The bandoneon (Spanish: bandoneón) or bandonion is a type of concertina that is especially popular in Argentina and Uruguay. It is often used in tango music groups. Like other concertinas, it is held between the hands and played by moving air through bellows. The air passes through metal reeds that create sound when buttons on the instrument are pressed. Unlike most accordions, the bandoneon uses the same set of reeds for all sounds and does not have switches that change the pitch. However, the bandoneon can still create expressive music by varying how hard the bellows are pressed. The left hand produces a different sound than the right hand because of a wooden box on the left side. This makes the left hand’s sound more muffled, while the right hand’s sound is usually brighter and sharper.

History

The bandoneon was named after Heinrich Band, a German instrument dealer who lived from 1821 to 1860. It was first created for religious and popular music, unlike its earlier version, the German concertina, which was mainly used for folk music. Around 1870, German and Italian emigrants and sailors brought the instrument to Argentina, where it became part of the early tango music, which evolved from a style called milonga. However, there are no records explaining exactly how the bandoneon reached the Rio de La Plata region. The instrument was also used in other musical styles, such as chamamé.

By 1910, bandoneons were being made in Germany specifically for sale in Argentina and Uruguay. In 1930 alone, 25,000 were sent to Argentina. However, as the instrument became less popular and German manufacturing was disrupted during World War II, large-scale production of bandoneons ended.

The bandoneon was introduced to tango music by composers and musicians like Eduardo Arolas and Vicente Greco. Later, it became part of a group called the sextet, which included two bandoneons, led by Pedro Maffia and Pedro Laurenz. Their playing style and techniques helped shape how the bandoneon was played in traditional tango orchestras.

Original bandoneons can be seen in several German museums, such as the Preuss family's Bandoneon Museum in Lichtenberg and the Steinhart family's collection in Kirchzarten, Freiburg. This collection was moved to the Tango- and Bandoneon Museum in Staufen in July 2014.

Historically, bandoneons were made mainly in Germany, not in Argentina, even though the instrument became very popular there. Because of this, by the 2000s, old bandoneons became rare and expensive, costing about $4,000. In 2014, the National University of Lanús announced a plan to create a more affordable version of the bandoneon made in Argentina, aiming to sell it for about one-third to one-half the price of older models.

Technique

The bandoneon is a type of concertina, held between the hands. When the player pushes or pulls the instrument, air moves through the bellows and passes over reeds that are activated by pressing buttons. Unlike the accordion, where button movement is perpendicular to the bellows, the bandoneon’s buttons move in the same direction as the bellows.

Each button on the bandoneon plays a different note when pushed or pulled. This creates two separate layouts for each hand: one for notes played during the pull and one for notes played during the push. Because the left and right hands have different layouts, a bandoneon player must learn four distinct keyboard arrangements. This complexity often leads tango musicians to focus mostly on the pull stroke, using a special button to quickly close the bellows before continuing to play.

The original bandoneon layouts were designed to help players perform chords in common musical keys, supporting singers in religious settings where no organ was available. Over time, more chromatic keys were added to meet growing musical demands, resulting in many variations.

Bandoneons are sometimes called "diatonic" because each key produces two different notes (push and pull). However, modern tango bandoneons can play in all musical keys, making the term "diatonic" less accurate. Some bandoneon models, like the Ernst Kusserow and Charles Peguri systems, are unisonoric, meaning each button plays the same note on both push and pull. These are popular in Europe but less common in Argentina, where the 142-tone rheinische system remains dominant due to its compatibility with traditional tango music.

In recent years, simplified bandoneons have been developed with keyboard layouts similar to chromatic button accordions. These "hybrid bandoneons" retain the original instrument’s sound but are easier to learn and use. They aim to improve playability by allowing more natural hand movement, like in the western chromatic button accordion or eastern bayan.

Unisonoric bandoneons, especially those in the Peguri system, are sometimes called "chromatic bandoneons" because they were designed from the start to play all musical notes. Unlike bisonoric models, they do not produce different notes on push and pull.

