The Coupe Mondiale in Shenzhen, China

[Deleted member 48]

The accordion weekly news is reporting on the 72nd Coupe Mondiale accordion competition this week in China.
Fascinating daily reports with lots of photos are online.
I expect the video reports will be available this weekend.

http://www.accordions.com/

http://www.coupemondiale.org/2019/cn_rev_12_august.html

http://www.coupemondiale.org/2019/cn_shenzhen.html



Many CBA players and PA players in China are participating of course. A great opportunity for the accordion world in China.
The competiton and festival is also the time for important meetings of the international professional accordion scene.

 

[Stephen Hawkins]

Hello Stephen,

It looks like a very interesting event (if you like that kind of thing) and will probably do a great deal to spread the gospel. Though it is not my cup of tea, I recognise the need for publicity of this kind for the future of our chosen instrument.

Kind Regards,

Stephen.

 

[Deleted member 48]

Hello Stephen,

It looks like a very interesting event (if you like that kind of thing) and will probably do a great deal to spread the gospel.  Though it is not my cup of tea, I recognise the need for publicity of this kind for the future of our chosen instrument.

Kind Regards,

Stephen.

Hi junior,

1st and 2nd place are for CBA players, a PA player takes the 3rd place.
Ill sleep like a rose tonight

The competition is only one aspect of this festival, meetings and festivities perhaps are more important than the competitive aspects.

But you can be sure many professional violinists, pianists and other instrumentalists from the classical music scene will be very impressed by the artistic level of these accordion competitions.

Kind regards from senior,
Stephen

Youll find the results in the accordion weekly news:
http://www.accordions.com/news.aspx?d=23-Aug-2019&lang=en#art15738

[font=Arial, Tahoma, Verdana, Arial]Coupe Mondiale category results: Kirill Rusinov (Russian Federation, picture right) was 1st (24.29 marks) and Tian Jianan (China picture right) was 2nd (24.08 marks) in a very close fought competition. [/font]

 

[fphlpsnrg]

Or Tianjin



China itself seems to have a considerable investment in music education.

 

[Thomas N]

Or Tianjin



China itself seems to have a considerable investment in music education.

China has a considerable investment in all education. What's the frightening statistic? More PhD's in China than we have college graduates? Something along those lines.

 

[Deleted member 48]

It is a very positive evolution we see more and more international cooperation in the field of accordion education.
Accordion teachers and concertists touring the whole world to give recitals, concerts, masterclasses, having teaching positions at foreign accordion conservatories and institutions.

Also major record labels and major players in the music industry (DG, Naxos, Sony, ...) are opening the doors for accordionists.

Young Chinese accordion virtuoso Hanzhi Wang is being invited by US American universities to hold masterclasses and give recitals.
Naxos released a solo cd.
She has played classical accordion at Carnegie Hall.
Very good the doors of the holy concert halls of the violin, cello and piano are finally wide open for classical accordionists.

Long gone are the days in the first half of the 20th century when the elite of the classical musical world closed the doors of their holy concert halls for the Schweineorgel (the swines church organ), as it was called in Germany by the elite (source: the Hartmut Berghoff book on the history of the Hohner harmonica and accordion industry in Trossingen)

Interesting interview by Naxos USA with Hanzhi Wang about the accordion in music education.
Wise words by a young accordion virtuoso !

I would give an arm for the new generation of accordion virtuosos to take an active role in the accordion forums on the internet.
We, older generations (well... Im 47 now), can learn a lot from their international professional experiences.
On her tours, Im glad she also made time to perform in Ghent, Belgium.

https://naxosusa.com/6-questions-with-hanzhi-wang/
quote:
There is a quite big difference in perception of the accordion around the world. In Europe, one experiences the accordion a lot, both in smaller or bigger concert halls, as a part of ensembles, and in most of the important academies. In China, it is a fairly new instrument, with lots of enthusiasm and growing possibilities. However, in America, it is still rare to find accordion in the classical world at all. This of course also goes hand in hand with the accordion’s very limited involvement in American music schools, which limits the interest from composers. I look forward to present the accordion as much as possible in the US, since I now have a lot of activity here.

