Charles Magnante (December 7, 1905 – December 30, 1986) was an American piano-accordionist,

arranger In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orches ...

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

, author and educator. His artistry helped raise the image of the accordion from an instrument considered suitable only for

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...

to an instrument accepted in many music genres.

Background

Magnante's father was a well-known amateur musician, and performed at Italian wedding receptions and other dance venues. Charles sang along with his father beginning at the age of five years, and at the age of seven, he secretly learned to play his father's accordion. At the age of sixteen his reputation as an accordionist had grown so much he was receiving many offers to join tours with stage bands, which he declined due to his continuing musical studies.

Career

Charles Magnante started his professional career playing in Italian restaurants and on the Staten Island Ferry. However, he wanted to break free from the

O Sole Mio "O sole mio" () is a well-known Neapolitan song written in 1898. Its Neapolitan language lyrics were written by Giovanni Capurro and the music was composed by Eduardo di Capua (1865–1917) and Alfredo Mazzucchi (1878–1972).. The title transla ...

image of the stereotypical

Italian-American Italian Americans ( it, italoamericani or ''italo-americani'', ) are Americans who have full or partial Italian ancestry. The largest concentrations of Italian Americans are in the urban Northeast and industrial Midwestern metropolitan areas, w ...

accordionist which his audiences expected to hear. In the 1940s, he was the leader of a successful trio with

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselv ...

Tony Mottola Anthony C. Mottola (April 18, 1918 – August 9, 2004) was an American jazz guitarist who released dozens of solo albums. Mottola was born in Kearny, New Jersey and died in Denville. Career Like many of his contemporaries, Mottola began ...

and

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...

George Wright George Wright may refer to: Politics, law and government * George Wright (MP) (died 1557), MP for Bedford and Wallingford * George Wright (governor) (1779–1842), Canadian politician, lieutenant governor of Prince Edward Island * George Wright ...

, and played regularly on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

radio broadcasts. He worked also as a sought-after studio musician. At the peak of his career, he played 30 live radio broadcasts (including '' The Jack Berch Show''DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 30.) and eight studio sessions each week. He performed also as a solo concert musician, and once performed a solo concert at the Civic Stadium of

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

for an audience of 40,000. Magnante was one of the twelve founding members of the

American Accordionists' Association The American Accordionists' Association (AAA) is an American association dedicated to players of the accordion. It was established on March 9, 1938, and is currently based in Mt. Vernon, New York. Pietro Deiro was the first president of the Amer ...

(founded in 1938), and also served as this organization's president for three terms . Magnante wrote method books for accordion players and numerous arrangements of contemporary popular standards, schlagers and classical pieces. Many of his arrangements can still be found in the standard repertoire of accordionists throughout the world. His most famous original composition is probably the

novelty Novelty (derived from Latin word ''novus'' for "new") is the quality of being new, or following from that, of being striking, original or unusual. Novelty may be the shared experience of a new cultural phenomenon or the subjective perception of an ...

''Accordiana''. His arrangements and compositions stretch across a number of musical genres, including

easy listening Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to 1970s. It is related to middle-of-the-road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit songs, n ...

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

and

boogie-woogie Boogie-woogie is a genre of blues music that became popular during the late 1920s, developed in African-American communities since 1870s.Paul, Elliot, ''That Crazy American Music'' (1957), Chapter 10, p. 229. It was eventually extended from pian ...

, and light classical pieces.

Discography

Magnante was featured as accordion soloist on more than two dozen albums (many with studio orchestras), released by Columbia, Grand Award,

Command Records Origin and history Command Records was a record label founded by Enoch Light in 1959 and, in October that year, was acquired by ABC-Paramount Records. Light produced a majority of the releases in the label's catalog. The company focused on prod ...

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

, and other record labels. ;Solo releases ;;Cook Records releases *''Accordion Pops Concert'' (

Cook Cook or The Cook may refer to: Food preparation * Cooking, the preparation of food * Cook (domestic worker), a household staff member who prepares food * Cook (professional), an individual who prepares food for consumption in the food industry * ...

#1013) *"His & Hers" (Cook #1014) ;;Hollywood release *''Accordiana'' - Charles Magnante & Mullen Sisters (Hollywood #LPH 131, 1958) ;;Columbia Records releases *''Accordiana'' ( Columbia #C-53) et*''Accordiana, Vol. II'' (Columbia #B-283) *''Accordiana, Vol. II'' (Columbia CL-6194) ;;Command Records releases *''Fiesta!'' (

Command Command may refer to: Computing * Command (computing), a statement in a computer language * COMMAND.COM, the default operating system shell and command-line interpreter for DOS * Command key, a modifier key on Apple Macintosh computer keyboards * ...

