Accordion
As a musical instrument, the accordion "don't get no respect." It's not played in the orchestra or in most bands.
It's a folk instrument. Here are two guys in a nudist camp in Roselawn, Indiana, playing accordion and ukulele.
The sound of the accordion is also indelibly associated with Paris, where it is played in cafes around the city.
Here's another street performer.
The accordion is sometimes played in folk bands, like the band Rent Strike playing at the Sad Boii folk punk festival in Los Angeles in 2014, above.
This is a competitor in the Näcken contest in Sweden in 2011, where naked contestants play an instrument in a stream to recreate a Swedish myth.
But as a serious instrument, as I said, it gets no respect, as demonstrated by this picture of clowns with accordions in a men's room.
The accordion features a bellows that the performer pumps in and out, causing air to pass over reeds to produce the sound.
Some accordions have a piano-style keyboard, above. Side note: was this an accidental exposure, or did the guy hitch his kilt up above his knees on purpose?
Other accordions have a keyboard made of buttons to play the melody with the right hand, above.
All accordions also have a set of buttons played by the left hand to play accompanying bass notes and certain pre-set chords.
The concertina, a related instrument, is smaller than an accordion and is played by buttons directly on the end panels of the instrument. This concertina is being played by British judge Mark Davis in yet another British naked calendar.
We end with this short video clip of some guys dancing to the accompaniment of an accordion after a sauna. I don't know what language we hear, but it might be Russian.
8 comments:
Why i feel bad about those musician
As I always say “the best music is naked music”! In college (years ago) we had a naked band - no accordionist however - but still fun. I played bass, maybe there are some photos out there, but this was before easy photos in everyone’s phone and when you had to take your film in to be developed and printed! Paul
I had no idea there were miniature accordions, as the one the street performer has.
Accordians and concertinas are not played in regular orchestras and bands, BUT there are a number of accordian marching bands particularly in Northern Ireland and some in Scotland. And there are (or, at least, used to be) a concertina band in Liverpool, and one in Bootle. All of those being in the UK. You can search for them on Youtube.
The Russian word would be баня (banya).
I do believe accordions get more respect than bagpipes, keytars, or recorders. (Accordions are funny. Bagpipes are obnoxious. Keytars are just a cheap tactic to make weak gems stronger.* Recorders are Baby's First Instrument.)
*Guess the reference.
I once had a choir director who said if he died and went to heaven they would say, "Welcome to heaven, here's your harp," and if he died and went to hell, they'd say, "Welcome to hell, here's your accordion." Talk about no respect!
I had a band but never played naked. Should have, with how hot the lights are. But by the time I was 18, it was post-Woodstock '99, so, no. Plus, my career before college included playing before a fairly conservative crowd. Not anti-gay conservative, more like "no public nudity, we will judge you when you hit double-digit sex partners, no drugs or booze" conservative.
But even the "no public nudity" rule had exceptions. In or near a natural body of water (or your own pool) with all males was fine.
An instrument in harmony with the sentiments of an assassin - Ambrose Bierce.
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