The accordion is a hugely versatile instrument, crossing dozens of cultures and musical styles. But how did this fascinating instrument come to be? How has it (and the music that's been written for it) changed over time? We delve into the history of the accordion, looking at its earliest iterations, the development of the playing style and how the accordion has found its way into various musical styles today.
When was the accordion invented?
The first accordion-type structure was devised by Christian Friedrich Ludwig Buchmann in 1822. In 1829, Cyrill Remian came up with the innovative idea that formed the basis of the accordion as we know it today. This was the idea that a single key could produce a functional chord. But it was only in 1844 that the English inventor, Charles Wheatstone, patented an instrument with the pre-set chord system, with a keyboard and bellows.
In 2024, you’ll find instruments with a wide variety of systems, keyboards and configurations. The main influence is the Russian and European manufacturing styles. Despite the accordion being a portable instrument with a powerful sound, accordion makers have tried to hone its amplification using microphones, extend its range through a midi connection or even use other kinds of untempered tuning.
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How has the playing style changed?
The accordion is intrinsically linked to a wide range of different musical styles. Not only can the layout of its keyboard change from one country to another but as its construction is still recent, it is far from standardised. That said, it is interesting to obtain a historic and ongoing view of the instrument through its discography.
These different schools of musical thought are still active. Starting with world music, the Portuguese artist Eugénia Lima with Ó Linda Terra Algarvia (1968) and the Frenchman Joe Rossi with Valse Musette (1958). Currently, there’s João Frade in his self-titled record from 2018, which he himself describes as Creative Portuguese Music or Lelo Nika, from Serbia, with Beyond Borders (2010).
With regard to classical music, De Profundis (1992) by Friedrich Lips is of the utmost importance as a milestone for the Russian accordion and extremely relevant within the European school. Although it is a recent album, it is a wonderful compendium of a precious heritage of great Russian players. The more recent Bidaia by the Spanish accordionist Iñaki Alberdi is an album with music by Federico Jusid, bringing together the accordion and the Navarra Symphony Orchestra.
In the world of jazz, there is an obvious thread, starting with the American, Tommy Gumina, and his 1960 album Pacific Standard (Swingin’ Time). In 1985, Richard Galliano would change the history of this language on the accordion with his album Spleen. Today, you have the French artist Vincent Peirani in a duet with Emile Parisien on Abrazo.
Who are the famous accordion makers?
These are some of the most famous brands: Pigini, Hohner, Bugari Armando, Scandalli, Cavagnolo, Mengascini, Jupiter and Roland (Digital Accordions).
How does it work?
The bellows are the device responsible for the flow of air through all the reeds on both keyboards (left and right). These are used to control the instrument’s volume and expression. As it circulates, the air will vibrate the reeds, which have a fixed tuning and vary in size. The bigger the reeds are, the more bass the sound they produce. The air can only circulate after the keys are pressed on the keyboards. Following that process, the pallet is lifted, and the air will flow in or out depending on the expansion or compression of the bellows.
The right-hand keyboard may be chromatic, diatonic or in a piano keyboard format. The left-hand keyboard may be arranged normally with a chromatic layout (Free Bass System) or in the Stradella Bass System (arranged at intervals of perfect fifths and major, minor and dominant chords associated with a single button).
How do you play the accordion?
There’s no end of possibilities with the accordion. You can change the tone using its registers (as if it were a pipe organ), and quickly handle the bellows with changes of direction. You can even use percussive techniques on its body, or using different possible voicings. This can be achieved through the Stradella system, as it is able to play the bass through fifths and the respective functional chord. This creates an accompaniment to melodies played on the right-hand keyboard.
But you can’t beat listening to music that use all these techniques and many more, composed by some of the most influential composers throughout the history of the accordion.
The best accordion music
- "Sequenza XIII (Chanson)" by Luciano Berio
- "Et Exspecto" by Sofia Gubaidulina
- "Vagabonde Blu" by Salvatore Sciarrino
- "Cadencias" by Jesús Torres
- "Flesh" by Rebecca Saunders
Find out more of the best music for the accordion here.
Where to buy an accordion
The following Portuguese luthiers come highly recommended:
- Atelier do Acordeon
- Acordeonata
- João Tomás Afinador
João Barradas performs the UK premiere of Luís Tinoco’s Accordion Concerto on Wednesday 13 March. Performances will take place at 6:30pm & 8:15pm at Battersea Arts Centre. Tickets available here.
Enjoyed finding out more about the history of the accordion? Look into the history of other instruments:
- The history of the trumpet: its invention, evolution and famous trumpet makers
- History of the clarinet: its invention, evolution and famous clarinet makers
- History of the violin: its invention, evolution and famous Italian violin makers
- Harmonium history: tracing the evolution, rise and demise of the pump organ