Want to learn the diatonic (button) accordion, but can’t leave the house? The Italian Accordion Academy has the answer for you!

The Academy has started offering online courses for diatonic accordion. Each lesson is dedicated to a specific tune and includes video, audio clips, exercises and tips for improving your technique. The lessons are available in both Italian and English and all you need is a web browser. You’ll learn not only Italian folk music, but also French waltzes, Spanish fandangos, Irish jigs, and klezmer tunes. (There seem to be audio clips on the site, but I couldn’t get them to work.) Contact the Academy for more information and send us a review if you try their lessons.

Thanks to Anna, I can’t stop listening to “(Is it Love or) Food Poisoning” by Slim’s Cyder Co., a London-based accordion band that plays country, swing, and rockabilly, mixed with a healthy dose of humor. According to Slim’s MySpace profile, he has played with the likes of Joe Ely, Billy Bragg, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, and many more over the years. Check out a couple tunes from Slim’s latest release, “Journey into Cyder Space,” and catch the bug:

Food Poisoning (MP3 download)

Sweet Sweet Kisses (MP3 download)

There’s an article in the Green Bay Press-Gazette (insert your own cheesehead joke here) that talks about how local polka bands are staying relevant and keeping younger audiences interested. Some performers incorporate polka versions of modern tunes into their act, others split their gigs up between playing polka music and deejaying. Jeff Maroszek of New Generation Band talks about overcoming the ‘oompah’ stereotype:

“When a lot of people think of polkas, they always think of the grandpa and the tuba and accordion — just the oompah music — but really that’s not the style of music that it is anymore… Polka music evolved just like country western music and rock ‘n’ roll music evolved. It’s all the same thing. You’ve just got that stereotype to get by.”

Balkan style
uploaded by plenty.r.We’re suckers for photos of cute animals, so this Flickr shot of an accordion-playing puppy is right up our alley. And according to the description, he’s available for booking for weddings, bar mitzvahs, and funerals! I noticed he’s playing a button accordion — I wonder if he switched after having trouble hitting the piano keys with his paws?