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Guernseyman
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It's very quiet around here at the moment, so I have a question. Those of you with double octave accordions - do you ever stray into the world of musette music and if so, what registers would you use?
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I play quite a lot of musette on my LMMH accordions
Typical register use is MM or MMH.
There is honestly a lot of angst that is totally unnecessary with players agonising over how they cannot even begin to consider playing musette because their accordion has the wrong tuning etc, etc . Just go for it with whatever you have to hand. Musette on spoons anyone?
Typical register use is MM or MMH.
There is honestly a lot of angst that is totally unnecessary with players agonising over how they cannot even begin to consider playing musette because their accordion has the wrong tuning etc, etc . Just go for it with whatever you have to hand. Musette on spoons anyone?
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High reed plus low reed, musette from outer space.
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maugein96
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Gus Viseur spent most of his professional career playing musette with his two flute reeds dry tuned in unison. I almost bought a Cavagnolo box tuned the same way. It only had two treble reed banks with the coupler giving the facility to switch one or two reeds on. It was a beautiful looking instrument, but I decided against it as the Cavagnolo build quality at the time was questionable.
Gus Viseur also played a Cavagnolo which had a beautiful bassoon register without cassotto, which I believe has been reproduced on Cavagnolo's current "Manouche" model.
Emile Carrara played single reed amplified accordion for a time which sounded awful, but he got away with it. Louis Corchia and Bruno Lorenzoni did the same, but they managed to get a better sound. Andre Astier, Joss Baselli, Joe Rossi, Raymond Siozade, Jacky Noguez, Claude Nouyes, Louis Legrand, Louis Camblor, Marcel Azzola, Jo Privat, Tony Fallone, Tony Murena, and many others hardly ever recorded tunes on full musette at all.
Problem always has been that we foreigners all tend to associate French accordion with those romantic Parisian airs played on sentimental sounding full musette accordions. For a long time after I became interested in French musette I wouldn't even listen to players who never played "musette pur", and it was only after I learned to play a bit that I realised that some tunes weren't written to be played with three voice musette.
There is no doubt, however, that French spec accordions do tend to have have that French sound about them that is not present in other accordions, even on single reed registers. I'm told this is because the reeds are pinned on leather, but do not have enough technical knowledge to confirm that. I have a Marinucci LMM Italian made accordion that I occasionally use to play French musette tunes on. It is a very nice instrument, but somehow doesn't quite manage to get that French ambiance over.
Here in Scotland French musette tunes are regularly played with Scottish musette tuned instruments, and although it sounds strange to me, a good player can make a passable job of it.
Richard Galliano often plays his version of musette using two straight sounding voices on an Italian built Victoria accordion, and it sounds just fine. OK, it might not do for some of the older stuff, but musette has diversified into various different styles. That said, it seems that the younger players have revived the three voice full musette accordion, but I've not kept up with the modern scene very well, so I'm not really sure what is going on today.
I reckon Glenn's advice to just play musette with what you have is a sensible approach, and don't worry if your instrument doesn't have full three voice musette. You don't need it.
Gus Viseur also played a Cavagnolo which had a beautiful bassoon register without cassotto, which I believe has been reproduced on Cavagnolo's current "Manouche" model.
Emile Carrara played single reed amplified accordion for a time which sounded awful, but he got away with it. Louis Corchia and Bruno Lorenzoni did the same, but they managed to get a better sound. Andre Astier, Joss Baselli, Joe Rossi, Raymond Siozade, Jacky Noguez, Claude Nouyes, Louis Legrand, Louis Camblor, Marcel Azzola, Jo Privat, Tony Fallone, Tony Murena, and many others hardly ever recorded tunes on full musette at all.
Problem always has been that we foreigners all tend to associate French accordion with those romantic Parisian airs played on sentimental sounding full musette accordions. For a long time after I became interested in French musette I wouldn't even listen to players who never played "musette pur", and it was only after I learned to play a bit that I realised that some tunes weren't written to be played with three voice musette.
There is no doubt, however, that French spec accordions do tend to have have that French sound about them that is not present in other accordions, even on single reed registers. I'm told this is because the reeds are pinned on leather, but do not have enough technical knowledge to confirm that. I have a Marinucci LMM Italian made accordion that I occasionally use to play French musette tunes on. It is a very nice instrument, but somehow doesn't quite manage to get that French ambiance over.
Here in Scotland French musette tunes are regularly played with Scottish musette tuned instruments, and although it sounds strange to me, a good player can make a passable job of it.
Richard Galliano often plays his version of musette using two straight sounding voices on an Italian built Victoria accordion, and it sounds just fine. OK, it might not do for some of the older stuff, but musette has diversified into various different styles. That said, it seems that the younger players have revived the three voice full musette accordion, but I've not kept up with the modern scene very well, so I'm not really sure what is going on today.
I reckon Glenn's advice to just play musette with what you have is a sensible approach, and don't worry if your instrument doesn't have full three voice musette. You don't need it.
