how/what would you teach a beginner ad hoc ?!

[smdc66]

a friend of the family (aged approx 60) has an 8 bass scarlatti, 22 key pa which he plays ad hoc self taught (he can't really play and doesnt read music but has a passion and enjoys playing the way he does - his family doesn't so much!)

he doesnt know any tunes

he asked me to teach him to play when i visit (this is once every 2 or 3 months), i agreed to this even though i am a beginner

i have been giving this some thought recently as i would like to add value to his playing and have been thinking of the best things to teach and the few ideas i have had are a basic scale , a few key basses , a basic rhythm , some made up treble exercises and leave it to him as i am sure he will continue with the self teaching method .......

<HIGHLIGHT highlight="#bfff80">[highlight=#bfff80]i thought i'd ask (for conversational purposes mainly and picking up the odd tip maybe) what would you teach in this scenario![/highlight]</HIGHLIGHT> {}

 

[Glenn]

Wouldn't it be better for him to play a recognizable tune?
You make it sound as if he's a senile old man that's annoying the family. I assume at only 60 this is far from the truth.
Yep. A simple tune that fits his 8 basses.

 

[smdc66]

forgot to mention he got this pa at xmas (he already has a 2 row button 8 bass)

his passion is italian tunes

he is not senile and still works in his own business (barber's)

just not musical

 

[george garside]

Is he any better on the 2 row box - if so encourage him to stick with it and forget the piano box!

failing that prhaps explain that Italian music can come later!. teach him how to finger a simple (grown up) tune . I use when the saints go marching in in such circumstanes. as it requires little hand movement (key C).

Then suggest getting fingrs off keys between strikes to make it sound 'crisper'

maybe then have a go at the bass using 3 chords i.e. FCG ( which I think will be thereon an 8 bass box) do it the simple way with fingers vertical on chord row 2 on Gmaj 3 on Cmaj and 4 onFmaj. don't bother with the bass note or um pa in the initial stages as it is easier to keep the aforementioned 3 fingers resting on the 3 buttons and going nowhere else.

above all keep it simple!!

george

 

[JIM D.]

If hes an Italian barber he has to know this song already. Its not hard to fake. -

 

[Don Tuite]

Does he want to play like everybody else? Or does he want to pick out a recognizable melody and maybe fill in some chords? Why not show him how things work in C maj? The first note is C or G, and he can work it out from there by ear. Then there are three bass buttons that usually make some kind of harmony with what he's playing on the treble. He can work on it from there.

 

[smdc66]

Is he any better on the 2 row box !

above all keep it simple!!

george

well the pa was my suggestion as he likes to play with a piano too and thought at least would be familiar as i dont think he knows much about the button box - he may stick to both

re the button box he's on his own as i dont understand that (other than i helped fix 2 bass buttons that had got pushed in and the mechanism a little mixed up somehow)

 

[Bella]

I'm very, very new to both this forum and the piano accordion. I thought that the piano side of things would be straightforward, as I have played piano for many years. Not so - the accordion keyboard is a little smaller than the piano, and I get quite frustrated that I can't follow a simple piece of music without making a lot of mistakes, as my fingers hit the wrong keys. So don't be surprised if he finds the same.

I may be new to the instrument, but I'm not new to teaching adults, having done it for 25+ years. I would agree with comments above - start him with some really simple, achievable tunes. A little theory and exercises can be introduced once he has some party pieces under his belt.

 

[Don Tuite]

Maybe I'm projecting, but I get the impression the guy can work out piano accordion melodies in C by himself, and now wants to be able to do something with his other hand.

See, if you play the button box, you've got two rows a fifth apart (or a fourth -depends on which way you go) under your right hand, (plus a few accidentals at the top of each row) and a root and a couple of chords on the left. (and the buttons mainly play adjacent semitones on push and pull -- It's like Satan's harmonica.)

So the Barber, who can play basic tunes on the button box, says to himself, "hey! The piano accordion looks more logical than this. And it's got all the notes. And you can cheat and play lots of chords with one finger. What's not to like?

(The above describes me, by the way, but I can't give you a haircut.)

So think about that and try to figure out what he needs,p. maybe ask him to show you what he can do on his melodeon and try to draw parallels.

Don