Dingo40 pid=68612 dateline=1576463265 said:
A touch of virtuosity (not always appreciated, I see)
She’s another of those who plays chiefly on the draw and hardly, if ever, actually activates the bass buttons. (One wonders if there is a bass mechanism at all?) :huh:
Moreover, she appears to play with the lower bellows strap fastened.
Dingo,
I think what draws a lot of us to the accordion is its traditional association with easier compositions, and many players never really progress past a sort of intermediate stage. Personally, I have neither the ability nor the technical musical knowledge to manage the complicated stuff, but nevertheless still get pleasure out of bungling through on various instruments. I listen to lots of different accordion music, and the focus with soloists tends to be to put on displays of virtuosity. Whilst I do appreciate listening to what they are capable of, I tend to prefer listening to tunes that I might just have a chance of managing to play.
In Scotland there was a duo named The Alexander Brothers, who specialised in playing the sort of material your grandparents would sing along to, although Tom was rather in the shadow of his brother Jack, who was a vocalist. In fact, at the risk of being crucified (again), I would say that most Scottish accordion music is in that same vein. Yet, when Tom Alexander was allowed to play solo he revealed himself to be a very accomplished accordionist, well capable of playing a varied repertoire.
What Ive noticed over the years is that many of the top notch musicians survive on natural ability, and the very notion of asking how others play their choice of instrument is of no interest too them. They automatically find their own way without worrying whether they are doing things properly. Chances are a Brazilian player wouldnt have the first notion of how to play Bach, but in the same way that would be out of his comfort zone, not many classical players with walls papered in diplomas would be able to touch the Brazilian player in his own genres.
I have the greatest respect for musicians who have put years of study into music, and there is no doubt that gives them a distinct advantage when tackling various styles and genres. They have the keys to most of the doors, but it can take years to master some of the most basic folk style accordion techniques which arent in the books.
Dick Dale made a lot of money out of playing electric guitars left handed with the strings upside down, incorporating Lebanese traditional music and associated oriental scales into the American surf style. Nobody could teach him to play like that, but the jurys out on whether he was a true instrumentalist, or whether he was just a passing gimmick. As recently as last year his most famous hit, Miserlou, was getting a lot of air time.
Quite a few accordionists Ive seen play with the bottom strap fastened, and players in the Emilia Romagna area of Italy, and elsewhere, also mainly play on the draw. Debora Sbarra in the clip has been playing pro accordion for quite some time. She is also a northerner from Stradella, and maybe its just the case that northerners do it differently. I dont really know.
Years ago I watched an old VHS video of Italian accordion students in Milan. One entire lesson appeared to be centred on how to breath when playing. Dont know who the teacher was, but the whole thing looked pretty scary. Sorry, Roberto, youve failed the exam. You sneezed when it said cough in the score.
Incidentally, French boxes dont have bellows straps, so Debora Sbarras style wouldnt work there.
Nice clip though, and thanks.
