Thanks, Larry. I recognize minor when I hear it, but still have no idea exactly what it is, note wise.
It's pretty simple. If you take a major scale, and flatten the 3rd, 6th and 7th degrees of the scale by one half-step (semitone) each, you have the minor scale.
So take the A major scale: A B C# D E F# G# A
Flatten the 3rd (from C# to C natural), the 6th (from F# to F natural) and the 7th (from G# to G natural) and you have A B C D E F G A. That is the A minor scale. There are no sharps or flats. So on a piano, if you play the white keys only from A to the next higher A, you have played an A minor scale.
There are different minor scales. The one that I describe here is the natural minor scale, which is what most people are talking about when they say just "minor scale" with no further specification.
If you start with the major scale and flatten only the 7th, you have a mixolydian scale (mode). If you flatten the 7th and the 3rd, you have a dorian scale (mode). If you flatten the 7th, 3rd and 6th, you have the natural minor scale, also called the aeolian mode.
I doubt if anyone thought it was an original idea to have the extra buttons, my only curiosity is the configuration of the notes of the extra buttons. It is not simply adding notes, but a little thought into whether push or pull, or both, and which note in what location based on fingering. Been fretting over this a while. Probably a lot of combinations that would work
Nice to see what is old is new again. I used to see a lot of German two row button accordions with the extra buttons as shown on Steves accordion. However please note that there was a reason that the old bass box was discarded and the bass buttons were put on the face of the bass side frame. That made them much eaiser to play and what I think is a nicer looking accordion. I once had a book on the history of Hohner accordions which had pics. of many of those old accordions and also showed the evolution to the newer two row German accordions with the extra buttons in the 1940's. Fingering was not at all what cajuns would used but all that can be changed.