Re: Accordian History

[Joshua Horowitz <horowitz...>]

Thanks for setting that fact straight, Jeroen. 

Thomas Eickhoff wrote a book called *Kultur-Geschichte der Harmonika*
(Cultural history of the Accordion), published by Schmuelling, Kamen
Deutschland, 1991). Among the photos appearing in the book is one of
Hitler sitting by a lake smiling at an accordion player who is treating
him to a private serenade (pg.76). The photo was taken in 1939. 

If the decision had been in the hands of the seminal Jewish theorist, T.
Adorno, the accordion would have been banished long ago from the face of
the earth. He hated all forms of it and considered it to represent the
downfall of good in music. 

Josh Horowitz

> Wagner continued, "when the Nazis came to power, the growth of the accordion 
> slowed down.  The propagandists claimed that the accordion was a 'nigger jazz 
> instrument' for its close connection with modern American dance music.  The 
> Nazis tried to stop accordion bands from playing classical music which for 
> them was an 'abuse of the music of our great masters.'  The president of the 
> reichsmusikkammer -- the highest institution controlling music in the Third 
> Reich -- declared that 'now is the time to build a dam against the flooding 
> of our musical life by the accordion.'"
The decision to eliminate the accordion from Germany was never
enforced, however, because the Hohner company made a convincing appeal
to the government.  Hohner argued that the accordion was a genuine,
legitimate instrument and had a large repertoire of authentic German
folk music.  In addition, they claimed, if the accordion were banned,
hundreds and thousands of German music teachers and workers in Hohner
factories would lose their livelihoods."


---------------------- jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org ---------------------+