Thoughts on the Petosa Americana P37?

[forró]

I was looking to get myself a Giulietti M37 (for a while now), but when enquiring from Petosa I was told that they no longer sell the Giulietti.
They pointed me to their own Americana series - which is by Petosa, as a sort of value line I gather.
I generally am wary of 'new and better' re-directions - but decided I'd have a look (and listen) anyway.

I can see from a few threads on here that people have had some good experiences with Petosa in general, and also favourably reviewed the Americana.

Any owners here who can give a long term review?
What tuning did you get?
First impressions vs. long term ownership impressions?
Did you have any other customisations - if so, what? etc.
Any issues - major / minor?

Would anyone know how this compares to the Giulietti M37?
I am partial to a 37 / 96.

If you have pictures / videos of your own accordion, that would be great!

 

[ColoRodney]

That photo of me to the left is with my Petosa Antico 37/96 that I bought new around 1985. It has held up just fine, and has a lovely sound. There are quite a few companies making 37/96 accordions. You could do what I did two weeks ago, and fly to a store that stocks them (Petosa or Liberty Bellows are obvious, depending on what you want to look at) and try some out and buy the one you want (or if they don't have exactly what you want, special-order something). You don't want to make a mistake with this big of a purchase.

 

[LibraryJoe]

I am a fan and buyer of accordions both new and used from Liberty Bellows and Petosa. My comment is only a guess, though perhaps someone from the forum might have a definitive answer....
Giulietti and Petosa accordions are produced in the Bugari factory which also produces Zero SETTE accordions. I had an Americana 37/96 PA which I enjoyed but traded up in six months towards a used Petosa Artista. I still own a (new) Giulietti M37.
Check out photos of the various register switches, grill designs, and specs re sizes and weights of the three brands. My GUESS, is that there more similarities than differences between Giulietti, Americana, and Bugari at comparative price points ( Petosa branded models are markedly higher with more expensive features) and are as different as old timers like me might remember from Chevrolets, Oldsmobiles, and Buicks or Fords and Mercurys.

 

[forró]

That photo of me to the left is with my Petosa Antico 37/96 that I bought new around 1985. It has held up just fine, and has a lovely sound. There are quite a few companies making 37/96 accordions. You could do what I did two weeks ago, and fly to a store that stocks them (Petosa or Liberty Bellows are obvious, depending on what you want to look at) and try some out and buy the one you want (or if they don't have exactly what you want, special-order something). You don't want to make a mistake with this big of a purchase.

Thank you ColoRodney.
Unfortunately it's not really an option for me right now to fly from Australia to the US to check out accordions.
Although the last time I was there I was actually contemplating a short domestic flight to do that (probably should have).

Yes, well making that 'big mistake' is there in my mind.
Could also be an expensive endeavour if I fly back without an accordion

 

[forró]

I am a fan and buyer of accordions both new and used from Liberty Bellows and Petosa. My comment is only a guess, though perhaps someone from the forum might have a definitive answer....
Giulietti and Petosa accordions are produced in the Bugari factory which also produces Zero SETTE accordions. I had an Americana 37/96 PA which I enjoyed but traded up in six months towards a used Petosa Artista. I still own a (new) Giulietti M37.
Check out photos of the various register switches, grill designs, and specs re sizes and weights of the three brands. My GUESS, is that there more similarities than differences between Giulietti, Americana, and Bugari at comparative price points ( Petosa branded models are markedly higher with more expensive features) and are as different as old timers like me might remember from Chevrolets, Oldsmobiles, and Buicks or Fords and Mercurys.

OK that is very interesting.

Why did you choose to buy the Americana when you already have the Giulietti?
Which do you prefer, and why?
Pros and cons of both would be great thanks!

 

[ColoRodney]

Ah... didn't see your signature line. Yes, Australia is a bit of a flight. But I expect you would likely be very happy with a Petosa, or Giuletti, or Beltuna, or Brandoni, or Dino Bafetti, any other good 37/96 accordion. It's a good time to buy that size of accordion, if you've got the wherewithal; since a number of companies are making them. Have you tried the 96-bass instruments at Music Junction in Melbourne? They list some Scandallis. I'd lean towards instruments that I can try out in person.

