Steirische Harmonika
Encyclopedia
The Steirische Harmonika is a type of bisonoric diatonic button accordion
important to the alpine folk music
of Austria
, the Czech Republic
, Slovenia
, the German state of Bavaria
, and the Italian South Tyrol
. The Steirische Harmonika is distinguished from other diatonic button accordions by its typically richer bass notes, and by the presence of one key per scale row that has the same tone on both compression and expansion of the bellows, called a Gleichton. The bass notes earn the distinction Helikonbässe because the use bigger reeds with duralumin
reed frames and a special chamber construction that amplifies its bass tones to give it a loud sound reminiscent of a Helicon tuba
.
The name "Steirische Harmonika" literally translates from German
as Styrian accordion, but the use of the adjective steirische stems from the Viennese
dialect
, where it refers to the folk music in general. There is no relationship to the nearby state of Steiermark, or Styria as it is traditionally called in English, even this types of Accordion are in use there as well.
. Accordions with five rows are not a lot in use, but most builders do produce quite a few. On the compression of the bellows, the buttons of one row play the tones from the key's tonic
, and on the expansion of the bellows, the buttons of one row play tones from the key's dominant seventh
. The button which plays the same tone on both the expansion and compression of the bellows is called the Gleichton, translatable from German as "same-tone". Often melodies
require playing buttons from different rows because they cannot be decomposed into tones from the tonic and dominant seventh of a given key.
For each row on the right hand melody side, there are two associated buttons on the outer row of the bass side: one for the root
, and one for the harmony
. On compression, they play the tonic, and on expansion, the dominant. The function of the inner row, however, varies by manufacturer.
Technical Steirische Accordion playing is very advanced especially in Bavaria, Austria and Slovenia.
characteristic of alpine folk music
, but make it difficult to play according to modern musical notation.
To help aid playing the Steirische Harmonika, the Verlag Helbling publishers patented in 1916 a tablature
, which no longer is in current use. It has come to be replaced by a notation called Griffschrift, which was invented by a music teacher from Bärnbach
in Styria named Max Rosenzopf. The notation appears similar to modern notation but maps tones differently to positions on the staff. In 1975 Rosenzopf founded the Verlag Preissler publishing company and printed the first book using the Griffschrift to teach reading notes. Now all notes for the Steirische Harmonika are printed using this notation.
Diatonic button accordion
A diatonic button accordion or melodeon is a type of button accordion where the melody-side keyboard is limited to the notes of diatonic scales in a small number of keys...
important to the alpine folk music
Volksmusik
Volksmusik is the common umbrella designation of a number of related styles of traditional music from the Alpine regions of Germany, Austria, Switzerland and South Tyrol...
of Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
, Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
, the German state of Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
, and the Italian South Tyrol
South Tyrol
South Tyrol , also known by its Italian name Alto Adige, is an autonomous province in northern Italy. It is one of the two autonomous provinces that make up the autonomous region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. The province has an area of and a total population of more than 500,000 inhabitants...
. The Steirische Harmonika is distinguished from other diatonic button accordions by its typically richer bass notes, and by the presence of one key per scale row that has the same tone on both compression and expansion of the bellows, called a Gleichton. The bass notes earn the distinction Helikonbässe because the use bigger reeds with duralumin
Duralumin
Duralumin is the trade name of one of the earliest types of age-hardenable aluminium alloys. The main alloying constituents are copper, manganese, and magnesium. A commonly used modern equivalent of this alloy type is AA2024, which contains 4.4% copper, 1.5% magnesium, 0.6% manganese and 93.5%...
reed frames and a special chamber construction that amplifies its bass tones to give it a loud sound reminiscent of a Helicon tuba
Helicon (musical instrument)
The helicon is a brass musical instrument in the tuba family. Most are BB basses, but they also commonly exist in EE, F, and tenor sizes, as well as other types to a lesser extent....
.
The name "Steirische Harmonika" literally translates from German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
as Styrian accordion, but the use of the adjective steirische stems from the Viennese
Viennese German
Viennese German is the city dialect spoken in Vienna, the capital of Austria and is counted among the Bavarian dialects. Even in Lower Austria, the state surrounding the city, many of its expressions are not used, while farther to the west they are often not even understood.- Linguistic...
dialect
Dialect
The term dialect is used in two distinct ways, even by linguists. One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a characteristic of a particular group of the language's speakers. The term is applied most often to regional speech patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by other factors,...
