Daily Report
2008 AUSTRALIAN INTERNATIONAL ACCORDION CHAMPIONSHIPS AND FESTIVAL
Sunday 08 June 2008

Competition Results

2008 Competition Program - 116 KB pdf file


First event on Sunday morning was the International 20 years and under solo category which was won by George Xu (New Zealand) with a spirited performance ahead of Nick Shcherbakov (Australia) with 3rd equal being Xie Zhao Ying (China) and Zhou Yiming (China).	The workshop by Tania Lukic-Marx and Vladislav Pligovka (Belarus) was very informative and hands as we see Nick Shcherbakov and the audience being shown a bellow shake technique.

After lunch is the AATA Gala Concert held in the main auditorium of the Marconi Club. AATA Vice-President Ivan Liashenko and Nick Shcherbakov were busy stage assistants for the afternoon.	The Gala concert began with a performance by well known New Zealand entertainer Lionel Reekie.

Lionel wowed the audience with his combination of accordion performance and singing	receiving very strong applause and calls for more.

Richard She, winner of the International 15 years & under solo category performed next and was presented his trophy.	Grayson Masefield (New Zealand) performed Virtuoso Entertainment music for the enthusiastic audience and was presented his trophies for 2nd Place in the Open International category and 1st place International Pacific Champion.

Harley Jones was presented the AATA Merit Award for his contribution to the accordion in Australia over many years as the Vice-President of the New Zealand Accordion Association, an executive member of the Confederation Internationale des Accordeonistes (CIA) and the owner of the Accordions Worldwide (accordions.com) internet sites.	Following a well appreciated performance, Vladislav Pligovka (Belarus) is presented with his 1st place International Open Championship Solo class trophy by AATA President Tania Lukic-Marx.

Festival performance by "Funkordeon" group and the Australian Concert Ensemble (ACE) who joined together for a program.
Players "Funkordeon" front row: Ivan Liashenko, Atila Fadi, Zhiyaun Ma, Richard She, Nick Shcherbakov.
Players ACE back row: Cathy Day (musical director), Tania Lukic-Marx, Vince Fuda,


A picture of the Australian Concert Ensemble (ACE) after their performance.	The audience really enjoyed a treat of Belarus music with Lucy Voronov (left), virtuoso cimbalum player, Vladislav Pligovka and Dimitry Kuprianuk (Belarus) combining together after only one rehearsal to make an exciting musical combination.

Kelvin Luu performing	Lionel returned to the stage to finish the concert inviting his daughter Alexander to join him and play one piece for the audience.

Ever popular Lionel Reekie closed an excellent afternoon Gala concert with his own personal brand of accordion and vocals to a delighted audience.	The AATA Australian International Accordion Championships and Festival was closed by Vice-President Ivan Liashenko and President Tania Lukic-Marx thanking all the competitors, teachers, judges, assistants, parents and audience for their support and wished everyone a safe journey home.