Georgian accordion

The Georgian accordion or Georgian Garmoni (Georgian: ქართული გარმონი) is a traditional musical instrument of Georgia. It is especially popular in Tusheti and in Racha. Garmonis can be diatonic or chromatic. This instrument has been modified in the music of different peoples. The result of such adaptation is its variety disseminated in the Caucasus – Caucasian garmoni, Asian garmoni. In the Caucasus garmoni was introduced in the 19th century. The notion Caucasian garmoni is general, as it implies its national varieties, such as: Georgian and Azerbaijani garmonis, Ossetian iron-kandzal-pandir, Adyghean and Kabardyno-Balkarian pshine, Dagestanian komuz. Formation of the Georgian garmoni should have started in the second half of the 19th century. It was made individually in the workshops.

There are three types of Georgian garmoni:

1. early – the so-called Tushetian garmoni;
2. miniature (buzika, tsiko-tsiko) and
3. late – the so-called bass garmoni.

Garmoni can be of different sizes depending on the type and individual customer's request.