New Podcast and Bach

[Tom]

Ghenadie Rotari has a very interesting podcast including a new interview with "classical" player Margherita Berlanda. Different from your run of the mill accordion podcast. Check it out:

Everything Accordion Podcast | Ghenadie Rotari Concert Accordionist

The page dedicated to the Everything Accordion Podcast created by Ghenadie Rotari

www.ghenadierotari.com

 

[Walker]

Thanks for sharing Tom...

Lovely music by Miss Berlanda, on a Victoria Poeta series instrument with 47 keys and 160 bass buttons (thus giving 48 free bass notes in 5ths) before switching voice. Wonderful accordion player and wonderful instrument. I love the tone.

Notice how centrally placed the left hand is, very little vertical movement despite the complex bass lines. Did you know that this layout of bass notes allows her hold the lowest C1 (4 notes lower than a bayan) and stretch a full 4 octaves on the bass to the highest B without even letting go of the low note - literally a potential stretch of 48 notes.

 

[Tom]

Thanks Stewart! This level of detail is way over my pay grade but I am glad you like it....

 

[Walker]

I find that around almost every corner there is someone on a higher 'pay grade' than me. When I listened to the Bach I was impressed enough to click through to the Youtube page of Miss Berlanda.

And what did I discover... This wonderful accordionist performs a piece of music called Sequenza XIII written by a composer named Luciano Berio, known for his experimental compositions (abstract). I am not really one for highly experimental music, but I was delighted to find that the composer wrote these Sequenza for various solo instruments, including flute, harp, clarinet, cello etc. And yes, XIII was for accordion. I am delighted to find the composer saw our instrument fit to write for.

I am not going to post the recording, as it's not the easiest listen - though actually it is more enjoyable than many other abstract pieces that I find painful at times. So, thank you Tom for introducing me to this accordionist and her repertiore (even though it's far above my pay grade too).

 

[petch]

Thanks for sharing Tom...

Lovely music by Miss Berlanda, on a Victoria Poeta series instrument with 47 keys and 160 bass buttons (thus giving 48 free bass notes in 5ths) before switching voice. Wonderful accordion player and wonderful instrument. I love the tone.

Notice how centrally placed the left hand is, very little vertical movement despite the complex bass lines. Did you know that this layout of bass notes allows her hold the lowest C1 (4 notes lower than a bayan) and stretch a full 4 octaves on the bass to the highest B without even letting go of the low note - literally a potential stretch of 48 notes.

I'm not trying to start a button layout war, but would the disadvantage be that you would have to do a large jump for moving up/down just a semitone?

 

[Tom]

I'm not trying to start a button layout war, but would the disadvantage be that you would have to do a large jump for moving up/down just a semitone?

Hmmmm, not sure I understand the question, Petch.

 

[Tom]

I find that around almost every corner there is someone on a higher 'pay grade' than me. When I listened to the Bach I was impressed enough to click through to the Youtube page of Miss Berlanda.

And what did I discover... This wonderful accordionist performs a piece of music called Sequenza XIII written by a composer named Luciano Berio, known for his experimental compositions (abstract). I am not really one for highly experimental music, but I was delighted to find that the composer wrote these Sequenza for various solo instruments, including flute, harp, clarinet, cello etc. And yes, XIII was for accordion. I am delighted to find the composer saw our instrument fit to write for.

I am not going to post the recording, as it's not the easiest listen - though actually it is more enjoyable that many other abstract pieces that I find painful at times. So, thank you Tom for introducing me to this accordionist and her repertiore (even though it's far above my pay grade too).

Thanks Stewart. Yes, an interesting variety from "contemporary" to baroque.

 

[Walker]

@petch, every treble and bass system has it's own particular super powers.

I wish I had a diagram to show you the layout. But quint is the same as stradella bass, repeated an additional three times on a 160 bass instrument. I have not found individual semi-tone movements to be difficult. That said, if you are playing music that was very heavy on chromatic scales, then the chromatic free bass system would be particularly good. I suppose some systems just suit different types of music.

Miss Berlanda studied with the world renowned accordionist Stefan Hussong in Germany. He plays a totally different bass system to her. Miss Berlanda is on quint (5ths), Mr Hussong is on chromatic free bass. I would like to think that great musicians just have a quiet respect for each others instrument and it's capabilities.

There are amazing accordionists - button or piano.

But for me, the accordionist with the greatest bass technique in the world is Grayson Masefield. I met him once in Glasgow at the world accordion championships (I was a spectator) many years ago. I have never seen anyone play free bass with such frightening athleticism.​

I heard him play this live...



By the end I was drained, and that was just watching.

