Paris Metro Accordionist

As soon as the accordion player enters the metro, the entire car is filled with an electric joy. A happy and fast song reminds all of the commuters of enchanting afternoon encounters they have had and urges them to look forward to experiencing them again. Most people dig deep into their purses and wallets in search of a token of their gratitude.

Accordions (from 19th-century German Akkordion, from Akkord - "musical chord, concord of sounds) are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone type, colloquially referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist. The concertina and bandoneón are related; the harmonium and American reed organ are in the same family.

The instrument is played by compressing or expanding the bellows while pressing buttons or keys, causing valves, called pallets, to open, which allow air to flow across strips of brass or steel, called reeds, that vibrate to produce sound inside the body. The performer normally plays the melody on buttons or keys on the right-hand manual, and the accompaniment, consisting of bass and pre-set chord buttons, on the left-hand manual.