Greetings from Belgium

[JEBrown]

Hello all, just joined the board. I live in Belgium and have been teaching myself accordion for a couple of years. I have a 30-year old 72-bass Hohner piano accordion which I bought 2nd hand. I've also been playing with a ceilidh band for the last few months and really enjoying it.

I'm looking to buy a new accordion - there are a couple of shops in Brussels but they are really specialist, selling Italian and French accordions which look very professional to me, and I'm not sure they would sound so good for ceilidh music. There are some Hohner distributors as well but it's difficult to find one with any accordions in stock that I can try. Does anyone have experience with the Hohner Bravo? I would probably stick with a 72-bass accordion. Or any experience with buying online, good or bad? Thanks for any advice you can offer.

 

[Anyanka]

Hi & welcome!
I have bought several accordions online with brilliant results, from eBay and from a Swiss auction site. However, I have a husband who can fix & tune squeezeboxes, which makes a big difference to the cost of a "cat in the bag" purchase.

Re Italian accordions for ceilidh music - I play a Pigini CBA for just that purpose, as well as for French dancing etc! I have a small elderly Hohner for Morris music, because the box needs to be more portable and less valuable for that.

 

[Soulsaver]

If you're buying from a trusted dealer who knows about accordions and can ship(pack) them safely with warranty, then you can usually be confident you'll get what's been described.

If you're buying outside that definition, you're taking a risk. I have 90% good experience, but I can also fix most issues, so can afford to take a risk. Have you got an accordion technician nearby in the evnt of needing a repair?
I also only buy from distance if there is some headroom in the price to pay for some work if necessary. I ask all the pertinent questions beforehand; and I don't mind conflict so will argue my corner strongly if it isn't as described.

If you're not that way inclined, wait for something within traveling distance to show up, and try it first.

 

[maugein96]

Hi,

As you are probably aware most Belgian players use chromatic button accordion, usually with two different versions of what is known as "B" system, and the ubiquitous Belgian bass system. I live in Scotland and wish I had access to the instruments you have, and you are in Belgium looking for a Scottish/Irish instrument. Are we both insane then!?

If you're into PA then the French accordions you have seen in Brussels are probably PA versions of their chromatic accordions. They are not really suitable for ceilidh type music, as you suspect. Not really sure what you mean by a "ceilidh" band. In Scotland such ceilidh type accordionists typically use full sized 4 voice instruments with 41 piano keys, 120 bass buttons, and exceptionally strong musette tuning.

If you are looking to stay with 72 bass it is possible to get a new quality three voice musette accordion, but they are not exactly cheap. A Paolo Soprani 34 key 72 bass could be had for maybe 2000 Euros brand new. Go into your Brussels shop and ask them for a quote. You can specify Scottish, Irish, or any other musette tuning you want. If it's not what you want then just walk away.

Probably nothing wrong with a Hohner Bravo for the money, but couldn't honestly tell you if it was any good for your musical style. Hohners used to be bombproof, but the Bravo is made in Asia, and if it is anything like my chromatic button Nova, then I wouldn't recommend it. Far better to go for a used Italian instrument.

 

[debra]

Going outside of Brussels is definitely something you should consider. There is "Karine" in Westmalle, Viseur in Puurs, and several others. As others have said, there is little stock of new PAs because the music school system in Belgium is forcing every beginner to use CBA (fortunately not with the Belgian bass system, so plenty of Stradella system instruments available). In the "lower" segment you can use a CBA they have available as reference for what an otherwise identical PA would sound like. The construction of the instruments is identical except for the keyboard (and the CBA often having more notes). It is only in the really high end that the construction of a CBA becomes different from PA (most visible through the keyboard being placed further forward, away from the player's body).

 

[JEBrown]

Thanks everyone for the useful comments. Looks like I need to travel around a bit in order to try out some different models.

 

[maugein96]

The accordion took a nosedive in Belgium round about the early 70s. There are now only a handful of professional recording players, and I don't know of any pro PA players at all.

Dedicated accordion shops are very few and far between these days regardless of where you live, and the fact that there is so little demand for new instruments is a major stumbling block to players looking for quality without breaking the bank.

The continued presence of folk music in Europe means that diatonic accordions are often all that is available in some areas, with PAs and CBAs being regarded as "old hat".

You might get a better deal in the Netherlands or Germany if it's a PA you're after, as I don't think you'll find many suitable PAs in Belgium. German musette tuning may not be strong enough for ceilidh but you never know what might turn up. If you decide to go for an online purchase in frustration that you cannot get what you want in the stores be very careful. Even a brand new instrument direct from the maker may need a tweak or two before it's ready for trouble free playing, and may need the attention of a professional repairer. If you order through a dealer they should be able to put right any such problems, as you are paying them their "cut" in the deal.

Good luck whatever you decide. Most of we amateur types get loads of fun playing whatever we can get our hands on, and that dream accordion never materializes.

 

[JackieC]

Welcome to this great forum, JEBrown! I hope you enjoy yourself here. It's a great accordion community!

 

[hais1273]

Greetings from Sussex UK. I've found Ollie at Akkordeon Fairplay One in Germany, to be knowlegable, trustworthy, decent, and he sells a wide range of PA's.

 

[JEBrown]

Hello all, I thought Id update you (belatedly) on my purchase.

I found a very large music shop called OpSteyn in Maas-Mechelen, which is about 1 hours drive from my home. They stock a variety of accordions (as well as just about every other instrument you can imagine) and were very friendly and welcoming. After playing several instruments I selected a 96-bass Hohner Bravo, which they had previously checked over and tuned. Its a family-owned shop and as I was chatting with the guy he mentioned that his father knew something about accordions, and would be interested to meet me, but hes very old and only speaks Flemish. So he came into the shop, and we talked a while in my broken Flemish, and it turned out he had previously been accordion champion of both Belgium and Holland! Must have been many years ago...

A couple of months later I returned and bought 2 AKG gooseneck microphones which they helpfully installed on my accordion (I couldnt bear to drill into it myself!). These are really essential for the ceilidh band I play in. Were 3 fiddlers, a penny-whistler, 2 guitarists, me, a drummer (bodrahn, ok its not very Scottish) and a caller. Normally we get 4 or 5 of us plus the caller for gigs, which are a mixture of public ceilidhs and private parties, weddings, etc. Previously I had to play standing in front of a fixed mike, but now I have a lot more freedom to move around and I can control the volume of bass and right-hand independently.

So having picked up the accordion imagining I would be playing French café-style music I now spend most of my time practicing jigs and reels, trying to play them fast enough that I can keep up with the fiddle player... Great fun though. In September well be playing for a huge ceilidh at a 3-day Scottish festival in Belgium http://www.schotsweekend.be/(S(55tgayxu1k2ihnqoanp4hxk2))/index.aspx?main=&sub=&lang=En[/url]. Who knew that Scotland was so popular here?

 

[artelagro]

A 'three day ceilidh'. This has got to be the find of the century. I just wish I was a wee bittie younger and fitter.

 

[JEBrown]

Ha ha the ceilidh is only a few hours in the 3 day festival. I think my fingers would drop off for a 3 day ceilidh!