Is It Difficult To Play (learn) Accordion

[murathan]

(Thats another question in people who thinks to start. I expect your contributions too. Here is what I thought.)

It is a very relative thing whether you find it difficult or easy but Accordion is not in the category of easy instruments. Because it makes multiple sounds at the same time (its polyphonic). You cant see the bass section and see the treble section not much. Bellows and bass side is moving. I make some suggestions if you suit these. You will have advantages if you are positive on these subjects.

- If you have music experience before, that will be very helpful.
- Playing an instrument needs brain - hand coordination abilities to some degree. Not too much but must not be low.
- Talent helps but you must have time to work on an instrument. Minimum of about half an hour per day in general.
- It will be better you take lessons from the beginning.
- It is very important to know note reading (Solfeggio).

Lessons will guide and prevent you from having bad habits. Not much people believe that but it is so much easier to have a good tutor that suits you than watching hours of videos on YouTube for free. YouTube videos gives an idea about what you may expect, but they are not providing the same experience and material with a lesson. Music is an art and a profession. You must work with someone who knows the business. The biggest advantage my (Turkish only) pupils say is lessons provides them a continuity and order in their hobby. You must be checked by your tutor while you are learning in every phase. Many people goes wrong directions without realizing when they try to teach themselves. You will have someone to ask specific questions who gives good answers too.

It is almost impossible to guess before you work on this subject. So you will try a couple of months to see if it suits you well.

 

[Alans]

Any instrument one wants to play has a steep learning curve. On the accordion it’s difficult to see where your fingers go-in the beginning which I didn’t find difficult on the piano. If someone asks me is it difficult to learn how to play the accordion-all those bass buttons they can’t understand how anyone can learn that-I say,start slowly with a teacher and enjoy yourself.

 

[Tom]

I say to them, “Do you want to learn? Come over on Saturday and I’ll teach you how to play.” Many are called but few are chosen.

 

[JerryPH]

I say to them, “Do you want to learn? Come over on Saturday and I’ll teach you how to play.” Many are called but few are chosen.

Many may be called, few show up as few are up to the task, IMHO... but that's generally anything in this age of instant gratification!

 

[Tom]

Many may be called, few show up as few are up to the task, IMHO... but that's generally anything in this age of instant gratification!

So true Jerry. It’s so hard sometimes to keep motivated. Talking to people helps (at least for me). Taking me 7 months to memorize 40 - 50 tunes for this summer. I will never have the discipline to reach a high technical level like you or others on here. Ticket is to “know thyself.” If I can entertain and make people smile with simpler tunes played with expression and emotion it’s worth it.

 

[murathan]

So true Jerry. It’s so hard sometimes to keep motivated. Talking to people helps (at least for me). Taking me 7 months to memorize 40 - 50 tunes for this summer. I will never have the discipline to reach a high technical level like you or others on here. Ticket is to “know thyself.” If I can entertain and make people smile with simpler tunes played with expression and emotion it’s worth it.

I think thats the main goal of music or art, to make you and people happy. Not much needed to make people happy.

 

[RYLUNDO]

I would absolutely love to be able to find an actual teacher! My issue is finding teachers for diatonic accordion is not easy in the Midwest. I have found a couple of different people who play in bands so I am learning with videos and DVDs that they have been kind enough to send me. I haven't had any luck finding an experienced teacher to help with stuff like technique. Everyone I have met just plays by ear.

 

[murathan]

I would absolutely love to be able to find an actual teacher! My issue is finding teachers for diatonic accordion is not easy in the Midwest. I have found a couple of different people who play in bands so I am learning with videos and DVDs that they have been kind enough to send me. I haven't had any luck finding an experienced teacher to help with stuff like technique. Everyone I have met just plays by ear.

Diatonics are generally about what you can do with them. Almost all of the music are arranged pieces on accordion. So playing from a sheet music is playing from an arrangement anyways. You arrange yourself on folk music and melodeon types. Needs knowledge and doesnt need anything in a way.

 

[JKJ]

I think thats the main goal of music or art, to make you and people happy.

I think the primary goal of all creative endeavors is to make yourself “happy” (fulfilled, soul- satisfed, enhanced life experience). Sharing with others might bring them joy, inspiration, comfort, nostalgia… or for some maybe boredom, annoyance, discomfort! Can’t worry about that.

Over the years I’ve played the piano for both captive audiences and and in public places - for everyone who stopped to listen or even chat who knows how many hurried away.

(but at my current beginning level of accordion I’m sure all but the deaf would either run away or stop to point and make jokes)

JKJ

 

[Xiane]

I would absolutely love to be able to find an actual teacher! My issue is finding teachers for diatonic accordion is not easy in the Midwest. I have found a couple of different people who play in bands so I am learning with videos and DVDs that they have been kind enough to send me. I haven't had any luck finding an experienced teacher to help with stuff like technique. Everyone I have met just plays by ear.

