The adoption of the accordion and other bellow‐blown free‐reed instruments in world cultures.

Free‐reed mouth organs, such as the Laotian khaen or the Chinese sheng, have been known for centuries in Asia. Several free‐reed instruments (such as the accordion, concertina, and harmonium) using bellows rather than the mouth as a wind supply were developed in Europe during the 19th century. As European influence spread throughout the world, so did the adoption of the accordion‐like instruments that penetrate local musical cultures around the world. This paper presents an overview of the usage of bellows‐blown free‐reed instruments in musical cultures of the world. It includes the zydeco accordion of New Orleans, the bandoneon (concertina) of the Argentine tango, and the harmonium of Hindustani music in India.