#RS 869 SD) *''Carnival'' (Command #RS 907 SD) *''Roman Accordion'' (Command #RS 852 SD) *''Romantic Accordion'' (Command #RS 888 SD) *''Accordion Bellicosity'' (Command #RSSD 971-2) ;;Grand Award Records releases *''Charles Magnante Plays the Accordion'' ( Grand Award #AAS-707) *''Magnante…In Concert'' (Grand Award #GA 268 S) *''Polka Party'' (Grand Award #GA 33-323) *''Roman Spectacular'' (Grand Award #GA EP 2022) *''Roman Spectacular'' (Grand Award #GA 33-205) *''Roman Spectacular'' (Grand Award #GA 33-361) *''Roman Spectacular'' (Grand Award #GA 33-374) *''Roman Spectacular'' (Grand Award #GA 205 SD) *''Roman Spectacular'' (Grand Award #GA 233 SD) *''Roman Spectacular'' (Grand Award #GA 306 SD) *''Spanish Spectacular'' (Grand Award #GA 33-379) *''Spanish Spectacular'' (Grand Award #GA 212 SD) *''Roman Carnival'' (Grand Award #GA 33-429) *''Roman Carnival'' (Grand Award #GA 260 SD) *''Moods For Moderns'' (Grand Award #GA 33-413) *''Moods For Moderns'' (Grand Award #GA 245 SD) ;;Waldorf Music Hall Records releases *''Polka Party'' ( Waldorf Music Hall #MH 45-155) *''Holiday in Paris'' (Waldorf Music Hall #MHK 33-1218) ;;Accordia Records release *''Accordion Variety Concert, Volume 1''
Accordia
#V6490-10043) ;;Mercury Records releases *''Accordion Encores'' (

Mercury Mercury commonly refers to: * Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun * Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg * Mercury (mythology), a Roman god Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to: Companies * Merc ...

#MCR 1001) assette*''Virtuoso Accordion'' (Mercury #MCR 1000) assette ;;Unknown record company *''21 Favorites'' assette and book*'' (2003) ;;Live radio *''Boston Radio Interview WGBH FM'' (WGBH FM Radio) assette ;The Charlie Magnante Trio recordings (London 30012) *''The Letter I Forgot to Mail''/''Kemo Kimo'' - 1949, with

Jack Berch Jack Berch (August 26, 1907 or 1911Grunwald, Edgar A., Ed. (1940). ''Variety Radio Directory 1940-1941''. Variety, Inc. P. 877. – December 10, 1992) was an American baritone singer best known for his radio variety/talk programsDeLong, Thomas A. ...

(Regent 144) *''Bibbi-Di Bobba-Di Boo''/''Cinderella'' - 1950 with Jack Berch and The Mullen Sisters (London 20012) ;Guest appearances Magnante also appeared as guest accordionist with other artists, such as Marlene Dietrich. * " Sonny Boy" -

Annette Hanshaw Catherine Annette Hanshaw (October 18, 1901 – March 13, 1985) was an American Jazz Age singer. She was one of the most popular radio stars of the late 1920s and early 1930s. Over four million of her records had been sold by 1934. In her ten-y ...

(1928) * " Lilli Marlene"/"Symphonie" -

Marlene Dietrich Marie Magdalene "Marlene" DietrichBorn as Maria Magdalena, not Marie Magdalene, according to Dietrich's biography by her daughter, Maria Riva ; however Dietrich's biography by Charlotte Chandler cites "Marie Magdalene" as her birth name . (, ; ...

(

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in W ...

#23456, 1945) ;Other appearances ;;With

Kenyon Hopkins Kenyon Hopkins (January 15, 1912 – April 7, 1983) was an American composer who composed many film scores in a jazz idiom. He was once called "one of jazz's great composers and arrangers." Biography Early life and education Hopkins was ...

, in his Orchestra and Chorus * ''Cash On Delivery'' (Merrimac #751) ;;With the

Henri René Henri René (born Harold Manfred Kirchstein; December 29, 1906 – April 25, 1993), was an American musician who had an international career in the recording industry as a producer, composer, conductor and arranger. Early years Born in New York ...

Orchestra *'' RCA Victor Presents Eartha Kitt'' (RCA, 1953) *'' That Bad Eartha (EP)'' (RCA, 1954) *'' Down To Eartha'' (RCA, 1955) *'' That Bad Eartha (LP)'' (RCA, 1956) *'' Thursday's Child'' (RCA, 1957)

Private life

Charles Magnante was married twice. He had a son and a daughter from his first marriage, from which he divorced. His second wife, Charlotte, was a professional musician, whom he met in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

. Charlotte Magnante died in 1997. Magnante was an avid

big game hunter Big-game hunting is the hunting of large game animals for meat, commercially valuable by-products (such as horns/antlers, furs, tusks, bones, body fat/oil, or special organs and contents), trophy/taxidermy, or simply just for recreation ("spo ...

; he wrote articles about his hunting trips which were published by hunting magazines.

References

External links

Charles Magnante on Accordion Memorials

''His and Hers'' Album Details
at

Smithsonian Folkways Recordings Smithsonian Folkways is the nonprofit record label of the Smithsonian Institution. It is a part of the Smithsonian's Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, located at Capital Gallery in downtown Washington, D.C. The label was fou ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Magnante, Charles American accordionists American people of Italian descent 1905 births 1986 deaths 20th-century American musicians 20th-century accordionists 20th-century American male musicians