Glad that I might have been some help.

May I suggest getting the Chuck Berger video from petosa - priced at about $15 - a lot of good MIDI playing. It looks to me as if he plays the MIDI accordion using acoustic techniques. Joe Petosa (Jr.) would know what kind of equipment he uses. I have found Joe Petosa to be very helpful and gracious when U have had questions. You may be right - you may not need an arranger.

I can understand not wanting to lose your left hand technique. To be honest, I have very little technique because I am self taught and have been playing seriously for only about 8 years - no time to do the bass exercises and Hanon studies. I spend all my time trying to learn tunes, which may be counter productive in the long run.

Good Luck!

RJM