The International Accordion Festival is coming up next month in San Antonio Texas. We attended this event a couple years ago and had a blast. It looks like there is another excellent line-up.
I'd love to be able to attend this festival again in the future.
Among the performers this year are Guy Klucevsek:
Ivan Milev, playing Bulgarian Wedding Music
Jo Miller and her Burly Roughnecks
The Zydepunks
This one is special...
This version has a Dixieland feel
And for the dressier crowd...
The Basin Brothers
Danny Poulard
The beginning 20 seconds has a technical problem, but bear with it. This is some excellent playing
Here's a pretty waltz. Check out the beautiful tone on this box. Nice!
Hang on tight for this one, and hope the roof stays on...
Caprice composed by Joe Derrane Played by André Bouchard. I can't listen to this piece without smiling!
I've posted this video before but I like it so much I feel like posting it again. It features Dewey Balfa, Nathan Abshire, Tony Balfa and Rockin' Dopsie playing in a school and teaching kids about their musical tradition. There isn't a lot of footage out there featuring Nathan Abshire. Here he plays Jolie Blon. Mr. Abshire, Mr. Balfa and Mr. Dopsie are all gone now. Balfa was an activist, an ambassador for his Cajun cultural traditions.
A culture is preserved one generation at a time.
...but just in case you've been leading a sheltered life, let me just say that June is accordion appreciation month. Don't forget to give your favourite squeezebox player a hug.
I like playing this on the piano accordion....I confess I don't play it all that well though.
Jo-el Sonnier...
Gene Taylor...
Elvis Fontenot and the Sugar Bees
The Ragtime Wranglers...
The Two-tones
This is the Dynatones. This footage is from Seven Springs PA but the Dynatones were from Buffalo New York. I didn't know their music back then, but when I listen to their compilation cd, Vintage Dynatones, I find much of it to be some of the best Polish American polka music recorded.
Here's one I've posted before, and I'll likely post again at some future date. It's the Zosia Polka, and these guys do a killer version. This was recorded just a couple years ago.
The fellow up front playing the Chemnitzer Concertina is Dave Seweryniak, known as Scrubby.
Here's a vintage clip...
This fellow in Guelph Ontario, Nic Schewtschenko, has 60. He has an interesting story too. His ability to repair accordions helped him survive WWII.
There's a new bluesy Bob Dylan record coming out at the end of the month. CBC has a preview cut on-line today. The band on this recording includes David Hidalgo (Los Lobos) playing accordion. I like the sound of the cut featured here. I didn't know what to expect. I didn't think Modern Times was all that compelling (but I loved Love & Theft).
