Afternoon in Amsterdam
released on LP
featuring Gavioli Draaiorgel "Jupiter"
recorded in Holland
From the liner notes:
The subtle pastel coloring of the aged buildings reflected in the canals' calm water; the incredible cleanliness of the worn sidewalks and streets; the happy sounds emanating from the big and colorful hand-cranked barrel organs along the Kalverstraat: these are Amsterdam in the sun-covered afternoons of any season, any year.
Music is important in the Netherlands. Amid the heavy traffic of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Den Haag, and Scheveningen - traffic made difficult by the unending procession of bicycles and pint-sized motor cars - and in the green, soft, tranquil settings of rural Holland, one hears some sort of music no matter how early or late the hour. Radio Hilversum, the progressive, government-operated station, beams music to all of Europe through the day and night, and rarely do the concerts and operettas at Grote Zaal and Stadsschouwburg fail to attract turn-away audiences. Records are fast-selling items in the music stores, much as they are in North America; only a few weeks separate the arrival of a new pop tune on the American and Dutch hit parades.
The music contained here is like no other music anywhere. There are organs on every continent, but only in the Netherlands are there barrel organs like the massive but movable "Gavioli Draaiorgel Jupiter" instrument heard in this album. The astounding variety of pleasant sounds it produces are achived by a sort of paper folder, or book, whose leaves have, with unbelievable ingenuity, been carefully perforated to produce music when exposed to air pressure. The air, of course, is provided by the powerful organist patiently turning the heavy metal wheel at the organ's side. Another man stands near, collecting voluntary fees from the passersby; at intervals they trade chores. The guilders pile up for the two men, Everybody is happy.
Tracklisting:
Side 1
1. Afternoon Songs: Amsterdam; On the Old Lindencanal; By Us in the Jordaan; Oh Saberdyosia {3:03}
2. Afternoon Songs: The Perl of the Jordaan; At the Foot of the Old Water Tower; The Condemned House {3:02}
3. Dutch Waltzes: Hand in Hand; Nobody Like You; On Saturday Afternoon {2:55}
4. Dutch Marches: King Football; KLM March; Stadium March {2:51}
5. Between Tunnel and Maas Bridge: Always Ships are Coming; Ketelbinkie; Were You Born at Rotterdam; By the Maas {3:04}
6. Between Tunnel and Maas Bridge: The Flag of Rotterdam; Anchors Aweigh; Great Rotterdam {3:00}
Side 2
1. Dutch Towns: Just Give Me Amsterdam; My Own Rotterdam; There is Only One Den Haag {1:53}
2. Dutch Tangos: I Like Holland; Ole Guapa {2:24}
3. Sea Songs: The Song of the Sea; Seaman, Oh Seaman; On the Turbulent Waves {2:13}
4. Dutch South African Songs: Sarie Marais; Mama, I'd Like to Have a Husband; The Little Shoemaker {2:18}
5. Star Songs: Just Look at the Stars Tonight; At Night by Starlight; When Stars are Twinkling in the Sky {2:29}
6. Dutch Mill Songs: The Mill at the Brook; Greetje from the Polder; There Near the Mill {2:37}
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