 

[forró]

Ah... didn't see your signature line. Yes, Australia is a bit of a flight. But I expect you would likely be very happy with a Petosa, or Giuletti, or Beltuna, or Brandoni, or Dino Bafetti, any other good 37/96 accordion. It's a good time to buy that size of accordion, if you've got the wherewithal; since a number of companies are making them. Have you tried the 96-bass instruments at Music Junction in Melbourne? They list some Scandallis. I'd lean towards instruments that I can try out in person.

I have been there before - but I didn't realise it was well known overseas.
That accordion section of the shop is a feast for sore eyes, especially if you like Scandallis.

We are certainly lucky to have that not only in Melbourne, but in Australia in general.
I am actually awaiting a call from the main man himself as I want to discuss options with him and get his advice.

I will consider a Scandalli, but it is a bit more on the pricey side,
The Giulietti is cheaper, and more importantly I have just always been drawn to it.
I am sure if I lived somewhere else where there were Giuliettis everywhere, I'd be desiring a Scandalli

 

[LibraryJoe]

OK that is very interesting.

Why did you choose to buy the Americana when you already have the Giulietti?
Which do you prefer, and why?
Pros and cons of both would be great thanks!

I was, and still am to an extent, a sucker for certain brands. My first accordion, at age 12 was a Giulietti. Many years later my teacher, a professional musician extolled his Giulietti, and at one time owned a small 48 bass Giulietti. All were fine instruments, and then I learned the brand folded. When Giulietti returned to the marketplace, the first new accordion I owned was a Giulietti m37. I was very excited.
More adulthood followed, I had read about Petosa, and even visited the store as a side trip to Washington state. My Giulietti was a full 41/120 PA, with slightly narrow keys. By now, I had played 96 bass accordions, and realized I preferred this configuration, with full size keys... thus bought an Americana, and traded in another accordion to lower the price.
I now owned two storied brands. The Giulietti's 41 keys allowed me to progress through the later Palmer Hughes books, but realized the Americana played and sounded like my entry level Giulietti. Time for another trade up... to a used Petosa Artista, with the full Americana price applied.
There's definitely a better sound and response in the Artista. The Giuletti doesn't get played as much. I now prefer full size keys, 37/96 configuration. In my experience, from reputable dealers such as Petosa or Liberty Bellows increasing prices of new accordions will provide an incrementally better playing instrument.
Buying used...a whole 'nuther animal. I'd really recommend trying out used instruments in person, or at least buying from a source which allows at least a couple days to try. I don't think you can go wrong with similarly marketed Americanas or Giuliettis.

 

[ColoRodney]

Actually, Music Junction isn't that famous... I just googled "Accordion stores in Australia" and noticed it was there, and that they happen to have some accordions. It maybe that they can special order something through the store too... I know that when I was curious about a particular brand and emailed the manufacturer in Italy, they sent me to their official distributor in the USA. You could try that with Giuletti and see if they've got a store they work with.

 

[Tommaso B]

I was looking to get myself a Giulietti M37 (for a while now), but when enquiring from Petosa I was told that they no longer sell the Giulietti.
They pointed me to their own Americana series - which is by Petosa, as a sort of value line I gather.
I generally am wary of 'new and better' re-directions - but decided I'd have a look (and listen) anyway.

I can see from a few threads on here that people have had some good experiences with Petosa in general, and also favourably reviewed the Americana.

Any owners here who can give a long term review?
What tuning did you get?
First impressions vs. long term ownership impressions?
Did you have any other customisations - if so, what? etc.
Any issues - major / minor?

Would anyone know how this compares to the Giulietti M37?
I am partial to a 37 / 96.

If you have pictures / videos of your own accordion, that would be great!

I purchased a new 37/96 about 3.5 months ago. It arrived with a couple of hung-up reed leathers--which Joe P himself helped me via a telephone call to quickly persuade to relax into place. No playing problem with it after that, but I must say that the general tonality of the instrument I found to be a bit on the harsh side. That did not come through on the Petosa website video demonstrating its sound characteristics. That could be just my personal assessment of it. Three of its six treble-side stops are, in my judgement, simply unusable, sound-wise. Again in my judgement I'd say, for anyone contemplating an Americana, to seek out one of Petosa's warranted used inventory for about the same or lesser cost as probably a better value, from the playability standpoint. But, to each his own....Petosa has a money-back offer if you find the Americana not to your liking....

