Video: “Digital Stardust – J.S. Bach / Bridge&Wolak”

Michael shares, “”Digital Stardust,” as we like to call it, is a completely abstract take on Bach’s famous Sicilienne that we created during the summer of the pandemic. Our arrangement portrays an emotional journey with all of the images vaguely representing various emotions that one could be going through during lockdown. The Sun (or the brightest star) is always there to represent hope as the lonely soul travels through the cosmos of feelings. We hope you’ll enjoy The Journey. Grab a drink and sit relaxed; let’s take off.”
Kornel Wolak – piano
Michael Bridge – digital accordion
All sounds played live.

Playing the accordion is a very physical activity, and it is all-too-easy to develop habits which misuse the body. Tension and imbalances can cause pain and injuries—including in the back, neck, shoulder(s), and forearm(s).

Actively pursuing good usage of the body is essential for long-term accordionists. A lot of steps can be taken to play with good posture, and with an economy of energy.

Firstly, here are a few general reminders:

* The accordion’s weight should be completely on your legs; the straps are only for balance. Sit tall, at the front of a hard and flat chair, where your thighs can be parallel to the floor.

* Avoid lifting the shoulders to hold the accordion tightly to your body; this creates neck tension. Instead, experiment with any/all of the following:

* Use a back-strap.
* Tighten the shoulder straps.
* Simply accept having a little distance between you and your accordion—it can be ok to have space between your chest and your instrument if it’s properly balanced on your legs.

* Allow natural movement of the body and right arm; if you maintain one static, ‘forced’ hand/elbow position, that can cause tension.

* Remember to BREATHE while playing. Think about dropping the shoulders with each exhalation; this releases tension throughout the body.

Secondly, here are some more in-depth suggestions:

* Cellists hold and move their cello primarily with their legs and chest—so that their arms are free to play. It should be the same on accordion. Our legs and chest should control the accordion’s position (not the arms, and not the shoulders). Sometimes, you can use your legs to rebalance your accordion (by lifting either heal). See if you can control its balance with your legs, so that you can move around it with your upper body.

* Develop a slow warm-up routine, and remember to stretch your back, shoulders, neck, and arms when you are finished practicing.

* Avoid leaning to the right to counterweight your expansion of the bellows. Instead, I highly recommend reading Claudio Jacomucci’s book, Mastering Accordion Technique, for an in-depth lesson (with drawings) on how to use rotation of the thorax and expansion of the left leg to move the bellows smoothly without causing tension. It is available online from Claudio Jacomucci.

Playing without tension requires developing your ‘panoramic awareness’ to stay conscious of what you do at all times. Imagine observing yourself from the outside. Most of all, avoid practicing in a way that switches off the brain. When you notice yourself going on ‘auto-pilot,’ take a short break, drink some water, stretch, and come back to your practice with a calm, clear intention.

Michael Bridge performs baroque, contemporary, and folk music on acoustic and digital accordions. He is a doctoral candidate in accordion performance at the University of Toronto.