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Comfortable play for learning

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yaroslav9728

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Hi everyone,
I have a question, that I am interested in it. Will be comfortable to play on an accordion for learning if an accordion has one or a couple of malfunctions (e.g. air leaking, bad compression, weak and bad tune, not quick in case of sound-producing mechanics, etc.)?
 
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Yaroslav,
The short answer is NO!?
The best thing is to avoid such instruments, if at all possible, unless you intend to learn accordion repairing as a hobby, necessity or occupation in which case you won't have much time for playing!?
 
Yaroslav,
The short answer is NO!?
The best thing is to avoid such instruments, if at all possible, unless you intend to learn accordion repairing as a hobby, necessity or occupation in which case you won't have much time for playing!?
Actually, I don't plan to learn accordion repairing. :) I want to enjoy of learning of playing on an accordion. Can my accordion teacher help in checking of an accordion on technical conditions and functionality?
 
Yaroslav,
Yes, your teacher should be able to do all that for you.?
Sometimes, if buying from a shop, it is possible to rent the accordion for a week or two to see how you like it and whether it's functioning well. Also, you can have your teacher check it out.
In these cases, generally, the rental may be discounted from the sale price, ?
You may also be able to negotiate a period of warranty , even on preloved instruments.
 
The answer is no, Yaroslav.
You can learn with an instrument that has limited capabilities. But you can’t learn with an instrument that has defects.
When something doesn’t go right, you need to know definitely it’s not because of the instrument.
 
Pentaprism,
So true!?
My very first computer had a faulty hard drive which threw up random errors. I never knew whether I was at fault, or the computer.
I made virtually ( ha, ha?) no progress until I got one in working order!
 
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I respectively beg to differ. An accordion with minor malfunctions (as mentioned in yaroslav's post) is better to learn on than no accordion at all. I would venture to guess that many of us on here started on accordions with weak compression, out of tune, and slow action. Or consider our first accordion to be unplayable now. My advice to you, yaroslav, is to ask your teacher to help you find the best accordion you can afford, and go with it. If you like playing, you can save up some money somehow and buy a perfect instrument.
 
@Tom Yours is clearly good advice, but a decision does depend on how minor the malfunctions are. Art Tatum was reputedly capable of producing entertaining music on any piano, even though it might have no felts and half its notes not sounding, but he was a skilled player by the time that was said of him. Somebody coming new to the instrument might find the obstacles would put an end to their aspiration. If Yaroslav’s budget will permit him to minimise the offputting things, and, even better, allow him to get an instrument whose sound appeals to him, then I think he is more likely to find it enjoyable, and to want to pick it up and hear it, even in the early stages when he’s working on simple melodies. A knowledgeable adviser/teacher is certainly needed for the minimisation aspect. Best of luck with your endeavours, Yaroslav!
 
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Ok, what to do in case, when a teacher refuses my asking to help me in the accordion checking. Offer to him money or what?
 
Has this actually happened to you, or are you just speculating??
In my experience, music teachers are only too keen to assist their students with choosing an instrument: no charge !?
 
Has this actually happened to you, or are you just speculating??
In my experience, music teachers are only too keen to assist their students with choosing an instrument: no charge !?
Not me, but my friends have an experience in that, when they asked their teacher to help them in an accordion purchasing, instead of going with my friends to a music store, he sent them the message with step-by-step instruction what to check without any tips and cautions, but my friends were not able to do it well, and now they have many problems with an accordion. Instead of focusing on practice, they have already repaired their instrument a couple of times for the last year, and it didn't improve in general.
 
That's unfortunate ?
Ask your teacher if they're willing to come to the shop with you. If not, ask the shopkeeper to borrow the accordion for a day or two.
If neither of them cooperate, you'll need a different teacher/store ?
 
Not me, but my friends have an experience in that, when they asked their teacher to help them in an accordion purchasing, instead of going with my friends to a music store, he sent them the message with step-by-step instruction what to check without any tips and cautions, but my friends were not able to do it well, and now they have many problems with an accordion. Instead of focusing on practice, they have already repaired their instrument a couple of times for the last year, and it didn't improve in general.
I'm sorry to hear that, Yaroslav. Unfortunately an accordion is a very delicate instrument in that used and older instruments often have problems that are not obvious, and/or that are not pointed out by the salespeople. Dingo has good advice. If the teacher will not go with you to the store, perhaps you can bring the accordion to him, perhaps on a short term rental. Or maybe the teacher has an accordion you can rent or borrow enough to know what you are looking at in the store. Good luck.
 
A one thing that I forgot to mention. This teacher teaches not only play on the piano accordion, he teaches singing, ear training, music theory, etc. My friend asked him to teach him voice, on that asking he refused, because this teacher thinks that my friend doesn't have special talent for singing and for music in general. After that, my friend started to do self-development in music. He learns music theory and do ear training exercises by himself.
 
This teacher sounds to be rather particular ?
Most teachers I know of are willing to humour almost any student who can afford the lessons ?
 
A one thing that I forgot to mention. This teacher teaches not only play on the piano accordion, he teaches singing, ear training, music theory, etc. My friend asked him to teach him voice, on that asking he refused, because this teacher thinks that my friend doesn't have special talent for singing and for music in general. After that, my friend started to do self-development in music. He learns music theory and do ear training exercises by himself.
Are you still playing the Lucia in Toronto? How's it going? What tunes have you been playing? Many people do fine with self learning and relying on resources they find online or help from friends or on a forum such as this one.
 
@yaroslav9728 . I think a 'teacher' who is so choosy and unhelpful is more likely to kill your musical ambition than nurture it. Sounds to me like a descendant of those piano teachers who thought the best way to get a child to play accurately was a ruler applied smartly across the knuckle of any errant finger. Find someone more 'sympa' if you can, and get into enjoying the instrument.
Doug
 
Are you still playing the Lucia in Toronto? How's it going? What tunes have you been playing? Many people do fine with self learning and relying on resources they find online or help from friends or on a forum such as this one.
I have, and sometimes I play on him, when I have time, but I am planning to change it on another accordion in better quality because my accordion even after repair that was done at a repair shop one year ago, still has bad compression and not sufficient sound that causes discomfort, but without a professional assistance I can not do it well, as I don't want to make a mistake again in purchasing case
 
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Hi Yaroslav,

With your experience I would not recommend ebay if it is possible for you to visit a reputable accordion dealer. You can ask on this forum for recommendations in, for example, Toronto, Ottawa or Montreal. Maybe there are even members of this forum who could help you shop. Even Detroit, Cleveland or Buffalo if you can travel to the US. Of course the closer to where you live is best. Most people on this forum stress the importance of playing the accordion before you buy it.

If it is not possible to find a store that you can visit, you can ask forum members for advice on reputable stores who advertise online and ship. Maybe an eBay store will be recommended.

If you do purchase online, it is important to determine the return policy before you purchase and try the accordion.

A last resort would be to ask for recommendations here about where you can have your current accordion restored. There may be a reputable repair location you can drive to.

It is very difficult to acquire a used accordion in perfect condition. Most people either 1. Are very lucky and purchase their dream used accordion. 2. Repair the accordion themselves with online help. 3. Get the used accordion restored by a reputable repair person. 4. Buy a brand new analog accordion. 5. Buy a new or used Roland accordion that does not have compression, tuning or other analog issues.

I wish you the best of luck. It's a battle!
 
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