Between the bellows

There is a lavishly titled coffee-table book on the accordion. Called Accordion Stories from the Heart: A collection of accordions from around the world and their stories, inspired by the extraordinary people who played them, it unfurls a sumptuous spread of backstories along with a rich selection of images of the instrument itself. The stories range from an accordian owner who only knew how to play three songs on it when he carried the instrument to his grave to someone who figured out the “squeezebox” in a coal shed. From the Soviet Union survivor with no material possessions except a small Hohner to the prized model gifted to Pope Pius XII in 1943.

Swiss actor, director and author Peter Rinderknecht also serenaded his young audience with a valuable story to the jaunty tunes of a gleaming red accordion. His solo performance, Minor Matters, happened on July 5. Presented by ThinkArts and supported by Pro Helvetia in Delhi, Rinderknecht  conjured up a farm with his well-worn magic box in a children's bookstore. Here, on this farm, there once lived a farmer. He ordered the fields and fed the animals. He was satisfied. But then he thought there was something missing. So he goes to town on a Saturday evening and meets the woman of his heart. When he starts a family with her, happiness seems perfect. But just as the idyll originates from nothingness, it finally breaks down again. There are no happy endings here. “The adult is not doing better than you,” Rinderknecht wants to convey to his audience of 11-year-olds. Only the sound of music remains.