of another book that has a lot of excerpts from Dixie Dean Accordion Method.

Check what it says on the AC adapter.

But Amazon sells ones that take 100-240v input:

https://www.amazon.com/SupplySource-Power-Adapter-Roland-V-Accordion/dp/B07Y1S8RV5

No idea if that's a good one, just they do exist.

I learned completely on my own the with Palmer Hughes books and a cheap piano accordion.

Palmer-Hughes Accordion Course, Bk 1: For Group or Individual Instruction https://www.amazon.com/dp/0739012916/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_E8X6KTN418DXX7T38BPJ?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

I have a button accordion now that I find way easier to play on and play by ear.

I think you could convert the teachings to button accordion in Palmer Hughes once you learn the layout. Once you get past the fact there are so many buttons it really makes way more sense for accordions to be honest, but either one is super fun and it’s a rewarding experience playing the accordion. I play every day and really enjoy it.

I bought the album Aritmia by Merima Ključo & Miroslav Tadić some time ago. Great listen! I didn't know about the book. Thanks for the info!! With the rendition I did I worked only by ear and tried which 'unexpected' chords would sound good over the melody without deviating too much from the song that it couldn't be recognized. I'm working on the notation and will add it to the video description.

I got a FR-1xb as my first accordion about 3 months ago. I picked the electric mainly so I could practice without annoying my partner/the dog/neighbors/etc. I'll add to the other comments:

1. If you're trying to learn from lesson books, I've only seen two that are specifically for button accordions, and they're both in French. Whenever there's French text in the book, I use the Google Translate app and point my phone camera at the page to get a translation. It's not a great translation, but I'm already pretty familiar with musical notation etc from playing various instruments as a kid, so it works well enough. (The two books are Methode d'Accordeon by Manu Maugain and Methode Complete d'Accordeon by Lucien and Richard Galliano. The latter is for both piano and button accordions. I'm most of the way through the Maugain book and can recommend it aside from the language barrier. Both also have CDs available with the lessons played. I'd recommend getting that too if you get the book, especially if you don't have musical experience.)

2. Yeah, the built-in speakers are pretty bad on the FR-1xb. 95% of my playing is into my own (good) headphones. When I play for someone else using the built-in speakers, the main thought going through my head is that they're really missing out on how good the accordion can sound.

3. It's handy to have extra batteries. I got this 8 pack and charger, and it seems to work great so far. EBL 2800mAh Ni-MH AA Rechargeable Batteries (8 Pack) and 808 Rechargeable AA AAA Battery Charger

Fingerless gloves: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000U0DH8C/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I'm seconding fingerless gloves. But I got the fishnet version, something like

https://www.amazon.com/Anlaey-Fishnet-Stretchy-Fingerless-Accessories/dp/B0828HTD7N/ref=sr_1_47?dchild=1&keywords=fishnet+gloves&qid=1611273010&sr=8-47

Works a treat, and takes up no space.

I used the Palmer-Hughes Accordion course books, I think it has 10 books in the whole series, but goes through the basics and has you playing songs in the first lesson. Geared more for kids, but just in the sense of the pictures. Really great and I did learn a lit from them. Here is a link to the first book on Amazon Palmer-Hughes Accordion Course Book 1

Did you know there’s actually a Star Wars for Accordion book available? We got it for our daughter last year, but it’s still too advanced for her. She’d only been learning 6 months back than. Haha. We’d no clue.

I use an Android app, Accordion Chromatic. It puts both sides of a CBA on your touchscreen. It lets you switch between B and C system so you can compare them. I think it would also be a useful tool for anyone new to the instrument who has trouble learning the Stradella system, since you can see the note/chord names on the button while you play them, which you can't really do on a real box (unless you play in front of a mirror or something). It's easy to visualize the shapes of common chord patterns (e.g. C CM G CM) and then you can apply that to your real instrument.

I mainly use it as an arranging tool, e.g. if I'm listening to music and I want to try to learn the chords. It's more portable then my PC keyboard. It just lacks MIDI output.

I had the sticky hand problem for a time and 'solved' it by loosening the strap.

Then I tried a left hand glove and all fixed - tightened the strap again.

Glove I found that works perfectly (get black, not neon pink):

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00BXJ62UE/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Can you read music? I recommend the Palmer-hughs books. Start with book 1, I used it as a kid and again as an adult. Good luck!!!!! https://www.amazon.com/Palmer-Hughes-Accordion-Course-Individual-Instruction/dp/0739012916

Thanks! I am glad I asked because I had no idea it was supposed to be stored upright! I have decided to use this which actually works great (i have one already for my guitar). https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B01C03N5PG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_r4lCFbMNYR1NW

Yes, he's great!

For accordionists, I also recommend the method book he wrote with his father:

https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Accordion-Method-Lucien-Galliano/dp/154003495X

And get a backstrap ... it goes from the left shoulder strap to the right one across the lower back. Takes a lot of weight off the shoulders and makes the rig a lot more stable. Here is an example ... https://www.amazon.com/MUSIC-FIRST-Comfortable-Accordion-Shoulder/dp/B00XMAS8KE/ref=sr_1_6?crid=3RDT961A2VE9M&dchild=1&keywords=accordion+back+strap&qid=1596501504&sprefix=accordion+back+s%2Caps%2C231&sr=8-6 ... but I prefer something a bit wider with a velcro system. My dear wife made one for me.

