Sounds of an Accordion

by Paul Pasquali

ACCORDIONS COME IN MANY DIFFERENT styles and sizes and create many different sounds depending on how they are made. Almost every European and Latin culture has their own style of accordion; some with buttons, some with keys, chromatics, diatonics and concertinas just to name a few. Equally as interesting are the various types of sounds that differ- ent accordions can produce.

Accordions, like guitars, come in many different styles. Most people are aware there are jazz, rock, classic, westem and folk style guitars but many forget there are at least as many types of accordions. Today many styles of music are played on the accordion such as classic, jazz, cajun, rock and Tex Mex, just to mention a few. Just like the guitar, there are accordions built for different styles of music. Three of the most popular sounds are musette, dry tuned, and chambered.

Musette is that popular or continental sound that is achieved by off tuning two or more sets of reeds at the same pitch. The degree at which the reeds are off tuned effects the amount of and type of musette sound. Musette in varying ranges is used in many styles of music. It is most often described as the sound heard in a French cafe but is used today with various tunings by cajun, polka and rock styles of music, to mention a few.

Dry Tuned is the bright sound of the accordion that is achieved by the reed blocks being tuned in octaves. This style of sound is often heard with an accordion playing a tango. This sound was most popular on the 50's and 60's in the United States as musette was then considered a folk or "Old Country" sound. Dry tuning is used in many styles such as classic, Latin, and many folk styles.

Chambered is that mellow sound of the accordion often heard by jazz accordion greats. This sound is achieved by placing several of the reed blocks in chambers which adds a certain warmth to the tone of the accordion. This construction procedure is by far the most expensive and is often used by classical and jazz artists.