Greetings from London

[DrDarek]

Hello Everyone,
I'm Darek and I live in London,UK.
I know a bit about music but very little about accordions.
I'd like to buy my first one in the near future (by the end of the month) and then take lessons and practice.
The choice is very wide!
I keep reading and asking people and slowly a few possibilities emerge.
Seems, the consensus is to by a piano accordion as a newbie.
I have no problem with that, though the button ones look and sound very nice, too.
I'd like to buy a mid range one like 30/60 or 34/72, something like that.
My budget is around £2200 for a new one.
I've narrowed it down to two well known German brands, but my favorite is actually a smaller Italian instrument. It looks great and sounds very nice to my ear and it costs a bit more than the other two. Perhaps it's worth it.
For the button one I like the Russian Tula 209 but I don't know how to get it in the UK. So far I found a shop in the US that can ship to England.
Anyway, I hope to connect with lots of nice and wise people here. I think the accordion is such a great instrument and so versatile!
Have a nice weekend, everyone!
D.
P.S. Is there a way to change the spell checker from the American to British English?
I find it a bit distracting to keep ignoring the red underscore pointing out my British spelling conventions.
D.

 

[Tom]

Welcome Darek! I think a chromatic button accordion (known here as "cba") would be just as fine and easy to learn as a piano if that is what your heart truly desires. There are advantages and disadvantages either way. One consideration is the type of music you want to play. If folk and traditional, either is fine, for classical, you will have to consider "free bass." A cba can have a smaller footprint and people like the easier hand positions, piano keyboards may be more ubiquitous in your area and easier to find.

I'm sorry but in this day and age I would buy the Italian over the Russian. For a first accordion there are distinct advantages to buying from a local, trusted shop if you can, or from a musician you trust in case you need service or want to trade up some time. Maybe people here can recommend somewhere close to London.

Good luck, you can do it!

 

[saundersbp]

Hi Darek,

My personal advice would be to get a cheap old one. That's how I started with the goal of playing a few folky french and scottish ditties. It was only after 2 years of playing I actually decided I really liked the accordion and wanted to take the plunge and ended up buying the sort of instrument I didn't even know existed two years ago (C system button free bass) in order to play classical music.

I also found accordionists round where I live very friendly and more than happy to lend me different instruments to get me going. I lend people accordions now myself. If it were me, I would spend a bit of money on a few lessons (zillions of accordion teachers in London) and borrow an instrument i.e. invest in skill rather than stuff!

 

[DrDarek]

Welcome Darek! I think a chromatic button accordion (known here as "cba") would be just as fine and easy to learn as a piano if that is what your heart truly desires. There are advantages and disadvantages either way. One consideration is the type of music you want to play. If folk and traditional, either is fine, for classical, you will have to consider "free bass." A cba can have a smaller footprint and people like the easier hand positions, piano keyboards may be more ubiquitous in your area and easier to find.

I'm sorry but in this day and age I would buy the Italian over the Russian. For a first accordion there are distinct advantages to buying from a local, trusted shop if you can, or from a musician you trust in case you need service or want to trade up some time. Maybe people here can recommend somewhere close to London.

Good luck, you can do it!

Hi Tom,
Thank you very much for your speedy reply!
The main problem with the Russian brand is, at the moment, I believe, the shipping from Ukraine may be disrupted and the only way I found to get this Tula instrument is order online and it seems to ship directly from the factory. The reason I leant towards the pianos accordion is that there are more resources available (or so I think) to the learner. I can not really play the piano but at least I’m familiar with the keyboard layout and I think there are more tutors available. My hands are on the medium size for a man (a bit wide, slim fingers but not very long) so I suppose both systems would suit me. It’s interesting what you said about the smaller footprint of the CBA, it could be very important to me. I listen to all sorts of music, including classical and i play popular, folk and classical music on other instruments. Apart from classical, I would like to play mainly folk music from Western Europe like Italy or Latin America. I don’t know enough about button accordions to make an informed choice at the moment. I believe the B system is more popular in Eastern Europe. Is it suitable to play classical music as well? The C system, I believe, is more popular in the West. Anyway, I know very little about the free bass system. Can it work with a piano accordion? Have to find out more about it. So far, I have only spent some time learning about the Stradella system. I know at least one very respected shop in London and hope I can find what I’m looking for there? One more thing; how does the treble side of the piano accordion compare to the button treble side? I understand the layout and the range of the piano keyboard but the number of buttons on the right hand side of the CBA means nothing to me.
I have a pet project. Whenever I pick up a new instrument I go through a series of piano tutors by Bella Bartok called “Mikrokosmos” and try to play the pieces. I believe I can do it on either the piano or the CBA, at least to some degree.
Thank you very much for your good wishes!
Have a nice weekend!
D.