I think we may have talked before on this. It seems that you're looking to do Steirische and alpine style, mostly? I know there are some online teachers, and honestly, that's what I've had to do, though it allowed me to get an experienced teacher of the highest level. The style is Irish though, so probably not much help to you.

 

[Xiane]

Diatonics are generally about what you can do with them. Almost all of the music are arranged pieces on accordion. So playing from a sheet music is playing from an arrangement anyways. You arrange yourself on folk music and melodeon types. Needs knowledge and doesnt need anything in a way.

On B/C and C+/D diatonic there's a website that will take any "ABC Notation" music and spit out sheet music with B/C or C+/D diatonic tab. There's a ton of ABC folk music online in various places, and it's fairly easy to take sheet music and turn it into ABC notation and then get your diatonic tabs, if it's B/C or C+/D, so you're not quite on your own when it comes to folk music, at least.

Michael Eskin's ABC Transcription Tools

A simple-to-use ABC to standard music notation converter featuring tune play, transposition, tab generation, PDF export and much more!

michaeleskin.com

 

[Dingo40]

People often ask if Chinese, Japanese, Khoisan, Icelandic, Urdu, Tibetan etc are difficult languages to learn?
I say, it can't be: kids are doing it all the time!

 

[murathan]

On B/C and C+/D diatonic there's a website that will take any "ABC Notation" music and spit out sheet music with B/C or C+/D diatonic tab. There's a ton of ABC folk music online in various places, and it's fairly easy to take sheet music and turn it into ABC notation and then get your diatonic tabs, if it's B/C or C+/D, so you're not quite on your own when it comes to folk music, at least.

Michael Eskin's ABC Transcription Tools

A simple-to-use ABC to standard music notation converter featuring tune play, transposition, tab generation, PDF export and much more!

michaeleskin.com

How I joined here. Because I started English and Celtic tunes, looked for some sheet music and ABC. Melodeon net forum have awesome ABC collection open without join. I wanted to join them but they are closed in a way (you need to go another site and describe a lot of things) while I fill the form, I realized I dont play melodeon too. Then came here. Lester Bailey has a lot of collection on ABC there.

 

[Xiane]

How I joined here. Because I started English and Celtic tunes, looked for some sheet music and ABC. Melodeon net forum have awesome ABC collection open without join. I wanted to join them but they are closed in a way (you need to go another site and describe a lot of things) while I fill the form, I realized I dont play melodeon too. Then came here. Lester Bailey has a lot of collection on ABC there.

Lester and his tunebooks are great. Especially for English folk music. For Irish, and much else, you can find various versions with ABC notation on The Session, take it to the site I linked above, and suddenly have tablature for an Irish style diatonic. It won't work as well for our friend above wanting to play three row diatonic, as the notes are deterministic, so the software won't sort it out very well, according to the very clever (and great for the diatonic world) guy who made it.

 

[murathan]

Lester and his tunebooks are great. Especially for English folk music. For Irish, and much else, you can find various versions with ABC notation on The Session, take it to the site I linked above, and suddenly have tablature for an Irish style diatonic. It won't work as well for our friend above wanting to play three row diatonic, as the notes are deterministic, so the software won't sort it out very well, according to the very clever (and great for the diatonic world) guy who made it.

Nice website... Whatever you prefer to call (English or Celtic or else) this is a huge genre of music, collected and preserved since middle ages. Some say they all look similar but they have their own characteristics. I have thought to play them before but didnt understand enough the style, now with a lot of melodeon videos, I got the idea.

 

[Xiane]

Nice website... Whatever you prefer to call (English or Celtic or else) this is a huge genre of music, collected and preserved since middle ages. Some say they all look similar but they have their own characteristics. I have thought to play them before but didnt understand enough the style, now with a lot of melodeon videos, I got the idea.

I think on Melodeon.net to join all you actually need to do is email Theo at "The Box Place" and ask to join. I think he got overwhelmed by bots. It's not a super active community on the site, but it's helpful.

 

[murathan]

I think on Melodeon.net to join all you actually need to do is email Theo at "The Box Place" and ask to join. I think he got overwhelmed by bots. It's not a super active community on the site, but it's helpful.

There were some accordion Facebook groups but as always happen in Facebook, a lot of arguments passed. Nobody likes others work. Social media slowed down anyways, as people understood, spammers etc. are abusing and tracking peoples activities. Facebook and YouTube never been in a useful setting for users while always changing the style to optimize profits. As lately understood, "big data" is needed to be used for A.I. more data, more development. Thats why they made it free in the beginning. Nobody foreseen that. We thought they only research peoples trends for commercial purposes.