Like others before him, Zevy Zions has now made available a published selection of the transcriptions and original works for the piano accordion which he has previously recorded. Zions’ labor of love in recent years has been to record a set of four CD’s comprised primarily of standard classical pieces, signature works for the accordion and Klezmer tunes. The project was dedicated to his teacher, the late Charles Nunzio. These recordings of Zions’ solo accordion performances were entitled: “Olive Blossoms”, “Dizzy Accordion”, “William Tell” and “Bolero Fantasia”.

Zevy Zions’ musical background began at four years of age when he pecked at the piano. About the age of nine he was given some basic piano lessons. Zevy switched to the accordion at age eleven. He essentially taught himself, and eventually became involved with many club date bands on both keyboards and electronic accordion. He returned to the acoustic accordion during the Klezmer revival period of the 1990’s. Zevy’s whole musical world changed in 2000 when he took his accordion for repairs to Charles Nunzio. They forged a serious musical relationship and Zevy took lessons in technique and analysis.

In this volume of “Accordion Selections” there are original works and arrangements by Nunzio. Other composers and arrangers represented include Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Gioachino Rossini, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, Camille Saint-Saens, Fritz Kreisler, Ernesto Lecuona, Pietro Frosini, and Guido and Pietro Deiro.

Reactions from within the American accordion community have been positive, and these compliments come from accomplished accordion artists, who also do arranging and composing:

“This brilliant book will radically improve your playing – a must for every accordionist.”
Angelo DiPippo

“This is a marvelous compilation of music that every musician/accordionist should know.”
Eddie Monteiro

“A book every accordionist should own…nice job!”
Gary Dahl

Zevy Zions provides descriptions and images of the composers on the title pages to the pieces. He provides suggestions or aids to the accordionist such as the registers to use. As a prelude to “I Don’t Care” by Guido Deiro he states: “The entire character of the song will be altered if the lower register is used or if it is transposed to a different key.” For “Schon Rosmarin” by Fritz Kreisler he advises: “Remember to place the accent on the first beat of each measure. Before attempting this, it probably would be a good idea to brush-up on your scales and arpeggios.” “Malaguena” is offered as a new edition for the accordion. Zions has reduced his transcription to three sharps, down from the original key of four sharps, while enharmonically preserving the music. He is matching the original piano score as closely as possible by reintroducing some important material that was left out in earlier arrangements.

This anthology creates a ready reference for any serious accordionist. In a single anthology of 83 pages, the player can find a variety of familiar classical works notably Mozart’s “Menuetto from the Divertimento No. 17, K 334”, Rossini’s “William Tell Overture, Part IV” and Rimsky-Korsakov’s “Flight of the Bumble Bee”. These are placed alongside pieces written for or that have been closely associated with the accordion such as Tolchard Evans’ familiar fandango “Lady of Spain” as arranged by Charles Nunzio, and the lyrical polka by Guido Deiro “I Don’t Care”.

Great care has been taken by Zevy Zions on behalf of accordionists everywhere who seek to raise awareness of and appreciation for our instrument. The impression left by the accordion is only as good as the capability of the player. These “Accordion Selections” allow the player to raise the level of expectations about the accordion from the listener. With this book Zevy Zions has presented accordionists with tremendous opportunities to challenge their skills and expand their repertoire.

You can obtain a copy of “Accordion Selections” (along with an optional companion CD) and purchase the CD’s of Zions’ performances by visiting www.oliveblossoms.com. Accordionists are also welcome to contact Zevy at kvetcher@oliveblosoms.com and request samples of any of these pieces.

Top Photo: Zevy Zions (left) and Angelo DiPippo (right)