A "new" layout for 144 bandoneon (?)

As the readers of this blog know, I play bandoneon 144 and actually I play the same scores playable by the 142 system, and furthermore I'm studying at Buenos Aires, the "temple" of the 142 bandoneon. All this demonstrates that 144 system IS playable at least as well as 142, and is just habit that make people prefer the 142.

Anyway it's been a while that I'm thinking about some changes in the 144 layout.

Left keyboard

As I said previously, the main difference between 144 and 142 systems is in the left side. Well, actually I already consider the left side of the 144 as a perfection of 142, because it's fully chromatic, you have all notes opening and closing and the lowest notes are close to each other. In my opinion, left side of the 144 doesn't need any change.

Right keyboard

Right keyboard of the 144 could gain benefits from a little restyling, in my opinion.

The variations could follow these 5 directives:

• Unify the most as possible the 142 and 144 keyboards;
• Have a more practical, more compact keyboard;
• Complete chromatically the 144, opening and closing;
• extend the range, at least, up to the 142 range;
• add low notes.

I tried to figure out how would be a new right keyboard for the 144 system following those 5 goals. But there is a 6th goal that is quite important, too:

• have a practical instrument, that's to say: not too big, not too heavy.

Adding low notes would affect considerably the weight and the size, so I decided to renounce low notes but complain with the other goals.

And the result is a right keyboard with 39 keys, pretty similar to the 142 system and fully chromatic opening and closing.

With 35 keys on the left and 39 on the right we have a new system: ladies and gentlemen, the 148 bandoneon!