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New
Accordion Shop, Bordeau - France
Contributed by Holda
Paoletti-Kampl
 On
the 16th of April a new shop PRIMA MUSICA has opened its doors, with
a special focus on the accordion. Director of this new business is
Michel Brochard and his collaborator Michel Gonda (accordion specialist,
tuner) who will assist all clients as technical advisor.
 Bruno
Tairura (official demonstrator for the accordion brand SEM)
was the attraction of the day. The shop is situated - Prima Musica,
Hangar 19, Quai Bacalan, 33300 Bordeaux.
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Chango
Spasiuk's European Tour - Argentina
Contributed
by Rob
Howard
 Argentinean
accordion player and composer Chango Spasiuk is widely acknowledged
as his country's leading exponent of the Chamamé, a traditional
folk dance music that has been developed into a highly elaborated
artform presented mainly in concert settings. His role is often
compared to that of his compatriot Astor Piazzolla who added jazz
elements and a classical note to the Tango. Recently, Chango Spasiuk
won the 2005 BBC Radio 3 World Music award for his outstanding contribution
to Chamamé.
Chango Spasiuk and his ensemble will tour Europe during July, and
the concert dates are as follows (with more dates yet to be announced):-
July 1st - Palacio de Cristal, Porto, Portugal
July 3rd - MusicMeeting Festival, Amsterdam, Netherlands
July 5th - Bremen, Germany
July 7th - Festival Pirineos Sur, Spain
July 12th - Festival de Arles, France
July 21st - Brussels, Belgium
July 31st - Womad Festival, England
For further information email mely@ciudad.com.ar
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UK Championships Celebrate 70th Anniversary, Scarborough - UK
Contributed by Kevin
Friedrich
 The
National Accordion
Organization of the United Kingdom celebrated the 70th Anniversary
of their National annual competition and festival from April 22nd
to 24th in the lovely northern seaside Spa resort in Scarborough,
UK. The weekend featured an official reception to celebrate the 70th
Anniversary of the UK Championships, which began as the All-Britain
Championships, known affectionately as 'Accordion Day', in London
in November 1935.
The festival began with a welcoming concert, hosted by NAO Chairperson
Gina Brannelli (pictured with student William Langton), followed by
a weekend of competitions for all levels including solo, duo, ensemble
and orchestra, as well as trade shows with music and instruments.
A highlight of the weekend is the annual Ceilidh dance with accordionist
Gary Blair and his Ceilidh Dance band. Among the jury were international
Jury members Mirco Patarini - Italy, Joan
Cochran Sommers - USA, Kevin
Friedrich - USA (President of the CIA),
Ulrich Schmuelling - Germany (Intermusik-Schmuelling)
and Sergei Tikanov - Belarus. Also on the Jury were Raymond
Bodell (CIA
Vice President), Karolyn Broadhead, Neil Copland, Sarah Diggens, Colin
Hardy, Graham O'Connor and Margaret Venables.
 With
over 400 entries in the various classes, the competition has established
itself as the premier competitive accordion festival in the United
Kingdom. It was particularly encouraging to see the numbers of beginning
accordionists, such as those pictured here with the Colchester Tiny
Tots conducted by Elaine Beecham, where the average age of the 10
accordionists is only 5 years old!
 Pictured
here are several of the winners all from Morran family from Paisley,
Scotland: Neil-Joseph Morran (1st in Higher Prepatory Solo), Erin
Morran (1st in Introductory Solo) teacher Lyndsey Ann Allen, Liam
Morran (1st in elementary Solo). During the prize presentation, Gary
Blair was honored with the CIA Honored
Friend of the Accordion Award for his outstanding work for the
accordion both nationally and internationally, particularly in the
field of promoting traditional Scottish Music. At the Annual General
Meeting at the conclusion of the festival, Raymond
Bodell was elected as the new Chairperson of the NAO,
with Graham
Laurie as Deputy Chairperson.
