I am just curious as why accordionists of long ago (Amede Ardoin, Amede Breaux, Iry Lejeune, Octa Clark, and others played on 'D' accordions. The typical accordion now is 'C' with some 'D', correct? Anyone have a opinion why 'D' stopped being the key used and the progression towards 'C' being the norm? Male singing range? Availability of keys in the early 1900's?

I would bet it was because that was what was available at the time.
Le Piquant

I think so, too. There was not much choice, and I guess that the Irish immigrants in the States - and they were an important market - preferred the key of D for playing together with fiddlers.
Jim, did John Kimmel play a lot on D boxes? He may have set the standard for melodeons in the US in those days.
The most common key for button accordions or harmonicas on the European continent, including Germany, was and is still C (C/F or G/C for two-rows)
But why C is the standard nowadays in Cajun music? Dunno!

Well, I have one guess ..

On a good day, traveleing down-hill with the wind,
I can hit that popular "G" in my natural voice that
is so appropriate for the "C" accordion.

I couldn't do that with a "D" box (that would be up
to an "A").

And, the fiddle sounds pretty cool, tuned down a
full step.

Just a guess, but "C" seems to be a good compromise
between fiddle tune-down & vocal range limit.

-- Nick the guess-er

John Kimmel used a Globe "Gold Medal" accordion, which is often considered the holy grail for Irish single row players. The reality is that it's all supply and demand. When most people go to a grocery store they buy what ever apples are available, and accordions were likely the same way. In an age without sales on the internet, you would simply have to buy what was available to you. So if Octa Clark walked into a hardware store looking for an accordion, and the only one they had was a Monarch in D, then he'd probably take it. What other option do you have?
Today we're lucky that we can choose what key our accordion will be. I'm more of a C# kind of guy, and I'm lucky I can get such an accordion, and have it made to suit even.

d is louder than c
for the same money
[higher pitch]

also they match standard tuned fiddles better
for open fingerings

open fingerings are more popular

fiddles tuned standard [D rather than C] are louder - due to higher string tension

so for various reasons - yes that was 'what was available' - but loudness may be the reason they were made that way


wle

I don't think there is a difference in volume from C to D, I own and play both. D is brighter, and has a nice sizzle to it. Eb is even better I know Jim has a G that is loud as loud can be, so pitch does not dictate volume.

Hi Ted. Howz your all purpose-in-the-one-box Van der Aa keeping? Something like this one?:



Any videos yet? - Nout

Just shipped last week, should be here by Wednesday if it doesn't get stuck in customs. Was only a two year wait!

Well,
Glad to see someone with experience and the facts
D is not louder
D being higher pitched pierces through ambient sound
better than C
C and Bb were more common than D in early accordeons

Did you off your Saltarelle, the one with the incorrect basses as I recall ? Sold by a famous B/C player who would not take responsibility even though he had a monetary gain (no matter how small) ?

Anxious to hear your report on the Van der AA,
Yours may be one of the first after his re-re-location.

D accordions are good for playing with fiddle players who like to play in the key of D(because of open strings).Some Cajun fiddlers tune their fiddles down to play with a C accordion. D seems to be popular in Canada.

Easily 80% 0f the one row boxes in Quebec ( not Canada) are in the key of D, followed by C, followed by A , and rarely G.

. . . have to agree that D is not louder .. but higher pitched and " shriller ".

Instrumentals.. fast one.. sound faster and cleaner in D.. Conjunto players will gladly rip a fast Polka in D on a ADG box to show off their virtuoso skills..

The D is like high gear.. or Soprano singing.. cuts through through the backround noise. Little to do with loud .. other than a perceived piercing tone.

Most tuners follow this logic as well.. faster the vibe, sharper to the sound, and D is faster and higher and sharper..

G.

Male singing range has a lot to do with it.

Hitting a high A note is literally impossible for the vast majority of male singers. Even a high G is rarely possible.

Most male voices are Baritone, and a high F is about as far as you can go without it sounding bad.

I believe that only about 10% of men can sing in the tenor range.

I seem to be in the 10% range most of the time.
Le Piquant

Lucky you! Really. It seems to me that a tenor really grabs people's attention to a much greater extent that a baritone or bass.

Oh well, I just wasn't born a tenor, so I just do the best I can as a boring old baritone.

Well 3 years ago I didn't know I could sing. I couldn't carry a note or sing on key, didn't even know what it meant to do so. I started taking lessons and found that you can teach old dogs new tricks, you may not want to see it performing them too often but you can you teach them.
Le Piquant