The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #75694 Message #3084518
Posted By: The Fooles Troupe
29-Jan-11 - 03:53 AM
Thread Name: Some Autoharp Questions
Subject: RE: Some Autoharp Questions
"is there any reason NOT to reconfigure the chords"
Absolutely! Look at the bass side of a Piano Accordion - you will find that the buttons there are not arranged as you ask either. The way called the 'Stradella Bass' system. The Autoharp is arranged in a similar way.
The whole concept is that your middle finger sits on the I chord of the scale. Then the other two fingers then sit on the IV and V chords of the scale. Many simple songs such as many folk songs use the I IV V chord progressions, and having these buttons grouped so closely together just makes life easy, musicians being just as lazy as anyone else.
So you see that there is much very strong music theory as to why they are arranged as you see them.