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I can't find the exact page of the bag I bought, but this looks identical. I've taken it with me hiking and on bike rides, no problem so far. I have a 120 bass full size piano accordion.

https://www.amazon.com/NKTM-Accordion-Bass-Accordions-20-5/dp/B07CHD8G7D/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?keywords=accordion+bag+120+bass&qid=1570256969&sprefix=accordion+bag&sr=8-3

For anyone that is interested in this accordion, and has somehow found their way to this post:

You might be like me. Interested in learning accordion, but not so interested that you're willing to throw down a thousand bucks on something you might lose interest in. I'll type up a quick review of it here, because I know you're probably having a tough time finding more information about it (as I did).

I ended up getting it, the b-stock price of $300 was too good for me to pass up. There was the option of a refund if it was defective or terrible, so I didn't see much risk in it.

Anyway, it's solid enough. All the bass buttons and keys work as they're supposed to, the bellows breathe well and are easy to control. The sound isn't the same beautiful heart stealing tones of its more expensive counterparts, but it still sounds like an accordion.

This is not your Excalibur. This is not performance ready. This is a physical manifestation of "okay".

This is the equivalent of that $100 electric guitar you bought in high school to jam along with your friends in his parent's basement. It's a good instrument to learn with and play for a few friends, but for the price, that's all you reasonably expect from it.

Here is a video of me playing it: https://youtu.be/paXFGDCAHKw

By the way, it's a knock off of a Hohner product.

So, in case you want the real deal, here is the product gear4music is imitating:

Hohner 1305-RED Hohnica 72 Bass 34-Key Entry Level Piano Accordion Range G to E https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CG66KSC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_8wtGDbYKZQ4XD

Just got this for my birthday. Has a ton of great beginner theory; highly recommend getting a copy!

Chord Melody Method for Accordion: and Other Keyboard Instruments https://www.amazon.com/dp/0786689641/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_jhIWCbVS9HX32

I'd recommend looking at the Anzaghi method too. It's expensive but the Palmer Hughes and Sedlon courses each have several books which would end up costing you that much anyways.

It's a little more fast paced than I think Palmer Hughes, and it doesn't do much in the way of explaining how to read music, but if you used to be able to read music, it will come back quickly.

I often play with a glove that only has a fingerless thumb. I got a cheap pair of fingerless gloves, cut the hand portion off, fixed a seam with fabric glue, and wear that on my left hand. It definitely helps, especially for large leaps like chromatics where counterbass might not be viable to shorten the distance.

I've thought of getting something a bit less ghetto and have wondered if some of the arm warmers like I see /u/JacksonParodi wearing often these days would work. I suspect Jackson does it purely for affectation as he seems to get around fine without such a thing, but it definitely looks like they could work for my purpose. There are some made of dri-fit material aimed at runners/cyclists (for sun protection) that have a thumb loop and look perfect and wouldn't add any bulk to the hand.

That said, I find that after practicing for a while with a glove, I can play the same tricky sections without it fairly easily. My guess is that it facilitates motion during practice, particularly when I haven't gotten very efficient at the motion, but over time the movement gets a bit more fine tuned and I don't need the help and my hand sort of floats a bit more rather than sticking and trying to anchor anywhere.

J'ai Ete Au Bal has video of Dewey Balfa & contemporaries playing, with a five-minute section of Mike Savoy demonstrating accordion style.

(Piano accordion can work, especially for the more R&B Zydeco, but the bigger bellows doesn't punch like the little Cajun melodeon.)

I also mainly play the piano and would highly recommend The Mighty Accordion. Someone recommended it on this sub and it's perfect for piano players; it focuses on the left hand and eases you into it.

Someone on here recommended The Mighty Accordion by David DiGiuseppe. I just started using it and I love it. It's perfect for people who can already read music and understand basic music theory since it just focuses on the left hand.

Here's the straps I'm thinking of trying next, are they the ones you're using? http://www.amazon.com/Neotech-3101172-Accordion-Harness-Black/dp/B000P4FKVA/

I'm not really feeling the backstrap—it's next to impossible to buckle, and I don't think it does much for me.

> The strap is also as tight as possible but it still seems pretty loose.

Sounds odd. Different accordions have different ways of tightening the bass strap... any players near you who could take a look, give their context?

Marching band half-gloves are tight at first, then become very comfortable... colder weather I like these Magic Stretch half-gloves (many similar models).

I started feeling pressure at base of left thumb, put a small piece of folded sock inside the glove to spread the load.

Melodic Adventures in Bass-Land http://www.amazon.com/Palmer-Hughes-Accordion-Course-Adventures-Bassland/dp/0739021729 might be worth looking into. I'm not sure how much of an endeavor working through it would be though. I've only just started it.

Also, that concept is awesome! I'd love to see more!

Yo. I'm new too. I've been using the Palmer-Hughes books to learn, as I'm a pretty big believer in learning the basics and reinforcing good technique when I'm taking up a new instrument. You'll probably blow through the first book, but halfwayish through book two starts to get a little more challenging. (I think it was still worth starting at book one.)

I'm also using this for extra bass practice: http://www.amazon.com/Mighty-Accordion-David-DiGiuseppe/dp/0786688394

When I started I was comfortable with a keyboard, but totally lost on how to finger (or find) the chord buttons. I used Mel Bay's "You Can Teach Yourself Accordion as a starter book.

My husband (trumpet and singing saw) made decent progress with this book, but he wasn't really keyboard literate so he had a bigger gap.

It provides basics like how to find keys and bellows management. It's also easy to skip over the things you already know. I found it useful to get a second book of songs I actually wanted to play and use the primer selectively to get me to the stage where I could play those songs.

Good luck, and I'm jealous of your Polka King!