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International
Accordion Action at Frankfurt Musikmesse - Germany
  The
23rd annual Frankfurt Musikmesse 2002, held from March 13th to 17th
was attended by over 190,000 people this year. There was plenty
of international accordion action at the huge trade show. Daily
performances were given by Renzo
Ruggeri (Italy) and of course the big event was the concert
by superstar Richard Galliano in the Frankfurt Palmengarten. USA
accordionist Jon
Hammond played well attended concerts with special musical guest
"Scary" Gary Peterson in the Cafe Klemm and in the Jazzkeller Hofheim.
Excelsior
Cemex Accordions presented a dynamic new talent from Portorecanati
(Italy), Roberto Lucanero, who performed music of his region on
the diatonic accordion such as "Saltarello" (a traditional piece),
and "Valzer Di Notte" an original composition by Roberto.
  Contributed
by Benjamino
Bugiolacchi
This year's event was the largest ever, with
over 68,000 square metres of exhibits (including the ProLight &
Sound show) and a record number of exhibitors (2148, of which 132
came from Italy). Visitors and operators were treated to a new look
venue revolving around the brand new and extremely efficient hall
3, connected to the remaining seven halls by routes and escalators.
All the services on offer were of the highest standard.
 There
was a lot of expectation surrounding this event, which was called
upon to give a picture of the health of a sector whose worldwide
yearly turnover is estimated at around 16 billion US dollars (or
18.6 billion Euro).
To help promote the notion that being a musician
can be both an attractive profession and a great way to spend one's
leisure time, the Musikmesse targeted a whole hall to young visitors,
with very interesting results, leading to the organisers of the
Rimini Disma fair plan to stage a competition that will attract
thousands of young people. To help make this event a success, organizers
need to ensure that European public schools are involved in this
effort. As Dr. Peters said at the Musikmesse, "the fascination
of music is perceived by everyone, but the fascination of making
music must be promoted, encouraged and nurtured".
 The
presence of the ICE and ACISA organizations (Italy) was deployed
over a space of about 400 square metres and was both aesthetically
appealing and effective in its presentation of a range of excellent
artisanal instruments. The Music
Marche consortium operated within this space and, thanks to
the substantial financial and organisational contribution offered
by Ancona Promuove (a special department of the Ancona Chamber of
Commerce), managed to create a lot of interest. The consortium's
exhibits included the "largest accordion in the world", created
in 2001 by Castelfidardo craftsman Giancarlo Francenella. Ancona
Promuove, in close collaboration with the Castelfidardo
City Council, was also responsible for the very successful concert
featuring Richard Galliano and his "New musette quartet" at the
prestigious Palmengarten. This performance, which proved very popular
among local personalities and the many jazz enthusiasts which crowded
the venue to its capacity, was advertised by plastering the city
with about 500 posters in various music venues and was promoted
by several articles appearing in the German press and by national
radio shows.
 Contributed
by Holda
Paoletti-Kampl
The Musikmesse also featured an impromptu jam
session of all accordionists performing for the various accordion
factories. Players Vincenzo
Abbraciante (Borsini),
Renzo
Ruggeri (Sem),
Emanuele
Rastelli (Excelsior),
Simone
Zanchini (Ottavianelli), Stefan (Ballone
Burini) and Pino
di Modugno (Master)
decided to give a concert between the stands for all visitors. Their
performance was highly appreciated by the audience.
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Sata-Häme Accordion Festival -
Finland
Contributed by Minna Kulmala
The Sata-Häme Accordion Festival will be held
in Ikaalinen from July 1st to 7th. This year's event will celebrate
three decades of the festival with a massive Jubilee Concert. In
addition, the competitive tradition will live on, as the Festival
once again hosts the finals of the Gold and Silver Accordion competitions
and the Finnish Folk Musician Championships. There will also be
popular performances of accordion jazz and other genres to accommodate
all tastes. While the musical emphasis focuses on the Festival concerts,
there will also be music to be heard throughout the week all over
town - on the waters of Lake Kyrösjärvi, in the parks of Wanha Kauppala
and on the steps of barns and storehouses. For further details email:
juhlat@satahamesoi.fi
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International Accordion Festival
N.O.V.A.M. - Netherlands
Contributed by Hanny Van Holland
On October 23rd the NOVAM (Dutch Organization
for Accordion and Mouth-organ) will celebrate its 75th anniversary.
To commemorate this event the association have organized an international
festival & competition to be held on October 19th and 20th at the
Sociaal Cultureel Centrum Maldensteijn in Malden.
