Accordion

music · instrument · squeezebox

Powered by bellows. The accordion makes sound by pushing air over thin reeds inside. Squeezing and stretching the bellows is like making the instrument breathe.

Two hands, two jobs. Your right hand plays the melody on keys or buttons, while your left hand plays chords and bass notes for the accompaniment.

Loads of buttons. Some accordions have rows and rows of little buttons on the left side, each one set to play a whole chord with a single press.

A free reed family. The accordion belongs to a group called free reed aerophones, meaning the sound comes from reeds vibrating freely in moving air.

Meet the player. Someone who plays the accordion is called an accordionist, and you'll hear them in folk, polka, and many world music styles.