ColoRodney
Member
I bought a new Serenellini "Jet" accordion in May from Liberty Bellows.
I have several larger and one smaller accordion already, so this fills a gap, and I'm sure I'll get a lot of use out of it.
The Jet has 30 piano keys, 78 bass, and LMM handmade reeds tuned to A440 with a "swing" musette (+4). The extra row of bass buttons duplicates the C-sharp row at the top, which is nice for fiddle tunes and waltzes in A. On my 48 bass I was always stealing the C# bass note from the A row, so I'll have to get used to a little more freedom.
The key action is really quick and responsive. Also, I find it easier to use the bellows to add punch to Quebequois and New England tunes on a smaller instrument like this. I still have the big boys for jazz gigs where I want the extra range, or when I need a wider musette for French and Scottish music.
It has a natural mahogany finish, which appeals to "foik" musicians like myself, and tends to get approving glances from guitarists and fiddle players at jams. They are always on the side of exposed woodgrain. I took a few pictures with the accordion open, and you can see how the corners were built.
Liberty Bellows had a Brandoni with remarkably similar specs: 30 keys, 78 buttons, LMM swing tuning. In fact, I may have liked the tone of the bass reeds and the bassoon on the Brandoni a little better. But the geometry of the instrument felt strange -- the keys felt short, and I got lost easily on the bass side -- it probably just doesn't match the instruments I have. Since I'll be switching back and forth a lot depending on the gig, the Serenellini won out.
I had LB install a microphone set, since I play a lot of dances. LB was out of the Harmonik mics that would fit, so I got the less expensive AZS kit so that they could put it in on the day of my visit. My accordion tech isn't wild about the coiled cable running through the bellows, but so far it hasn't caused any trouble. The sound quality is excellent. Four knobs are a bit much (my other accordions have Musitek mics with two knobs for RH/LH volume)), but I've got the "tone" values dialed in to a nice fairly bright sound that worked great for the dances where I've played it.
I'll get around to recording some music, but I'll put that up on the "I Did This" page. In the mean time there's a Facebook post here where I played a few things a bit sloppily the day after I brought it home, and demonstrate most of the registers.
I have several larger and one smaller accordion already, so this fills a gap, and I'm sure I'll get a lot of use out of it.
The Jet has 30 piano keys, 78 bass, and LMM handmade reeds tuned to A440 with a "swing" musette (+4). The extra row of bass buttons duplicates the C-sharp row at the top, which is nice for fiddle tunes and waltzes in A. On my 48 bass I was always stealing the C# bass note from the A row, so I'll have to get used to a little more freedom.
The key action is really quick and responsive. Also, I find it easier to use the bellows to add punch to Quebequois and New England tunes on a smaller instrument like this. I still have the big boys for jazz gigs where I want the extra range, or when I need a wider musette for French and Scottish music.
It has a natural mahogany finish, which appeals to "foik" musicians like myself, and tends to get approving glances from guitarists and fiddle players at jams. They are always on the side of exposed woodgrain. I took a few pictures with the accordion open, and you can see how the corners were built.
Liberty Bellows had a Brandoni with remarkably similar specs: 30 keys, 78 buttons, LMM swing tuning. In fact, I may have liked the tone of the bass reeds and the bassoon on the Brandoni a little better. But the geometry of the instrument felt strange -- the keys felt short, and I got lost easily on the bass side -- it probably just doesn't match the instruments I have. Since I'll be switching back and forth a lot depending on the gig, the Serenellini won out.
I had LB install a microphone set, since I play a lot of dances. LB was out of the Harmonik mics that would fit, so I got the less expensive AZS kit so that they could put it in on the day of my visit. My accordion tech isn't wild about the coiled cable running through the bellows, but so far it hasn't caused any trouble. The sound quality is excellent. Four knobs are a bit much (my other accordions have Musitek mics with two knobs for RH/LH volume)), but I've got the "tone" values dialed in to a nice fairly bright sound that worked great for the dances where I've played it.
I'll get around to recording some music, but I'll put that up on the "I Did This" page. In the mean time there's a Facebook post here where I played a few things a bit sloppily the day after I brought it home, and demonstrate most of the registers.
