Button Accordion
No invention or discovery springs out of nothing, and button accordion
is no exception in this respect. Its appearance was preceded by
a long period of search, successful or poor experiments due to
which bayan has turned into what it is presently. If it were not
for such search it would have been impossible to create all models
of instrument variety, later united by one notion- harmonica.
Undoubtedly, harmonica originated from ancient Chinese shen. But
how did it reach Europe, and how did shen turn into contemporary
harmonica, and such form of harmonica as bayan and accordion?
It is a difficult question, and the answer to it has not been
found yet.
Probably it was Marco Polo who brought it from his voyages. It
is also true that Pierre Amio sent shen from China to Paris in
1777, and that Reinstain, simultaneously with Bushman (1822),
made the first harmonicas. There are many other facts, which,
though deserve certain interest, can in no way blend with clear
structured history of this instrument. In 1829 in Vienna K. Demian
invented a hand harmonica with the right-hand melodic keyboard,
and left-hand ready chords (when pressing one button, not one
sound, but a chord sounds), and called it accordion. This laid
the foundation of harmonica structure with ready bass-chord accompaniment.
In 1929 master P.E. Sterligov designed a new type of left-hand
keyboard. It is the so called ready-optional keyboard with a switch,
enabling, apart from ready chords, to generate single sounds and
chords in any order (similar to right-hand keyboard), and this
considerably expanded the performance properties.
Contemporary bayan in terms of its properties, is in no way inferior
to traditional classical instruments, and this allows to play
not only original literature, but various music, composed for
any instruments and any composition of instruments. Thanks to
15 in-built registers and optional keyboard bayan can imitate
any instrument of symphonic orchestra, as well as combine them
together. The improved right-hand keyboard of bayan with five
button rows is arranged chromatically, based on three-row principle
with two backup rows. The range of contemporary bayan is in no
way inferior to the piano range (from õ subcontra octave to b4
octave). Bayan has comparatively large dynamic abilities. Multi-timbre
ready-optional bayan is quite common in concert practice, it is
used as solo, ensemble and orchestra instrument.
Bayan consists of three main parts. The right semi-body: keyboard,
mechanical register switches, metallic voices, sounding-board;
the left semi-body: keyboard, optional keyboard switch, metallic
voices, sounding-board; middle part: bellows. A button pressed
on the keyboard, sets lever mechanism in motion, which opens sounding-board
valves. Simultaneously with pressed button the bellows boost air
on the voices, located inside the instrument (an opened valve
corresponds to a certain voice). In the contemporary bayan there
are 4 and more metallic voices per each note. These voices are
tuned in octave unison. Sound waves are passing directly through
sounding-board, therefore they sound harshly, brightly, even blatant,
and the sound waves of the other two voices due to change of sounding-board
angle are directed side-wards, therefore the sounding is mellow,
muted, slightly nasal. Alternating and mixing of open and closed
voices results in 15 timbres of the same note. On the right-hand
keyboard of bayan there is chromatic scale (more often 4 5 octave
range), on the left-hand keyboard there are basses (one octave
scale is backed-up in 3 4 octaves), and ready chord accompaniment
(major and minor triads, seventh chords, diminished seventh chords).
