Views on Vignoni

[Neoscan]

Hi,
Does anyone have any particular views on Vignoni accordions? I've heard they're very good but just wonder what anyone's experience of them was? I was thinking of getting one of their smaller, 3 voice models.

Thanks

 

[JerryPH]

Well, like everything else, you cannot just ask about a complete company... it's like asking about Ford... is Ford good? Like all things in life, some are, and some aren't. My only experience with Vignoni is with hearing someone play a FS 15 VSX in person... It was stunning, and played by a good player to boot.

 

[Neoscan]

Okay, I'll rephrase- does anyone have any particular views or experience with the Vignoni Ravel 1S or Ravel 2 (or any of the others in the Ravel series)..?? I would hope the FS15 VSX would be stunning for the price it sells for

 

[hais1273]

A friend of mine has two 96 bass continental chromatic Vignoni accordions, one is double octave (LMMH) the other musette (LMMM). I've never heard Mel say any thing negative about them and of course they can sound glorious. The double octave instrument with a slightly "drier" tuning works very well for the Breton dance repetoire.

Last summer I bought a 4 voice 34/96 ( Ravel 2) Vignoni PA. LMMM tuning, with a French Musette sound. I went for full decoration, snazzy blue bellows with a subtle bellows diamond. I suppose the quality of the instrument exceeds my average abilities, but in all honesty the winter of 2015/16 was vile for a number of personal reasons, so this was a present to myself for putting up with a lot of &%^$! Having ridden motorcycles for most of my adult life, I cast an eye over a couple of Harley-Davidson motorcycles ( I always wanted an Electra-glide) but frankly with good used models at around £12K and new ones starting round the £21K mark, a new box seems good value. And who wants to be another sad old git on a bike anyway!

Anyway, the keyboard is fast with a light touch, lighter than the 30 key Fantini i'm fortunate enough to have as well. The reeds respond instantly and will sing out as loudly or softly as you could want. The bass responds instantly and I'm told by a mandolin player he can hardly hear his instrument if he sits on my left. C'est la vie, as they say! With all the bass reeds sounding it's been describded as "assertive". Was it worth the price tag? In my opinion yes it was! I won't be buying an instrument like this again. It took 8 or 9 weeks from order to delivery and was supllied by Allodi Accordions in Lewisham. Hope this helps a bit.

 

[JerryPH]

What was the price for yours?

 

[Neoscan]

Thanks Hais, that's great help. I'm sure you're new accordion sounds almost as good as a Harley Or maybe just different..! Anyways, it's good to treat ourselves from time to time.

I'll be in London later this month so will take a trip out to Lewisham to try some there. I'd considered a 30 key Fantini too but decided it was just slightly on the small side for me. I noticed Petosa in Seattle do an interesting small 32 key model too called the 'Little Pro Xt' although it's perhaps a little bit out of my price range and also I don't need 4 voices on the right hand- I'm more after something compact for travel and gigs abroad.

 

[hais1273]

That small Petosa sounds good. I'll look it up later. The 30 key Fantini is ideal for the folky music I'm involved in, just occaisionally I could do with a couple of the higher notes. Anyway, it's a good instrument and if played with vigour can drown out a couple of melodica's ( sorry but I loath them) that I sometimes have the" pleasure" of playing with. It's not too big and dosen't take up to much room in the van, as it has semi-swing ( I think ) tuning it can sound good I play with a couple of wet tuned Hohner diatonics.

Hope the trip to Allodi's is succesfull.

All the best!

 

[sjr2]

A friend in my accordion class has Ravel 2 which is really nice and would have been my choice for a 3 voice. However I recently upgraded to a Ravel 2bx 4 voice double cassotto with a Mano reeds. Really nice sound, fantastic build quality and I'm very pleased with it.

 

[Howie]

As a coincidence, during my usual youtube accordion browsing I stumbled on this:
Making of a Vignoni Accordion

 

[hais1273]

I had a look for the Petosa 32 key, but without success, However I note that a Vignoni 32/96 instrument has appeared on Emilio Allodi's website in the last few days, looks like an intriguing little beast to me. I wonder if they are essentially the same instrument?

 

[Neoscan]

Thats a great link to the Vignoni factory- it really is a hands on craft!

The Petisa link is here: https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=l..._AUICygD&biw=375&bih=559#imgrc=HKcXCcozUM-QUM :

Compared to Fantini and Vignoni the Petosas seem to be overpriced- a lot less accordion for the price.

Yes, I also noticed the link on the Alodi site. Having played a 34 key Fantini today Im really thinking the difference between 32 and 34 keys is not worth worrying about. In fact the 34 key spec may even be more useful on the rare occasions I need the extra keys.

 

[Howie]

Vignoni goes Baroque - some beautiful Rameau:

 

[roy.jean-pierre@videotron]

Très bonne sonorité merveilleux un Rêve réalisé un jour.

 

[debra]

Just to add a few bits here...
1) Fisart and Vignoni are actually the same thing.
2) Sadly things like the video of the making of a Vignoni accordion are now no longer representative. The Fisart/Vignoni factory/workshop in Castelfidardo closed down several years ago. The brand name was sold to a French company and new accordions made under this name are now supposedly made in France, by different people than those who made the accordions in Italy...
So if you hear a nice Vignoni (like the one played by Jo Brunenberg in the YouTube video posted by Howie) it may or may not be representative of what a new one of similar model may sound like. When you get a used one... it is likely still one made in Castelfidardo.

 

[godgi]

paul i thought fisart had used fisman recently to make their accordions. its on facebook if u dig a little. therefore i wonder if vignoni are still making instruments. i know a guy in scotland called sound cloud or scott cloud was promoting them.
godgi

 

[dunlustin]

Content replaced with the observation that a conversation is much more interesting than a documentary.

 

[debra]

This was the "workshop" of Fisart in Castelfidardo. The building was pretty much deserted and for sale. The picture was taken in 2018.

 

[Jibberin]

I bought a new Vignoni Celtic double octave from Allodi about 12 months ago. On the back of the instrument it states “made in Italy 100%”. I’m very pleased with the instrument and it is a joy to play.

 

[Dingo40]

This reminds me of an old lurk from when country of origin labelling first began.
Label says: "Made in Australia "
The scam is: yes, the label is made in Australia, the item itself comes from wherever!?
(I'm sure this doesn't apply in your case, ?)

 

[debra]

I bought a new Vignoni Celtic double octave from Allodi about 12 months ago. On the back of the instrument it states “made in Italy 100%”. I’m very pleased with the instrument and it is a joy to play.

I'm not disputing at all that new Fisart or Vignoni accordions may well be made in Italy somewhere. It's just that if you think you get an accordion made by the same craftsmen that made these accordions over a decade ago you may be mistaken, because the old "factory" closed down.
But as Dingo40 already said what it says on the label has essentially no meaning. I have a nice Hohner (Morino) Artiste XS that says "Made in Germany", but all Hohner Morino accordions of the N and S series have been made 1) not by Hohner but by Excelsior and 2) made in Italy, not in Germany...
These caveats apply to many accordion "labels". When the "original" factory no longer exists you know the new accordions with that label must be made "somewhere else", and that means also "by someone else" than the original. That implies that no matter how good they still are, they are not the same as the older ones.