We are pleased to announce that we have just taken delivery of our first batch of Korg Fisa Suprema digital accordions! This innovative model is in stock and ready to try out at our Sunningdale shop, so contact us today to book an appointment to visit and try it out for yourself! Further details can be found here: https://theaccordionshop.co.uk/accordions/korg-fisa-suprema-120-bass-digital-accordion/
Our shop will be closed earlier than usual today (6th July) at 4pm.
We are available on email for your enquiries and open as usual Sunday 7th July.
See you soon!
01344 873717
sales@theaccordionshop.co.uk
Here at The Accordion Shop, we are pleased to announce that we will shortly be taking a classic Hohner Gola 414 120 bass accordion, in full original unmolested condition, into stock. This sought after, top quality accordion is widely regarded to be one of the finest accordions ever produced, and nowadays costs in excess of £31,000 to buy new.
The Hohner Gola is a full size accordion with 120 bass buttons and 41 treble keys, and features an extremely straight four voice double octave tuning, making it ideal for the classical and jazz styles of playing.
This world class accordion also boasts some of the finest hand made reeds ever produced, as well as a double cassotto chamber, which together help to create a unique rich sound, which somehow manages to be both bright and powerful and warm and mellow at the same time.
The Hohner Gola was originally conceived in 1952 by the world famous accordion designer, Giovanni Gola, with the first models leaving the Hohner production line in 1956.
Born in 1907 in the small Italian town of Stradella, Giovanni Gola started his accordion building career as an apprentice at the highly respected Dallape factory, where his mother had worked for many years. The proprietor, Mariano Dallape, soon recognized the talent and musical ability of the young Gola, and paid for him to have accordion and flute lessons, which led to him playing in the town band, and later, studying at the Piacenza music school.
After serving his apprenticeship, Gola began full time employment at Dallape as an accordion tuner. He was soon promoted to the design department, and eventually became responsible for all the technical aspects of accordion production. It was at this point that be began to build several one off accordions, including a six voice instrument with seven sets of reeds in the bass and a basso pedal, which was specially commissioned for the Pope.
Meanwhile, back in in Trossingen, The current Hohner head of design, fellow Italian Venanzio Morino, was approaching retirement age, forcing Ernst Hohner to begin looking for a replacement. The well known Swiss accordionist, Albert Achermann, put Ernst in touch with his good friend Giovanni Gola. The thee men met in the town of Lugano, and in June of 1952, Gola accepted Hohner’s invitation to visit Trossingen. A contract of employment was signed, culminating with Gola moving, along with his family, to Germany in September of that year.
In 1953, shortly after starting work in the famous Morino workshop, Gola produced his first accordion for Hohner. Like many of the instruments that he had previously produced for Dallape, it was designed primarily for classical music and featured an incredibly rich and mellow tone. This design was further enhanced, and in 1954, the characteristic “Gola grill” was added for the first time. By 1956, Giovanni had refined his design to a level where he felt comfortable to realise a brand new model combining all the best features of his previous accordions into one instrument. The Hoher Gola was born.
This world class accordion featured a truly outstanding sound, which is in part down to the exceptional quality of the hand crafted reed plates, each of which which were individually selected from the town of Castalfidardo in Italy by Gola himself. Ensuring that the initial response of each reed occurred at an identical air pressure, was a highly time consuming and precise task, so in 1956, Giovanni brought Dallape’s head tuner, Pietro Fillipazzi, over to the Hohner company to assist him with this.
Each and every Hohner Gola from this period was personally hand finished and checked over by Giovanni Gola himself, who was well known for his fastidious attention to detail. For example, when tuning a Hohner Gola, Pietro Fillipazzi had to use emery paper rather than a file to avoid scratching the reeds, purely as an aesthetic consideration. Only when all of his exacting criteria were met, would Giovanni personally add the famous Gola stamp on the reed blocks and under the grill. The Hohner Gola quickly became the choice of many world class players, and was produced in small batches of only twelve instruments a year.
In 1975, Giovanni Gola retired and returned home to his native Italy where he died on the 18th of October 1978 in his home town of Stradella. Today, a new Hohner Gola costs well over £31,000, and can take up to a year to build, being available only by special order, with its design and build process unchanged since 1956
Our own stunning example of this incredible accordion will shortly be arriving in stock in the next couple of weeks or so. Please contact us for further details and pricing information on 01344 873717 or via email at sales@theaccordionshop.co.uk. Please note, this accordion will not be kept on site, so all viewing must be made by prior appointment.
Our store will be open this bank holiday Monday 27th May between 11:00am and 4:00pm.
See you soon!
The Accordion Shop
Our store will be open this bank holiday Monday 6th May between 11:00am and 4:00pm.
See you soon!
The Accordion Shop Team
Open as usual every day between 10.00am and 5.00pm up to and including Saturday 30th March
Sunday 31st March – Closed
Monday 1st April – 11.00am – 4.00pm
Normal hours of 10.00am to 5.00pm resume from Tuesday 2nd April onwards
Open as usual between 10.00am and 5.00pm up to and including Saturday the 23rd of December
Sunday 24th – Closed
Monday 25th – Closed
Tuesday 26th – Closed
Wednesday 27th – Closed
Thursday 28th – 10.00am – 5.00pm
Friday 29th – 10.00am – 5.00pm
Saturday 30th – 10.00am – 5.00pm
Sunday 31st – Closed
Monday 1st January – Closed
Tuesday 2nd of January – Normal opening hours resume
Our shop will be closed Sunday 15th and Monday 16th due to staff holidays.
We are available on Monday 16th by phone and email for your enquiries!
01344 873717
sales@theaccordionshop.co.uk
Sunningdale Store
Verve House
London Road (A30)
Sunningdale (Near Ascot)
Berkshire, SL5 0DJ
Telephone: 01344 873717