The Most Beautiful Accordion

[David Gordon Burke]

There is a lot of talk about this brand or that brand and which one has this kind of reeds or these decorations etc. etc.
I am always amazed by players who go for the look of the accordion over the quality, price and functionality.
Do you play the accordion or do you play the Christmas Tree?
Cheap little glowing pieces of plastic embedded in the accordion don't make it sound any better or play any better.
Of course, we all want to play an accordion that looks nice, but there is a point where it becomes ridiculous.
I for one find the Hohner Corona in the Fantasy color to be a really interesting looking accordion. Not too flashy but original.
The black and white Gabbanelli that has alternating squares of color is also cool.
The Zorro model that Ranco has come out with is just plain tough looking. To me tough is good. I want an accordion that says, "Don't mess with me or I will play some riffs that will loosen your fillings."
I don't want an accordion that matches my girlfriends earrings.
Overall, all the designs and decorations are great. To each his own. But when you go for the colors and the decorations over sound and quality, you are playing right into the hands of the manufacturer.
"Let's cut the quality of the reeds and the bellows but we will add these $5 rhinestones and no one will know the difference."
Something to think about.
No offense to folks with heavy decorated boxes. It is sad that a lot of the audience these days won't even take you seriously unless you play this brand or that brand. Like Ramon Ayala wouldn't be the King of the Accordion if he played Morelli Accordions. We all know he would still RULE.
Stoney

[David Gordon Burke]

There is the kind of comment that reveals so much about the music scene these days. "Looks are what count nowadays." Truer words couldn't have been said.

However, and let me clarify this, at this moment I have in my wallet enough money to go to the local music shop and buy a new Gabbanelli if the urge strikes me, (and I have enough money in the bank in Canada to buy 3 more si me pega la gana). The reason I don't do that is because I am in Mexico and would just have to transport the thing with me back to Canada, so I will wait until I get home to get my next accordion.

But....... decorations will be the last thing that make me decide which accordion to buy.

Again, the idea that there is anything wrong with a cheap Chinese accordion is just lame. There is an eight year old kid who plays in the street here in Monterrey and has one of those Cheap Yhjingie accordions. The kid is better than me, better than most bands on the radio and better than anyone I have heard off of any of the accordion forums on the internet. The accordion he plays has nothing to do with it.

Like it says here on this site: Content (or quality) over Style.
Stoney

[David Gordon Burke]

Let's find a little middle ground here. I will easily admit that Gabbanelli and other flashy brands of accordions are much, much better than average accordions. That was pretty easy since the majority of the accordions available on the market are junk.
But would they be just as good if they came in plain black? Would they sound as good and be as reliable. Yes.
Then there is another whole thing to take into consideration. I use this story as a metaphor.
I remember reading an interview with Guitar Wizard Eddy Van Halen, who single handedly revolutionized the Electric guitar in the early 80s. In that interview he said that he would regularly go to music stores and look for effects pedals and other gadgets that were out of date, older and on sale items because in many cases he could get cooler and more original, better sounds out of these scrap effects than he could from the "State of the Art" effects being sold at the time. Interesting.
Let me go on record as saying that at this site the emphasis is on learning the accordion. I for one could care less what brand of accordion you play. I see no merit in having a $2000 accordion if you don't know how to play it.
I for one will be much more impressed by a guy that can rip it up on a Hohner Panther than by a guy who looks good holding a $2000 box with a mano reeds. It's about the music that you can squeeze out of a box, not the box you own.
So balance that with my hope and goal to help people aviod getting ripped off and / or buying a box that is over-priced or not suited for their needs and you can see my vision and why I have the opinions I have.
Again, 99% of the time you get what you pay for, true enough, but if you have to pay $1000 extra for a name, I am against that.
Stoney

[accordionkings2]

Only people who cannot afford Gabbis say they are too decorative, I bet a guy with a Gabbi shows up and plays against another guy with a cheap chinese box will beat the guy with the cheap box, Why cause Gabbis have a full sound compared to any other accordion, But then if a guy that sucks at playing accordion is playing a Gabbi that will make the Gabbi suck, so its all in the Mono not the accordion.