https://marybaldwin.edu/news/2019/0...t-feature-classical-accordionist-hanzhi-wang/

quote:
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Wang’s debut opened the Young Concert Artists Series in New York, in The Peter Marino Concert at Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall, and her Washington, D.C., debut opened the Young Concert Artists Series at the Kennedy Center. In 2018, Musical America named Hanzhi Wang “[/color]New Artist of the Month[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)],” and Naxos released its first-ever solo accordion CD,[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]... [color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)][size=large]performances and master classes at the Manhattan School of Music, Royal Danish Academy of Music, Tianjin Music Conservatory, Beijing’s Capital Normal University, Tilburg and Ghent Music Conservatories (Belgium), and the inaugural 2018 Nordaccordion Festival in Norway.[/color]

[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Wang earned her bachelor’s degree at the China Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, and her master’s degree at the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen.[/color][/size][/color]

 

[maugein96]

It is a very positive evolution we see more and more international cooperation in the field of accordion education.
Accordion teachers and concertists touring the whole world to give recitals, concerts, masterclasses, having teaching positions at foreign accordion conservatories and institutions.

Hi Stephen,

Chinese players seem to mostly play accordion music from other countries, and scores for these are readily available. 

French musette players never had access to Chinese scores so they just composed tunes the way they thought Chinese music should sound:-


Probably about as Chinese as Luikse wafels, or gaufres de liege, depending on your first language, especially when played by a Swiss player, such as in the clip.   

Dont think it would win any prizes in Shenzhen, but it was entertaining in its day.

 

[Deleted member 48]

Not bad at all, the performance of this polka by the Swiss accordion player.

I prefer Swiss chocolate over the gaufres de liège.
As these Swiss newsreaders will tell you, Swiss chocolate is amongst the finest in the world.
That is so very true, Martin

 

[maugein96]

Not bad at all, the performance of this polka by the Swiss accordion player.

I prefer Swiss chocolate over the gaufres de liège.
As these Swiss newsreaders will tell you, Swiss chocolate is amongst the finest in the world.
That is so very true, Martin

Hi Stephen,

I remember the UK TV series but hadnt seen that clip before. We often get different TV programmes in Scotland than they do in England, but maybe I just missed it. 

When I was a kid there was about 25% unemployment in our village, and we often marvelled at places like Switzerland, where everybody seemed to be working and earning megabucks. No doubt Smith and Jones were making a similar comparison. 

I had to move away from the area where I was brought up to find work, and that was 46 years ago. The official unemployment figures for my home area is now 5%, but the pubs, snooker halls, and betting offices are still packed to overflowing during the working day with the other 20% who are supposed to be in employment. 

I could have gone home to Ireland, but the part of Ireland my family are from was claimed by the UK in 1921. Fortunately my grandfather was born in Ireland before 1921 so I am both Irish and British.

The UK government was having a great deal of trouble finding work for its reluctantly acquired British unemployed citizens in the 1980s, so what they would do was to send us to get work across the border in the Irish Republic in County Donegal, and thereby avoid paying us unemployment benefit.

Hope your English is up to it, as if you listen to this clip the employment situation will be clearly explained by the late George Cunningham, who was from Strabane, the same town as my grandfather. Strabane is right on the border between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic. Strabane people dont speak fast at all, its just that people dont listen to them quick enough!   

 

[Deleted member 48]

Smith and Jones was also very popular in Belgium. 
Belgian TV showed the series twice in the 1990s.

The Oxbridge comedy duo were part of our TV education. My TV uncles 

Some of my favorite YT fragments are 
The job interview 
Swiss News 
Police investigation (the capital of France is...) 
The stakeout 
The burial service 
Sprekken Sie Afrikaans 

And the best :
The bomb in the supermarket with the hobo regimental band player 


A thing of beauty is a joy forever. 
Brilliant comedians, finest of British humour. 

Maybe I'll post some fragments in the pub section of this forum.

 

[maugein96]

Smith and Jones was also very popular in Belgium. 
Belgian TV showed the series twice in the 1990s.

A thing of beauty is a joy forever. 
Brilliant comedians, finest of British humour. 

