There are many reason to travel west out of New Orleans into Cajun country, and music is certainly one of the most important. We had some wonderful musical experiences when we traveled through the Parishes of Acadia, Evangeline, St. Landry along the Zydeco Cajun Prairie Scenic Byway. But certainly the most exciting was the opportunity to meet musician and accordion maker Mark Savoy in his workshop near Eunice, Louisiana and learn from an expert the history and science of accordions.
Mark Savoy is charming and brilliant. He seemed to have all the time in the world to share his love of all things Cajun, and particularly his knowledge of accordions. Did you know that most accordions used by Cajun musicians are hand-made right there in Louisiana? Did you know that the particular squeeze box used by the Cajuns came originally from German immigrants? Did you know that there is an essential link between Louisiana and Italy? Our conversation with him led us eventually to a small hill town in the Le Marche region of Italy in one of those unexpected and wonderful experiences that can come from random meetings along the travel road.
And how does the trail from Cajun accordions in Eunice, Louisiana lead to Italy? It turns out, Mark told us that there are certain parts that are too difficult to hand craft in his own workshop, so he scoured the world to find someone who made them well. He found what he was looking for in the town of Castlefidardo, Italy. At the time we were visiting with Savoy in 2006, we were preparing for a trip to Italy, and would be going right into the area of Castlefidardo. So of course we went there in search of accordion makers. But that is a story for another day.
This has been my contribution to Travel Photo Thursday. You can see many more pictures of world travels by going to Budget Traveler’s Sandbox.
I love Cajun music. Really, truly. And I’d never given a thought to where an accordion might be made. Nice to see that it’s done right here in the USA!
Kris: I should have made it clearer in the article that cajun accordions are a bit different than the bigger, keyboard accordions. It’s the smaller button accordions that are made in Louisiana.
What a fun photo journal. Fascinating to learn what goes into the making of an accordion.
How fascinating! Accordion making is definitely a fine art. There is also a connection between Louisianna and Nova Scotia (you probably know this). This is where the French Acadians settled when they were expelled from Nova Scotia.
Right, Nancie, but then I expected the accordion music and instruments to come form France–not from Germany with parts made in Italy. Its SO international!
I love cajun music. But I rarely have been able to attend live events. This sounds like it was a wonderful experience.
Jeanine–we were overwhelmed. The tourism folks in the three parishes put together an itinerary for us that included a Saturday night theater performance in EUnice, a Saturday morning bar tradition, the interview, a restaurant with music and the informal get togethers. Fantastic.
How wonderful that you were able to follow up with a visit to
Castlefidardo. I love being able to do things like that!
It was absolutely amazing, and I look forward to sharing that trip in photos here, although I was so busy talking to people that I didn’t get many.
Good food and good music, I’m down for visiting Cajun country! I’ve spent time wandering a violin museum and workshop before and find it very interesting understanding more about how craftmen make these wonderful instruments.
Debbie: There’s so much to love about Cajun country. They are so hospitable!
Great piece. I’m fascinated by Cajun food, music, lore, and accents. And who knew about their accordians?
Yes, I loved the music–particular the informal gatherings like the “jam” at the American Legion Hall pictured here. And I was amazed to learn about their accordions.