Pilgrimage to Accordionland (part two)

During my visit a few months ago on August 24, 2012, it was Fabio who feverishly and enthusiastically worked the telephones, summoning, on the double, not only Paolo Brandoni, but also and suddenly, accordion virtuoso Gervasio Marcosignori, whom I had wanted to contact previously, but for whom I could not find the contact information.

 

I felt badly about disturbing these folks, but Fabio wouldn’t hear of it. I tried to discourage Fabio from bothering everyone, citing a quickly approaching appointment we had in Camerano to see the Scandalli exhibit at the Comune Museum. Fabio said he would have everyone there in 15 minutes…and he did.

Within minutes, I found myself, my fingers in vacation-stiff mode, playing the Museum’s all wood Zero Sette accordion, surrounded by its enthusiastic curators Paolo, Maurizio and Fabio, who were listening and posing for some “Kodak moments”. We were soon joined by Paolo Petromilli (Fabio’s cousin, and friend of Gervasio Marcosignori) and, of course, Maestro Marcosignori himself.

 

I first met spry nonagenarian Paolo Brandoni during my first visit in 2008. Though I prefer Italian while I’m there, he loves to speak English and reminisce about his 1952 trip to San Francisco (“ah, the beauty of The Marina, Golden Gate Park, and Columbus Ave”) and the marvelous time he spent touring the City with San Francisco accordion mogul Finau Piatanesi, uncle of Gordon Piatanesi, last owner/operator of the famed “Colombo & Sons Accordions” on Columbus Avenue in San Francisco’s North Beach district.

 

Brandoni is the previous owner of a major marque: Brandoni & Sons, also known as General Accordion Company, founded by his father and now run by younger family members as “Bompezzo s.n.c.” Brandoni’s firm continues to manufacture top quality, elite instruments steeped in their own traditions of design. They are very widely distributed and are available in the USA. Their factory occupies part of the original Excelsior Accordions building in Castelfidardo. An outstanding Museum exhibit is the full size, fully operative Brandoni accordion that is transparent!

 

During my visit a few weeks ago, Paolo Brandoni told me about a writer who reported on the accordion and its traditions in Castelfidardo and in “that other Italian accordion city”, Stradella, located in Northwestern Italy. This city is the home of the industry standard Stradella Bass System (circle of fifths) as well as the firm of accordion builder and innovator Mariano Dallapé.

 

The author stated: “Stradella has all the professors, “…that is, the intelligentsia, of the accordion. Brandoni quickly set him straight: “Maybe Stradella has the professors, but (probably while beating his chest) Castelfidardo has all the artists.” In this case, I believe “artists” to mean not only performers, but also artisans. He also told me of the additional connection between him and Gervasio Marcosignori, Gervasio’s father, who was also an accordionist, once taught Brandoni. According to Paolo, Marcosignori’s lessons didn’t take as well to him as they had to Gervasio, who at age 7, played, to great acclaim, for Benito Mussolini.

 

My personal observations are that, sadly, little is left of, or even commonly known about, the instrument (by its own residents) and its heyday in Stradella, while Castelfidardo at large continues to thrive on its pride and history. To be fair, Mariano Dallapé made his share of contributions to the development of the accordion, but his post WW2 instruments were not elegant and could not compete with the likes of Settimio Soprani and Scandalli accordions of the Castelfidardo area. Finally, while Dallapé’s accordions “sounded” and bellowed, Castelfidardo’s accordions “sang,” in operatic Bel Canto manner.

 

Curator Maurizio Composini worked for Castelfidardo’s Excelsior Accordions (an offshoot of the original New York City firm) for decades and loves to play his small, typewriter-keyed, accordion for visitors, which, of course, is self-built. Always adorned with a hat, he is more reminiscent of Wild West (Western Swing) accordionists commonly seen in Gene Autry and Roy Rogers films of the 30’s 40’s and 50’s than an authentic, Fidardense player and builder. He has many stories to share with the tens of thousands of open-eared visitors the Museum welcomes each year.

 

Upon Marcosignori’s arrival, the Maestro (a young and spry age 84) soon suggested we go to one of the smallest of the 6 halls in the museum so we could talk. With complete grace, as is his way, the Maestro wanted to find out the reason of his summons to meet this “accordionist from San Francisco, from Caffé Trieste” (Fabio Petromilli’s typical description).