[David Gordon Burke]

Good point. It is the guy whose hands the accordion is in that matters. Not the accordion.
My apologies if anyone thought that I meant that they are TOO decorative.
The point is that what the hell good are the decorations if the owner can't play or the guts of the accordion are cheap.
There is a phycadelic Morrelli out now that has a multicolored celluloid finish that is kind of cool, but who execpt the uninformed would buy it since we all know that the Morrelli box is about as low as you can go?
To prove how much I agree with the idea that it is the guy and not the accordion, I am going home to practice. HAHA.
See you all on Monday.
Stoney

[amaya]

I don't see the problem with too many flashy colors, or how the decorations have gone too extreme (not in your own words, in my own) but that's what brings sales, after all this is a business... imagine if the only color car you could buy EVER was a ford mustang... only a red one... with no power windows or power locks... and it's a v6... and that's all you had to choose from, or you can go to another dealership. And if it comes to the price issue... theres always going to be SOMEONE who will buy something that expensive... because they can, or they want it that bad. There are $800,000 cars... CARS, out there, and people buy them. Cmon now. Regardless of what is done to anything, someone will buy it... everyone has their opinions on things. If you don't feel like dropping 3 grand on an accordion, then you aren't going to, but there's people out there, that will do it. Most people would say "nombre, esta loco este guey" and leave the store. But since there ARE people who buy such things, then, a variety of choices have to be given, in order to keep customers coming, because there are also people, who trade in accordions, just like they do with cars, always wanting the newest thing. Like those american flag accordion Gabbanelli makes... oh man... i've never seen anything so ugly... yet, someone bought it.

[Jr Salinas]

You Make A Good Point Amaya. I Agree With That. People That Have Money To Buy It Will Cuz They Wanna Spend. And Those Of Us Who Dont Wont. But I Understand What Stoney Is Saying. Gabbanelli Isnt That Bad On Decorations. But There Is Always Someone That Wants To Be Better Then Gabbi So They Put Together A Gold Looking Box And Have All The Decor On It. Beautiful But Not Quality. Gabbi Can Slap Together A Pink Box And I Would Buy It. Because Of The Quality.

I See Yalls Points In All Three Ways. Point One Too Decrotive, Point Two The Public Eye And Point Three People With Money Will Spend What They Want To Get What They Want. But It Is Also About The Player Not The Box As We All Say, Wich Is True.

My Uncle Is Good. He Takes My Piece Of Crap And Plays The Hell Out Of It And Makes It Sound Good. Now Thats When You Know Your A Good Player. I Have Said Before That Ramon Ayala Can Pick Up A Rossetti Accordion And Play The Flup Out Of It.

Well There Is My In Put.

Jr Salinas

[David Gordon Burke]

One last point on this subject. Did you every notice that all those old Hohner Coronas that go up for sale on E bay usually are in pretty good condition?
But the day that I went to see Violento he had two older Gabbys and in my opinion, they looked pretty drab and beat up. Of course they get a lot of wear and tear on the road but my point is that the more decorations and sparkle you have on your box, the more you have to go wrong, fall off, collect dust etc. etc.
And yes, my point was that it is what is in the box, not the sparkles that make it or break it.
Stoney

[timzydecozahn]

i bought a chinese 3 row off ebay. i got it cheap (about $125) and it works. it's not the greatest axe, but i was new to buttons, and never would have shelled out $800 or more to get a decent box-i didn't know if i could play the thing.
So the cheap accordions are a great way to learn. Since then, i have bought a nice '60s era hohner, and the difference is striking. But i can hold a beautiful gabbi in my hands, while my friend (a conjunto accordionista el rey) can hold my chinese box: i still sound like a beginner, and he makes the cheap box sound great. It's all in the player.
A note about Ebay: after buying about 15 accordions off ebay i can tell you that looks mean nothing. An instrument that looks good on ebay might not sound good when you get it. Conversely, some of the accordions i got looked like crud, and looked worse after i repaired them (anyone use duct tape on the bellows?). but some of these ugly accordions are among my best sounding ones. so buyer beware: what you see (in a digital photo) is not always what you get. if you haven't heard the instrument, or better, played the box, don't fork out too much money. You could be buying an accordion that will only be good for decorating. On the other hand, i've paid $30-$70 for old beat up accordions that i was able to fix, or merely wanted for parts. a few times the case alone was worth the price.
So a garish over-decorated accordion might be artificially overpriced, but i don't think any of you would complain if one was given to you...