Brief report from Frankfurter Musikmesse

[debra]

As some of you already know my wife and I visited the Frankfurter Musikmesse today. We of course concentrated on the accordion manufacturers.
We briefly scanned the publishers area and for those who asked here we did find an accordion solo score for the wals from Amelie. Holzschuh Verlag has some books of which the "Film" one contains that wals, arranged by Hans Gunter Kölz.
Since we only visited halls 8 (publishers and strings) and 9 (piano and accordion) we may have missed some accordion brands. On the way out we walked through hall 11 where all the percussion was and amidst those was Parrot with its accordions. Go figure...
There were chinese, not only Parrot but also Golden Cup and lo and behold these were actually playable. Golden Cup has not yet figured out that the springs on the black keys need to be weaker (or differently placed) than on the white keys. Parrot has. (Black keys are shorter and if the same springs are used the black keys are harder to press than the white keys.)
We were looking for a CBA with convertor and cassotto, not too heavy and not too large or too small. That ruled out companies like Weltmeister or Delicia (no convertor instruments to try) and we skipped some unexpected others like Victoria that appeared to not have brought convertor instruments either.
Let's see if I can remember everything we tried. We tried a lesser known brand, I think <S>Frontalini</S> Cooperfisa (lefthand side a bit loud compared to righthand side and the registers not 100% ok), and skipped some like the steirisch instruments. We tried a Bugari 580 which I found too bulky and heavy and unfortunately they have nothing between that large instrument and the small 540 I have (which I find a bit too small). Pigini had a reasonably sized accordion with 52 notes but strangely enough it goes from low E to very high G (whereas my 540 goes lower to Cis and then goes just to the very high E, again 52 notes but a more useful range).
We tried the new Bugari Evo, hoping for something with Roland technology that would sound like a Bugari. Very disappointing: it sounded just like a Roland. It's an FR8x with some cosmetic differences and a Bugari Evo logo on it. It does not even look like a Bugari, it looks like an FR8x. It might sound ok through a sound system but very bad through its own speakers.
Finally the highlight of our visit: the Beltuna Prestige Paris. 58 notes, absolutely wonderful cassotto sound, completely equal on all three rows in both the L and M register (on all others we tried you can hear the difference between the front and the deeper reed blocks in the tone chamber in either the L or M register). And this instrument is a real accordion, meaning the keyboard is where an accordion keyboard (or any PA keyboard) is, unlike the bayan style where the keyboard is placed more forwards, away from the player's body. It is relatively light too (13.7kg). Unfortunately it is somewhat expensive...
We missed Ballone Burini from the larger brands, and also Hohner. We checked the website and these two were really not there, also not hidden in another hall. Pigini (who makes the higher end Hohners) was there, and also devoted a corner to Excelsior, but nothing about Hohner. Absolutely incredible that the most famous German accordion brand is absent at the largest German music fair. (I'm sure they will be present at the World Music Festival in Innsbruck next month.)
Overall conclusion: for accordions the Frankfurter Musikmesse has less to offer than it used to in the past, and apart from badly sounding electronic instruments (not just Roland and Bugari by the way) there is some evolution but no revolution. Several good quality Italian brands, and just like what we saw and heard on earlier visits we still like Beltuna the best (still sorry we don't own one).

 

[JerryPH]

Thank-you Paul for sharing your visit, insights and experiences from this fair.

 

[dak]

Pigini had a reasonably sized accordion with 52 notes but strangely enough it goes from low E to very high G (whereas my 540 goes lower to Cis and then goes just to the very high E, again 52 notes but a more useful range).

I think thats standard Bayan range without the lowest octave.

We tried the new Bugari Evo, hoping for something with Roland technology that would sound like a Bugari. Very disappointing: it sounded just like a Roland. Its an FR8x with some cosmetic differences and a Bugari Evo logo on it. It does not even look like a Bugari, it looks like an FR8x. It might sound ok through a sound system but very bad through its own speakers.

I dont think it has a chance to sound other than a Roland in the accordion parts unless/until Bugari gets to record/design and store their own complete sound sets. Basically the same type of extra work that had been purportedly done for the FR-8x/Dallapé. I dont think it turned out to be a large differentiator there, however.

