Inherited Hohner

[ilapsins]

Hi-
New to this forum - I just inherited a vintage accordion . Can anyone provide me with any information on this accordion? There isn't any model name on it. Estimate on age? It's in incredible condition - so pretty! thanks for any help!

 

[debra]

Very basic (children) beginner model with just 12 bass buttons. Good for a beginning child for the first month or so. As a result, very little commercial value. I suggest donating it to an elementary school.

 

[Squeezebox Of Delights]

It's a Hohner Student II; they were produced from the 50s through to the 80s but I'm not sure when this one is from. Like debra says, it's a basic beginner's model, designed for learning the basics of playing the accordion. However, any Hohner accordion built around that time will be very good quality and very solidly constructed, and if the condition is as good as it sounds then you have a real little gem, particularly with the couplers on the front grille, which most 12 bass boxes are lacking. If they're correct, then you have a LM tuned accordion, with two sets of reeds tuned an octave apart, rather than the more common MM tuning, with two detuned middle reeds to produce the classic accordion sound. The couplers give you options for just the low reed (bassoon), just the middle reed (clarinet) or both together (master) - a bit more versatile than most instruments of that size. Provided that it's in perfect shape it could be worth a couple of hundred dollars - although some pictures of the inside would be useful so we can evaluate it. Or you could donate it to a school. Or (crazy suggestion) you could keep it, and learn to play - it is a beginner's model, after all! It might be an unpopular opinion, but I really like 12 bass accordions, simply because they're compact and lightweight, and with a bit of modification they make great folk boxes, even for a professional musician. Anyway, good luck with whatever you decide to do with it!

 

[noelekal]

Charming little instrument!

Resembles the one my parents rented for me for the first six weeks of accordion lessons back in 1964. First tune I learned on it was "Bill Grogan's Goat.". I came home from that first lesson that afternoon and tortured the family for three hours trying to master " Bill Grogan's Goat."

Thanks for posting the photos.

 

[ilapsins]

It's a Hohner Student II; they were produced from the 50s through to the 80s but I'm not sure when this one is from. Like debra says, it's a basic beginner's model, designed for learning the basics of playing the accordion. However, any Hohner accordion built around that time will be very good quality and very solidly constructed, and if the condition is as good as it sounds then you have a real little gem, particularly with the couplers on the front grille, which most 12 bass boxes are lacking. If they're correct, then you have a LM tuned accordion, with two sets of reeds tuned an octave apart, rather than the more common MM tuning, with two detuned middle reeds to produce the classic accordion sound. The couplers give you options for just the low reed (bassoon), just the middle reed (clarinet) or both together (master) - a bit more versatile than most instruments of that size. Provided that it's in perfect shape it could be worth a couple of hundred dollars - although some pictures of the inside would be useful so we can evaluate it. Or you could donate it to a school. Or (crazy suggestion) you could keep it, and learn to play - it is a beginner's model, after all! It might be an unpopular opinion, but I really like 12 bass accordions, simply because they're compact and lightweight, and with a bit of modification they make great folk boxes, even for a professional musician. Anyway, good luck with whatever you decide to do with it!

Thank you! I really appreciate the time you took for such an informative reply!

 

[Jmcgsd]

Cool little box. In the right hands it could generate some amazing music even though it’s “only” 12 bass.