Ron Flynn, who had conducted the interview with Vince, took it home anyway, and indeed, eventually the reeds rusted. Since the 1990s the Berkeley based group “Baguette Quartette”29 has captured the attention of everyone. By the time the descendents of these immigrants from various provinces and countries settled in Paris, dancehalls were already beginning to enjoy the sounds of the musette accordion players: Émile “Mimile” Vacher (d. 1969), Joseph Colombo, Marceau Vershuren, and Émil Prudhomme were some names that brought about that positive change in attitude.16. A Twentieth Century history of the musette accordion and French musette dance music in Paris and the San Francisco Bay Area, and includes biographical sketches of accordionists whose repertoire included the dance music. The box has suffered and been maligned almost from the moment it breathed in its first breath. A younger generation of accordionists arrived to carry the torch. 30 Michel Saga sings Songs of Paris, Vol I. The piano accordion should always be played with a musette switch on if in the performance of bal musette dancing. Banjos, banjolins, mandolins, guitars, violins, and accordions fueled faster dancing and excited the dancers in new ways. (Not a bad idea at all if you ask me). In the North Bay, a recent transplant is the gravelly voiced, talented Michel Saga whose French Barrel Organ makes the rounds at the local farmers markets, French wineries, and summer picnics. While the Italian communities cultivated the comparable ballo liscio (smooth dancing) music to an art form in the San Francisco Bay Area, the French immigrants had not been quite as successful. Venez faire la révolution ! It took a few decades before the accordion arrived in Paris and its environs. Accordion wizards like Gus Viseur, Tony Murena and Jo Privat took to the road to promote it outside of Paris. Originally, the musette sound was associated with the cabrette, a small goatskin bagpipe; it was one of the most popular folkdance instruments in the 19th century. Ragtime and vaudeville may have competed in the fun and entertainment field but the accordion was everyone’s favorite instrument at summer picnics and dance halls.14 Music catalogs were saturated with arrangements, marches, and polkas but they also expanded the dancehall’s favorite couples’ dances: the one-step, fox trot, mazurka, waltz, and java. clock. Maurice Ravel, Stravinsky, and others were the first to break ranks and abandon the lilting waltzes of the dance halls to concentrate on the erotic impulse in their concert hall. Show Map. 21 I strongly suggest that one read Piaf’s halfsister’s book, Piaf. Bal-musette is a style of French music and dance that first became popular in Paris in the 1880s. The legacy will be that a younger generation can learn how to take the bal musette style of music across several platforms and still maintain the integrity of its origins. With its versatile repertoire and brilliant performance by Odile Lavault on her 4 row chromatic button box, bal musette will not suffer any demise any time soon. In the North Bay, the wine culture produced a home for French and Italians alike. It descended from the musette de cour and had a long history in the dance genre. Some bal musette songs on the CD include Petit Fleur, Domino, Le Gamin de Paris, River Seine. It would be interesting to investigate further in your 78 records collection. ii Flynn, Davison, Chavez. The clarinet or oboe switch is usually heard with more delicate melodies. We can learn new songs and bring them along to a jam session and pull them out decades later to revisit—as old friends. Of course not. https://www.radiotunes.com/cafedeparis, This a brilliant article. à la salle polyvalente sur le thème des séries télévisées. Americans fell in love with the music, the musicians, and the optimistic energy. My French was never any good but my love of the culture flourished. Viseur was one of the most prolific performers who stayed true to the original musette concert. Manouche or a gypsy style playing melded with Swing and musette. It has survived to tell the stories of the Moulin Rouge, the back alleys of Belleville, and the cabaret stages in Pigalle. Sunday, May 6, 2018 at 2:00 PM – 6:00 PM UTC+02. More than a year ago. If there is an official musical instrument of France, it probably became the accordion during this period. p. 74. The birthplace of the bal musette is generally accepted as the Bastille district also called the 12th arrondissement. pin. Currently, they perform in local Santa Rosa café venues and accordion clubs. With so many Italian composers, musicians, accordion manufacturers excelling at what they did, the French music circles had to acknowledge their prodigious contributions to