I was captivated by this scene. A young couple is walking down one of the ancient, narrow, crowded streets of Naples. The young woman pushes a baby in a buggy and is carrying two big bags of groceries. The young man? He’s playing his accordion. For those of you that do not know, the accordion is a musical instrument with a big voice. It is not easy to play, you have buttons on one side, keys on the other, and a bellows in the middle. It is an instrument that does not really need accompaniment, a one man show.

Once upon a time, Neapolitan street minstrels wandered the streets, playing Italian music to tourists. But today’s Italian youth would rather play heavy rock, or rap. There are still street minstrels all over Naples, but they are not Italian. They are probably clandestini, or undocumented persons. It seemed strange to me at the time that the beautiful music known the word as being from Naples is played now by gypsies and Albanians. I imagine in their hearts they are Neapolitan and their children will be Italian.

This is a 9″ x 12″ watercolor painting. It is for sale for $150.00 until February, when the price will go up. Except for the postage and sales tax, all of the price goes to help endangered species. please use the paypal button below to buy: