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Holocaust
Memorial Program in New Jersey featured Accordionist - USA
A Holocaust Memorial Program was presented at Temple B'nai Abraham
in Livingston, New Jersey. Solomon Schechter Day School students Leonard
Albert Weinbuch Davidson and Adam Butensky on trumpet, Walter Simons-Rose
on violin and Holocaust music expert Mrs.Tamara Freeman {violin} were
accompanied by Rita Davidson on accordion.
The music performed was composed by Holocaust survivors. Accordionist
Rita Davidson, a graduate of the University of Connecticut, is on
the governing board of the American
Accordionists Association and the Accordion Teachers Association
of New Jersey where she judges and evaluates. She has been teaching
vocal music in the West Orange NJ Public School system for many years
and is well known for using her accordion in the classroom on a daily
basis. She also has toured the country attending accordion festivals
where she has presented concerts and workshops on the music of Eugene
Ettore. She recorded a CD of his virtuoso works which is available
and she also presents workshop on Klezmer music.
For more information, email Ritabelll@aol.com
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Claudio
Jacomucci Premieres Concerto for Accordion and Orchestra by Garau
- Italy
Contributed
by Kathleen Delaney
Claudio Jacomucci
presented the world premiere of Concerto for Accordion and Orchestra
Op.44 by the Italian composer Lucio Garau at the Ente Lirico Theatre
on 4th April in Cagliari with the Sinfonietta Orchestra conducted
by Vittorio Parisi. This work is an ecleptic concerto in neo-classical
style with microtonal modulations and non western tradition influences.
Claudio
Jacomucci was playing a special tuned microtonal accordion which
was developed by Pigini
Accordions.
The event
had considerable national press coverage and will be broadcast soon
by the Italian Radion Station, Radio3. Lucio Garau works closely
with Claudio
Jacomucci and has written some other pieces for accordion, some
of which are; Clinamen (for 2 accordions, 1996), Be Bop (for accordion,
percussion, guitar, sax, keyboards, 1996), Xballu (for accordion
solo, 2001), Suite Op.31 (for accordion and electronics, 2003).
Claudio
Jacomucci will also play in Macerata for the "Festival
di Nuova Musica" in which he will perform "Road Runner"
with Kathleen Delaney (dancer) and video projection and "IN
C" with the American composer Terry Riley. Riley will write
a new accordion piece for Claudio
Jacomucci next fall. Jacomucci's
will be traveling to perform in Klingenthal
on 10th May.
For further
information, email: kathleendelaney@virgilio.it
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Sviackevicius
& Sax Player Janas Maksimovicius Tour - Lithuania
Contributed
by Raimondas
Sviackevicius
Lithuanian
accordionist Raimondas
Sviackevicius & sax player Janas Maksimovicius have a series
of concerts being organized by the Lithuanian Musicians Society over
the coming months. The Lithuanian Musicians Society is the main organization
responsible for classical, modern and jazz music concerts, festivals,
music scores and CD production in Lithuania.
The duo's
concerts are in Utena, Mazeikiai, Naujoji Akmene, Marijampole, Kursenai
and many other cities. The tour will include meetings with students,
enthusiasts and teachers as well as members of the public. 
The program consists of various styles of music ranging from modern,
contemporary compositions and avant garde to free style improvisations
and jazz standards. These successful young jazz musicians have played
numerous times with Jazz Masters in Lithuania and abroad, participating
in several important festivals.
For more information, email sviaraim@takas.lt
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Creole
Royalty comes to the Lincoln - USA
Before her coronation by a San Francisco newspaper, Queen Ida Guillory
used to practice accordion during breaks from driving a school bus.
"You have to practice all the time," she said. "I used
to take mine on the bus, especially on field trips. If I had to wait
for them two or three hours, I'd park the bus far away and practice."
Back then, Queen Ida never dreamed of playing in front of an audience,
although she played Cajun/Creole music at family gatherings throughout
her upbringing in Southwest Louisiana and East Texas. "I wasn't
thinking of getting onstage or anything," she said.
She got
her start back in 1974 when her brother convinced her to join his
band at a fund-raiser. The event had a Mardi Gras theme and she was
the queen. The San Francisco Chronicle dubbed her "Queen Ida,"
the name stuck and her career was launched. "That's how it all
got started," the 75-year-old performer said during a telephone
interview from her Northern California home. Now, nine out of 10 people
call her "Queen," including her three children, she said.
"She's a woman band leader in a culture that had up until very
recently had no women musicians," said John Ullman, Queen Ida's
manager.
Queen Ida
just wants her audiences to have fun, she said. "I want them
to be sure they relax and expect to be entertained for a couple of
hours," she said. "I try to make them forget worries if
they have any - and keep a smile on your face." Although she
doesn't tour as often as she used to, Queen Ida has performed in Japan,
New Zealand, Europe and five French-speaking countries in Africa.
She has been nominated five times for a Grammy award and won in 1983.
"It was fantastic," she said. "It was one of the greatest
moments of my life."
Local fans
of all things Cajun can enjoy a concert by Queen Ida and her Bon Ton
Zydeco Band on Saturday night at the Lincoln Theatre.
By Kari Neumeyer, Skagit Valley Herald Online
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Accordion
week with Prof. Elsbeth Moser - Lithuania
Contributed
by Raimondas
Sviackevicius
 Two
weeks ago, Lithuanian accordionists, teachers, students and enthusiasts
had a great opportunity to enrich their knowledge of accordion. Elsbeth
Moser was invited by the Ghote's institute in Vilnius in conjunction
with the Lithuanian Academy of Music to hold master classes and concerts.
