If you’ve downloaded any of my sheet music, thank you. I sincerely hope it helps you learn your favourite songs on accordion, and strikes a balance between detail and convenience. I try my best to arrange each song to how I would play it myself on piano accordion, whether solo or in a trio. It can also be used for any other type of accordion. If you have any feedback on what could be done better, or what you really like, please send me a message.
#1 – Play how you want to play
Listen to the songs played by other accordionists or groups. Don’t be afraid to play differently – everyone plays songs in their own way, whether intentional or by accident. You may want to simplify some treble chords, add or remove embellishments, improvise the bass runs, and so on.
#2 – Fingering (treble finger numbering)
Fingering is a personal preference, so I only include it on complex treble runs, as a suggestion. The numbering is from 1 to 5, where 1 is your thumb, and 5 is your little finger.
#3 – Bass notation
To save on space and to simplify the sheet music, I do not include a bass clef. Instead, any bar (measure) with a chord change has the new set of bass notes and chords written below it. When playing subsequent bars which do not have any bass notation, you would repeat the same bass pattern from the previous bar.
Consider the example below in 2/4 time (polka):
Upper case letters (eg. “C”, “D”, etc) denote bass notes.
Lower case letters (eg. “c”, “d”) denote bass chords.
Lower case letter (eg. “c”) denotes C major bass chord (3rd bass row).
Upper case letter with number (eg. “C7”) denotes C bass note together with C seventh bass chord. Playing the additional bass chord is optional.
“7” denotes a seventh bass chord.
“m” denotes a minor bass chord.
“dim” denotes a diminished bass chord.
#4 – Counter-bass notation
Bass notes which are underlined represent a counter-bass – a bass button in the first row, closest to the bellows. This makes it easier to reach the desired note.
