The accordion is a popular instrument in many genres spanning the four corners of the globe. The modern version of the accordion we know today has its roots back in the 19th century. The accordion goes by many names, including the squeezebox, which is all testament to the versatility and popularity of this instrument through space and time.
Whatever reason made you decide you want to start learning the accordion, you may be wondering which is the best instrument for beginners. Choosing a beginner’s instrument can be daunting when you’re not aware of exactly how an instrument works and what are the best features to look out for.
Read on for some of the best beginner accordions.
 | 1. Best Beginner Accordion Editors Choice – Tula 209 Tulskiy Bayan Chromatic Button Accordion High-quality instrument made by reputable manufacturers with 92 treble and 100 bass buttons. | Buy on Amazon |
 | 2. Best Beginner Button Accordion– Hohner 3500GB Corona II G/C/F Diatonic Accordion a 3-row diatonic instrument that comes with a gig bag, straps, and noise-canceling technology. | Buy on Amazon |
 | 3. Best Beginner Accordion For Pianists – HOHNER 1305-RED A piano accordion with 72 bass notes, 2 sets of reeds, and 5 treble registers. | Buy on Amazon |
 | 4. Best Beginner Diatonic Accordion – Hohner Panther G/C/F 3-Row Diatonic Accordion Hohner’s most affordable 3 row diatonic accordion with an attractive finish and learners manual. | Buy on Amazon |
 | 5. Best Beginner Cajun Accordion – Hohner 3002 Ariette Folk/Cajun Accordion – Natural – Key of C A beautiful, traditionally made instrument with a wooden body and manufacturer’s warranty. | Buy on Amazon |
 | 6. Best Affordable Beginner Accordion – Hohner Accordions 1304-RED An eye-catching accordion with 26 keys and 58 bass notes suitable for beginners. | Buy on Amazon |
 | 7. Best Beginner Accordion Book – Absolute Beginners: Accordion Starts from day one to get you going on your accordion journey! Picture and audio-based learning as opposed to dense text. | Buy on Amazon |
Best Beginner Accordion Reviewed
Best Beginner Accordion Editors Choice – Tula 209 Tulskiy Bayan Chromatic Button Accordion
Any accordion from Tula, the birthplace of Russian Accordions is a work of art, especially by Tulskaya Garmon, who has been manufacturing instruments since the 19th century. Even though the price is higher than many others on this list, having a good and solid beginner’s instrument gives you the best chance of sticking to the instrument and getting a good sound out of it.
Cheap beginner instruments can leave a sour taste if they’re poorly made and aren’t representative of what a well-made instrument sounds like. If you have the pocket for it, then investing in a Tula 209 Tulskiy Bayan Chromatic Button Accordion, you won’t regret it.
The Tula 209 has 5 rows of buttons on the treble side, amounting to a staggering 92 buttons. The bass has 100 buttons for you to choose from, allowing the player many harmonic possibilities. If you know you’re serious about learning the accordion then this could be the instrument for you.
Pros
- Reliable manufacturers that have been making some of the highest quality and most sought-after instruments since the 19th century.
- 92 treble and 100 bass buttons.
- Quality outdoes the price
Cons
- The price may be higher than some beginners are willing to spend.
Best Beginner Button Accordion – Hohner 3500GB Corona II G/C/F Diatonic Accordion
Hohner is one of the leaders in accordion productions globally, so it’s no surprise that they make multiple appearances on this list. Their Compadre 3 Row Diatonic model comes with a matte black finish like their Panther model, but also includes a bass strap, gig bag, and set of straps. It’s also available in different colors.
The Compadre is a standard diatonic button accordion, with 31 treble and 12 bass keys. Whilst the price is a little bit higher than the Panther model, you’ll be rewarded with an instrument that’s suited to discerning beginners and will still be useful for you as your skills progress.
The Compadre model is guaranteed to catch eyes and turn heads. It provides a mid-range sound level in a quality instrument suited to both gigging and personal practice.
Pros
- Includes a Hohner Gigbag, Strap, Mini Harmonica, Juliet Music Polish Cloth & Piano Key Stickers.
- Features noise-dampening technology to reduce unwanted noise.
- An all-rounder accordion that is suited to much more than just Norteño music as the name implies.
