The brilliant accordionist Art van Damme was born on April 9 in Norway, Michigan, USA. He was a role model for countless accordion musicians. Art Van Damme dared to move musically in a direction that no one before him had been able to pursue with the accordion: jazz.
At the age of nine he received his first accordion lessons, and after his family moved to Chicago, Illinois, in 1934, he began studying classical music. After finishing school, he played in a trio at local clubs under the leadership of big-band leader Ben Bernie, who hired him in 1942. He soon returned to Chicago, but continued working in clubs throughout the surrounding area during the entire Second World War.
Van Damme was inspired by swing recordings, especially those of Benny Goodman, and in the late 1930s he began adapting Goodman’s solo passages for the accordion. Throughout his career he was often compared to Goodman, as both had learned their instruments in a classical way, were technical masters of their craft, and versatile, creative jazz soloists. He formed a quintet with several of his studio colleagues and recorded his first record in 1944 for a small music label called “Music Croft.”
In 1945 he joined the staff of NBC Radio in Chicago and remained there for 15 years as a studio musician, even after becoming quite well known through his recordings and gaining ownership of his own publishing rights. His early style fit into the small but at the time quite popular niche between cocktail piano music and the accordion/guitar/organ sound of the Three Suns. In fact, all of his early recordings for Capitol and Columbia clearly illustrate this connection: Cocktail Capers, Martini Time, and Manhattan Time.
Despite criticism that portrayed this music as “background music for frivolous entertainment,” his records are excellent, even if more restrained than the bebop with which they had to share attention. Van Damme’s introduction of the accordion as a distinctive jazz instrument received favorable reviews, and in 1947 DownBeat magazine featured his photo on the cover of one of its issues. He was even voted top accordionist in DownBeat’s annual poll for best jazz musician for ten years. Later, the magazine Contemporary Keyboard awarded him the same title for five consecutive years.
Over time, Van Damme ventured into more adventurous territory, closer to mainstream jazz. His later Columbia albums brought him to the forefront of small jazz ensembles and included a mix of standards and Van Damme’s own light bebop-influenced originals. Accordion à la Mode appears to be his finest album, although A Perfect Match, on which he plays with the refined jazz guitarist Johnny Smith, is a favorite among fans who prefer lighter jazz.
Van Damme never had difficulty finding engagements and performed in clubs and hotels throughout Europe and the United States. During the 50 years of his performing career, he traveled to Europe 40 times and played everywhere from the Desert Inn in Las Vegas to the Blue Note in New York and Disney World in Florida. He also appeared on various television shows, from The Tonight Show to The Dinah Shore Show. In the early 1950s, his quintet recorded over 130 broadcasts of 15 minutes each for NBC Radio. He claimed that his numerous performances kept him so busy that he never needed to practice, saying that altogether he had probably played his accordion at home for less than six hours.
After leaving NBC Radio in 1960, Van Damme opened a music store and an accordion studio, but continued to tour regularly. In 1965 his recording contract with Columbia Records expired, but he quickly signed with the German jazz label MPS and recorded 16 albums for them. From 1980 onward he recorded less frequently, usually for small jazz labels, including an excellent album with the group Singers Unlimited. He gradually shifted his focus from club performances to accordion and jazz workshops, explaining in an interview: “The audience is more attentive and listens more intensely.”
Although a number of other accordionists ventured into the field of jazz during the period when Van Damme was gradually withdrawing, Art remained the acknowledged master of his craft.
On his 75th birthday he announced his intention to hang up his accordion for good. In an interview he said he felt he had played long enough for a lifetime, yet he still appeared occasionally, performing for audiences in Las Vegas and Chicago in 2002.
Art van Damme passed away on February 15, 2010, in Roseville, California, shortly before his 90th birthday.