 

[DrDarek]

Hi Darek,

My personal advice would be to get a cheap old one. That's how I started with the goal of playing a few folky french and scottish ditties. It was only after 2 years of playing I actually decided I really liked the accordion and wanted to take the plunge and ended up buying the sort of instrument I didn't even know existed two years ago (C system button free bass) in order to play classical music.

I also found accordionists round where I live very friendly and more than happy to lend me different instruments to get me going. I lend people accordions now myself. If it were me, I would spend a bit of money on a few lessons (zillions of accordion teachers in London) and borrow an instrument i.e. invest in skill rather than stuff!

Hi,
Thank you very much for your advice.
It makes sense, from my experience, to take lessons from the very beginning.
Buying an old instrument is not my usual way. I y tend to spend a bit of time finding stuff out and buying an instrument that I can enjoy for some time without thinking of trading up or selling for quite some time. I would be very keen to hire one, initially, that would make sense. `I know lots of outlets hire other instruments such as violins, etc, but I am not aware of aplace I can hire an accordion from.
I like the sound of the C system free bass accordion (no pun intended). Could you tell me the brand and the model, if that’s allowed here? Or recommend something up to £2500? And If I were to buy an old one, which one would you recommend?
Have a great weekend!
D.

 

[Tom]

Thanks Darek! To be honest, I am not an expert on the cba, I have always only played piano accordion.

As I understand it, the treble side of the cba can have from 3 to six rows of buttons, with more rows some notes repeat. Other than that, the sounds are the same and any kind of music can be played on either the cba (B or C) or piano treble side. The bigger difference is the bass side. With a Stradella bass you are limited in your playing of single notes, because they are confined to one octave. This can be a limitation in playing some types of music, most noticeably classical.

I think Ben has good advice here, try to find a low cost used instrument until you know what you really want.

 

[losthobos]

Go see Emilio at Allodi Accordions in Lewisham ... he'll fix all you need affordably and honestly...

 

[David A]

Hi Darek, and welcome.

The keys versus buttons debate is extensive and has supporters on all sides. In your position, and location, some six years ago I went for keys, and am very happy. I would say that it is true there are more teachers of piano accordion than CBA in Britain.

If you're on the west side of London I'd recommend a trip out to The Accordion Shop in Sunningdale, Berks, though I suspect with your budget they might try to tempt you away from the "new" market towards something older, perhaps bigger and Italian, as they did with me (I have a Giulietti Classic 37 PA, they have a very nice looking Bugari 96 bass on offer at present, and a Hohner Morino if you want to try the buttons). You'd probably get a better quality instrument that way, it would be serviced by the shop and guaranteed too, and would retain it's value better in case you decided to change your mind later.

If you're more central or to the east of the centre, people on here speak very highly of the service they have had from Allodi Accordions in Lewisham (where you might find you get the same encouragement to think beyond new!)

Whatever you decide, enjoy the journey.
David

 

[Giovanni]

Go see Emilio at Allodi Accordions in Lewisham ... he'll fix all you need affordably and honestly...

that is also who I was going to advise.........

 

[Glug]

He's now doing appointments only via phone or email (Covid related I think).
Check the web site: https://www.accordions.co.uk/

2nd hand PA: https://www.accordions.co.uk/Secondhandlist.htm
2nd hand CBA: https://www.accordions.co.uk/Button.htm

Special Deals: https://www.accordions.co.uk/Specialdeals.htm (easy to miss the link)

 

[DrDarek]

Go see Emilio at Allodi Accordions in Lewisham ... he'll fix all you need affordably and honestly...