 

[forró]

I was, and still am to an extent, a sucker for certain brands. My first accordion, at age 12 was a Giulietti. Many years later my teacher, a professional musician extolled his Giulietti, and at one time owned a small 48 bass Giulietti. All were fine instruments, and then I learned the brand folded. When Giulietti returned to the marketplace, the first new accordion I owned was a Giulietti m37. I was very excited.
More adulthood followed, I had read about Petosa, and even visited the store as a side trip to Washington state. My Giulietti was a full 41/120 PA, with slightly narrow keys. By now, I had played 96 bass accordions, and realized I preferred this configuration, with full size keys... thus bought an Americana, and traded in another accordion to lower the price.
I now owned two storied brands. The Giulietti's 41 keys allowed me to progress through the later Palmer Hughes books, but realized the Americana played and sounded like my entry level Giulietti. Time for another trade up... to a used Petosa Artista, with the full Americana price applied.
There's definitely a better sound and response in the Artista. The Giuletti doesn't get played as much. I now prefer full size keys, 37/96 configuration. In my experience, from reputable dealers such as Petosa or Liberty Bellows increasing prices of new accordions will provide an incrementally better playing instrument.
Buying used...a whole 'nuther animal. I'd really recommend trying out used instruments in person, or at least buying from a source which allows at least a couple days to try. I don't think you can go wrong with similarly marketed Americanas or Giuliettis.

Very cool. Thanks for your story.
I haven't actually played a 37 / 96 before - but I feel like this would be like my ideal size (with the full-size keys as you also mentioned).
I don't understand why they stopped making the Giulietti.

 

[forró]

I purchased a new 37/96 about 3.5 months ago. It arrived with a couple of hung-up reed leathers--which Joe P himself helped me via a telephone call to quickly persuade to relax into place. No playing problem with it after that, but I must say that the general tonality of the instrument I found to be a bit on the harsh side. That did not come through on the Petosa website video demonstrating its sound characteristics. That could be just my personal assessment of it. Three of its six treble-side stops are, in my judgement, simply unusable, sound-wise. Again in my judgement I'd say, for anyone contemplating an Americana, to seek out one of Petosa's warranted used inventory for about the same or lesser cost as probably a better value, from the playability standpoint. But, to each his own....Petosa has a money-back offer if you find the Americana not to your liking....

That is unfortunate!
I can understand some hiccups occur when shipping accordions, I wouldn't mind opening it up to do some tweaks as required.
However, the sound / tonality you mention is a different issue...I too was going based on the sound demonstrations on the website.

Looks like I might have to defer doing an online purchase by video alone.
Thank you for your insight!

 

[LibraryJoe]

Very cool. Thanks for your story.
I haven't actually played a 37 / 96 before - but I feel like this would be like my ideal size (with the full-size keys as you also mentioned).
I don't understand why they stopped making the Giulietti.

I am also surprised that the Giulietti brand is done as Joe(y?) Petosa told you. I wish I had a definitive answer whether or not Bugari/ Giulietti/ and Petosa and/or Americana are all the same instruments different only by the reeds and specific body details. Bugari appears to have a working web page-- Zero Sette not so much. The only online presence of Giuletti is via Petosa or Emilio Accordions who likely gets their Giulietti through Petosa. No Giulietti signage on the Bugari/ Zero Sette factory.

 

[Ventura]

of course there is no Giulietti signage on the Bugari building,
why would there be

the Giulietti family still own all rights to the brand name last i knew..
if their licensing arrangement with the Petosa company has indeed expired
and Mr Petosa has no plans to renew or order any more, then that's it
until and unless someone else makes a new licensing deal with the family
or outright offers to buy the brand name

and i understood the Americana line had absolutely nothing to do with 07/Bugari,
that it is sourced elsewhere

and to Forro: it is easy to understand.. the Giulietti operation closed up shop
many many years ago. Petosa had their own reasons for arranging to
have and market some accordions with the Giulietti name, and now they
no longer see any reason to do so.

it's not like they were actual, real, Giulietti engineered, spec'd and finished accordions..
just something similar with a good sales pitch and shiny letters

 

[debra]

...the Giulietti operation closed up shop
many many years ago. Petosa had their own reasons for arranging to
have and market some accordions with the Giulietti name, and now they
no longer see any reason to do so.
...

