I own a Crown that I bought from Mr. Hebert's son (Mike) years & years ago. I even have a Certificate of Authenticity signed by Mr. Hebert dated October 1, 1992.
However, I just started taking lessons 2 years ago with the great Jimmy Breaux, but that's a different story---I can't believe I owned it that long before getting serious about it.
Anyway, I just talked to Mr. Hebert's son who confirmed his dad passed away 5 years ago. Mike stated it was good to know that people still talk about his dad's accordions. He told me his dad built accordions as a hobby. "Just for something to do" Mr. Hebert was a retired school bus driver. Mike is not sure how many accordions his dad built, but he did tell me Beau Jocque had purchased one from Mr. Hebert.
Also, Mr. Hebert and Jr. Martin were very good friends and would sometimes build accordions together. Mike Hebert said if anyone needs work done on their Crown, Mr. Junior would gladly do the work. Coincidently, I did take my Crown to Jr. last year for a tuning. Junior said Mr. Clifton was a very nice fellow and I had a good accordion. I believe him!!!
I have an accordion I believe is made by Mr. Hebert. It is a Crown french/cajun accordion. I inherited it from my father. It has hardly been played. I do not have a case for it, should I? I have it sitting out. I do play the regular accordion, and have tried to play and can make some sense of it but not fully. I plan to in the future.
However, my question is this....when I move the accordion or flip it...I hear something inside rolling around. It plays well, but I didn't know if I should get it looked at or not...and who do I bring it to?
Thanks
The April 2011 Dewey Balfa Cajun & Creole Heritage Week
