"Sonata in A minor K 149"(D Scarlatti) with smooth sound of Giulietti bassetti free-bass accordion

Here's my inaugural personal recording for the New Year of 2024. People are making this world ugly with war & violence. As true artists, let's counteract that by making beautiful music for everyone.I still don't have my standard accordion back from repairs yet, so this & the next post will have to be free-bass recordings. Canada is blest with cold winters & as I play the heaters are on full blast with -20 deg C (-4 Fahrenheit) outside. I remember when the late Alf Carlson adjudicated us here in Western Canada, he said "I wondered why I found so many excellent accordionists here in Canada, so I blamed it on the long winters!" So I'm taking advantage of that by staying indoors until the mercury rises & hits at least -10 degrees. This is one of Scarlatti's earlier sonatas &, as usual, contains all the ingredients of Domenico Scarlatti's very recognizable style. Repeated notes, unusual modulations and many sixteen-notes passages. Not a too complex one, in AB form, compared to other Sonatas, but surely a very elegant and refined piece of music. The daring appoggiaturas over the diminished 7th triad is a real "coupe de grace." Scarlatti triumphed over the heavy Baroque style with his characterful themes, natural cantabile melodies, and dance-like movements. I find that the accordion with its woodwind nuances helps a performer play with more expression the the harpsichord(too metallic) & piano(too "plunky." I hope & pray that you all have a very happy & creative New Year!

[@rickaccordion5900]

Your best recording to date.

[@accordionland1205]

Thank you Richard, that's a great compliment coming from the champion himself!

[@pondreezy]

Awesome 👌 👌 👌

[@accordionland1205]

Thanks for liking!

[@RobertKarlBerta]

Very nice! I live in Michigan but less severe weather than where you live.... but I enjoyed your comments about why so many good Canadian musicians ;-) I play piano accordion with converter B system free bass Vignoni and also a Roland FR 8X Dallape setup same way. I also play electronic and pipe organs but first love is the accordion.

[@accordionland1205]

Thanks for your kind comment RobertKarlBerta! It's nice to have serious musicians like you on my channel. I've never even touched a pipe organ. They sound beautiful but the accordion is definitely simpler.

[@RobertKarlBerta]

@@accordionland1205 I wouldn't say an accordion is necessarily simpler than an organ. An accordion has something that organs don't.... the bellows. Rather than just an air pump to make a sound, it allows amazing levels of dynamics and musicality much like the bow on a violin or breath control on a wind instrument. Also the volume control on an organ is very crude.... a volume pedal like a car accelerator. A bellows allows instant changes louder and softer... that is something a piano can't do either... it is loudest when first struck and then dies out.
I have always said that in the hands of a very good musician the accordion is a very expressive instrument.
As far as all the sounds an organ has available, accordions have different reed combinations and the latest digital accordions are much like an organ in that they have hundreds of midi sounds to choose from. Some prefer the traditional accordion, but there is a place for both and that is why I play both acoustic and digital instruments. 😀

[@andrijapetricevic5859]

22 registers? How?

[@accordionland1205]

Good question Andrij! Actually, the 2nd row is no different from the first. They're identical but reversed to make them easier to reach. Since the piccolo register is way down at the bottom, the 2nd row puts it in reverse at the top. A pretty good idea I think.