the musette repertoire. French San Francisco. It remains a preferred keyboard choice in Italian ballo liscio performances and recordings, too.22. It was Viennese citizen Cyrillus Damian who may have come up with the prototype of the accordion in 1829. Accordions do not arrive with the switch unless it is installed at the factory or a special request is made to modify the accordion so as to ‘borrow’ a switch, converting it into a musette. The musette-tuned accordion music is immensely appealing, evoking the romantic cafes, sidewalks and dance halls of Paris. This decision to develop more of the French dance repertoire and incorporate French chanson has enabled us to explore a much broader repertoire. Italian immigrants in the south of France, particularly Marseilles, brought their talents and banked on their abilities to give them reliable employment. Maybe we should add some audio examples as well. In the summer of 1989 I was able to fully enjoy being a Francophile at the French Bicentennial. Oxford University Press: 2004. Thanks again. More than a year ago. These one-step dances and fast waltzes reveal the resilience of the human heart as it faces perennial heartache and disappointment in the final minor section (which is almost always the return to the first section of the piece). fêtes locales, repas, voyage organisé, et autres animations annulés. Note that in USA, people call musette accordion music “French Café” music. When the variety of dances expanded between the two World Wars with the java and the apache18 (pronounced ah- PAHSH), the dance halls became a melting pot of desire fueled by laissezfaire attitudes so prevalent during the Roaring Twenties. View credits, reviews, tracks and shop for the 1990 Cassette release of Bal Musette Avec René Dessibourg on Discogs. She enlisted and acquired more musicians as she broadened her repertoire. Its waltz- polka calendar is full and the tri-lingual Alpine communities still arrive on weekends to enjoy the traditional dances.26 In Paris, the Tyrolean bal musettes included multi-instrumentalists who would also perform basic circus acts and clown around as well. Hosted by La Scène. Listen to “Café Parisien” for a fine musette collection (a lot of Gus Viseur) and a little history behind it all. But it was male-dominated as the photograph only shows one female accordionist, probably Yvette Horner. La Bastoche: Bal-Musette, plaisir et crime 1750-1939. Chanson and musette accordion team is comprised of Dave Miotke (accordion) and chanteuse Hélène Attia.32 Both musicians have recreated the Parisian cabaret ambience with a basic script and songs. 4 See pp. The musette switch sounds as though it is slightly out of tune in its “wet” vibrato resonance. These venues provided musette bands to entertain and draw a crowd. It is no wonder that the Lawrence Welk show on American television placed the accordion in the center of its weekly music variety show. Dm Em Y'avait tant de lumière Dm Em Avec eux dans la rue, C Dm Alors la belle affaire C D Le nom du bal perdu? It was there that the accordion would begin its journey. Accordions are delicate creatures! The comparison of bagpipe to accordion is puzzling. i Mary Blume, A French Affair, pp.128-130. Venez passer votre soirée du 31 décembre avec l'A.A.J.S.A. Angel Cabral’s “La Foule” is an example of a dizzyingly fast java. The accordion was bigger, louder, and starting to technically evolve. Understand its origins and you will better appreciate those who have spent a lifetime keeping it alive and well. The cabrette had not improved in hundreds of years. your own Pins on Pinterest bob walker. Antiimmigration attitudes prevailed as Italians tried to assimilate during the first decade. The rough areas of Paris, like Mémilmontant, Belleville, and Pigalle which might only have gas lit dancehalls and open for business only at night. Author’s copy. Unfortunately, the musette accordion couldn’t bend the notes in the same way as a guitar so the accordion disappeared from many jazz manouche bands, staying in the back alleys until Edith Piaf discovered it and legitimized it on stage during her cabaret shows. musette translation in French - English Reverso dictionary, see also 'bal musette',musée',musiquette',muse', examples, definition, conjugation Please don’t play the music in a vacuum. Corino used a Cordavox without the musette switch. Menu à définir. Still, the dance halls were heavily populated and dance bands brought in the ‘vulgar’ instruments, so to speak. He read from “Les Droits des Hommes” as the loudspeakers carried it to tens of thousands of listeners. 