Dingo40
Been here for ages!
All music is an acquired taste!
Popularity of accordions where you live
- Thread starter Sunshinexxx
- Start date
Hats off to @murathan for unleashing those glittering nuggets of wisdom!
Behold a mesmerizing world of Caucasian accordion (a geographical area spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia), the foot-stomping Circassian folk melodies (North Caucasia), and a whole lot more. Ace accordionists are flaunting their skills with a big dash of folk on the piano accordion. It's like a historical echo – just when we think we've discovered the new wave with flashy, neon-lit folk accordions or those hip, wooden boxes (a hat tip to the Mcfolkies Clan), it turns out we're just spinning the same old record - keep marching until you hit that sweet spot between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea!
Indeed, the tale takes a turn towards Scotland too... The Circassian Circle, a dance that's kept Scots twirling and whirling since 1822. And what's that sound? It's Colin Dewar's Band, serenading the dancers with tunes on their majestic Hohner Morinos. "Grab your partner, it's time for a Circassian Circle."
Thanks murathan, I've learned about a type of folklore music and dance I never even knew existed, but it has even inspired a Scottish dance.
Fascinating. This instrument seems to be a hybrid of an Azeri garmon and a stradella accordion. Notice the style of playing is like the old way of playing button accordion, with the thumb barely used. Gorgeous music.
Walker
🪗
This accordion design is a real head-scratcher, isn't it? It's the classic 'chicken or the egg' puzzle. Which came first – the technique or the accordion design itself? Let's just say they waltzed into existence together. The thumb as a trusty pivot is pure genius, given the super-short keys, that let you dance across the notes without stretching your hand to reach the ebony keys. And the gaps between the ivories? Sure, they might look like a grin with a few teeth missing, but they're actually a clever ploy to avoid a note-nudging nightmare. The only snag? It's not exactly all fingers on deck, so the everyday piano-accordion player might feel a bit tied up.
And the music of the region? It's like honey to the ears. Sometimes when traditional styles become over-developed, zip along at breakneck speed or show off with flashy techniques, they lose their essence in the shuffle. Elsewhere, a lot of traditional styles have gone full-blown cabaret – I won't point fingers – and turned into something you'd expect with a side of jazz hands, often beefed up with midi for extra pizzazz. That's all well and good, but sometimes the roots of the music and its heritage gets drowned out.
But hey, the accordion tunes from the Caucasus? They've squeezed their way into my top 10 accordion styles. Simply fantastic!
And the music of the region? It's like honey to the ears. Sometimes when traditional styles become over-developed, zip along at breakneck speed or show off with flashy techniques, they lose their essence in the shuffle. Elsewhere, a lot of traditional styles have gone full-blown cabaret – I won't point fingers – and turned into something you'd expect with a side of jazz hands, often beefed up with midi for extra pizzazz. That's all well and good, but sometimes the roots of the music and its heritage gets drowned out.
But hey, the accordion tunes from the Caucasus? They've squeezed their way into my top 10 accordion styles. Simply fantastic!
hais1273
Well-known member
There's a handful of players of Piano and CBA accordions in the Sussex-Kent area, including myself. Melodeons seem to be popular-ish in some circles, including the ones I move in. Many people seem to like them when they hear them but the opportunities for hearing the instrument are diminishing. The Horsham Accordion Orchestra seems to have folded, the Burgess Hill Accordion Club folded a little before covid. The annoying thing is that people like them when they hear them.
murathan
Was a Bassoonist
Here is a good set of Circassian people folk music. These are dance music in different names: Qafe (slow) and Sheshen (fast) for example.
Sunshinexxx
Member
Hais1273, because the sound those instruments are unique and often like in this kind of music like the Circassian people folk music mesmerizing.
Thanks for sharing, Hais1274 and Murathan
RowanSumner
Member
I live over in Kent and there are fairly regularly free accordion performances at churches and the like, mostly classical. I also totally randomly stumbled upon the west Midlands accordion festival recently which was amazing. There are events and things out there if you look hard enough / get lucky!
