The International Trio

From the tiny islands of New Zealand, nestled deep in the South Pacific, to the farmlands in the heart of America, to the Finnish "Land of the Midnight Sun", Kevin, Julie and Juha give true meaning to the name The International Trio.

All former students of Joan C. Sommers at the University of Missouri - Kansas City, Kevin, Julie and Juha have formed an accordion trio which has received critical acclaim the world over.

During the early months of 1991 as a result of the Gulf War playing havoc with the airline industry, Kevin was temporarily laid off from his job as a flight attendant with TWA. During this time he returned to Kansas City, and, during a social evening with fellow accordionists Julie and Juha Silfverberg, the idea of a trio was formed. After listening to a recording of a very successful group named the Titano Trio, from Texas, they decided that this was an excellent format to follow... thus The International Trio was born.

Very soon the airline industry recovered and Kevin was back in New York flying. However, the Trio continued and has since developed into a world class ensemble performing classics, original accordion music, Broadway show tunes and popular favorites.

With music as their language, the goals of The International Trio are to promote the accordion, friendship and good will with people the world over. The Trio has performed across the United States and as far afield as New Zealand, Finland, and Estonia.

"It is very rewarding for us, as musicians, when we can inspire peoples' appreciation of the accordion while sharing the extensive variety of music that we have to offer," remarks The International Trio.

The Trio has been privileged to attract interest from some well known composers and arrangers. For a concert tour to New Zealand the well known New Zealand composer and conductor of the Auckland Symphony Orchestra, Gary Daverne, wrote the piece "A Jazz Burlesque" for the Trio. After hearing the Trio perform at the Accordion Teachers' Guild Festival in Chicago, composer/arranger Sonny Doss, from New Hampshire, provided the Trio with "Mom's Polka". More recently, prominent Nashville musician and former U.S. Accordion Champion Jeff Lisenby has arranged several numbers especially for the Trio including "New York, New York", "Jambalaya" and "A Chorus Line".

In concert, The International Trio presents a lively and entertaining show. Performing exclusively by memory, the Trio has worked with New York dance instructor/actress Melanie Mays to add choreography to some of their numbers. The Trio feels that it is important to be pleasing to the audience both visually and musically. So, in addition to costume changes, they are constantly exploring new ways to add entertainment value to their performances.