The Prague Post
July 7th, 2008
Endowment Fund     Book of Lists ONLINE      Reservations      Classifieds    Subscriptions
Hotel Prague Centre

Home » Archives » Night & Day

Putting the squeeze on

Accordion orchestras take center stage in Prague this weekend
Stage Review | Search restaurants | Archives

March 19th, 2008 issue

By Chris McMorrow

COURTESY PHOTO
It may not be hip, but the accordion is attracting a growing number of aspiring young players and fans.
enlarge
European Accordion Festival

When: March 20-22
Where: Various venues
Tickets: All events are free except for the Friday night gala at Sts. Simon and Jude, 250 Kč at the door
For the Post

In the grand cultural scheme of things, the accordion hasn’t held a whole lot of respect. But, while some people still ascribe to the view that hell is a place of the never-ending polka, the Czech Republic is one of many countries with a long and rich accordion tradition that has survived much more than sarcasm. Effectively banished from music schools and concert halls by the communists, and pushed into the pubs for beer-drinking activities, the instrument is suddenly showing up everywhere.
More accordions in more places are due in no small part to the father-and-son team Pavel and Michal Švarc, owners and directors of Club Tours Agentur. Along with Prague Conservatory Vice President Ladislav Horák and the Czech Accordion Association, it is their dedication to conductors, composers and orchestras devoted solely to the instrument in its many incarnations that has brought the European Accordion Festival to Prague every two years since its debut in 2000.
For three days this year, classically trained and contemporary accordion players from nine countries will perform at some of the same venues where Mozart, Dvořák and Handel entertained Prague society.
An opening concert at lusciously Baroque Libeň Castle (Zenklova 1, Prague 8) ushers in the festival Thursday night at 8. Friday offers a full day of music, starting with performances by visiting accordion orchestras at St. Salvator Church (Salvátorská 1, in the Klementinum complex in Old Town) at 2 p.m. The centerpiece of the festival is a gala concert at Sts. Simon and Jude Church in Old Town (Dušní at U Milosrdných) that starts at 6 p.m. Friday.
Saturday is the official competition, which starts at 8 a.m. at the Vinohrady National House (nám. Míru 9, Prague 2) and runs until 4 p.m. Musical offerings will come in three classes — classical, light and junior orchestras. The light music section refers to more contemporary pieces, and the junior section is reserved for players under 16. The winners will be announced in an awards ceremony scheduled for 4:30 p.m.
All the events are open to the public, though for casual listeners the best event is the Friday night gala concert, which features the headline performers: the Castletown Accordion Orchestra, winner of both the light and junior categories in 2006; the Accordion Orchestra LAD of Minsk, Belarus, traveling here for the first time thanks to relaxed visa rules; and the Accordion Brio Orchestra from Moldova, winners of the prestigious Innsbruck Festival in Austria just six months ago. Two of its members are under 10 years old, and have their own solos in addition to performing with a youth quintet.
Young performers in this year’s festival are not uncommon; in fact, at least 70 percent of festival participants are under 16 years old, suggesting a widespread and growing interest in the accordion among adolescents and young adults. And why not? Current indie favorites such as Gogol Bordello, the Tiger Lilies, the Decemberists and Arcade Fire all incorporate the squeezebox in their critically acclaimed and financially successful music. Similarly, younger audiences seem to find a kinship with high-spirited hybrid bands that blend traditional East European klezmer music with ska, folk and punk rock.
Factor in well-respected genres such as bossa nova, zydeco and tango, and accordion aficionados can be found all over the globe. A quick trip to one of many Web sites on the subject brings up a seemingly endless stream of associations, celebrations and week-long workshops taking place in Japan, New Zealand, China, Norway, the Americas, China and Australia.
For the competition in Prague, every 15-minute performance must include one of six pieces chosen by festival co-founder and juror Horák. A respected classical composer and conductor in his own right, he finds it an ideal means of shining the spotlight on musicians and accordions that could use more support and attention. German composer Stefan Hippe and premier Czech accordionist Milan Blaha round out the judges, whose job it is to determine winners after approximately seven hours of performances.
If you somehow can’t get enough accordion this year, not to worry — Club Tours Agentur also organizes Harmonica Days every other spring.
Chris McMorrow can be reached at features@praguepost.com


Other articles in Night & Day (19/03/2008):

Browse the Current Issue

If you enjoyed this article, why don't you subscribe to the print version!
We accept secure online transactions provided by PayPal and Moneybookers

Be the first to add a comment!


Full Name: *
City: *
E-mail: **
This comment can be published in the print version of The Prague Post
Enter the text on the right:
 visual captcha
Comment: *
* Required field. In order to be approved for display, comments must have a first and last name and a city.
** E-mails are required and will only be used for internal purposes.

Most visited in Book of Lists

Provokator
Hotel booking
The Prague Post Online contains a selection of articles that have been printed in
The Prague Post, a weekly newspaper published in the Czech Republic.
To subscribe to the print paper, click here.
Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.