Finally the highlight of our visit: the Beltuna Prestige Paris. 58 notes, absolutely wonderful cassotto sound, completely equal on all three rows in both the L and M register (on all others we tried you can hear the difference between the front and the deeper reed blocks in the tone chamber in either the L or M register).

I had tried Beltuna instruments a few years ago at their Swiss distributor and noticed the same. He claimed, however, that this effect was only noticeable for the player, not the listener. No idea whether this is accurate, but for me its me as a player who by far gets to enjoy my playing most, so that would have been a problem for me. Good to hear that they got it under control.

 

[rbs]

Regarding Beltuna accordions, I've noticed both Sandy Brechin and Ian Lothian playing Beltunas.

I saw a top-of-the range Beltuna piano-accordion at last year's Chippenham Folk Festival. A beautiful instrument, but it cost in the region of £7,000. I daren't even pick it up!

 

[Deleted member 48]

The Cooperfisa stand at the Frankfurter Musikmesse

James LESUEUR - Musikmesse 2016


James LESUEUR et Matthieu CHAUSSALET - Musikmesse 2016 (tango)

The Cavagnolo stand at the Messe

Matthieu CHAUSSALET et James LESUEUR

 

[Anyanka]

Regarding Beltuna accordions, Ive noticed both Sandy Brechin and Ian Lothian playing Beltunas.

As does Paul Hutchinson.

 

[debra]

The Cooperfisa stand at the Frankfurter Musikmesse

James LESUEUR - Musikmesse 2016
...

These videos are a good illustration of how difficult it was to really hear what an instrument sounds like.
Fortunately several booths also had a more enclosed room with less ambient noise so that you could hear it better.

 

[JerryPH]

These kinds of shows are not where any final decisions about a high end instrument should be made, but a place to just get a feel. If you are in the market, this is where one can go to whittle out the ones that don't fit well or have bad ergonomics or don't fit your style.

Once you have it down to 2-3 favorite models, this is where you find a dealer that would let you sit with one of your possible purchases in a quiet room and play with it. At this point, I'd even recommend you even record the session so that you can register your thoughts, feelings, impressions and a bit of the sound. After doing this the 2-3 times and possibly even comparing them side-by-side, your brain, heart and ears will choose the best one for you.

Today that is about the only way I would ever make a purchase, if I was buying new.

 

[debra]

These kinds of shows are not where any final decisions about a high end instrument should be made, but a place to just get a feel. If you are in the market, this is where one can go to whittle out the ones that dont fit well or have bad ergonomics or dont fit your style.

Once you have it down to 2-3 favorite models, this is where you find a dealer that would let you sit with one of your possible purchases in a quiet room and play with it. At this point, Id even recommend you even record the session so that you can register your thoughts, feelings, impressions and a bit of the sound. After doing this the 2-3 times and possibly even comparing them side-by-side, your brain, heart and ears will choose the best one for you...

Very wise words indeed!
It used to be better at the Musikmesse. Thursday and Friday would be reserved for professionals so it would be quieter. (Saturday and Sunday were for the general public and I heard they were madness.) I always went as professional, but as of this year all days are open to everyone so they are all madness. The year we chose our first Bugari (1999) we tried instruments at many booths, most in a quiet room so we got a really good impression. Our choice for the Bugari artist cassotto was very clear. The difference in sound between different brands of instruments is really pretty big, and when you can go from one to the next and try them all its easy to tell. This year even the quiet rooms were not so quiet, maybe partly because the accordions were in the same hall as the pianos which was not the case in the past. Still, it was more than good enough to get that feel that lets you whittle out the ones that dont fit well or have bad ergonomics or dont fit your style. The problem for us was that we didnt find *any* accordion that felt right. The Beltuna had the nicest sound, was not too heavy and felt good but was still a bit larger in size than what we wanted. Our problem is that we know exactly the size of instrument that we consider feels right: its the Bugari 508 ARS/C. This instrument is no longer made and has only 46 notes. The 540 has 52 notes but is too small and the 580 has 61 notes and feels too large. Id love a 508 with 52 notes... but alas it does not exist. That size does not seem to exist with any brand.