Betty Ann McCall was a champion accordion player, taught by Anthony Galla-Rini.
In July 1953 she started her own accordion school on Excelsior Blvd. in St. Louis Park. At the time she hoped to form an accordion band, which she succeeded in doing. Her 1954 ad in the Park High yearbook the Echowan said “At low rates to you.” She is listed at 4321 Excelsior in the 1954-56 phone books and at 6021 Excelsior in the 1958 book. She is not listed in the 1960 SLP directory.
In 1959 she was a finalist in the Miss Minnesota contest. The photo below is undated but is probably from the 1950s.
Smart Man: “Beautiful!”
Boy: “Who?”
Smart Man: “The Titano Accordion …… and the girl”
In the 1960s she played the new Cordovox accordion on tour with Fred Waring and His Pennsylvanians. At that time the Cordovox included two unwieldy suitcase size units filled with vacuum tubes plus the twenty four pound accordion, interconnected with a cable several inches in diameter.
The text in the ad above says: “Hear Betty Ann McCall play the Cordovox. You’ll be amazed at the range and beauty of the music produced by this instument. The Cordovox is versatile and completely electronic. It enhances the performance of even the most accomplished performer, yet anyone can play it. It has been the exclusive choice of Fred Waring for three successful years!”
Waring’s show, “Wonderful World of Music,” came to the Met Stadium on July 1, 1963. A local newspaper called the Banner reported that she had just returned from an extensive personal appearance tour of Europe.
McCall was a performer with Waring on his albums “To You Forever” and “In Concert,” originally released separately on Reprise in 1964. They were reissued in 2004 on Collectables. “This pleasant set features Waring and His Pennsylvanians’ lite reworkings in a front of a live audience”
