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Accordions |
The Accordion History
The accordion has a fascinating history. Its starts way back 4,500 years ago with the Cheng or Sheng in China, the first known instrument to use the free vibrating reed principle, which is the basis of the accordion’s sound production.
However, it was Cyrillus Damian, a Viennese instrument maker, who has often been credited with the creation of the first true accordion. According to numerous historical resources, he was the first to patent an instrument of that name, having received royal patronage for his invention in 1829. But later, reports have revealed that the first true accordion made its appearance in 1822 when Christian Friedrich Buschmann put some expanding bellows onto a small portable keyboard, with free vibrating reeds inside the instrument itself. He dubbed it the hand-aeoline and helped spread its fame in 1828 by touring with it.
From then on, several varieties of free-vibrating reed instruments were developed. Some of them are still quite well-known today. As the instrument received a growing popularity, the demand for instruction manuals started to grow. According to certain historical resources, the first textbook featured both the original music and arrangements of familiar pieces written by A. Reisner and was published in Paris in 1832. Several textbooks were produced since then.
Meanwhile, from 1830 onwards, the development of accordion continued at a rapidly accelerating pace. Several varieties of instrument were further developed, such as the bandoneon, the harmonica and chromatic type which still exist today. Perhaps one of the interesting developments from this period was the introduction of what subsequently became known as the Schrammel that comprises an accordion, two violins, and bass guitar. This model was often used at Viennese gatherings and can still be heard today.
In 1863, the first piano accordion was introduced to the public, and many performers regarded it as a means of liberating themselves from being confined to their massive and immobile walls of pipes. That time, one of the artists, Pietro Diero brought his custom built piano accordion to the United States and earned a reputation for himself as the father of the American accordion playing. During the early part of the twentieth century, several manufacturers of this reed instrument began establishing their companies and thanks to pressure from professional players that the standard size and shape of the instrument was formed.
Today, the accordion is truly an international phenomenon. More and more manufacturers of this instrument in the United States were established, but their output according to some researches is small compared to their European counterparts. The large contemporary producers of this instrument are located at Germany, France, USSR, and Italy, not to mention to the other countries.
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Accordion Music Memories
It's every kid's dream to play the accordion in a local talent show, right? OK, well, maybe not so much a dream as
something that seems like fun at the time, but a memory that will make you cringe in horror years later when you look
back at the pictures.
This story is a memory and tip / warning for accordion players everywhere. Actually, it is a valuable tip for anyone
playing a musical instrument on stage where a spotlight will be in use during the show.
We started having meetings and rehearsals for the local talent show about a month and a half before the scheduled date
of the show. The organization putting on the talent show had to rent the spotlight so they planned to only get it in time
for the dress rehearsal, which was the day before the actual show. Therefore, during all the other rehearsals, we only
had the regular fluorscent lighting in the room and the general stage lighting.
On the night of the final dress rehearsal, the person in charge of operating the spotlight could not get it to work so we
went through the rehearsal without it. I had been practicing my accordion faithfully and played a medley of several
songs flawlessly during the rehearsal.
The next day, on the night of the actual talent show, the spotlight was working properly. When it was my turn to
perform, the audience applauded as I walked out on to the stage with my accordion strapped to my chest carrying my
accordion sheet music. I sat down and placed the sheet music on the stand. The general house lights dimmed and the
spotlight came on.
That's when I realized it was time to panic. Stage fright, you think? Not at all, I loved being on the stage with an
audience of hundreds. The reason for panic was because the spotlight was so strong that it shone right through the sheet
music! I couldn't see any of the notes on the pages.
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