Honest, I have nothing against the accordion. And I think it's great that the American Accordionists' Association is holding its annual festival and competition this week right here in dear old Baltimore.I am, however, one of those unfortunate souls ever so old enough to recall the days when the instrument wasn't taken too seriously, thanks largely to some pretty tacky accordionists, so it took me a while to view the accordion in a better light.
I love the fact that the accordion is now getting more respect and more exposure, in a wide variety of musical genres and performed by serious musicians of all ages. Turns out it's really cool after all.
That said, I couldn't resist sharing a ...
less substantive moment in accordion history for this installment of my global cyber-sensation, Midweek Madness. Here's the lovely, unflappable Yvette effortlessly gliding through "Sliding" ("En glissant"), captured for posterity on a scopitone, a 1960s jukebox-with-video: