The Mighty Corso

Me and my Hohner Corso.  Love.
Among the folks corrupted by my accordion influence are those who I've actually lent one of my older accordions to, either at my suggestion or their request, so that they might "give it a try." The truth is, you can have your amazing hand-made Italian or French accordions, but the Hohner brand has brought more people to the bellows than could be counted. At this very moment, an unsuspecting colleague -- a mandolin player, no less -- is falling under the sway of the red pearloid, squeeze machine, a Hohner Corso, two-row G/C box that I lent him some months ago. This mirrors the way in which I got my hands on my first box, a Hohner Pokerwork, A/D, lent to me by the widow of a deceased accordionist.  Out of such beginnings ...


The Corso was my primary box for years. A wet tuned French-sounding box, the Corso was perfect for the music I was learning: the bourrées, mazurkas, waltzes, and polkas of the Massif Central region of France.  Early on, I committed the arrogance of recording a CD with the Corso.  The cover photo, shot by my wife, Bethany, shows clearly just how besotted I was with that accordion.  God Lord!  I was a happy guy. The music on the CD pains me a bit.  I consider it to be a bit of a "trunk novel" situation.  But the vision in the music was solid. I was interested in playing French music in a simple, straight-forward way. Even back in 2002, I was aiming for Accordeonaire. On the CD, The instrument sounds great, and that's what this post is about:  the Mighty Corso.

Aunt Lisle with accordion 1929 (?)
near Zuric

To give you an idea of the sound, here's a cut.



"Aunt Lisle's An Dro" is actually a pair of An Dros (a traditional Breton dance), with the first being traditional, the second being a composition of my own in honor of my Great-Aunt Lisle, who played accordion (but not An Dros), or at least had her picture taken playing an accordion. 


UPDATE: Rikke van Ommeren in the "Polka Groove" post is playing a Hohner Corso -- better than I ever have or will. I love my Salterelle, but the Corso was in no way an inferior box.


UPDATE II:  Here's a picture of me playing it for students in my first year of teaching at Hall-Dale High School.  I was a hairy guy.



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