, where it refers to the folk music in general. There is no relationship to the nearby state of Steiermark, or Styria as it is traditionally called in English, even this types of Accordion are in use there as well.
Description
The Steirische Harmonika has a right-handed melody side and a left-handed bass side. On the melody side, there are three to five rows of buttons where each row has its own keyKey (music)
In music theory, the term key is used in many different and sometimes contradictory ways. A common use is to speak of music as being "in" a specific key, such as in the key of C major or in the key of F-sharp. Sometimes the terms "major" or "minor" are appended, as in the key of A minor or in the...
. Accordions with five rows are not a lot in use, but most builders do produce quite a few. On the compression of the bellows, the buttons of one row play the tones from the key's tonic
Tonic (music)
In music, the tonic is the first scale degree of the diatonic scale and the tonal center or final resolution tone. The triad formed on the tonic note, the tonic chord, is thus the most significant chord...
, and on the expansion of the bellows, the buttons of one row play tones from the key's dominant seventh
Dominant seventh chord
In music theory, a dominant seventh chord, or major minor seventh chord,is a chord composed of a root, major third, perfect fifth, and minor seventh. It can be also viewed as a major triad with an additional minor seventh...
. The button which plays the same tone on both the expansion and compression of the bellows is called the Gleichton, translatable from German as "same-tone". Often melodies
Melody
A melody , also tune, voice, or line, is a linear succession of musical tones which is perceived as a single entity...
require playing buttons from different rows because they cannot be decomposed into tones from the tonic and dominant seventh of a given key.
For each row on the right hand melody side, there are two associated buttons on the outer row of the bass side: one for the root
Root (chord)
In music theory, the root of a chord is the note or pitch upon which a triadic chord is built. For example, the root of the major triad C-E-G is C....
, and one for the harmony
Harmony
In music, harmony is the use of simultaneous pitches , or chords. The study of harmony involves chords and their construction and chord progressions and the principles of connection that govern them. Harmony is often said to refer to the "vertical" aspect of music, as distinguished from melodic...
. On compression, they play the tonic, and on expansion, the dominant. The function of the inner row, however, varies by manufacturer.
Technical Steirische Accordion playing is very advanced especially in Bavaria, Austria and Slovenia.
Weltmeister awards on Steirische Harmonika
- 1987 Zoran Lupinc
- 1996 Toni Bartl
- 1997 Jakob Bergmann
- 1999 Robert Goter
- 2007 Markus Oberleitner
- 2009 Nejc Pačnik
Notation
Notes on the Steirische Harmonika are laid out to make it easy to play music with the tonalityTonality
Tonality is a system of music in which specific hierarchical pitch relationships are based on a key "center", or tonic. The term tonalité originated with Alexandre-Étienne Choron and was borrowed by François-Joseph Fétis in 1840...
characteristic of alpine folk music
Volksmusik
Volksmusik is the common umbrella designation of a number of related styles of traditional music from the Alpine regions of Germany, Austria, Switzerland and South Tyrol...
, but make it difficult to play according to modern musical notation.
To help aid playing the Steirische Harmonika, the Verlag Helbling publishers patented in 1916 a tablature
Tablature
Tablature is a form of musical notation indicating instrument fingering rather than musical pitches....
, which no longer is in current use. It has come to be replaced by a notation called Griffschrift, which was invented by a music teacher from Bärnbach
Bärnbach
Bärnbach is the smallest city of the district of Voitsberg, Austria.The city is popular for its church , manual glass manufacturing and coal mining ....
in Styria named Max Rosenzopf. The notation appears similar to modern notation but maps tones differently to positions on the staff. In 1975 Rosenzopf founded the Verlag Preissler publishing company and printed the first book using the Griffschrift to teach reading notes. Now all notes for the Steirische Harmonika are printed using this notation.
External links
- Script for key layout and displaying chords (Fingering)
- Key layouts
- Questions and a list of builders of Steirischen Harmonikas
- List with web links - makers of Steirischen Harmonikas
- Interesting Pictures of historic Instruments
- Interesting Pictures of historic Instruments, sound samples visit at Kurt Rossacher