Accordion Conspiracy

When: Saturday, Nov 9, 2013, 20h30

Accordion Conspiracy:

  • David Broscoe – saxophones, bassoon
  • Bernard Stepien – accordion

Listen:
Snow Rain Snow

Photo by Brett Delmage
Photo by Brett Delmage

Accordion Conspiracy is an extension of Bernard Stepien and David Broscoe late ‘90s pure saxophones project then called Breaths. Saxophonist David Broscoe is a master in multi-phonics. Broscoe has intensively studied the multi-phonics work from all the great masters like Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Roscoe Mitchell, Anthony Braxton and many others. Accordion happened to be Bernard Stepien’s first instrument, initially in a classical and folkloric music context. Back in the ‘60s, Stepien heard Ornette Coleman and started to play accordion in his then proto-harmolodic style. After switching to saxophones, Stepien neglected Jazz accordion for a few decades on the Jazz side but the emergence of French accordionist Richard Galliano and sampler/accordionist Andrea Parkins experiments slowly restored his interest in the accordion. In 2001, Stepien had the immense privilege to study with the great master Cecil Taylor and learn how to play with sounds rather than notes. The button accordion is actually the ideal instrument for producing sounds because it enables to cover large spans of intervals and produce unusual harmonies with little efforts compared to a piano. Stepien plays a Hohner Morino accordion from the late ‘50s that has an additional quality to produce unusual sounds in that it has a left hand that is identical to the right hand and thus enables the same capabilities as a piano. Broscoe said in an interview that the accordion is an extension multi-phonics, some tweeters called this project ‘cinematic-style soundscapes.’ Obviously, the conspiracy is growing out of proportion.

Broscoe says:

Broscoe has always had more of an affinity for sounds rather than notes as evidenced in his work in various avant-garage rock projects in earlier years through to more recent projects Rake, Rakestar,  Doublespace  and Generator.  He continues to work on how to get more sounds and fewer notes out of his horns.  Broscoe lent Stepien some Andrea Parkins records and this project is what happened.