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Editors note: This week we welcome the sites of the American Accordionists' Association and the site of their President, Faithe Deffner. These have been designed and will be hosted by Accordions Worldwide . It's great hearing from accordionists sending me email saying that they are now on line. I look forward to this continued correspondence! A reminder that we now have the "Venues & Restaurants" page on the site. This will become a very handy place for the travelling accordionist to look at, as they will be able to hear and meet with other accordionists at their travel destination. If you know of someone who regularly plays the accordion at a restaurant, you can list them FREE on the Accordion Yellow Pages Database! Wayne Knights, Editor |
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DAY OF THE ACCORDION, SEATTLE - USA Contributed by Tom Collins Hot news for the "Day of the Accordion", the big annual conclave of the accordion fraternity to be held on 29th June. Ken Olendorf, the Chairman for this prestigious event, has just confirmed that the legendary jazz accordionist, Art Van Damme will serve as Honorary Director. Internationally known Frank Marocco and Peter Soave will join the performance roster too. In addition to these world class musicians, Jazz/R&B/Zydeco virtuoso Muri Allen Sanders, classical accordionist, Horace Lazzari, and jazz accordionist Ken Olendorf, will complete the lineup of the entertainment on stage at the Center House in Seattle.
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ACCORDIONIST GUY KLUCEVSEK AT LINCOLN CENTER IN NEW YORK Contributed by Faithe Deffner, President of the American Accordionists' Association On 18th May, accordionist-composer Guy Klucevsek will perform at Alice Tully Hall in the Lincoln Center in a Sunday concert titled "Bang on a Can Marathon," where he will play "Breath and Bone" by Jerome Kitzke. On 17th May, the night before, Guy Klucevsek and the Bantam Orchestra will perform at Roulette, on Broadway in New York City. The Bantam Orchestra instrumentation includes Sara Parkins (violin), Margaret Parkins (cello and voice), William Sloat (bass), Guy Klucevsek (accordion, piano and melodica). For further details see Future Events
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ACCORDION ORCHESTRA HOF IN CONCERT - GERMANY Contributed by Günther Zeilinger On Sunday 13th April, the Accordion Orchestra Hof will perform a concert in conjunction with all accordion students from the Hof Music School. Highlights of the concert include Carolin Jeremias in the 9 to 11 age group and Marion Rei in the older age section. One of the highlights of the Orchestra section will be the Accordion Orchestra Hof, who are busy planning a tour of South Africa later in the year. They will perform the finest songs from "Miss Saigon" in an arrangement from Hans-Günther Kölz, "Sinfonische Suite", Tango Carmencita etc. Guests include: The Langenhagen Accordion Orchestra, conducted by Horst Fabig, and an Accordion Duo from Bulgaria. Altogether, over 130 performers are expected to perform, with an estimated audience of over 500.
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KLEZMER TRANSCRIPTION BOOKS BY ACCORDIONIST SY KUSHNER - ISRAELI MUSIC Contributed by Faithe Deffner, President of the American Accordionists' Association An accomplished accordionist who has earned a reputation as a specialist in Klezmer, Israeli and Chassidic music, Sy Kushner has completed volumes one and two of: "The Klezmer Music Fake Book". Each book contains 20 transcriptions of melodies recorded by Klezmer masters in the early 1900s, and includes a compact disc which demonstrates each of the selections. Kushner says his books "represent a commitment to help preserve a rich Jewish music culture forgotten for 40 years." The books including CDs may be ordered by mail. Send cheque to Ernest Deffner Publications, P.O.Box 608, Mineola, NY 11501 USA, for US $30 including S/H, or $55 for both books. Specify Volume One or Two, and either C instruments, including accordion, or B instruments.