The old repair guy who taught me the first bits of accordion repair bought up several of the last unfinished Giulietti accordion bodies (pretty much finished but without reeds) when the Giulietti "operation closed up shop". He loved Giulietti (and even gave me the book "Het Giulietti Geluid" (meaning "The Giulietti Sound") by Sander Neijnens. The book describes the Giulietti history and includes quite a bit of Zero Sette history too.

Any Giulietti-labeled accordion that's less than about 15 years ago (maybe even more) is not a "real" Giulietti "just something similar with a good sales pitch and shiny letters" indeed.

 

[breezybellows]

That is unfortunate!
I can understand some hiccups occur when shipping accordions, I wouldn't mind opening it up to do some tweaks as required.
However, the sound / tonality you mention is a different issue...I too was going based on the sound demonstrations on the website.

Looks like I might have to defer doing an online purchase by video alone.
Thank you for your insight!

I haven't tried the Americana piano accordion. When I visited the shop I did try an Americana CBA. I compared it with a pre owned AM-1100 CBA and I actually liked the Americana better (because the AM-1100 wasn't in the best shape).

I ended up buying a cavognolo CBA that was a third of the price of the Americana.

 

[ColoRodney]

I noticed that Music Junction in Melbourne has a used Giuletti for sale (though they've misspelled it "Gioletti"). That narrow keyboard would probably drive me bonkers. I'd look at that second-hand 96-bass triple musette Excelsior, if I were shopping in Melbourne. Not from Excelsior's glory years, but probably a fine instrument. Or the new Scandalli Tierra, for something new. They've got the 34/96, but it looks like it can be ordered as 37/96 if you like it.

 

[Thomas N]

I purchased a new 37/96 about 3.5 months ago. It arrived with a couple of hung-up reed leathers--which Joe P himself helped me via a telephone call to quickly persuade to relax into place. No playing problem with it after that, but I must say that the general tonality of the instrument I found to be a bit on the harsh side. That did not come through on the Petosa website video demonstrating its sound characteristics. That could be just my personal assessment of it. Three of its six treble-side stops are, in my judgement, simply unusable, sound-wise. Again in my judgement I'd say, for anyone contemplating an Americana, to seek out one of Petosa's warranted used inventory for about the same or lesser cost as probably a better value, from the playability standpoint. But, to each his own....Petosa has a money-back offer if you find the Americana not to your liking....

Indeed unfortunate. In my opinion it's no use owning an accordion that you can't use half of the available sounds. Petosa does offer a trade-up where you could get the full value of the accordion back towards the purchase of another model. I would look into that quickly rather than get more and more frustrated.

 

[OuijaBoard]

Indeed unfortunate. In my opinion it's no use owning an accordion that you can't use half of the available sounds. Petosa does offer a trade-up where you could get the full value of the accordion back towards the purchase of another model. I would look into that quickly rather than get more and more frustrated.

Well, the poster seems to be calling the two sounds "unusable" because they don't like the sound. That is a personal, subjective thing. The two treble settings aren't "unusable" in a true sense. There's another thread active right now about the Victoria Poeta with some commentary about how its characteristic dark, soft, refined voice personality suits some but not others. I don't think it's in doubt that the VP is anything but an exquisite premium instrument. It's just that its characteristic sound isn't a match for every player. Those Americanas have sold very well, and I suspect some might be delighted with their sound.

I would be curious to know which factory is doing them for Petosa. I don't believe it's Bugari/ZS.

 

[Thomas N]

Well, the poster seems to be calling the two sounds "unusable" because they don't like the sound. That is a personal, subjective thing. The two treble settings aren't "unusable" in a true sense. There's another thread active right now about the Victoria Poeta with some commentary about how its characteristic dark, soft, refined voice personality suits some but not others. I don't think it's in doubt that the VP is anything but an exquisite premium instrument. It's just that its characteristic sound isn't a match for every player. Those Americanas have sold very well, and I suspect some might be delighted with their sound.

I would be curious to know which factory is doing them for Petosa. I don't believe it's Bugari/ZS.

Completely agree with everything you said. Half of the sounds are "unusable" to the OP, however, which is a tremendous detriment to owning that instrument for him/her. It wouldn't be much of a problem for me as I use a bassoon sound 95% of the time with occasional switch-over to the Master. Art Van Damme's accordions with only one playable register would suit me personally just fine.