Cons
- Expensive
Best Beginner Accordion For Pianists – HOHNER 1305-RED
The Hohner 1305 Red model is similar to the 1304 model, only that it comes with 72 bass buttons. If you’re already familiar with the piano and thus know how to play chords, then the extra amount of bass buttons may come in handy. It’ll greatly expand the harmonic potential of your playing, as the extra bass buttons will allow you to form more complex chords.
The Hohner 1305 comes with two sets of reeds and is tremolo tuned. There are five treble registers and one repeat. The body is a shade of red that many people will enjoy for its classical aesthetic.
Pros
- A big range of 34 keys and 72 bass notes expand musical possibilities.
- 2 sets of reeds and five treble registers.
- Suited to learners with previous musical knowledge.
Cons
- Some quality control issues such as noisy buttons and the bellows getting caught have been noted.
Best Beginner Diatonic Accordion – Hohner Panther G/C/F 3-Row Diatonic Accordion
The Hohner Panther 3 Row Diatonic accordion is one of the most popular instruments by one of the most popular manufacturers. It’s suited to those after a beginner instrument and prefer a button accordion over a piano one. Featured are 31 treble keys and 12 bass/chords keys. You can play in the keys of G C F.
The matt-black finish is highly attractive, as is the price point of the instrument. Included are straps, a cleaning cloth, and a Hohner diatonic accordion method book. Also included is a 90-day manufacturer’s warranty.
Here you find the rare conjunction of premium quality and reasonable price. The Hohner Panther is the most affordable Hohner 3 row button accordion.
Pros
- 31 treble keys and 12 bass keys.
- Attractive finish.
- Includes a learners method book.
Cons
- Noisy plastic keys.
Best Beginner Cajun Accordion – Hohner 3002 Ariette Folk/Cajun Accordion – Natural – Key of C
The Hohner 3002 Ariette Cajun accordion is a beautifully made, instrument with a wooden body and steel inner parts. It’s in the key of C, comes with 4 treble stops, and is perfect both sonically and aesthetically for Cajun music styles.
Featured are 10 treble buttons and 2 bass buttons. The treble reeds come in sets of four. Included are shoulder straps for safety, security, and comfort while playing, as well as a carry case. Another attractive feature of this model is that it comes with a beginner’s instruction manual to allow you to get the most out of the instrument.
Pros
- Includes shoulder strap and case.
- Manufacturer’s warranty for 90 days.
- Includes beginners instruction manual.
Cons
- Low Volume and tight action.
Best Affordable Beginner Accordion – Hohner Accordions 1304-RED
If you already play the piano and are looking to learn the accordion, then the Hohner 1304 could be for you. It contains two reeds so is both beginner-friendly and suited to the advancing musician. Its looks are certainly eye-catching with its classic, shiny red body.
26 Keys along with 48 Bass buttons adorn this instrument, with a range from B-C. It weighs in at only 13 pounds, which is considered light for more professional instruments. As such, it’s easier to carry around than other instruments. Carry straps are also included, as is a limited warranty.
Pros
- 26 keys and 48 bass keys suited for beginners.
- 2 sets of reeds.
- Eye-catching red body
Cons
- Some quality control issues with the bodywork have been noted with the bodywork.
Best Beginner Accordion Book – Absolute Beginners: Accordion
A step-by-step guide taking you from day one to playing along with a backing track. The Absolute Beginners: Accordion tells you everything you need to know from day 1. Instead of lengthy paragraphs of text, this book employs high-quality pictures for all necessary techniques for playing the accordion fast.
Also included is recorded audio to make sure you’re practicing correctly and are on the right track with your learning.
Pros
- Starts from day one.
- Picture-based learning instead of dense walls of text.
Cons
- Limited to absolute beginners and can be outgrown quickly.
Beginner Accordion Buyer Guide
Beginner Accordion Buyer Guide
Accordions can either be piano or button. Button accordions can broadly be divided into diatonic and chromatic instruments.
If you’re considering learning the accordion you may be put off by the many different types of instruments out there to choose from. It can be incredibly difficult to get your head around the choice available when you may not yet be sure of what kind of music you want to play, your playing style, and how this relates to the instrument you choose for yourself.
Let’s take a look at some of the different types of accordions that exist to help you better understand what it is you want in an accordion.
What Is The Piano Accordion?
The piano accordion has probably surpassed its button predecessor in terms of popularity. Piano accordions contain 25/45 piano keys to play melodies on the right side, alongside buttons for playing the bass notes on the left side.
