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Re: Excalibur Cajun style accordions from Castelfidardo?

Used Cajun King accordeons in excellent to mint condition sell for $450-600.

Gabbanelli competes with its dealers and sells them on e bay cheaper than his dealers can...
this is the beginning of the poor resale and repoutation of the product. Then call John Gabbanelli fpor any custom er service.. if he answers and is in his normal frame of mind, , it won't take long to form an opinion.

I did not think the Cajun King used too much air if played normally and the way it was designed to be played.

If you honk on it and attempt to get a sound not intended ie a "Cajun" in you face sound.. it takes an effort. If yoiu need some volume... mic it.

If you buy omne for around $500 I believe you could sell it for $500.

I wouldn't bother. I'd get a Hohner HA 114 made in Germany and hot rod it. Better box. Same price range.

Re: Excalibur Cajun style accordions from Castelfidardo?

The description does NOT say made in Italy...
It says something about Italian reed work.
These accordeons are made in China and a product of Jim Laab music.

He has been confronted before by the members of another accordeon group. He admitted that the accordeons are Chinese but still asserts that the reeds themselves are Italian.

Might be.. I have seen some rather ordinary inexpensive machine reeds from Italy.

A "Cajun" accordeon can only be made by a "Cajun".
Ergo the finest "Cajun" accordeons are necessarily made by "Cajuns".. that is a given.

All other 1 row 10 button 2 bass 4 reed accordeons are known as "melodeons" or "one rows" or "accordeon".
And these predate the "Cajuns" by decades if not a century of construction and playing.

There are other 1 row acordeons that are made to a higher level of craftsmanship and playability such as:
Gaillard, Castagnari, Beltuna, Ress Wesson, Bergflodt, Messervier, Melodie, Clement Breton, van der AA, Martin (france) etc. until you have played any of these, I suggest you cannot make a fair comparison.

As to Hohner and their current wave of one rows. These are made in China.. the latest ones rival the quality of the last German made ones. Other than thier poor tuning standards, and far too wet and tuned 12TET and not "just" tuning ( such as the case with "Cajun" accordeons)

As to China having the most accordeon players, China has the most people doing nearly everything. But here there is a distinct difference, China is not a cultural center for accordeon, it is not a part of their culture. If you listen to their western style musicians, the notes are all there but it sounds push pull click click, precise and by the numbers.. no com prehension of the nuance and emotion of the music.

The Cajun King is not a Cajun accordeon. It is a one row accordeon. They are well made, play well but a bit quiet owing to the internal design. Not a bad accordeon but certainly not "Cajun" made nor "cajun" sounding. As it is a Gabbanelli import... it is built as inexpensively as possible and priced as high as is possible.

Re: Excalibur Cajun style accordions from Castelfidardo?

Bohemian, in the "other" one row category of good quality, you forgot several Quebec-made like the Messervier, Boutet and a few others. :-)



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