Re: button accordion

[H. Kaufman <hkaufman...>]

It would appear that this type of accordian also was used in Israel for
Jewish folk music.  I base this on the fact that there is a popular
Israeli folk dance created in 1944 whose name is "Harmonica" which is
translated as accordian. Does anyone know when the song was writen
(it is attributed to Elkany in one source). Also, is the "G" pronounced
like an "H" (Garmonika = Harmonika?)?
 
Quoting from an early 78 record album jacket (Arzi Records D 104): 
"Harmonica is a lively, happy dance full of movement, to a popular Israeli
melody.  The figures of the dance may be interpreted as describing the
movements of an accordian as it is manipulated in the hands of a musician.
It is danced on all sorts of occasions, as well as at special Festivals." 
 
If anyone wants to see the dance and hear the music, we dance Harmonika as
part of our repertoire at a weekly Israeli folk dance session, Rikuday Dor
Rishon (Dances of the First Generation) that meets at 7:30 pm every sunday
at Town & Village Synagogue, 334 E. 14th St. (Near 1st Ave.) in NYC. On
Feb. 8 we have a Tu B'shvat party with dances dedicated to Tu B'shvat
featuring guest teacher, Ayalah Goren-Kadman from the Rubin Academy of
Music and Dance in Jerusalem. The following week Feb. 15 we have a
mini-marathon with a fantastic teacher from Israel, Shimon Mordechai.
Please contact me for further information on our upcoming programs and
our annual Shorashim program held every Labor Day weekend. 

Haim Kaufman

On Fri, 6 Feb 1998, Paul M. Gifford wrote:

> Max Yankowitz recorded first in 1913.  It sounds to me like a button 
> accordion, or "garmonika" in Russian.  There were many different 
> varieties of garmon or garmonika made in Russia at the turn of the
> century, including "oriental" tunings used in the Northern Caucasus.
> Maybe there was a "Jewish" tuning.  In Belarus today, the garmonika
> is regarded as an "old-time" instrument.  The ones I saw there had
> one or two rows, but I don't know the tuning.
> Paul Gifford