 

I was honored, and immediately engaged in conversation, explaining of our mutual friend and my former accordion teacher, Michele Corino (ex Orchestra Angelini accordionist, later signed by Cetra Records), our caffé’s Saturday concert, the longest running musical show in San Francisco (replete with two accordions in the band), my early stage appearances with Italian vocal greats such as Claudio Villa and Domenico Modugno, and perhaps most importantly, my virtual fanaticism for the World’s first electronic accordion, the Cordovox. This was the beginning of a beautiful meeting of the minds.

 

It is clear that the 1961 introduction of the World’s first electronic accordion outfits, the Cordovox CG-2 and CG-3 had a major impact on Marcosignori’s musical life, as it has on mine and those of many other accordionists across the globe. Though this instrument was relatively simplistic compared to future versions, it remains the “Darling” because of the impact it made, the well-harmonized (pardon the pun) technology that went in to it, and because of the unsurpassed tonal quality of its vacuum tube organ tone generator and amplifier. As he recalled its debut in Chicago and the amazement of the audience, the Maestro had clearly traveled back in time, and I with him.

 

In addition to being a recording star with major Italian label Cetra Records (and later Farfisa’s label), Marcosignori spent over three decades with Farfisa, the product of a 1946 merger between Scandalli, Settimio Soprani and Frontalini. In the late 1940’s, his first major project for Farfisa, specifically Scandalli, was to develop the World’s finest accordion-second to none; founder Silvio Scandalli’s personal project and quest.

 

 

During the next few hours, which ended with the “Round Table’ discussion in the piazza at the local caffé, I asked about and was made privy to much information that was undocumented or required confirmation, due to the rampant inaccuracy of Cordovox facts and history seen on the Internet. This round table discussion doomed our appointment in Camerano and was followed up by an upset telephone call from that museum’s tour guide, but she didn’t have a comeback when I told her what I was discussing with whom. “It will have to be for next year, I said apologetically of our happily foiled visit.

 

The Maestro was, for most of his tenure at Farfisa, the Director of Musical Instrument Development, for in addition to being one of the World’s finest accordionists and demonstrators, he has a definite “techy” side to him. It is clear to me why the technologically and entrepreneurially brilliant Silvio Scandalli chose the unassuming Marcosignori to carry out these top-importance jobs at Farfisa. In addition to his work developing and demonstrating the first 3 generations of the Cordovox, his electronic accordion projects for the Farfisa brand went on to include the Transicord, the World’s first transistorized, reedless accordion, followed by the Transivox series and Syntaccordion.

 

Marcosignori remembers the personnel of the Chicago part of the Cordovox team as if it were yesterday; the ex Fidardense who prepped the organ and accordion sections in Chicago, the Lowrey organ engineers and execs, and so on. He also fondly recalls his trips to and about the USA: Chicago, Los Angeles, and especially San Francisco though, remarkably, he was never directed toward our Caffé.

 

Had we met the Maestro sooner, his photo would have made our Wall of Fame long before now. Like Brandoni, Marcosignori also inquired about Colombo & Sons Accordions owner Gordon Piatanesi (and of his one-time partner, Paul Pasquali, now owner of Accordions International of Salt Lake City, Utah) I told him that Gordon was now retired but took fine care of my accordions for decades at his famous Columbus Ave (and later San Rafael, CA) shop, and that it was one of the two major accordion factories in San Francisco, the other being Guerrini Accordions, only a few hundred feet from my caffé.

 

This cued the Maestro to state (and confirm) that the Piano Accordion was, in fact, born in San Francisco for accordionist Guido Deiro, underscoring, and not his brother Pietro, who came along later.

Until recently, I never realized the impact the Maestro’s work had on my musical life. As a child, my earliest vocal work was backed-up by a local accordionist playing a first generation Cordovox CG-2. Later, it would be an impromptu appearance at a New Year’s Eve party in 1971, playing a Cordovox CG-5 that would forever cement my destiny as an accordionist and aficionado of the instrument.

 

For more details about Marcosignori’s work on the Scandalli Super VI and the Cordovox, I invite you to read my article titled: “A Brief, Comprehensive History of the Cordovox and Other Electronic Accordions” available at www.caffetrieste.com (from Home page, go to Trieste Music, then to All Things Accordion) or at the Combo Organ Heaven website: www.combo-organ. com/cordovox/index.htm

The Maestro continues to record, arrange and publish Classical repertory for accordion through Farfisa’s former music publishing arm “Berben” and frequents important musical events and competitions.

 

At the “round table,” the Sun finally started to leave the summer sky above us, but no one wanted to go home. We have so much more to talk about, stories to tell, and old tunes to revive. We will all simply have to keep “our bellows” in good form until our next visit.