On April 12th, students, accordion teachers and members of the public
attended the master classes. Prof. Moser spent the day holding lessons
during which she talked about accordion music, its growth, playing
methods, bellows, clever techniques, fingering including different
uses of the thumb.
Master-classes included soloists, two quintets and a chamber group
which played Piazzolla. Most important was Baroque repertoire and
stylistic nuances. Many students played Scarlatti's sonatas, and Prof
Moser's wealth of knowledge was greatly appreciated.
The LMA
concert hall on April 13th featured Elsbeth Moser and cellist Nicolas
Altstaedt. The hall was so full that part of the audience were standing.
Music included Bach, Villa-Lobos, DeFalla, Part, Eggert and Piazzolla.
The next day, Elsbeth Moser held master classes in Kaunas and staged
a concert at the Kaunas Conservatory. The Lithuanian accordion community
and music lovers had a very useful and important week.
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San Francisco
Accordion Festival - USA
The 14th Annual San Francisco Accordion festival will be held Saturday
June 5 at the Cannery at Fisherman's Wharf. The event is free and
will be held outdoors from 2pm to 10 pm. The event includes the Ms
Accordion San Francisco pageant, dancing and many performances. Organizers
have invited all San Francisco accordion jazz performers to combine
their talents for a Jazz Nouveau concert, the evening before the festival.
For more information, email tom@ladyofspain.com
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Lorraine
Accordeon Club 20th Birthday Concert - France
 The
Duo were guests of honor
at the 20th birthday of The Lorraine Accordeon Club held at the Pablo
Picasso room. The accordion club opened the concert under the direction
of Richard Telatin in which the club presented a varied program (Faust
Waltz, Light Cavalry, Barber of Seville) and then the Paris
Moscow Duo presented Russian and French performances.
Particularly
well received was the piece "Paris-Moscow"
composed by Franck Angelis. Singer Marc Pascal made a 30-minute performance
of French songs.
To end the evening, Domi
Emorine, Laurent Fline (drums), Thierry Moncheny (guitars), Gilles
Bioteau (saxophone, flute) and François Chambert (clarinet)
performed a range of South American and French music. A rich and varied
concert.
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Accordion
Attracts Attention of Foster Kids - USA
Russ
Gray works at the Mountain Lake Children's Residence, Lake Placid,
NY. This is a home for teenage boys with emotional problems, most
of whom are in the custody of their county administration. As an aside
to his job, Russ Gray teaches the harmonica and accordion to some
of the children. Now, about twice a year, they go out and play for
nursing homes and other venues.
Some time
ago, one of the boys played Russ's 3 row accordion and got taken with
it. "I talked with Johanna Cossaboon at Hohner
USA and she worked out a deal where we could purchase a Panther for
him at cost," Russ said. "We had one new accordion player
thanks to Hohner's generosity." Interest in the accordion has
since grown and two more boys in the home now want to play the 3 row.
Russ publicly thanks Johanna and Hohner
USA, "for their generosity to these young men" and we applaud
Russ's efforts with the accordion to help enrich the lives of young
people.
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Guy Klucevsek
- USA
Contributed
by Kevin
Friedrich
The updated website about Guy Klucevsek www.guyklucevsek.com
is online. Guy
Klucevsek has created a unique repertoire for accordion through
his own composing and by commissioning over 50 works from composers
including John Zorn, Aaron Jay Kernis, Lois V Vierk, Fred Frith and
many more.
He has released 14 recordings as soloist/leader, including Polka Dots
& Laser Beams and Who Stole the Polka? which were chosen as the
best recordings of 1992 by John Schaefer on the nationally-syndicated
radio program New Sounds, and Transylvanian Softwear, which was cited
as a 1995 Recording of Special Merit in Stereo Review. His latest
CD 'The
Heart of the Andes'
is reviewed at the Accordions Worldwide CD
Review.
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A 'Hip'
Fusion from Elands - Australia
A fusion
of various musical traditions with a contemporary twist is one way
of describing the music of Elands band The Hip Pedlars who have just
released their first CD. The five piece combination features piano
accordion, drums, bass, lead and rhythm guitar with a distinctive
feature being the three part female harmonies.
Their new CD is titled Welcome to Love's Highway and is an eight track
CD that features all original material recorded locally. All five
band members collaborate to write their own songs yet have also built
a reputation for breathing new life into some well known classics.
Helen Knight is the Hip Pedlar's distinctive female vocalist and accordionist.
She also has a background in the theatre and television as both a
writer and actor.
For more information, email: winghammusic@tsn.cc
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Musicians
Share Good Times, Culture, at Acadian Village Jam Sessions - USA
It's a Saturday morning at Savoy's Music Store near Eunice. Steve
Bing of Houston squeezes out a mournful waltz on his accordion, joined
by a half dozen fiddlers and as many guitar players in the weekly
jam session.
For tourists, foreign and domestic, it's the chance to hear Cajun
music in its purest form. For musicians, it's an outlet for their
sense of expression, to get immersed in music steeped in tradition.
For a complete
rundown of Cajun jam sessions, check out www.cajunradio.org. For more
information on jam sessions in South Louisiana, please email klavigne@eatel.net
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