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Another fascinating post, thank you - I can see now you point it out what you say about Gus Viseur's tuning, and I have listened to plenty of his music, but if you had asked me I would have said his tuning was wet tuned. Just goes to show that there are lots of ways to make your presence felt in the music, other than a big tremolo.
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maugein96
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Matt,
Apparently Gus Viseur was also an accomplished guitarist. It seems he was inspired by the Italian accordionist Vetese Guerino, who moved to Paris with his family in 1903 at the age of 8, and died in 1952. Guerino played with Django Rheinhardt, and he was the author of the musette titles Brise Napolitaine and Gallito, amongst other lesser known compositions.
The gypsy guitarists didn't like being drowned out by three voice musette accordionists, who felt that the alternative single voice flute register put them at a disadvantage, so Guerino and others developed the straight tuned two voice instrument in order that they could play in harmony with the manouche guitar. Gus Viseur copied Guerino's dry tuning, but he did tend to give the box plenty of squeeze, which may have given the impression that there was a bit of wetness there. He seems to have been able to transpose guitar runs onto the accordion, and that possibly gave other accordionists the impression that his style was unorthodox.
At various times he possibly did record on wet tuned instruments, although I cannot ever remember hearing him play three voice musette.
I play guitar myself, but have never really studied the gypsy styles, which are quite technically demanding. I can play a lot of stuff on guitar that I can't manage on accordion and vice versa. I do find it easier to play gypsy tunes on the accordion, but struggle to manage them on the guitar. Anybody who can play everything on both instruments gets my hero rating.
Apparently Gus Viseur was also an accomplished guitarist. It seems he was inspired by the Italian accordionist Vetese Guerino, who moved to Paris with his family in 1903 at the age of 8, and died in 1952. Guerino played with Django Rheinhardt, and he was the author of the musette titles Brise Napolitaine and Gallito, amongst other lesser known compositions.
The gypsy guitarists didn't like being drowned out by three voice musette accordionists, who felt that the alternative single voice flute register put them at a disadvantage, so Guerino and others developed the straight tuned two voice instrument in order that they could play in harmony with the manouche guitar. Gus Viseur copied Guerino's dry tuning, but he did tend to give the box plenty of squeeze, which may have given the impression that there was a bit of wetness there. He seems to have been able to transpose guitar runs onto the accordion, and that possibly gave other accordionists the impression that his style was unorthodox.
At various times he possibly did record on wet tuned instruments, although I cannot ever remember hearing him play three voice musette.
I play guitar myself, but have never really studied the gypsy styles, which are quite technically demanding. I can play a lot of stuff on guitar that I can't manage on accordion and vice versa. I do find it easier to play gypsy tunes on the accordion, but struggle to manage them on the guitar. Anybody who can play everything on both instruments gets my hero rating.
george garside
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unless you are a '' purist'' who only plays from music written specifically for the box i.e with coupler settings stipulated for everything then its up to the individual to experiment with whats available on his/her box and bugger the so called ''rules and conventions''
George
George
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maugein96
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Guys like this one eventually persuaded me away from three voice musette. Emile Decotty was a close friend of Andre Verchuren, who played musette pur until the end. Decotty, who deputised for Verchuren for a while after Verchuren was involved in a car crash in Normandy, eventually tended to play in a more modern style such as the tune featured in this You Tube link. Please note that I refer to the 1980s as modern.
Emile Decotty was also friendly with the only Scottish accordionist Ive known who has played professionally in France. Tommy Kettles, whom I believe is still playing, plays a Cavagnolo Vedette accordion which he describes as being a Jo Basile model. Jo Basile was the name used by Joss Baselli for a while.
Ive listened to Tommy playing in a French restaurant in Edinburgh, and he is a top class player. However, as per usual, after he had played a selection of excellent French musette tunes, somebody asked him to play some Scottish reels and polkas. Tommy duly obliged but the way the tunes were played didnt suit one loud critic sitting near me who dismissed Tommys playing as OK, but hed be better playing an instrument that can play Scottish tunes. That is the reason I no longer play French musette to an audience, as if Tommy Kettles was getting shot down with his standard of playing, then I might as well abandon take off at my level.
Emile Decotty was also friendly with the only Scottish accordionist Ive known who has played professionally in France. Tommy Kettles, whom I believe is still playing, plays a Cavagnolo Vedette accordion which he describes as being a Jo Basile model. Jo Basile was the name used by Joss Baselli for a while.
Ive listened to Tommy playing in a French restaurant in Edinburgh, and he is a top class player. However, as per usual, after he had played a selection of excellent French musette tunes, somebody asked him to play some Scottish reels and polkas. Tommy duly obliged but the way the tunes were played didnt suit one loud critic sitting near me who dismissed Tommys playing as OK, but hed be better playing an instrument that can play Scottish tunes. That is the reason I no longer play French musette to an audience, as if Tommy Kettles was getting shot down with his standard of playing, then I might as well abandon take off at my level.
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Nonny Mouse
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My answer to the critic would be "oh good, I've been looking for someone to buy me a new accordion...I fancy this one.. it's £***!" :lol:
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