Delicia

The production of accordions in the Czech Republic began at the end of the 19th century, when there were several small individual accordion workshops in the area. In 1920, Josef Kebrdle (1892–1941) and Antonin Kavecka founded an accordion workshop in the small village of Horovice. Horovice is located about 50 km southwest of Prague. Before founding a company, Kebrdle had gained experience in making accordions at Vienna.

The company produced the brand Kebrdle, and the business was small at first. Kebrdle only produced wooden parts for one and two row helikon accordions, and the parts went to accordion companies in Louny and Kraslice for further assembly.

In 1935, the factory had 42 employees, and the factory produced accordions entirely by itself. The great strength of Kebrdle’s work was that he closely followed the development of the accordion elsewhere, especially in Italy. As early as 1927, he began using celluloid to coat the accordion like italians did. Kebrdle also invested in effective advertising that paid off: Czechs actually played domestic accordions. Accordions were also produced for export. The factory produced all types and sizes of accordions which where used during the era. In the 1930s, Kebrdle founded a contest bearing his name. The success of the company was until World War II. When Josef Kebrdle died in 1941, Josef’s brothers Ladislav and Daniel Kebrdle took over the factory .

Global political situation made life challenging, and the factory was nationalized in 1948. The factory was renamed Harmonika Horovice. The Delicia and Lignatone accordion brands manufactured in this factory are well-known. The Lignatone brand was introduced in 1950 and Delicia in 1963. In Finland, these instruments became known especially in the 1960s and 1970s.

In 1957, the company produced the first large concert accordion. The instrument had 5 + 6 voices and had Italian Bugari reeds. Seven accordions of this kind were made. When the company’s Delicia brand name was registered in 1963, accordions where produced only under this brand name. Production of the Melodia and Rigoletto models began in the 1960s. A prototype of the free bass accordion was also made, but it did not end up in production.

In the early 1970s, the Dina accordion was the factory’s top product. It had Italian reeds and only 50 piece was produced. In 1975, a light concert version of the accordion was created, which became known as Dineta. About 600 of these were sold. The standard accordion models Carmen, Choral, and Junior were created this decade.

In the 1980s was a sharp spike in demand and production. The factory produced up to 30,000 accordions annually. Most of these instruments were exported. When socialism finally collapsed in 1989, the Horovice accordion factory was privatized. It was renamed Bohemia Musico Delicia a.s.. In the 1990s, in addition to its own brands, it manufactured accordions for Hohner and Excelsior.

In 2005, the accordion factory was sold. The new owner was Zdeněk Koutný’s family company Zdeněk Koutný, Akordeon servis. Accordion production continued as normal. In 2017, the name of the factory was changed to Delicia accordions s.r.o. and Stanislava Koutná became the new owner. Production was made more labor-intensive and self-sufficient. The factory produces most of its parts entirely itself and, if possible, purchases the necessary materials from the Czech Republic. 75% of the accordions produced by the company were exported.

2020 was the 100th anniversary of accordion manufacturing in Hořovice, which is why the factory produced new models for the market.

Sources

  • Hanuri-lehti 4/1998
  • Company brochure (2019)
  • https://www.delicia.cz/historie-znacky-delicia/ (14.9.2020)