Harmonium

/hɑːrˈmoʊniəm/ noun

Definition

A keyboard musical instrument similar to an organ that produces sound using air-driven reeds and is pumped by foot pedals.

Etymology

From 'harmony' with the suffix '-ium,' invented in the 1800s as a smaller, more affordable alternative to the pipe organ.

Kelly Says

The harmonium was colonial India's gateway drug to European music—missionaries and British settlers introduced it, and it became so popular that Indian classical musicians incorporated it alongside traditional instruments.

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