Trustees Honor Roll

Krance, Don

Accordion Builder, Tuner and Player (1933)

Don Krance is a rare craftsman. He builds, repairs, and tunes accordions. He learned his trade from a master accordion-maker, John Mikus, his wife's uncle, when he moved to Cleveland in 1952, from Yukon, Pennsylvania.

Don has tuned the accordions of most of the polka accordion maestros, such as Joey Miskulin, Walter Ostanek, Johnny and Jeff Pecon. He became in deman after tuning Bob Timko's accordion to what is the genuine Cleveland-style polka sound.

For 16 years, Don was the leader of a group of accordion players who played each year at the Colorado Polka Festival. He also lead the Euclid Slovenian Chromatic Accordion Club for a decade. Don credits accordion builder Tony Vardian with helping him to hone his skills in accordion craftsmanship.

November 29, 2003