Tune the accordion

• Aug 14, 2011 - 22:09

Hello:

I'm an accordionist and recently started using musescore to notate some of my arrangements of classical piano pieces. However, much to my dismay, I've discovered that the accordion playback feature, which could be quite handy for quickly checking my notation, is out of tune and thereby all but useless. I am hoping that this out-of-tuneness is an oversight and not a commentary on how you view the accordion. If the latter, please let me assure you that most accordions are, in fact, in tune in the same manner that most pianos, violins, cellos and other instruments are in tune. And I don't think you'd publish this software with an out-of-tune piano playback, would you?

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• Aug 14, 2011 - 22:15

There is for sure no intention of making the accordion out of tune. Do you use MuseScore with the original soundfont ? Which version of MuseScore are you using? WIth which operating system? Can you upload a score to demonstrate which notes are out of tune? or is it the full instrument?

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• Aug 14, 2011 - 22:48

I just noticed this the other day too (MuseScore 1.1, Windows Vista). The whole instrument is pretty flat, although it's worse as you get an octve ore more above middle C. For the OP, it's probably not the default of MuseScore per se, but rather, the soundfont that is included with MuseScore - TimGM6mb. The accordion and similar samples (harmonica, bandoneon, reed organ) are all pretty sour sounding when paired with other instruments, with the accordion the worst of the bunch. The GeneralUser GM soundfont, for instance, is a lot better. Although that too is still perhaps a little "out". Similar with FluidR3 GM. the latter two, though, are close enough that I can believe it was intentional on their part to capture the fact that a lot of accordiaos are not all that well in tune. Whereas on TimGM6mb, it's just painful.

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