Ventura
Been here for ages!
we note at times how small and (thanks to the Internet and Groups)
how close knit we are.. it wasn't that long ago in the dark days of the
great decline that many of us wondered if we might not be the last accordionist alive ?
before GEnie and FidoNet and Rec.Music.Makers.Squeezebox we were
scattered and isolated like the lost tribes of Israel
we also often note the Musicians who have passed on, and the people in the Music Trades
who also contributed mightily to the Accordion, like Faithe Deffner..
often we marvel at the circle of connections too, which is why i would like to commend
to you the life and work of Dennis Houlihan, who was mentioned in another thread. and
who just passed September 5th at the age of 74
As a youth, he cut his teeth in retail out in California, and got Lowrey Organs in his blood,
kinda like i did too at Nick Trombino's music stores around western PA. My turn was led
as a musician, but he went more toward business, so maybe it won't surprise you to hear
he was part of Chicago Music and the Cordovox.. built on a Lowrey Organ-in-a-box as was
the Organo piano-retrofit also marketed by Chicago Music (to the institutional/liturgical market)
and the circle.. would it surprise you to know Rose Caccamise' Dad and Mom were accordion players,
and opened Roxy's Music in Batavia NY as an accordion store, yes, then a full line retailer
with Piano's and (you guessed it) Lowrey Organs.. and were then part of the rollout of
the Cordovox and actually were the #1 Cordovox Dealer in the country for several years running..
Dennis was for a time an important part of the Technics Music division here in the USA,
you may recall my posting about the ground breaking Piano type ensembles and how
their keyboards really changed the trajectory of how friendly and useable computer-assisted
instruments could be. He really loved the Organ, and the Atalier line from Roland was a result
of his leadership during his stewardship, as well as his being a big part of helping
Mr Kakehashi's dream of a Digital Accordion be realized and a success in the marketplace.
so as you can see, he was, many times, an important force behind the scenes to the benefit of
our community, to the greater good of the Accordion, to the greater good of Music.
Dennis was also the head for a time of the National Association of Music Merchants,
and one of his really cool projects was to set up a mechanism for taking living records
from the greats of the industry for posterity.. like the story of Aldo Mengasscini which
many of you watched, his history of coming to America and eventually founding several
Music Companies including the important Bell Accordion.. because of his initiative, there
are over 1000 histories like Aldo's preserved for the future
we are better for him being a part of our history, as Accordionists, as Musicians, as humans
ciao
Ventura
how close knit we are.. it wasn't that long ago in the dark days of the
great decline that many of us wondered if we might not be the last accordionist alive ?
before GEnie and FidoNet and Rec.Music.Makers.Squeezebox we were
scattered and isolated like the lost tribes of Israel
we also often note the Musicians who have passed on, and the people in the Music Trades
who also contributed mightily to the Accordion, like Faithe Deffner..
often we marvel at the circle of connections too, which is why i would like to commend
to you the life and work of Dennis Houlihan, who was mentioned in another thread. and
who just passed September 5th at the age of 74
As a youth, he cut his teeth in retail out in California, and got Lowrey Organs in his blood,
kinda like i did too at Nick Trombino's music stores around western PA. My turn was led
as a musician, but he went more toward business, so maybe it won't surprise you to hear
he was part of Chicago Music and the Cordovox.. built on a Lowrey Organ-in-a-box as was
the Organo piano-retrofit also marketed by Chicago Music (to the institutional/liturgical market)
and the circle.. would it surprise you to know Rose Caccamise' Dad and Mom were accordion players,
and opened Roxy's Music in Batavia NY as an accordion store, yes, then a full line retailer
with Piano's and (you guessed it) Lowrey Organs.. and were then part of the rollout of
the Cordovox and actually were the #1 Cordovox Dealer in the country for several years running..
Dennis was for a time an important part of the Technics Music division here in the USA,
you may recall my posting about the ground breaking Piano type ensembles and how
their keyboards really changed the trajectory of how friendly and useable computer-assisted
instruments could be. He really loved the Organ, and the Atalier line from Roland was a result
of his leadership during his stewardship, as well as his being a big part of helping
Mr Kakehashi's dream of a Digital Accordion be realized and a success in the marketplace.
so as you can see, he was, many times, an important force behind the scenes to the benefit of
our community, to the greater good of the Accordion, to the greater good of Music.
Dennis was also the head for a time of the National Association of Music Merchants,
and one of his really cool projects was to set up a mechanism for taking living records
from the greats of the industry for posterity.. like the story of Aldo Mengasscini which
many of you watched, his history of coming to America and eventually founding several
Music Companies including the important Bell Accordion.. because of his initiative, there
are over 1000 histories like Aldo's preserved for the future
we are better for him being a part of our history, as Accordionists, as Musicians, as humans
ciao
Ventura
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