Diatonic Button Accordion - Multi-row Systems

Multi-row Systems

A one-row DBA has the advantages of being light and compact, but is by its nature limited to the notes of a single diatonic scale. Since the mid-to-late 19th century, instruments have been produced with more than one row in order to give players a greater choice of scales and tonalities.

Multi-row systems can be divided into two broad classes: "fourth-apart" systems and "semitone-apart" systems.