Maybe I'll post some fragments in the pub section of this forum.

Stephen,

My father's aunt was from Cape Town and taught us all quite a few Afrikaaner words, but it was a long time ago. It would appear that I never saw most of the clips you mention, and I'd certainly never seen the Afrikaans clips. I watched a clip where a black waiter was being verbally abused by whites. They certainly wouldn't get away with that these days, but it reminded me of a similar experience I had. 

I had my first encounter with British "racism" when I enlisted in the UK navy. I was required to provide details of my mother's Irish surname. Three times I told them what it was, and the Petty Officer ended up writing "unknown" in the column concerned. I offered to write it down, but was simply dismissed and told, "It's a Paddy name, so it doesn't matter!". They then asked my religion and I said "Presbyterian". The reply was "Never heard of it, you're now Church of Scotland if you're a Jock, or "Roman Candle" if you're a Paddy. Take your pick. Anyway, how come you've got a weird Jock accent, and an even weirder religion? And you'd better learn to speak English properly you bad speaking b*****d, as I can hardly understand a word you're saying!" I'd never imagined such a warm welcome!  

You'd need to be one of us to know the difference between Presbyterian and Church of Scotland, and it's too complicated to describe here. It's basically like calling a Zoroastrian a Muslim because he's from Iran. 

That was in the early 70s when political correctness was unheard of. Maybe they had heard of it, but just couldn't spell it!

The dark skin, and what seemed like an "over correct" English accent of the enlisting officer had me a bit puzzled. Turns out he was Maltese and no doubt his enlistment process was similar to mine, if not worse! He will still speak better English than I ever could though!

 

[Dingo40]

John,

Back in the 1950s, I had a workmate from Glasgow. None of us could understand him over the phone or if he became excited, or both, despite the best of intentions all around.

Here is a sample of what we were dealing with:

---

On a lighter note, there’s this:

---

I must admit, it does become easier after five or ten repeats!
A bit like learning the bases on the accordion, really.

 

[maugein96]

Hi Dingo,

Only people who are born and have lived in the city tend to have "real" Glasgow accents. Those of us from the adjacent areas have our own versions of it, but the differences are sometimes quite obvious. The very high incidence of immigration from Ulster to the area caused the loss of quite a few "standard" Scottish words and phrases. The result is that Glasgow accents are generally referred to as being "West Coast" to people in other parts of Scotland. The term is derogatory, as is the nickname "Weegie", given to people from the area by those from the perceived posher parts of Scotland. "Weegie" is an abbreviation of "Glaswegian".

I couldn't tell one Australian accent from another, but they obviously exist. If it's any consolation to you I can have trouble understanding a Glaswegian on the phone, whether he is excited or not. Glasgow was only 8 miles away from us but their accent could be 800 miles away. Dialects change very rapidly in most parts of the UK, even from village to village. That encourages many to develop a more cultivated accent, but most Scots give away their origin when speaking, even if they're only talking about "this end thet".

 

[Dingo40]

John,
Regarding accents, when we first arrived here in Australia, there was a 1940s BBC accent used by the “posh”/professional class and a roughly “cockney” kind of accent by the rest. (This is a gross oversimplification, of course).
Since then, the two have more or less merged into the middle, though the “ cockney “ vowels can still be distinguished here and there.
I notice Her Brittanic Majesty’s own accent has undergone a major change since the 1950s: quite significantly.
It does seem, however, once a Scot, always a Scot!

 

[maugein96]

John,
Regarding accents, when we first arrived here in Australia, there was a 1940s BBC accent used by the “posh”/professional class and a roughly “cockney” kind of accent by the rest. (This is a gross oversimplification, of course).
Since then, the two have more or less merged into the middle, though the “ cockney “ vowels can still be distinguished here and there.
I notice Her Brittanic Majesty’s own accent has undergone a major change since the 1950s: quite significantly.
It does seem, however, once a Scot, always a Scot!

Dingo,

NZ types have pretty strange vowel sounds, that can sound a bit Scottish at times, although I cannot really describe it. 

