Michot Accordions
Growing up in Pilette, Louisiana, between Broussard and Lafayette, Andre Michot was immersed in south Louisiana music from birth.
He played a weekly gig on guitar with his dad, Tommy Michot, on accordion and eventually joined Les Frères Michot—the band his father and uncles formed in the 1980’s. He also frequented Tabby’s Blues Box as a teenager, playing along with greats like Raful Neal, Phil Guy, Larry Garner and others.
After a decade of playing, Andre and his brother Louis took on the lead instruments—accordion and fiddle—and picked up the torch as the next generation in the evolution of their musical heritage.
In 1999 they formed Lost Bayou Ramblers and began to play around south Louisiana and eventually all over the United States and abroad. In 2018 the band won a Grammy Award for Best Regional Roots Music Album for their album “Kalenda”.
In addition to his success as a musician, Andre is also an accomplished woodworker and accordion builder. In 2006, with encouragement from friend and mentor Ray Abshire, he began learning first to tune in the old style then eventually to build accordions from master builder Randy Falcon.
Over the years, Andre has developed a keen understanding of how the accordion should sound and perform. He enjoys the entire construction process, from choosing the right wood to shaping the reed blocks and fine tuning each component for a perfect fit and ideal sound. He does his best to incorporate
generations of knowledge into his work, while continually looking for new ways to improve the overall functionality, efficiency and playability of each instrument. He is experienced in repairing, restoring and tuning button accordions—especially older and antique accordions made in Louisiana, old world Germany or anywhere else.
With an incredible and growing collection of handbuilt accordions from all over the globe, his friends often joke that he could found Louisiana’s first accordion museum at his workshop in Broussard, Louisiana.
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