A Squeezebox or Two by Miguel Gramontain?

[Walker]

Mr. Gramontain's creations are new to me, but they are quite interesting...

Let's start with a small button accordion with an unusual grille and possibly a darwin bass.



Followed by a montage:



...and a piano accordion named after another massive mountain...



Further info:

https://en.miguelgramontain.com/

Anyone ever tried a Gramontain?
Anyone know why the darwin system is so named... it surely didn't evolve by itself... who designed it first?

Thanks!

 

[dunlustin]

Re Darwin:
Don't know 'why Darwin' - maybe because it evolved over the years - but I'm pretty sure it was thought up by Marc Serafini.
Confirmed by "(© modèle déposé) ?"
Here:

Darwin system 3 modèles

Mes accordéons diatoniques - Modèles

www.diatoz.fr

is where to find his ideas

 

[SteveBox]

I play a small CBA with a Darwin bass, as does CC_PDX on this forum. I also have the impression that Marc Serafini either invented it or revived it from an old design. I've always assumed the name was chosen because it is an evolution in bass design for small accordions. It is a chromatic and unisonic system allowing you to play in all 12 keys. It makes a small lightweight CBA possible but is actually more frequently paired with a diatonic right hand, as it eliminates the restrictions of the diatonic bass. In addition to Marc Serafini and Miguel Gramontain, Atelier Loffet and Castagnari (models Mas 24 and Handry 24, 24 7/R, and 24F) also offer this system. There may be others.

It is an ingenious system using open chords (root and fifth). In order to play in all 12 keys on a Stradella system, you need 96 or 120 buttons with many duplicate notes and chords to avoid large jumps, and a heavy mechanical machine to implement it. If you can do without the thirds in your chords (often preferred for folk music) then a compact and lightweight arrangement of 24 bass buttons is all that is required to play in any key. Some models offer a stop to remove the fifths in the chords, giving you two octaves of single bass notes so it becomes a type of free bass.

 

[dunlustin]

Re: " or revived it from an old design."
Five minutes with Google Translate + Serafini's webpage would suggest that either he's being 'economical with the truth' or that 'revival' is unlikely.
As suggested above, there is a lot of curiosity/creativity around reimagining the wardrobe approach to the accordion.
This goes back to the 70s when revivalists started taking their creaky Hohners to Castelfidardo for re-reeding. The rest is history and 2 generations of fine musicians.
Interesting that Terry (see Freebass post) who has chased the Holy Grail thro' Cassotto and beyond, found a sound he was looking for - to wonder if a stripped down version may be the way to go. And that is a man who has put some time/energy/cash in pursuit of 'his' sound

 

[Walker]

to wonder if a stripped down version may be the way to go.

Simplicity has its virtues...

I'm quite fond of the designs from Gramontain, Castagnari, Galliano & Ploner, and others, as they seek to reconnect the accordion with its roots—the melodeon, concertina, and even early 1900s piano and chromatic accordions. Their approach offers a direct and clear tone, simpler mechanics, fewer voices, a limited note range, and no cassotto, which paradoxically seems to liberate the musician to simply play—free from the burden of choosing voices or lugging around cumbersome accordions packed with reeds. The natural wood finish is just right, as it is... natural. I'm also drawn to the contrast of metal and walnut on the Gramontain, with its industrial-style grille that mutes the sound when closed... though, a Castagnari Magica 3 might strike a more elegant note.

From an outsider's perspective, one who values stradella bass for its folk/trad/old-time uses and prefers the classical free bass system derived from it, known as the Quint system, the Darwin system also appears quite logical, particularly for smaller accordions with a folk or minimalist style. The Darwin system's emphasis on the two six-note whole-tone scales, staggered to create the crucial intervals of fourths and fifths, is appealing. The parallel octaves also mean less hand movement, reminiscent of the Quint free bass. Indeed, 24 buttons providing one octave of bass and chords (root 'n' fifth) that transform into two octaves of free bass, all within easy reach, seem ideal.

A small piano accordion equipped with this Darwin bass would definitely be tempting...​

 

[losthobos]

These Grammy's sure are beautiful....I see he does one for a measly eleven grand with a stradella bass too....
I'm not sure how you can make eight notes really work as a freebass system...except perhaps as drones....maybe I'm missing something...
And yes I've come to truly appreciate less is more....however the "less" has to be absolutely correct for it to work for your own playing style and direction...
Unfortunately I'm finding the chord system on the stradella cumbersome and cloudy of late....however the cycle of fifths bass notes to make some neat patterns viable even though limited....I'm interested to see how much neater a freebass that moves up/down the scale is without needing the Shepard effect to get by...
And way I figured now is the less reeds singing is the less reeds that can argue with each other and create nasty niggly little harmonic monsters...
Yep...I've spent plenty time toying with different systems ... thankfully at not to great a cost as most accordions have left my hands in better condition than they arrived so I've been able to sell on mainly at cost ....and if I've lost a bit I just consider it fair rental to have had the experience of trying out....
At this moment I'd settle for a single bassoon reed, three and half octaves and preferably in cassotto.....and minimum four row
Just gotta work out the left hand configuration next....hence the request to try a freebass
I don't want a convertor really as trying to get weight down.....I believe this will allow better control and thereby more expressive playing....
But....my that wood looks so lovely....

 

[Walker]

I'm not sure how you can make eight notes really work as a freebass system...except perhaps as drones....maybe I'm missing something...

There are twelve notes in the octave, arranged in two *whole-tone scales that are arranged in two rows (2 x 6 notes) vertically. There are only six notes in a given whole-tone scale (hexatonic) - and there are only 2 whole-tone scales in total, that gives us the full 12 semi-tones.


*Note: the two whole-tone scales also occur throughout the stradella bass system: every second button (moving vertically in the stradella sequence creates whole tones) hence the sequence:

C - D - E - F# - G# - A #

and

F - G - A - B - C# - D#

The only difference between Darwin and Stradella in the whole tone sequence is that Stradella bass pitch rises as buttons move UP towards the chin (every second button in sequence), whereas the pitch moves UP on DARWIN (every button in sequence) when you move down the bass board towards the floor...

Come to think of it... if I were going for a Darwin, I'd probably ask them to reverse the direction of the sequence, so it follows the Stradella whole-tone direction... Stradella's still the King!

 

[Walker]

I stumbled upon a brief video that accidentally demystified the layout of notes in the treble and bass systems of chromatic/piano accordions for me. See around the 2 minute mark onwards...



Hearing the narrator unravel the mysteries of the number 12 was like a lightbulb moment for interval sequences. Picture a chromatic circle where each "1" interval is a tiny hop, mirroring the half-steps on a piano, creating a perfect circle.

Now visualise a pair of hexagons lounging on this circle, casually representing the evolution of the Darwin bass system (just a quirky name for two whole-tone scales).

Then, imagine three squares, strutting around the chromatic circle, marking the minor 3rd free bass system. It's a party of diminished 7th chords.

Four triangles scattered on this circle are a real head-scratcher; they're like the mysterious plus-ones at the party, not fitting in with any free bass systems.

Five gives a high-five to the Circle of 5ths, or is it 4ths? They dance around the Stradella bass and Quint free bass systems, twirling into what we lovingly dub the "circle" of fifths.

And at last, six elusive biangles; above my paygrade to make head nor tail of...