This classic musette waltz was composed by Michel Péguri (1883- 1958), a Franco-Italian accordion player. His father Félix was probably the first Italian accordion maker to find his way to Paris as early as the 1890s. Michel’s two brothers, Charles and Louis, were also accomplished accordion players and composers.
Musette originally meant "bagpipe," the favored instrument of working class musicians transplanted from Auvergne to Paris. When newly arrived Italian immigrants brought their accordions to the weekly bal à la musette, a turf war broke out between pipers and accordionists. According to legend, the conflict ended when Michel's brother, Charles, married the daughter of Bouscatel, the most belligerent of the pipers.
Although accordions, because of their flexibility, gradually pushed bagpipes out of business, the new genre that emerged retained the name, "musette."
Our friends played this musette for the first dance at our wedding. That’s when we discovered (the hard way) that Americans and Belgians move in opposite directions when they start to waltz – one of many lessons in our cross-cultural collaboration!
"Bourrasque" is a French word of Italian origin: una burrasca is a storm at sea or, by extension, some form of trouble (like a turf war between musicians?)