32 http://heleneattia.com/ That “despicable accordion” was brought over by those “Ritals” (meaning Italians). If you were reading a basic chart, you could experiment with the motifs, straying from the basic line but keeping up with the unpredictable ad-libbing. bel canto tradition of Beniamino Gigli and Claudio Villa. F Em Non je ne me souviens plus Dm du nom du bal perdu. Shop for Vinyl, CDs and more from Yvette Horner at the Discogs Marketplace. They had reason to be fearful. The broadening collection of European Café songs has blended well and provided even more opportunities to perform in concert settings.34 Due Zighi Baci also has integrated repertoire in its much loved “A Panini on a Croissant” which ran for several months at the French Garden, Sebastopol. Vienna had long been well established as the waltz capital of the world by Johann Strauss. The future of bal musette depends upon open-minded, informed teachers and performers who can demonstrate its beauty, grace, and virtuosity. 30–31. One reed is tuned sharp and the other tuned flat to create a quavering due to the vibrating frequencies. Hide Map. If one plays in A minor in the “A” section; then, it will often be followed by A major in the “B” section. 28 A complete list of his compositions is located in the Corino biographical sketch. In 2008, they brought the French Café to life in one evening at the Marin Theatre Company where the staged soirée played to a packed audience.33. But it comes with a caveat. The denigration subsided when Cabrettists reconciled, some learning to play the new musette. Once jazz infiltrated the musette dance halls, the lively swing style and the graceful vals musette coalesced. A Bassoon or Bandonéon switch is perfect for tangos. However, the abuse level depends on how little you play, more than how much you play. 15 Michael Dregni. Dès 19h: Bal avec l'orchestre OCTOPLUSE (8 musiciens), festif et familial ! 2. bal musette. History Museum www.zighibaci.com. Explore releases from Yvette Horner at Discogs. “Le Petit Valse” exhibits this tendency. Penngrove, CA. Marguerite Monnot, Charles Dumont, and Norbert Glanzberg were Piaf’s stable of composers and pianists. See pp. Another local addition to the bal musette scene has been the talented accordionist Robert Lunceford and his trio “Un, Deux, Trois” with Lisa Iskin, guitar and vocals, and Josh Fossgreen, guitar. Thanks once again. His “Echoes of Paris” is still played at Caffè Trieste. Paris would become its home while the dancehalls became its permanent address. 22h: Antoine Johner alias DJ Guinguett'A !Venez faire la fiesta sur tous les sons actuels ! Afternoon and early evening soirées enabled mixed social classes to mingle, lubricated by alcohol consumption (often absinthe or grenadine mixed with something stronger) while breaking through the social and economic barriers. In 1904 Al Rossi, an Italian Swiss immigrant opened Little Switzerland in Sonoma County. When tenor Michael Van Why completed his music degree at Sonoma State University, his recital concentrated on the French classical repertoire. 5ème titre de l'E.P. 8 Personal interview, July 19, 2008. Flynn Publications: Schertz, TX. Some of them go back to the early 1900s….most are from the 1930s and 40s. Her mise-enscene presentations often involve a realistic background to give her audience an even greater authenticity. Françoise Allemand opened it after the war and it ran successfully for more than three decades. A Twentieth Century history of the musette accordion and French musette dance music in Paris and the San Francisco Bay Area, and includes biographical sketches of accordionists whose repertoire included the dance music. It was 1910 when Pietro and Guido Deiro, (often cited as the two brothers who elevated it in the United States) introduced it on the West Coast. He returned to report that “everybody on the boat enjoyed it.”iii When Vince found that out, he no longer wanted it. French and Italian musette is heard, more often than not, with a specific dance genre, the triple metered waltz.11 The music itself is written with certain common melodic and harmonic techniques including the following characteristics: Melodic embellishments are often used with arpeggios, especially triplet figures, and ornamentations or grace notes precede a new melodic phrase; glissandos are often heard at the dramatic conclusion in a tango-musette genre. This Italian community pulled together to survive the 1906 earthquake and to open music studios where the new wave of immigrants learned to play a new instrument as well as the old concertina. The musette accordion was perfectly suited for the waltz, even more so than piano. 20 Michael Dregni. Musette accordion pieces are often written as a java, a fast dance. 22 My mandolin ensemble’s repertoire remains rooted this genre. 9 Boaz Rubin. your own Pins on Pinterest waltzes, mazurkas, polkas etc. 14 Flynn, Davison, & Chavez, Golden Age of the Accordion. 