Players

Aníbal Troilo was an important Argentinian musician who played the bandoneon, composed music, and led a tango band in the 20th century. From 1939 to 1944, Ástor Piazzolla, a bandoneon player and composer, worked in Troilo's orchestra. Piazzolla's piece "Fugata," created in 1969, highlights the bandoneon. The music begins with a fugue, a type of melody that repeats and develops, and then transitions into a traditional tango. Piazzolla used the bandoneon to perform solos and provide accompaniment, blending classical music techniques he learned early in his life with traditional tango styles to create nuevo tango, a new form of the genre.

List of manufacturers

A list of some current and historical makers of bandoneons:

• Bandoneón AZ: Ángel y Gabriel Zullo (Argentina)
• Bandoneones A. A.: Alfred Arnold (Germany, until 1948)
• Bandoneones F. F.: Juan Pablo Fredes (Gambier, La Plata, Argentina)
• Bandoneones Baltazar Estol (Argentina)
• Bandoneones Toscano: Vicente Toscano, maker and restorer of bandoneons (Mendoza, Argentina)
• Bandoneon & Concertinafabrik Klingenthal (Germany)
• Mario Bianco (Uruguay)
• Castagnari (Italy)
• Danielson Industria de Acordeões e Bandoneões (Brazil)
• D. & J. Trupin SARL (France)
• Oscar Fisher (Argentina)
• Giustozzi (Italy)
• Handzuginstrumente Carlsfeld (Eibenstock, Germany)
• Klaus Gutjahr (Germany)
• Harry Geuns Bandoneons (Belgium)
• Uwe Hartenhauer (Klingenthal, Germany)
• Museo Luis Alfredo Mariani (La Reja, Moreno, Argentina)
• Pigini Fratelli & C. snc (Italy)
• Premier Bandoneonbau Peter Spende (Germany)
• Stagi Accordions & Bandoneons (Italy)
• Victoria Accordions Company (Italy)

List of repair and tuning services

• Sergio Palestrini (worked on restoration)
• Luciano Dujmovic (specialized in tuning)
• Damián Gutlein
• Taller Galvan (worked on restoration)
• Daniel Barrientos
• Fuelles Rial (made bellows)
• Fuelles del Sur

Prominent players

• Vicente Greco (1888 to 1924)
• Augusto Berto (1889 to 1953)
• Eduardo Arolas (1892 to 1924)
• Anselmo Aieta (1896 to 1964)
• Osvaldo Fresedo (1897 to 1984)
• Pedro Maffia (1899 to 1967)
• Pedro Laurenz (1902 to 1972)
• Ricardo Malerba (1905 to 1974)
• Miguel Caló (1907 to 1972)
• Aníbal Troilo (1914 to 1975)
• Hector Varela (1914 to 1987)
• Juan Cambareri (1916 to 1992)
• Domingo Federico (1916 to 2000)
• Alberto Caracciolo (1918 to 1994)
• Enrique Alessio (1918 to 2000)
• Astor Piazzolla (1921 to 1992)
• Leopoldo Federico (1927 to 2014)
• Juan José Mosalini (1943 to 2022)
• Rubén Juárez (1947 to 2010)
• Claudio Constantini
• Héctor del Curto
• Per Arne Glorvigen
• Gianni Iorio
• Ryōta Komatsu
• Rodolfo Mederos
• Gabriel Merlino
• Dino Saluzzi

Construction

• Alfred Arnold bandoneon. On the right, center, and left sides. Each button is labeled with a number or symbol.

Inside the bandoneon, you can see:

Bandoneon-like instruments

Although these instruments look similar, they are not bandoneons.

Chemnitzer Concertina:
• A Chemnitzer concertina made in 1926
• A Chemnitzer concertina made in 2000

BandoMIneDonI: A purely electric instrument with a MIDI attachment.