For a complete list of results in all categories, please visit www.accordions.com/nao
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Tango
Porteño, Frauenfeld - Switzerland
Contributed
by Lisa Goetz and Martin
Frey of Pigini
Schweiz
A memorable
concert took place at the Eisenwerk in Frauenfeld, Switzerland. The
second in a series of three with music by the famous Argentine composer
and musician Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992), it was a concert in a class
of its own. Pieces like 'Tres Tango Sensations', 'Oblivión',
'Piazzolleana Nr.3', 'Tango Nr.6', 'Adiós Nonino', 'Verano
Porteño', 'Todo Corazón', etc, were presented. Two instruments
and their soloists were at the centre of attention: the bandoneon,
excellently played by the young and very talented bandoneoist, composer
and arranger Michael Zisman (born in Buenes Aires, living in Berne)
and the violin, outstandingly well played by his famous father Daniel
Zisman (Buenes Aires).
Besides solos played by the pair and the orchestra the programme also
included duets: bandoneon - violin, bandoneon - orchestra, violin
- orchestra. The chamber orchestra of the county of Thurgau, excellently
guided by its conductor Claude Villaret (he used to live in Argentina
himself), rose to a peak and presented the typical characteristics
of Piazzolla's music most accurately and to the point. The audience
was captured by the concert and paid the artistes tribute with ongoing
applause, which in return was rewarded with three encores, - a combination
with the orchestra, a bandoneon solo and a piece with bandoneon and
violin. Next
and last in the concert in the series: April 30th, ZKO-Haus Zurich.
For further information email akkdino@yetnet.ch
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43rd
National Music Competition, Bitola - Macedonia
Contributed
by Anica Karakutovska
 The
43rd National Music Competition was held from April 15th to 16th
in Bitola, organized by the Association of Music and Ballet pedagogues
from the Republic of Macedonia (member of EMCY - European Union
of Music Competitions for Youth).
The competition
included classes for chamber music, choir and orchestra, and more
then 500 participants in all categories. The chamber ensembles from
the class of accordion Professor Zorica Karakutovska were the clear
winners in their categories and received the highest marks (special
prizes) from the juries, consisting of eminent professors of different
instruments.
The closing
concert, held on April 16th at the concert hall of the Music High
School in Bitola, included performances of 13 ensembles - winners
of special and first prizes in all competition categories. A special
jury declared an accordion trio consisting of Zoran Kirjakovski,
Filip Stamevski and Kosto Todorovski, class Professor Zorica Karakutovska
from the Faculty of Music-Skopje, the LAUREATE of the whole competition.
They will represent the Republic of Macedonia at the upcoming European
Music Competition for Youth.
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Successful
Charity Concert, Paisley - UK
Contributed
by Graham
Laurie
 A
Charity Concert starring the two Graham
Laurie Accordion Orchestras, along with folk singer Alastair
McDonald and the Tartan Lads, featuring Ray Carse on accordion,
was recently held in Paisley Town Hall. All 650 seats were sold,
and all the proceeds - £4,500 - were donated to CHAS, a children's
hospice.
The two
orchestras played two 40 minute spots (one each), and their programs
included City Express (Bui), Urchige Polka Bui), Festliche Overture,
Intercity (Gotz), Washington Post, My Way, Go West, Italian Suite,
Old Comrades, Trans Atlantic Medley, along with various Scottish
arrangements.
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Accordionists Celebrate Composer's Birthday,
London - UK
Contributed by Rob
Howard
 Yura
Chubarenko (piano accordion), Marcin Krzyzanowski (button accordion),
and Milos Milivojevic (button accordion) will perform in a concert
on May 6th at the David Josefowitz Recital Hall, Royal Academy of
Music. The concert, which begins at 7.45pm, is a celebration for
the 50th birthday of
Timothy Bowers, composer and undergraduate tutor at the Royal Academy
of Music. Other performers involved in the concert include Nicholas
Walker – piano, Aya Sanada and Gabriel Painter – violins,
and Colin Huehns - erhu.
The concert
program includes Timothy Bowers’ ‘Piano Sonata no 2’
(2003); ‘Triplum for Classical Accordion (Prelude and Fugue
no 3)’ (1994); ‘Metamorphosis of a Sigh: Sonata in one
movement for Classical Accordion’; ‘Calmo for Erhu’
(2002); Yura Chubarenko and violinist Aya Sanada will perform ‘Two
Paganini Fantasies for Violin and Classical Accordion’ (2004,
UK première); ‘Sonata for Violin and Piano’ (1999).