I'm really studying balkan and classical, but will play a bit of anything really. Its always fun to play with other musicians and I'm up for trying anything
RowanSumner
Member
Thanks for sharing, very interesting!
Sunshinexxx
Member
Thank you for letting us know about the annual festival and your own personal music preference and studies. Good to hear from you and about the performances you get to see.
Sounds all very good
Caps
Active member
I live in Myrtle Beach South Carolina. I don't know anyone else in the area that plays sells or repairs the accordion within a couple hundred miles. Kind of depressing. Busking is prohibited in town. Playing at retirement homes is nice - at least they recognize what an accordion is. To answer the first question as to what style music I like. I like some of each kind... My current favorites are anything by Hank Williams. Mostly pretty easy and everyone recognizes the tunes. Some blue grass favorites and sea shanty tunes are good too.
Ventura
Been here for ages!
Hank Williams..
if the Ocean were Whiskey and i. was a Duck
i'd Dive to the Bottom and drink it all UP
Rye Whiskey Rye Whiskey Rye Whiskey i cry
if i don't get Rye Whiskey well i think i might die
if the Ocean were Whiskey and i. was a Duck
i'd Dive to the Bottom and drink it all UP
Rye Whiskey Rye Whiskey Rye Whiskey i cry
if i don't get Rye Whiskey well i think i might die
RowanSumner
Member
Interesting. I was recently told by a police officer that you need a licence for busking in the UK, but that no one has ever been prosecuted for not having one. I know a lot of musicians who busk and none of them have it. I think there is a basic understanding that if you leave if asked you dont need anything, but if you're not nice about it you might get in trouble!
I used to work above an office where every few weeks a bloke would turn up and play crap tunes really loudly on a keyboard so I kind of understand why people would ask a busker to leave. That being said we never complained
Dingo40
Been here for ages!
Hereabouts, busking is permitted subject to a few commonsense rules (see below).
Currently, there is no fee charged.
See here:
Busking
All you need to know about busking, either as an individual or a group, within the Adelaide city and North Adelaide.
www.cityofadelaide.com.au
Dingo40
Been here for ages!
Sunshinexxx
Member
Didn't Ed Sheeran start his career as a busker? I am glad people are as tolerant as you, Rowan
Caps
Active member
In South Carolina it is left to each town/city to determine whether they will permit busking. In Myrtle Beach they require a regular commercial business license that is several hundred dollars and even then will only allow you to play in one small area of one of the parks. I was told by the city manager that no one has ever been granted a license for busking. kind of comical really. The city manager said the busker had to go in for an audition to see if they were "really musicians" and not just pan handlers. But she didn't know who ran the audition or where. They supposedly have arrested people for busking without a license. The boardwalk stores and clubs are apparently the instigators of the rules. Other towns are more lenient - Conway, about 10 miles west of Myrtle Beach has common sense rules and permits busking in their parks and tourist areas. Some others in the western part of the state have no rules at all other than the usual nuisance ones. In Virginia where I used to live they encouraged buskers every Saturday night. Only rule was one group to a corner and to not block pedestrian traffic and quit at 11 PM.
Busking in Tampa, Florida USA
From City of Tampa wbsite:
"We don’t currently have permits for busking. You can perform in our parks, but since commercial activity is not allowed you can’t directly request payment or charge a fee. You would not be able to set up any extensive equipment, risers, tables, chairs, etc. and amplified sound would not be allowed per City Code Sec. 16-48"
From City of Tampa wbsite:
"We don’t currently have permits for busking. You can perform in our parks, but since commercial activity is not allowed you can’t directly request payment or charge a fee. You would not be able to set up any extensive equipment, risers, tables, chairs, etc. and amplified sound would not be allowed per City Code Sec. 16-48"
Rosie C
Well-known member
A few weeks ago there was a bagpiper in our local high street. He was actually quite good, but the volume was immense. Even having crossed to the other side of the street it was horribly loud and I hurried away as quick as I could, so I feel for the shops he was outside.
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