11 Henri Ducharme, an accordion teacher at Boaz Accordions, in the late 1990s taught wonderful classes that introduced students to specific techniques and styles. One of the most memorable venues was Le Montmartre on Broadway, in San Francisco’s North Beach. Prenez soins de vous et des autres, un bon moral. The musette button box went on to infiltrate and adapt itself to Louisiana’s Cajun, Zydeco, and even French Rockin’ Boogie dance music. Her ensemble has excelled at recreating Rive Gauche and Pigalle’s Parisian café scene. peut-être reportés l' année prochaine !!!! The interdisciplinary shows introduce the audience to the meaning behind the French and Italian songs and educate the listeners so that a greater appreciation is gained through the use of a narration, art slides, and images that explain the text. www.henriducharme.com Lou Casalnuovo, fellow Sicilian accordionist, gave me a manuscript titled “Sogno di Java.”17 Java does not refer to an island, nor is it coffee. If played with expression, joyous exuberance, sensitivity, and grace, the musette waltzes will sound great. 24 Claudine Chalmers. Thanks so much. Mar 16, 2012 - This Pin was discovered by Carlos Bernal. O.Pagani & Bros. 1956. At first, fierce resistance brought about a racialist attitude. Reprint Ernest Deffner Publications, Meneola, NY. Michele “Mike” Corino (b. The Italian equivalent is ballo liscio (smooth dancing) or couples dancing The biogrpahy is remarkable for its audacity, honest portrayal and it is gritty to the core. Due Zighi Baci is a duo of simplicity and with vocal and accordion complexities. During a recent trip to Northern France I bought more than 300 old 78 records from a junk dealer. 25 “Live at Le Montmartre”, San Francisco 1979. The guests and entertainers all roamed on the fringes of society and talked about visiting “Paname” a pseudonym for the darker side of Paris. The dark world of the Moulin Rouge and its class of women (the demimonde) offered acrobatic entertainment, jugglers, exhibition dancing, skits, and special secret hideaways for a clandestine rendezvous. Shortly after returning to the Bay Area in 1998 from a short hiatus, I stumbled into Boaz Accordions. Whether it’s a waltz from a Jean Renoir film (“Complainte de la Butte”) or an intoxicating java from Michel Emer, Due Zighi Baci and so many others continue to provide a great service by sustaining the vitality of French café music that for so long was languishing.35 Together, the bay area is well served by so many great musicians who strive to recreate the charming, energetic bal musette style. These small portable button boxes made little progress and few improvements until late in the century. Basically, the valse musette (triple-meter dance) is a blend of folk music from Auvergne with a light Parisian style of dancing popular at the end of the 19th century. he sanitized version of this book ws the basis for the film titled Piaf. La Fonderie Bruxelles. Accordion Repairs Made Easy. iii Ibid, p. 142. They all carried on the tradition of bal musette even as the style morphed with Swing and Jazz but she never forgot the musette feeling. They catapulted the accordion into the bal musette bands.15 Two sons became bandleaders in the manouche period. November 2001. Soon he and I began to augment the repertoire with French chanson to complement the Neapolitan and Italian canzone. 34 www.eurocafemusic.com 17 “Dream of Java” This dance is included in the sheet music collection. If you prefer, they clashed and created an eclectic challenge for musicians and for dancers alike. One of the most famous Italian immigrants from Marseilles arrived in Paris in time to take advantage of the musette dance craze as well. (The opening chapters are especially relevant.) One of the best stories about the affectionate relationship some accordionist have had with the musette tuning comes from Vince Cirelli, a local legend whose accordion repair studio, Cirelli Accordion Service, has been a Mecca for accordionists since it first opened in 1948.ii If you have played an accordion in the San Francisco Bay Area during the past few decades, it has probably been repaired by him. Hosted by Etoile Musette. Charles Aznavour and others have kept it in their chanson repertoire. "Dans ma tête..." prod et txt par Mimo enregistrement par Manimal Shamanic Technique mix/mastering par Else. Musette still refers to s small backpack used by soldiers and people alike. Will it matter if I don’t have a musette switch? The Italians had to work hard at being accepted. Victorians found it pleasant but by 1900, the Gay Nineties had kicked up its heels. It had been invented in a little town called Salto Canavese outside of Turino. The accordion battle was to take place against one of the most respected, beloved folk instruments to arrive in high society, the cabrette (bagpipe). Show Map. These much loved musette waltzes and javas are given new life in an old context. He fronted his own bands, taught accordion students, and operated the Corino School of Music on Columbus Avenue in North Beach.27 His “Una Notte a Parigi” is representative of a valzer musette genre.28. The Romance language mix challenges both musician and vocalist in new ways. It was coupled by my beginning studies on accordion. Alas, the Darwinian forces worked against the cabrette. 