Présenté comme le true Swiss king of accordion, Hans Hassler joue en solo depuis 1988. Son premier disque Intakt date de 2008 (CD 147) et nous l’avons entendu dans un autre contexte (cf. Culturejazz « C’était en 2013 : 2e séance de rattrapage » 14/01/2014). Avec verve, punch, rythme, santé et tension d’un côté, concentration, intériorité, sensibilité, finesse et profondeur de l’autre, Hassler, compositeur des quinze pièces de ce disque, pratique une musique contemporaine, avec une dynamique jazzy, sans perdre l’aspect populaire – au sens “art populaire” – et chaleureux de l’instrument, notamment dans les sonorités. Très réjouissant.

https://www.culturejazz.fr/spip.php?article3360

Quick, name influential accordion players! If you asked the same of our three featured chromatic button accordionists, you'd likely hear the names Mogens Ellegaard and Peter Zinsli; Jo Privat, Gus Viseur and Tony Muréna; Kimmo Pohjonen and Janne Mäkinen.

Born in Graubünden, East Switzerland under the influence of Ländler volksmusik (à la Zinsli) and the classical tradition, accordionist Hans Hassler was especially inspired by Ellegaard's avant- gardism, forging his own approach over a 30-year period. On Wie Die Zeit Hinter Mir Her, he fully exploits the polyphonic and rhythmic capabilities of his five-octave-plus, Moscow-made Jupiter model, in particular the free-bass configuration of the left- hand manual, which allows for customized chords, educing an orchestral palette in his improvised compositions: flute and double-reed tones; symphonic crescendos; rubbing/rustling percussive effects reminiscent of a güiro or washboard; funky hocketing across the manuals; odd breaths, squeaks and finger-taps. But for all his adventurism, he hasn't forgotten the instrument's dancehall roots.

Privat, Viseur and Muréna were important figures in the jazz manouche movement of interwar Paris, an amalgam of French valse musette and North American swing. La Contre Attaque du Jazz Musette, Vol. 1 samples their best compositions, revisited and -vitalized by accordionist Erwan Mellec (who favors an Italian-made Bugari), guitarist Thomas Le Briz and tuba player Benjamin Lebert, collectively known as Swing of France, here augmented by Stéphane Barbier's spartan drums. Dominated by minor-key waltzes, the tunes contain serpentine melodies laced with intricate ornamentation and delicate flourishes, rendered with a loose, Roma-esque insouciance that belies the difficulty of performing them. "Yayou", one of two originals, veers to Louisiana swamp boogie and Privet's "Modern Valse" has banjo, but most tracks follow formula, Privet's "Balajo" and Viseur's "Jeannette" being two of the standouts.

Harri Kuusijärvi is a prog- and avant-rocker who, like fellow Finns Pohjonen and Mäkinen, is ushering the accordion into novel sonic spaces. Music for a Family Picnic is his second CD with Koutus, the original trio with guitarist Veikki Virkajärvi here augmented to a quintet with bassist Eero Tikkanen, vibraphonist/percussionist Teho Majamäki and drummer Jesse Ojajärvi. A beautifully conceived and played album, the overall aesthetic is one of collectivism, capaciousness and restraint. Like the blurred portraits of individual band members adorning the CD jacket, each musician merges into a viscous, holistic soundscape. Virkajärvi's compressed electric tone, sparse and tasteful in the manner of Bill Frisell, is usually the melodic focal point, Kuusijärvi adding organ-like pads, wide-interval figurations or plaintive counter- lines while Majamäki and Ojajärvi layer on subtle but incisive samples and percussive effects.