Go Behind The Scenes With the Last Accordion Repairman in New York City

Alex Carozza, 88, has worked with accordions since 1960. Along with his 93-year-old assistant, Carozza runs the last accordion repair shop in New York City, Colossal reports. For decades, his shop was a fixture of Manhattan’s Music Row, the street once known for its instrument stores. In his store’s heyday, Carozza sold accordions as well as repairing them (“I used to sell 10, 15 accordions a week,” he told The New York Times in January. “My wife used to count the money all day”). Nowadays, he mostly repairs instruments for a few loyal customers out of a much smaller shop.

In “The Sultan of Squeezeboxes” (above), Great Big Story goes behind the scenes with Carozza as he discusses his disappearing craft, and expresses his love for the accordion.

“You gotta understand, an instrument is like some part of your life," he says. "You care for the instrument more than anything else. I love this more than anything else.”

Check out the charming interview with Carozza above.

[h/t Colossal]

Banner Image Credit: Great Big Story, Vimeo