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NATIONAL ACCORDION COMPETITION IN HUNGARY Contributed by Sergei Semionov On 9th March the second Hungarian National Accordion Competition, was held in Budapest, the capital city of Hungary. (The first was held on 26th January). Students of Music schools and colleges competed, playing programmes that varied from works by Bach through to contemporary music. Also included were original works by Hungarian composers. Melinda Major and Sabina Hetzmann from Tatabanya both won prizes for their solo performances which included works by Kuznyecov, Rakhmaninov, Zolotarjov and Rivol. They each played a piano accordion and a chromatic accordion. The higher placed competitors from this competition will compete again in December, when the third Hungarian National Accordion Competition will take place.
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PAULINE OLIVEROS DOES WORKSHOPS AND MASTER CLASSES - KANSAS CITY, USA Contributed by Faithe Deffner, President of the American Accordionists' Association Noted accordionist, composer and educator, Pauline Oliveros will bring her unique talents to Kansas and Missouri from 1st to 7th April in a series of presentations beginning with a Residency sponsored by an avant-garde music group, NewEar, in Kansas City, Missouri. She is scheduled to appear at Eisenhower Middle School and Sumner Academy, both in Kansas City, Kansas, for the "Composers in the Schools" program sponsored by Dr. James Mobberley at the University of Missouri, Kansas City Conservatory. On 2nd April, Oliveros presented a masterclass at the UMKC Conservatory and the following day also presented a class at Kansas University in Lawrence followed by two presentations at Missouri Western State College in St. Joseph. On 6th April ,Oliveros will perform with NewEar and Aha! Dance Theatre at St. Mary's Episcopal Church in Kansas City, Missouri.
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YURI AND LUDMILA FEDOROV TOUR OF FRANCE AND SPAIN Contributed by Tatiana Lanchtchikova Yuri and Ludmila Fedorov recently spent a month in France during which they toured the provinces, giving many concerts that were all well received. While there, they were also invited by the Arts and Music association to perform five concerts in Madrid, Spain, from 25th to 29th March. Yuri Fedorov is an accordion soloist with the Kiev Philharmonic, a former soloist with the Red Army, and has won many competitions, including a Gold Medal at the 1986 Coupe Mondiale in Warsaw, a Laureat from Klingenthal (1994) and a first prize in the National Accordion Competition in Odessa, Ukraine, in 1981. He is a graduate of the Kiev Conservatory and currently a teacher there, along with his wife Ludmila. At 39 years old, Fedorov is part of the new generation of Russian performers. He is often accompanied by Ludmila, who is a soprano with the Kiev Philharmonic and sings and plays the bandoura, a beautiful 15th century Ukrainian instrument. They play some classical melodies by Mozart, Caccini, Bach, Gonoud, but mostly play traditional Ukrainian and Russian music. Fresh, spontaneous and meticulous are words which have been used to describe the duo's performance, and they always leave their audience enchanted.
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UMKC ACCORDION ORCHESTRA ANNUAL CONCERT - KANSAS CITY, USA Contributed by Faithe Deffner, President of the American Accordionists' Association Accordion aficionados are eagerly awaiting the annual concert to be presented by the UMKC Accordion Orchestra, under the baton of Joan Cochran Sommers, on April 20 at White Hall, at the University's Performing Arts Center in Kansas City. A day earlier, the Orchestra will "perform and teach young and old about the accordion" at the Conservatory Kids Klub, at White Hall, in an effort to familiarise audiences with the distinctive qualities of the instrument. The Orchestra has a busy performance schedule prior to the June 17th departure for Europe where they will give concerts in Munich, Salzburg, Vienna, Budapest and Prague.
