3. Wellbeing for Accordionists: Adjusting your straps - the key to a good set up

This is part of my ‘Wellbeing for Accordionists’ series, a short blog that turned into a lengthy and self indulgent article that I have split into smaller, more approachable chunks. I’d recommend that you start at the beginning.

(this blog was already getting rather too long and wordy, but I have another setup suggestion coming soon! So check back)

Even if the bass side is as light as a feather, the rest of the instrument still presents an unbalanced mass to contend with. If the entire accordion was weightless, then you would position the keyboard centrally and playing would be like tapping on a neck tie, that would allow for minimal tension in the right arm. Obviously accordions aren't weightless helium balloons, so instead you need to strike a compromise between keeping the right arm comfortable and loose whilst keeping the main weight of the accordion balanced somewhat centrally. Every accordionist will have their own preference unique to their body and playing style and it's important to experiment and find something that suits you. (I have some useful tricks with the straps that I'll come to later)

Strap Types

Straps come in various different sizes, this affects how broad the straps are, how long they are and how cushioned they are. These sizes are loosely linked to accordion sizes. As the accordion gets bigger and heavier, the strap length increases and the need for additional cushioning becomes more apparent. As a general rule, you can't go wrong with a bit of extra padding, but as the padding increases, the straps become broader and this presents its own issues. Due to the single anchor point for both straps (a major design flaw in my opinion) when you have broad straps you may find that the additional cushioning might restrict your neck muscles and actually be less comfortable.

Some manufacturers make each pair of straps the same length but others make the right strap longer to accommodate the left offset that I mentioned earlier.

I'll scratch your back if you scratch mine

Some straps come with an integrated back strap. This links the straps behind you, roughly in the ‘small of the back’ area, you know the one, it’s the bit that’s really hard to itch on your own unless you’ve got really long arms and you’re very flexible. You can also buy separate linking straps that are fairly universal. Personally I think that an integral link is preferable, but there is an issue with any linking strap. You have to be pretty darn flexible to do a link strap up and manufacturers know that so they kindly install them a little further down so that they are easier to reach, however this makes them less effective. Your back straps should ideally be linked directly across your shoulder blades to keep those troublesome scapulas in check. (See below for my link strap hack) The issue is that the linkage itself is often too low to achieve anything other than stopping the shoulder straps from slipping off the shoulders. However when the link strap is raised, it can support the back and helps to prevent winged scapula from developing.

If you don’t have an integrated link strap, I’d recommend replacing your straps with ones that have a built in linking strap. If you'd prefer to keep your straps, you can buy a special linking strap to do that job or you can use a scarf or an old pair of tights or leggings. I have even seen people use bungee straps! Although all of these can be hard to clip on without a second pair of hands. You can buy ‘Velcro’ tape very cheaply on eBay to just wrap around your straps and that works very well, although it may make a mess of that beautiful hand knitted cardi that you’re wearing!

Readjusting your straps: a step by step walk through.

Let's examine how you might go about checking your straps. You'll need your accordion, a piece of paper, a pen, a sharpie or marker pen and possibly a leather punch.

Set the accordion on a rug so you don't scratch it, facing away from you, with the bass side on the left and the keyboard on the right, as it would be when you're actually playing. Untangle the straps and then pull them both gently toward you so you can see the difference (or lack thereof) in length of the two straps. Next, write down which hole each buckle prong is in, always count up as the strap gets longer. There are three buckles for each strap and you should make a note of them all.

Unbuckle the top of the left strap and use the Sharpie to mark a short line (that can be turned into a L or an R later) on the underside of the top buckle on the rough side of leather that's usually hidden.

Finish removing the left strap and take off the right too. Extend them both to their maximum lengths by loosening the central buckles and selecting the furthest holes. Now you can lay them side by side and check if they are the same length. If they differ, the left strap should be shorter, so swap them around if need be. I've come across quite a few accordions being sold second hand with their straps the wrong way round…

Now that your straps are definitely the right way round, change that Sharpie mark to an L or R as appropriate.

Whilst the straps are laid out, check that the holes match up. Older straps may get stretched out and mis-shapened. Sometimes they begin to take on a curve if they’ve been used a lot. This isn’t necessarily an issue but it might mean they take a little time to resettle if you change their lengths.

The Missing Link

I used a leather punch to put extra holes in each strap for the top buckle so that I could shorten them further. They're a bit tricky to get reattach to the anchor point on the accordion, but it's made a difference for me when playing. It also means that my link strap is even harder to click in place, but it's a trade off that I'm happy to make. I have the left top buckle on a tighter hole, whilst the right is one hole looser.

If you have an integrated link on your straps, I'd thoroughly recommend trying this, but the tightest setting may not be right for your body and build. Because of the single anchor point on the top of the accordion (what a failure in engineering!!!), doing this may pinch your neck slightly, which must be avoided. You can test different settings without reattaching the straps to the accordion by securing the link and placing the straps in the right place, putting a finger through the loops of the strap (mimicking the anchor point) and then pulling down on the straps (at the front and back) to imitate the downward pressure of an accordion.

As a side note, I have tried various things to spread the straps further apart at the top anchor point, but as these have only ever been attached to the original anchor, they have added additional length to the straps and they’ve unstabilised the instrument, so they haven’t been workable for me. I think the only real solution if you want to achieve this is to replace the single anchor point with a pair. Some older accordions have two anchor points, but this seems to be out of fashion with manufacturers, at least on the new instruments that I have seen.

Strap Length

Now we need to actually get those straps to the correct length. Before you focus on the main adjustment, I’d recommend setting your bottom buckle to the middle hole (there’s usually three). Although the holes for the middle buckles and the top and bottom buckles usually use the same hole spacings, because the top and bottom buckles double back on themselves, changing the hole will only change the length by half the distance between the holes. This makes them really useful for smaller adjustments. I tend to lengthen my straps by one hole on the bottom buckle once jumper weather sets in and shorten my straps when summer comes around again.

It’s worth hanging tight

How tight the accordion fits your body is, to a degree, a matter of personal preference but I’d argue that you should have your straps as short as possible. Here’s my reasoning:

Because an accordion is heavy, it has inertia. If your accordion is loose and you turn your body slightly to look at someone, then the accordion will pull on your body whilst staying in place, taking up the slack, before swinging round, gathering momentum and then yanking your shoulders around as it comes to a halt. And you probably make these sorts of minor movements all the time when playing, so your body will have to cope with this near constant barrage of wrenching and pulling and yanking. If you contrast that to tight straps that really hug the accordion to you, keeping it really secure, you can hopefully see that although there will still be strain, it won’t be as impactful or concussive.

Last Steps 

The ideal is to make the accordion feel like an extension of your body. When you move, the accordion should move with you; like a cuboid growth!

You can use the holes you had your straps set to as a guide when deciding on the ‘ultimate’ strap length, but don't let them deter you from experimenting.

When you check to see how it feels, play a simple tune that you’re really comfortable with, and move your torso around whilst you play. Don't just focus on the middle of the keyboard, use the full range and check those (possibly unfamiliar!) far ends of the button-board as well.

You should have your left strap set one or two holes shorter than your right. 

It's absolutely fine to punch additional holes into your straps so that they fit you, just don't go too close to an existing hole.

You should aim to consciously check your setup every time you play and make as many or as few changes as you see fit. My strap length has been pretty consistent for the last year, but for the first few months of owning my current accordion I was adjusting them weekly as my body adjusted to the different weight, just trying to get the most comfortable fit.