The Accordion in the Americas: Klezmer, Polka, Tango, Zydeco, and More! ed. by Helena Simonett (review)

Why did the chicken cross the road?

To get away from the accordion concert.

What do an accordionist and true music lover have in common?

Absolutely nothing!

(40)

Not many scholarly studies centered on an instrument have a chapter devoted to jokes scorning it (aside from, perhaps, the viola), but as Helena Simonett argues, the accordion holds a special place in the memories and imaginations of communities throughout the world. This work gets to the roots of the frequent ambivalence toward the accordion in music cultures of the Americas. Over its fourteen chapters, a picture emerges of how this instrument in its various configurations (e.g., concertina, diatonic button accordion, piano accordion) has become part of local and national styles. Cultural outsiders (and sometimes insiders) have a love-hate relationship with the accordion because of its associations with working-class, migrant, and ethnic communities—populations that are often under pressure to assimilate or join those folks with upwardly mobile social aspirations. Accordion music serves as an audible reminder of folk roots, and it is consequently undervalued as undesirable, unsophisticated, and simple. The accordion, actually a complex mechanical marvel that can function as a virtual “one-man-band,” became the portable instrument of choice in the nineteenth century and spread across the globe. In the New World, the accordion has often figured into power struggles over the relative value of musical styles between the elites and proletarian classes. Although some may snub the lowly accordion, its sounds resonate deep in the hearts of many, evoking nostalgia and reminding listeners where home is. As a consequence, accordion music often surfaces as a key marker of ethnicity, or in some cases, as an emblem of national or regional identity.

This study of accordion cultures begins with an introduction by Simonett. She begins by confronting her own ambivalent attitudes about the accordion, as she grew up with Swiss folk styles. Why does this instrument provoke such polarized reactions in Western culture? Whether we like it or not, the accordion forces us to confront our attitudes about high and low culture, because our society generally perceives this music as “unsophisticated” and “low class” (2). Simonett goes on to describe in some detail how the accordion works. Her discussion of the instrument and its variants (e.g., models, construction materials, wet versus dry tunings) is just the first of many invaluable starting points facilitating a comparative discussion of accordion cultures. Other pivotal issues explored in the case studies include “identity, discourse of inclusion/exclusion, sound aesthetics; and the accordion’s place in world music” (10).

Unified through these mentioned themes, the book contains case studies on accordion traditions written by specialists and performers from a variety of disciplines. Chapter 1, “From Old World to New Shores,” by Simonett, provides an overview of the history and reception of the accordion from its invention in nineteenth-century Europe and consequent spread to other continents. Chapter 2, “Accordion Jokes: A Folklorist’s View,” by Richard March, is a fun read. It gathers up some of the many hostile jokes about this instrument, analyzes their bite, and concludes in the process that accordions and players are “mocked first and foremost because of their class and cultural associations” (43).

Subsequent chapters offer a gold mine of information about major accordion traditions in the Western Hemisphere, laying down the basis for future dialogue about accordion cultures. Mark F. DeWitt (chapter 3) describes the Cajun accordion playing style and shows how the accordion has risen from an object of contempt to a newly powerful symbol of ethnic identity within the Cajun community. Jared Snyder (chapter 4) contextualizes and documents the Creole accordion style, focusing on key performers, techniques, and repertoire that have shaped the Louisiana Creole sound. “‘Tejano and Proud’: Region Accordion Traditions of South Texas and the Border Region,” by...