I've spoken to Her Majesty twice, and her sister, Princess Margaret, once. Never made any difference, as they still let the corgis foul my garden! 

No, seriously, I was required to perform police guard duty at Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh when the Queen was in residence, and it was customary to answer her if she spoke to you, which was rare. She once made a comment about the terrible wet weather, and another time about the cold. I never detected any difference in her speech at all the second time. 

Before that I was presented with an award at the Scottish Police College by Princess Margaret, and she actually shook my hand after congratulating me. Mind you, she never took her gloves off. Maybe somebody told her I was half Irish!

 

[maugein96]

John,

Back in the 1950s, I had a workmate from Glasgow. None of us could understand him over the phone or if he became excited, or both, despite the best of intentions all around.

Here is a sample of what we were dealing with:

---

On a lighter note, there’s this:

---

I must admit, it does become easier after five or ten repeats!
A bit like learning the bases on the accordion, really.

---

---

Kevin Bridges is actually moderating his accent by quite a margin, as otherwise he would probably need an interpreter. It gets a bit worse in my area, as a lot of oldies used to speak like the lad in this clip. This young lad is probably imitating the speech he heard his grandparents use in County Tyrone in Northern Ireland, while he is waiting for the bus to school in Derry/Londonderry, a few miles away, but in the next county.  

County Tyrone joke:- Last night it was so cold that we all had to sit round the television next to the fire to keep warm. What were you watching? Och well, theres 17 of us, so some of us had to sit round the back of the television, and I havent a clue what the ones round the front were laughing at! 

My mothers family were from County Tyrone, and you might just detect a wee bit of Scottish in the clip. The area was populated by people from Scotland centuries ago and the dialect was formed in time. Irish Gaelic is occasionally spoken in County Tyrone, but youre more likely to hear it ower the watter in County Donegal, so ye are!

My fathers side are from County Antrim, where the accent sounds more Scottish still, but Ill leave that for another time. There is a cracker about a North Antrim air traffic controller. If I can find it Ill post it on the appropriate board. 

 

[Dingo40]

John, 
Interesting story and entertaining clip. I also enjoyed the story about the TV!
all good and thanks!

 

[maugein96]

John, 
Interesting story and entertaining clip. I also enjoyed the story about the TV!
all good and thanks!

Thanks Dingo,

The dialects of Northern Ireland are about 400 years old. They are a fusion of native Irish, together with dialects from Scottish and English settlers who moved to Ulster in the 17th century for various reasons, both religious and political. Consequently, a large number of Northern Irish people have Scottish and English surnames. Some dialects sound more Scottish than others, and various dialects in County Antrim are often mistaken for Scottish.

 

[Alans]

I have tried to find information on the next Coupe Mondiale, the host city and I just couldn't find anything which seems so strange. I'm sure a decision must have been made.

When I watch videos of accordionists playing classical music inevitably they are European. They are wonderful to watch because they
are so incredibly accomplished. I really can't think of more than two N. American accordionists who play classical music, and one
of them is now deceased (and was born in Eastern Europe) and the second plays classical and a range of other music. For some
reason the classical repertoire never caught on in North America but it is still so huge in European countries. The accordion in North America seems to specialize in
ethnic or pop music. It's respect would be so much more highlighted if people here were playing the work of classical masters.

 

[Deleted member 48]

The USA has a very strong tradition in plucked string instrument virtuosos. 
The guitars, mandolins, banjo, dulcimers,... 
Folk,blues, classical,... 

In Russian music history books, the balalaika tradition was replaced by diatonic and chromatic accordion players in the mid and late 19th century. 
The dominant folk instruments were diatonic accordions, garmoshkas, and much later bayans. 

The influence of plucked instruments like balalaika, gusli in Russia was reduced dramatically, and the accordion became very popular. 

Perhaps something stupid like shorter logistic supply lines between Austria and Russia could be a reason. 

In the USA there is also the tradition of the fiddlers today. 
Why only the cajun accordion made a breakthrough, I don't know. 

I think the Chinese CBA player has a point. A network of public music schools is essential. 

There is no difference in musical talents between  people in Russia or the USA, only a different history and other traditions.