Dutch and foreign accordion orchestras and mixed
ensembles of up to 6 persons (including leader/director) are eligible
to enter. The competition will cater for a maximum of 35 participants
- orchestras or smaller groups of players. Entries close on July
15th and must be sent by post to Mr. A v. Kapel, Prins Bernhardlaan
28, 3201 CR Spijkenisse, The Netherlands.
The international Jury will comprise of highly
qualified musicians. For further details email: aholland@cistron.nl
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Viktor Romanko Tours Poland
 Contributed
by Jutta Menn
Accordionist Viktor Romanko will tour Poland
from April 22nd to 28th with the German choir Post Office/Telekom.
The tour will include a seminar in Ustron (April 24th) followed
by a concert in the Parafia Evangelicka Augsburska. The following
day the group will perform an evening concert in the Ustron Cultural
Center, which will be recorded by Polish National Television.
Romanko will perform a varied program including
"Three Praeludien" (Gershwin), "Nocturne" (Tschernikov) and "The
Merry Cowboy" (Tschernikov). For further details email: JBMenn@gmx.de
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Final Week of Viennese Accordion Festival
- Austria
 Contributed
by Dr
Herbert Scheibenreif Manager of Friedrich
Lips Productions
The 4th and final week of Vienna's Accordion Festival
began with the 2nd anniversary concert of "Dobrek Bistro". Krzysztof Dobrek
and "Bistro" members (Aliosha Biz, Peter Strutzenberger & Daniel Klemmer)
have not only become an institution of the Viennese music scene, but also
of the Festival. Their music is best categorized by the phrase "No categories,
please!" A Viennese music journalist once described Dobrek as the "most
sensual accordionist of Vienna". "Inspired music from all imaginable corners
of the world, put together to a compact sound with memorable effect".
Manfred Horak (Jazz Zeit)
 Entertainment
was also provided by "Motion Trio" (Janusz Wojtarowicz, Pawel Baranek
and Marcin Galazyn), the "Trio Infernal" of Polish Accordion Avant garde.
The group play mainly unconventional contemporary music that is interspersed
with elements of jazz, rock and folk.
Maria Kalaniemi has become an icon of European world
music with the lyrical quality of her beautiful melodies, as well as her
technical innovation and wide cultural knowledge. Her program included
Finnish/Swedish polkas, (which don't have anything in common with polkas),
Irish rhythm & reel, sounds from the Balkans, rhapsodies with a classical
touch and minimal music or tango. Maria played with guitarist Olli Varis
and pianist Timo Alakotila, members of her band "Algarda".
  At
last year's festival, Nathan & The Zydeco Cha Chas finally chased the
Austrian winter away with the heat of the American South. This year another
famous star of world music took over this job and closed the Festival
as sparklingly as before. Tex-Mex accordionist Leonardo "Flaco" Jimenez
entertained with skilfully combined stylistic forms of Southern rock and
country with original Mexican Conjunto music, a style of which his father,
Don Santiago Jiminez, had been an unsurpassed traditional master. Conjunto
music mixes accordion polka beat (mainly from Bavarian, Czech and Polish
immigrants) with the Soul of Mexican Mariachi and Ranchera music.
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Live Television Interview and Performance
- USA
Contributed by Sandie Merrill
Accordionist Milen Slavov will take part in
a live television interview & performance on WLOX TV's "4:30 Show"
(WLOX-TV Channel 13, Biloxi, MS) on April 4th. He will be joined
by Strandzha singer Zhivka Papancheva and accomplished gudulka player
Teodor Dimitrov. Their program will include original Bulgarian music
in traditional and contemporary styles.
On April 6th they will perform a free concert
at the Leggett Memorial United Methodist Church in Biloxi, MS. This
concert is sponsored by the Mississippi Arts Commission and the
Mississippi Folklife Association. For further information email:
agency@msaccordion.com
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Accordion Information Required
John Hooten would like information on a small,
black and white Morreshi accordion with metal, Art Deco styled decorations
and keys that seem to have been cut by hand. Email: jhooten@mfah.org
Francis Johnston would like information on an
Iorio Accorgan accordion, made in Italy. Email: framel@bestweb.net
Dennis Horne would like information on a Scandalla
piano accordion made in Italy. Email: dhorne@ec.rr.com
Ivan Smeulders would like a tape or CD of the
piece "Dinosaurus" by Arne Nordheim. Email: ivansmeulders@skynet.be
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Contributed
by 
Contributed
by Rolf E. Wittich
Colombian
accordionist Lacides Romero (teacher at the Universidad Pedagogica
de Bogotá) will be in Mexico City from April 1st. During this trip
Lacides will participate in the IV convention of the International
Association for the Study of Popular Music (IASPM-LA), which will
take place at the National Center of Arts (CENART) from April 2nd
to 6th. Lacides will give a speech entitled "Popular Music at University
Education". 
Contributed
by