Prelude
I have several purposes in my writing these anecdotes about my personal relationship with the accordion. First is to share some of the culture that surrounded the instrument’s immense popularity during the 1950’s and 1960’s as seen through the eyes of an enthusiastic youth. Second, to reflect on some of the accordion’s greatest artists and personalities I had the opportunity to study and perform with. People like Anthony GallaRini, Tito Guidotti, Donald Balestrieri, Glen Stead, Bettie Thomas, Tom Owens, and Oakley Yale. There are many others that became close friends, influenced me, or I was just privileged to know; people like Julio Giulietti, Don Bonham, Leon Sash, Stephen Dominko, Randy Arase, Donald Hulme, Johnny LaPadula, George Mandala, Sylvia Prior, Bill Palmer, there are just too many to list!
This book is not about chronology – in fact, I will guarantee that much of the chronology in this book is inaccurate. Chronology isn’t what this is about. It is about the people. It is about details that defined their personality, the way they approached music, things that were important to them, how the accordion fit into their lives, and how their lives fit into the accordion. If you or a family member ever played the accordion, I hope some of this will resonate and bring back personal memories. If you have never been involved with accordion, this might provide a look at a phenomenon that had an enormous impact on a many people’s lives.
I occasionally poke fun at almost everyone and anything, especially myself. There are other times when I am deadly serious, an attitude that more closely reflects my true self. My intent is not to offend.
I literally abandoned the accordion from 1978 to 2009; almost 30 years! I wouldn’t touch one and would become irritated when people even tried to talk to me about it. I have only recently started to play again. I am not the only person who has followed this path. Our ranks include some of the most brilliant accordionists of all time. People often ask, why? For me, it is not a simple answer. As an interest progresses from a pastime to a passion and ultimately becomes an obsession, it can assume a deep and complex position within everything about us. Internal and even external expectations become all consuming, especially when they aren’t realistic. It is no longer fun! It is no longer spontaneous. Fun and spontaneous may be two of the accordion’s strongest characteristics. Maybe that is my personal realization as I have started playing again. These writings are also part of that process.
I have discussed this with others who have followed a similar path, but I must let them tell their own stories if and when the time is right. It is my responsibility to respect their anonymity.
So this is my story. And for now, I think I will stick with it…
I brought my accordion to the party, but no one asked me to play