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AN ACCORDION & ELECTRONIC ORGAN CONCERT - HUBEI, CHINA Contributed by Wu Shou Zhi On 27th March from 2.30pm to 4.00pm, an "Accordion & Electronic Organ Concert" was held in Wuhan Theater of Wuhan City, Hubei. This concert was divided into two halves: the first was accordion, the second electronic organ. The fifty accordion performers were students of Mr Xiao Shunkang, a private accordion teacher and performer. They played solo, duet, ensemble and orchestra music. There are more than 2000 seats in the theatre, which was completely full leaving standing room only. Highlights of the program included:
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ACCORDION PERSONALITY IN "ENTREPRENEUR" MAGAZINE - USA Contributed by Tom Collins The February 1997 issue of "Entrepreneur" magazine had a feature in the "Business Buzz" entitled "Play it Again". Faithe Deffner, President of the American Accordionists' Association is quoted as saying that there has been a national interest in the accordion. She says that a lot of young players are picking it up… and why not? Accordions, according to Deffner, are the ultimate fun. She predicts that the "comeback" will have great longevity. Popular musicians such as Sheryl Crow, Hootie and the Blowfish, Pearl Jam, and the Counting Crows are helping to put the "squeeze box" back in the spotlight, according to "Entrepreneur".
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PERFORMANCE AFTERNOONS IN AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND Contributed by Dallas Macris and Christine Adams Performance afternoons were held recently by the North Shore and West Auckland Music Education Centres. These afternoons give the students of the music centres valuable performance practise. Among the many (approximately 100) instrumentalists, the accordion featured strongly, with many solo performances. The North Shore and West Auckland accordion orchestra also performed pieces from their programmes for the 1997 New Zealand Accordion Championships to be held in early June this year.
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ACCORDIONISTS FEATURED IN PUB & RESTAURANT Contributed by Tom Collins The Owl'N Thistle Pub & Restaurant in Seattle, Washington has added the accordion to its long list of musical offerings. The accordion is featured on the third Tuesday of each month. Ken Olendorf was the first to perform in January, followed by Bonnie Birch in February, and Jim Tobler, Toby Hanson, Bonnie Birch & Friends in March. The Owl has fine food with a reasonably priced menu. A special place to dine and enjoy some world class accordion music. Editors note: Accordions Worldwide has a section of the Accordion Yellow Pages Database called "Venues & Restaurants". You can list any regular accordion venue or restaurant here for free.
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ROYAL EASTER SHOW STARQUEST WON BY ACCORDIONIST Contributed by Lionel Reekie Auckland's Royal Easter Show the largest carnival in New Zealand, was held from 27th to 31st March. As part of the show, a Sanyo Starquest competition was held. This was open to all 13 to 17 year olds who were dancers, singers, instrumentalists, or had a novelty act. The primary rule was that all acts must be solo. There were a large number of very talented performers. At the completion of the elimination heats, ten semifinalists competed on the final day and four of these were also eliminated. One of the final six contestants was Auckland accordionist Terrence Joe, who was awarded 1st equal placing. He received gifts from Sanyo and compliments from the radio personality who compered the competition. Editors note: Isn't it great promotion to see an accordionist selected first from a general competition of all instruments.
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Contributed by Dale Wise A new 90 minute video called Accordion 911/Fundamental Accordion Repair by Dale E. Wise has just been released in USA. According to Eddie Chavez, much respected accordionist, historian, consultant and co-author of The Golden Age of the Accordion, this is "the only video made in the USA that I have seen that is perfect". The video includes a highly detailed presentation and description of parts, tools and procedures complete with text. Introductory price per tape through to 15th April, 1997 is US$55.00 (US$75.00 outside USA) Cheques should be made payable to Accordion Plus and mailed to: 1501 Dewberry Ct, McLean, VA 22101, USA. Postage is included in price. Virginia residents add 4.5% sales tax. Those outside USA please indicate tape format and pay in US funds.
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Contributed by Wu Shou Zhi On Thursday 1st May at 3.00pm, a concert will be held in an auditorium of the Qufu Normal College, Qufu, China. This concert is called the "Annual Report Concert", because it is held in May every year to examine the teacher's work, and the advancement of the students. Performers will play accordion, piano, vocal and will also include dancing students. Among the performers there are 14 accordionists, who are the students of Mr Wang Fusheng, a teacher of Qufu Normal College.
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