6 www.accordionapocalypse.com For more details about the encounter with Vince Cirelli, Pietro Deiro, and Mike Corino. In college, my French minor helped me to work for the United States Information Agency. One of his first apprentices was Skyler Fell who apparently first started working with him somewhat as a volunteer. Paris was filled with all types of entertainment on the streets and in the old haunts. For example, the big summer film hit of 2001 was Amélie. There are several etymologies for this word. Explore releases from Sanseverino at Discogs. Pour un Bal musette ambiance, typique et variétés, dans une Guinguette. Evidently, according to one source, it is dialect or a corruption of the French “Ça va?” or “How’s it going?” “Ça” is pronounced “Cha” in Auvergnat, and that might have sounded more like “Jaw.” Thus, this fast, somewhat vulgar waltz may have been dubbed Java. It contrasts major and minor in its structure, often using parallel major-minor relationships (rather than harmonic minors). Lou passed away in 2010. Some were in tears, others simply intoxicated. clock. The ballo liscio dances are discussed at length. Even more recently, Due Zighi Baci (Two Little Gypsy Kisses) has been producing its own multimedia cabaret shows to sold-out crowds. His repair shop was just a small part of how he and Judy worked to elevate the status of the beleaguered accordion.5. 18 Apaches (AKA julots) also refers to Belleville’s gangsters and low-lifes. That’s why it is important to “faire le boeuf.” Or as the Zydeco accordionists like to say it: “Laissez les bon temps rouler!” Find friends and jam. Auvergnat immigrants from central France brought the ‘bagpipe’ musette with them when they abandoned the agricultural life for a chance at being middle class shop owners in the urbanized cities. The French repertoire includes all of most memorable songs from Piaf’s best composers, Armenian born French vocalist/composer Charles Azanavour, Claude-Michel Schonberg, Jacques Brel, and classic standards from Cole Porter and Jerome Kern. The Squeeze Box was sexy! This quasiunderworld with its coded signals and gestures came to typify the sleazy demimonde of the public bal musettes. clock. You’re more than welcome Terry. Vince’s successor, technician Skyler Fell, opened her shop in San Francisco c.2006. 5 https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Yes-Accordions-The-squeeze-box-is-making-a-2885490.php 1. musette accordion The mandolinist-guitarist Pete Tarzia (1908- 1981) composed in the bal musette fashion using the idioms so essential to the style. Learning to read music is absolutely essential for a deeper appreciation and to achieve the music’s full potential. Still the musette was heard in all these various venues and on the streets of Paris that led to the guinguettes. This structural form is instantly recognizable, with its minor keys that shift the emotional response to a sad, nostalgic ambience, often coupled with jaunty triplets, and embracing melodies in the major section. Prenez soins de vous et des autres, un bon moral, a très bientôt pour guincher Musicalement Votre, *****************************************. In the late 1930s, the fusion of Swing and Jazz produced an exotic influence known as Manouche. Casino, pour une Fête locale, l'animation dans un C.C.A.S.. Arcadia Publishing: 2001. location_on Bal musette avec Dominic Allan 37600 BEAULIEU-LES-LOCHES smartphone Toon nummer smartphone 06 62 86 52 10 mail_outline Bekijk de mail mail_outline contact@guinguette-lesjavanaises.com Just as Piaf brought her snappy javas and mournful songs to the streets of Paris, Due Zighi Baci has been bringing these songs to a younger audience who may have never heard of these songs. Shop for Vinyl, CDs and more from Sanseverino at the Discogs Marketplace. Soirées, thés dansants, fêtes locales, repas, voyage organisé, et autres animations annulés. In the triple meter this often meant that the ‘up beat’ would be the strong beat, rather than the “down beat.”, It featured a rhythmic strumming associated with the banjo and provided an accompaniment to the many nonwritten melodies.