Admission is free, and no tickets are required.
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Accordion
Masterclass, London - UK
Contributed
by Rob
Howard
On May 19th,
from 10am to 5pm, there will be a public master class at the Royal
Academy of Music, Marylebone Road London NW1 5HT, given by visiting
professor Friedrich
Lips from the Gnessin Institute in Moscow. Admission is free,
and no tickets are required.
For further information email o.murray@ram.ac.uk
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Cologne
Accordion Orchestra's 70th Anniversary Concert, Cologne - Germany
 The
year 2005 marks the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Cologne
Accordion Orchestra, and one of the events in celebration is a concert
at the Cologne Philharmonic Hall on July 2nd, at 8pm. The Cologne
Accordion Orchestra was founded in 1935 by Heinz Gengler (picture),
but was forced to dissolve during the latter stages of World War
Two. Re-formed in 1955, the Orchestra has maintained a playing membership
of about 50 players ever since. Heinz Gengler is still active as
the Cologne AO's MD - a remarkable feat of service within the accordion
movement.
Peformances
in Belgium, Denmark, France, the United Kingdom, Canada, Brazil,
Italy, Australia, the Netherlands, Liechtenstein, Switzerland and
Germany have received critical acclaim, contributing to the popularity
of the Orchestra both at home and abroad. Visits to the United States
of America in 1967, and to South Africa and Namibia in 1969 were
among the greatest artistic challenges. Other musical highlights
were concert tours to Prague, Warsaw, Vilnius and Kaunas (Lithuania),
Daugavpils (Latvia), and St. Petersburg in 1991.
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International
Accordion Seminar, Warsaw - Poland
Contributed
by Harley
Jones
An International
Accordion Seminar will take place from 4th to 16th July in Mietne,
approximately 70 kilometres from Warsaw, an event organised by the
Chopin Academy of Music. There will be individual, chamber music
and jazz classes, and all participants are expected to perform in
concerts.
The teachers include Professors Lech Puchnowski, Klaudiusz Baran,
Wladimir Mursa, Jerzy Jurek, Jerzy Lukasiewicz, Elwira Sliwkiewicz
- Cisak, and Marcin Janiszewski (improvisation and jazz). The closing
date for applications is June 15th.
For further
information email accpuch@chopin.edu.pl
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Music
Marche
- New site in 4 languages of the accordion manufacturer-consortium
of Castelfidardo/Marche.
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La Damigiana
- Italian Folklore Group with tradional songs, dances, music from the region Marche/Italy
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Vassily
Glubochenko - composer, arranger, performer and scientist, release
1
new work for accordion available for purchase online. 'From military
lyric' (original). Sample of this music is available on the site.
The music is in Esheet format, able to be emailed to your computer.
Purchase with credit card.
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Sebastiano
Cali - accordionist,
composer, piano tuner, harpsichord and other early instruments maker.
A new site selling his accordion compositions and arrangements, esheet
format, able to be emailed to your computer. Purchase with credit
card. Samples of the music are on the site.
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John
Moceo, a 12 year-old accordion student of Frank Busso, of Staten
Island, New York was a featured guest on the No. 1 NBC talk show
in the United States, the popular 'Ellen Degeneres Show.' After
the 
Accordionist
Lisa-Lee Leslie is to join the musicians involved in a forthcoming
Young Vic production of William Shakespeare' 'As You Like It', at
the Wyndham's Theatre, London. This version is updated, set in France
in the 1940s, and features songs and music in the style of Yves
Montand and Edith Piaf.The
production runs from June 4th to September 25th. 
A
new accordion club - The Worthing Accordion Club - has been formed
by accordionist/teacher Gennaro Fiondella in West Sussex, to provide
a regular monthly social and informal meeting place for the many
accordionists in the Sussex and Surrey areas. Meetings will be held
on the 3rd Saturday of each month.