Hello Glug,
Thank you very much for your suggestion.
I remember having a very nice telephone chat with this gentleman before I set off for my globe trotting adventure.
I then put him on my short list.
I seem to remember he also mentioned that his brother was offering lessons in Baren’t, which would be quite handy for me as I’m based in NW London.
Best regards,
D.

 

[DrDarek]

that is also who I was going to advise.........

Thank you very much. I remember getting some sensible advice from Emilio a while ago.

 

[DrDarek]

Hi Darek, and welcome.

The keys versus buttons debate is extensive and has supporters on all sides. In your position, and location, some six years ago I went for keys, and am very happy. I would say that it is true there are more teachers of piano accordion than CBA in Britain.

If you're on the west side of London I'd recommend a trip out to The Accordion Shop in Sunningdale, Berks, though I suspect with your budget they might try to tempt you away from the "new" market towards something older, perhaps bigger and Italian, as they did with me (I have a Giulietti Classic 37 PA, they have a very nice looking Bugari 96 bass on offer at present, and a Hohner Morino if you want to try the buttons). You'd probably get a better quality instrument that way, it would be serviced by the shop and guaranteed too, and would retain it's value better in case you decided to change your mind later.

If you're more central or to the east of the centre, people on here speak very highly of the service they have had from Allodi Accordions in Lewisham (where you might find you get the same encouragement to think beyond new!)

Whatever you decide, enjoy the journey.
David

Hello David,
Thank you very much for your advice.
I’m aware of both these shops. Emilio I spoke to quite some time ago and he was very helpful and at the time I had to postpone my purchase because of unexpected travel. The other shop I came across online and have put it on my shortlist. Will contact both of them after the holidays.
Best regards,

Darek

 

[Dingo40]

Darek,
Welcome!
P.S. Is there a way to change the spell checker from the American to British English?
I find it a bit distracting to keep ignoring the red underscore pointing out my British spelling conventions."
Assuming that you have an iPhone:
Go into "Settings "
Access "Language and region"
Choose "United Kingdom "
...and Bob's your uncle!

(See here:
"Bob's your uncle" is a phrase commonly used in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth countries that means "and there it is" or "and there you have it" or "It's done". Typically, someone says it to conclude a set of simple instructions or when a result is reached.)
'

 

[saundersbp]

Thank you very much for your advice.
It makes sense, from my experience, to take lessons from the very beginning.
Buying an old instrument is not my usual way. I y tend to spend a bit of time finding stuff out and buying an instrument that I can enjoy for some time without thinking of trading up or selling for quite some time. I would be very keen to hire one, initially, that would make sense. `I know lots of outlets hire other instruments such as violins, etc, but I am not aware of aplace I can hire an accordion from.
I like the sound of the C system free bass accordion (no pun intended). Could you tell me the brand and the model, if that’s allowed here? Or recommend something up to £2500? And If I were to buy an old one, which one would you recommend?

I'd hire an accordion from Romano Viazzani in London, lovely guy, a real musician and very helpful. Find him at https://zzmusic.uk/
C system freebass is the ultimate if you really want to explore the instrument without limits. (This statement will raise hackles )
In terms of a brand/model recommendation I think that's a rabbit hole, just go for something in decent nick you can afford - the second hand market in these sort of instruments is small. Romano often has instruments from RAM students or his own students that are looking to trade up so it'd be worth asking what he's got coming in. London has plenty of button accordion teachers and world class performers - you are lucky you live there if you are going to take lessons! I can suggest some people as possible teachers by PM if you like. Hope that helps.

 

[luckykit]

I just wanted to say welcome aboard. I hope you enjoy your stay.

 

[gearbear1]

Hi all. I'm new here. How are you guys doing?

 

[Tom]

Welcome Bear, if I were doing any better I'd be you! What's your gear, and what was the last tune you played on it?