A solo piano accordion item in which one player performs traditional Irish dance tunes on the piano-keyboard accordion, entered individually in one of four age bands and judged on tone, bellows control, touch on the keys, rhythm and the lift of the tune.
Piano Accordion is the solo class for the accordion that has a piano-style keyboard under the right hand. The player presses ordinary-looking black and white keys for the melody, works a bank of small buttons under the left hand for bass notes and ready-made chords, and pumps the bellows to make the reeds sound. Because the keys are laid out like a piano, the instrument feels familiar to anyone who has had keyboard lessons, but the sound is shaped by the bellows rather than by how hard a key is struck, so the arm and the fingers must learn to work together.
On the eTalenter templates the item belongs to the Irish traditional music festival template, where it is the fifth class in the programme, following the fiddle, button accordion, flute and whistle. It runs in four age bands, A Under 12, B 12 to 15, C 15 to 18 and D Over 18, and the programme repeats it in each band’s block. Every entry is Individual and open to both genders, no spoken language is attached because the class is played, and the scoring label is a rating out of 10 with a maximum of 100. The ten-minute ceiling is an app default; the source rules do not print a time limit or a marking scheme for the item.
A round is short and exposed. The entrant is called up, adjusts the straps and plays the tune or tunes they have prepared, most often a reel, jig, hornpipe or polka, with no accompaniment shown in the template. The adjudicators listen to how evenly the bellows are driven, whether the right hand sounds clean and lively on the keys, whether the left hand keeps a light, steady pulse instead of a heavy oom-pah, and whether the playing still sounds like Irish dance music rather than a general accordion piece. The template’s Evidence records that adjudicators sit apart and mark separately, and that results are compiled on a points system of 11, 7, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1 for the top places, so a placing rests on several independent opinions.
Organisers keep a separate piano accordion class because players of the keyboard instrument and the button instrument face different technical problems, and judging them side by side would not be fair to either. The class also welcomes the many young players who start on a keyboard before moving to traditional style, and gives experienced players in the Over 18 band a place to show command of ornament, swing and bellows phrasing.
Where Piano Accordion comes from
Accordions with a piano-style right-hand keyboard were developed in the second half of the nineteenth century and became common in the early twentieth, when mass-produced instruments made them affordable for dance bands. In Ireland the instrument became a regular voice in the dance bands that played for social dances from the 1920s onward, alongside the button accordion, fiddle and drums.
Where Piano Accordion is run
On the eTalenter templates Piano Accordion is used in a single template, the Irish traditional music festival template in the Cultural and Folk Festival category, where it sits among the solo instrumental classes beside Fiddle, Button Accordion, Flute, Whistle, Concertina, Uilleann Pipes, Harp and Banjo. The piano accordion is also a familiar solo and band instrument at folk and dance-music events in many other countries; this page describes only the item as the template carries it.
- Ireland
Key facts
- A solo item, so the template records every entry as Individual
- Four age bands: A Under 12, B 12 to 15, C 15 to 18 and D Over 18, all open to both genders
- Played with a piano-style keyboard under the right hand; the button accordion has its own separate item in the same programme
- Part of the Irish traditional music festival template only; no spoken language is set because the class is instrumental
- Rating out of 10 with a /100 maximum and a ten-minute ceiling; these are app defaults, as the source rules print neither a time limit nor a per-criterion marking scheme
- Adjudicators mark separately and places are compiled on a points system of 11, 7, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1; first prize may be withheld and first and second places qualify to the next level
On eTalenter, Piano Accordion is filed under On Stage and typically scored with Rating out of 10. It appears in 1 ready-made event templates — each one can adjust its time limit, age-group assignment and scoring setup independently.
Across the templates that use it, Piano Accordion is most often entered as an Individual competition, typically scored out of 100, commonly time-limited to around 10 minutes where a limit is set.
What judges look at in Piano Accordion
What a Piano Accordion panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:
- Bellows control: a smooth, even push and pull with clean changes of direction, so that no gap, bump or sudden swell breaks the line of the tune
- Right-hand clarity: keys pressed and released cleanly, with quick ornaments such as cuts and triplets that are small and exactly placed rather than smeared across the phrase
- Left-hand restraint: bass notes and chords used lightly to mark the beat and support the tune, not hammered so that they drown the melody or turn the tune into a march
- Rhythm and lift: a lively, danceable pulse that stays steady through the whole tune, with the accents falling where a dancer would feel them
- Tone and registration: a full, even sound across the keyboard, with the choice of reed switches suiting the tune and used without distracting the listener
- Style: phrasing and variation that sound like Irish dance music, not a light-music or concert arrangement, and a tune choice the player can handle comfortably at pace
Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for Piano Accordion under Scoring Setup, or start from the full instrumental music judging criteria guide.
How to prepare for Piano Accordion
How entrants and their teachers usually get Piano Accordion right on the day:
- Pick tunes you can play cleanly and at pace from memory; a well-driven jig with tidy ornaments earns more than an ambitious reel that wobbles in the second part
- Listen to good traditional players until you can hear how the right hand ornaments and how lightly the left hand works, then copy that restraint instead of filling every beat with chords
- Practise bellows direction on its own with a single repeated note or a slow scale, aiming for a sound that does not change as the bellows turn around
- Work the left hand separately at a slow tempo until the bass and chord changes are automatic, then add the tune over it so you never have to look down
- Use a metronome to build speed gradually, raising the tempo only when the ornaments and the bellows changes are still clean
- Record a full run, listen for rushed bars, heavy chords and bumps at bellows changes, and choose three spots to repair each week
- Check the instrument is in good order, the straps are comfortable and any reed switches work before the day, then rehearse the whole performance from walking up to finishing, and read any adjudication feedback afterwards to set one target for the next event
Ready-made event templates that include Piano Accordion
Open any template to preview it in eTalenter and install it as a live, editable event.
| Template | Category | Score label | Competitions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fleadh Cheoil (Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann) | On Stage | Rating out of 10 | 4 |
Frequently asked questions
Is Piano Accordion judged individually or as a team?
Across eTalenter’s templates it’s most often run as an Individual entry, though an organiser can set either participation type when assigning the item to an age group.
Is a piano accordion the same as a button accordion?
No. Both are accordions, but the right hand plays a piano-style keyboard on one and rows of buttons on the other. The template carries Button Accordion as its own separate item with its own entry list, so choose the class that matches your instrument.
Do I have to play in the traditional style?
The template sits inside an Irish traditional music programme, so entrants are expected to play traditional dance music in that style. The source rules do not print a marking scheme, so check the festival notice for the tune types and any other requirements before you enter.
Is Piano Accordion a team event?
No. The template records every entry as Individual. Duets, trios and bands are separate items in the same programme and are not covered by this page.
Which age band do I enter?
The template has four bands: A Under 12, B 12 to 15, C 15 to 18 and D Over 18. The source rules define them as age-group codes, and the date on which your age is counted is set by the festival, so check the notice before you enter.
Can I use backing or an accompanist?
The template does not show any accompaniment, and the item is a solo class. Check the festival notice if you plan to use anything beyond your own playing.
How is the winner decided?
The template’s Evidence records that adjudicators sit apart and mark separately, and that placings are compiled on points of 11, 7, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1. First prize may be withheld, and first and second places qualify to the next level.
Want the full judging picture? Read the full instrumental music judging criteria guide, or browse every on stage competition item.
Try Piano Accordion in eTalenter
See every ready-made template that runs Piano Accordion, and install one as a live event — age groups, rules and scoring included.
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