Piano accordions can be easier to learn if you’re already familiar with the layout of piano keys. The popularity of the piano accordion means there are more options to choose from and prices are typically lower than button accordions.
Piano accordions have a lower treble range than button ones do, and can be bulky to carry around.
What Is A Button Accordion?
Button accordions come in two main types; diatonic and chromatic accordions. They use buttons on both the treble and bass sides, as opposed to the piano accordion which uses a piano keyboard for the treble notes.
What Is A Diatonic Accordion?
Diatonic accordions use the diatonic scale and are an extremely popular type of accordion. They’ll produce a different note whether the bellows are pushed or pulled. Typically they contain bass notes and chords on the left side, and the right side contains 1-3 rows of notes in a given key.
These rows match up on the left and right sides, meaning you can’t play out of key.
This makes the learning curve shorter on diatonic accordions than with other types but somewhat limits their versatility. If you concentrate on the diatonic accordion, you may end up needing several instruments to play in different keys.
What Is A Chromatic Accordion?
The chromatic accordion is another kind of button accordion that features the chromatic scale as opposed to a diatonic one. They often have 3-5 rows of buttons on the treble side.
Chromatic accordions are much more versatile than diatonic ones as they give you the option to play in any key. The downside of this is that they’re much harder to play, as you have to learn all the positions of the notes and scales yourself, as they aren’t mapped like on a diatonic instrument.
Chromatic accordions aren’t as popular as other types of accordions.
What Is The Cajun Accordion?
The Cajun accordion is a single-rowed diatonic accordion, often referred to as a squeezebox. The Cajun accordion has multiple reeds for every button, and the number of reeds that sound at a given time is decided by four knobs or stops.
Most Cajun accordions have 10 melody buttons, with only two bass buttons on the left-hand side; one for the bass note and one for the chord. The tonic and major chord are played when the bellows are pushed, whilst the dominant note and major chord are played when pulled. (e.g. C Major and G Major when in the key of C)
The key of C is the most common, whilst D is also popular, and Bb instruments exist but are harder to find.
Which Type of Accordion Is Best For A Beginner?
Diatonic accordions have the benefit that you can’t play out of key with them. A learner can thus focus on how the bellows work and how to get a good consistent sound without worrying about playing out of key or not knowing how to formulate bass chords.
More advanced musicians who have experience with other instruments may find this limiting and tiresome and may want to opt for a chromatic accordion instead.
What About Previous Musical Experience?
Those familiar with the piano keyboard will naturally be drawn to the familiarity of the piano accordion. Guitarists may find the layout of the button accordion intuitive as they resemble those of a guitar in that notes are spaced semi-tones apart.
However, the familiarity stops there, as pianists will still have to learn how to produce sound with the bellows which is completely unrelated to anything learned in the study of the piano.
Many shapes used to fret chords and play scales on the guitar can be used on the button accordion, greatly reducing the learning curve for intermediate guitarists
The button vs piano accordion is a contentious debate in the accordion world. Which instrument appeals to you more may have a lot to do with what it was that drew you to the accordion in the first place.
On button accordions, you have to learn how the layout of the buttons corresponds to what musical notes. This can be tough and more difficult than learning the piano accordion. However, once you’ve learned the buttons, this type of accordion is easier to play than the piano accordion.
This is because the buttons/notes are spaced closer together, allowing you to jump between bigger intervals with ease, which will ultimately allow you to play more complex music. Experienced button accordion players can stretch three octaves with one hand, which would be impossible on the piano accordion
What Features Should I Look Out For On A Beginners Accordion?
As with any beginner instrument you should look for the best quality instrument you can afford. All of the accordions on this list are made by reputable manufacturers, so you can rest assured knowing you’ll get a high-quality instrument and sound.
Beginner’s instruments shouldn’t look, sound, or feel like toys and should be suited for serious learning and your development as a musician. Whilst it’s not always practical to invest in a professional instrument right from the start, getting the best quality instrument your pocket will allow will give you the best possible chance of sticking with the instrument and achieving your musical goals.
To Sum Up
The accordion is an instrument whose popularity has spanned the continents and the centuries. Whatever your reason for wanting to learn, making sure that you have the right instrument for your needs, experience, and goals is key to ensuring your success with the instrument and your continued growth as a musician.
Last update on 2023-04-27 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
