L'Italo-Americano

LIFE PEOPLE PLACES HERITAGE was Giacomo Alunni Pantaleoni, a shepherd from Nocera Umbra, to make the first accordion, with the aim of creating something to play music with while tending his herd. But accordions — more specifically, a particular type of it called bandoneon — are also the instruments of tango and, just like the dance they contributed to create, they speak of elegant yet passionate sensuality and of the mellow sinuosity of their dancers. And we know they are also popularly used in Jazz. Mas- simo tells us more about the type of music to which melodeons and accordions have been tied throughout the decades: "in the past, melodeons were associated to what we call traditional or folk music. However, in more recent times, this instrument has become part of many contempo- rary musical genres and it is get- ting ready to embrace the future and what it will bring along." Accordions and melodeons, then, are versatile musically, and have been adopted by musicians of all kind. For this reason, their popularity is no longer limited to folk music players and it is cer- tainly not a solely Italian affair : "we have private customers in the US" says Castagnari "and also famous music stores like The Button Box in Massachu- setts, or Liberty Bellows in Philadelphia," a sign of the pro- fessionalism and craftsmanship of Castagnari's atelier, as well as of the fact Italian accordions are, indeed, sought after on both sides of the Atlantic. But as it happens often, musi- cal instruments are not only and simply that, but also art objects. A quick look at Castagnari's accordions is sufficient to prove it: the delicate intricacy of some of the woodwork, and the very attention that has to be given to each instrument's internal mechanism is certainly close to a form of art. We asked Massimo how he feels about being consid- ered an artist in its own right: "We see ourselves as craftsmen more than artists, but there is def- initely a lot of manual skills involved and a profound sense of Beauty, knowledge of our craft and an infinite love for our job." With a history longer than a century, it came only natural to ask Massimo Castagnari if there is an accordion to which he and his family are particularly attached to: "it's really hard to answer, it's like asking me whether I have a favorite daugh- ter! What really makes us proud are the stories associated to the people who play our instruments and the way they interact with one another; it's being able to meet extraordinary people who make our lives beautiful and eventful." THURSDAY, AUGUST 22, 2019 www.italoamericano.org 24 L'Italo-Americano Working to create the perfect sound. Photo courtesy: Castagnari The Castagnari atelier produces instruments for musicians all over the world. Photo courtesy: Castagnari Music is happiness: a moment of relax in the Castagnari atelier. Photo courtesy: Castagnari Continued from page 22

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