 

[Tom]

@petch, every treble and bass system has it's own particular super powers.

I wish I had a diagram to show you the layout. But quint is the same as stradella bass, repeated an additional three times on a 160 bass instrument. I have not found individual semi-tone movements to be difficult. That said, if you are playing music that was very heavy on chromatic scales, then the chromatic free bass system would be particularly good. I suppose some systems just suit different types of music.

Miss Berlanda studied with the world renowned accordionist Stefan Hussong in Germany. He plays a totally different bass system to her. Miss Berlanda is on quint (5ths), Mr Hussong is on chromatic free bass. I would like to think that great musicians just have a quiet respect for each others instrument and it's capabilities.

There are amazing accordionists - button or piano.

But for me, the accordionist with the greatest bass technique in the world is Grayson Masefield. I met him once in Glasgow at the world accordion championships (I was a spectator) many years ago. I have never seen anyone play free bass with such frightening athleticism.​

I heard him play this live...



By the end I was drained, and that was just watching.

I once had an accordion lesson from Mr. Masefield. It was great, almost as good as Jerry! You'd think I'd be "good" by now but I'm not.

 

[Vladimir M.]

Hi Walker!

But for me, the accordionist with the greatest bass technique in the world is Grayson Masefield.

I fully agree. It's amazing to combine a genial player with an excellent technical design of free bass. Masefield does not have an ordinary produced instrument; he has an accordion with a unique range. An example: BWV 582. Note that in the ninth bar, Masefield playes even the contra-C! Usual free bass instruments have tonal range only up to contra-E:



For comparison with pipe-organ please this:



A deeper tonal range is not the only significant advantage of his instrument. Notice how quickly and precisely they are the reeds in the instrument able to start sounding - even the deepest voices.

I would like to think that great musicians just have a quiet respect for each others instrument and it's capabilities.

Exactly. A real teacher should show his student the way so, that he does not interfere with it. So, for example: despite the fact that Stephan Hussong plays the piano accordion with the C-system of free bass, he can easily have a student who plays a CBA with B-system. IMHO, it is not the right role of the teacher to produce his/her "mirror image" in the student´s skills, but trying to support his/her uniqueness.

Best regards, Vladimir

 

[saundersbp]

On the bigger subject of education, you might be inclined to agree with the great Jean Brodie:

“The word 'education' comes from the root e from ex, out, and duco, I lead. It means a leading out. To me education is a leading out of what is already there in the pupil's soul. To Miss Mackay it is a putting in of something that is not there, and that is not what I call education, I call it intrusion, from the Latin root prefix in meaning in and the stem trudo, I thrust.”

If you are interested in education I'd heartily recommend the Muriel Spark book or indeed the brilliant film adaptation with Maggie Smith. It explores the consequences ad absurdum of such apparently right sounding views.
By the way, it has recently appeared free on Youtube and I'd heartily recommend it to watch if you never watch another film in your life - utterly brilliant depiction of the artistic teacher and one of the greatest films of all time!

 

[AccordionUprising]

Ghenadie Rotari has a very interesting podcast including a new interview with "classical" player Margherita Berlanda. Different from your run of the mill accordion podcast. Check it out:

Everything Accordion Podcast | Ghenadie Rotari Concert Accordionist

The page dedicated to the Everything Accordion Podcast created by Ghenadie Rotari

www.ghenadierotari.com

I saw that there was a new Accordion podcast. Much more of a interview focussed and classical content than Accordion Noir's weekly train wreck. Look forward to hearing more.

(Your run-of-the-mill Accordion podcaster )

 

[Tom]

I saw that there was a new Accordion podcast. Much more of a interview focussed and classical content than Accordion Noir's weekly train wreck. Look forward to hearing more.

(Your run-of-the-mill Accordion podcaster )

Thanks Bruce! Accordion Noir is awesome, the diversity and breadth of the music, and over so many years. To call it "run of the miil" would be like "Oh yeah, Dick Contino was a pretty good guy who played at Festa a few times...."

 

[AccordionUprising]

Thanks Bruce! Accordion Noir is awesome, the diversity and breadth of the music, and over so many years. To call it "run of the miil" would be like "Oh yeah, Dick Contino was a pretty good guy who played at Festa a few times...."

I tweeted about the podcast and told Ghenadie about your mention. If I get organized maybe I can invite him on our show to raise the tone

Wish there were a dozen more podcasts. We could have conventions and stuff. I really liked the recent one about accordions in film. Again, if I get organized I could rebroadcast that on our show

We should make a list of all the accordion podcasts that there have been over the years, many of them are still available even if they aren’t producing anymore