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Highlights |
NAO Composers’ Competition 2009 - UK
‘Accordion Dreams: A Journey into Cajun and Creole Music’ – USA
Journalist’s Accordion Wins Hearts in Afghanistan
Volunteers Needed to Play World's Largest Accordion - UK
Reports for Concerts, Masterclasses, Competitions, Festivals, etc. |
Folk Orchestra Concert Features Accordionists - Russia
Roland FR-1 North American Release at NAMM - USA
L'I.M.M.A. (Institut Musical Marie-Andrée), Alsace – France
Future events |
NAO North Central Area Festival, - UK
"With 1,000 Reed Tongues", Wiesbaden – Germany
Jeremy Vannereau Concerts – France
KTU’s new CD ‘Quiver’, Helsinki – Finland
Italian Accordion Academy Master Classes, Urbino – Italy
New and Updated Sites |
H S Production New Music Releases
Yehuda Oppenheimer Updates 1 composition for Accordion.
MusicForAccordion.com new eSheet Pieces
Joe Burke new CD
Yehuda Oppenheimer Release 1 ARRANGEMENT for Accordion.
H S Production New Music Releases
Charnwood Publications New Accordion Compositions
CD Reviews |
Help Desk, Information needed, Readers CommentsSubmit Your Question, CommentSUBMIT NOW |
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Highlights |
Renzo Ruggieri, Antonello Salis, Jazz Magazine Referendum - Italyby Holda Paoletti-Kampl |
 With his CD ‘Terre’, which Renzo Ruggieri recorded with guitarist Mauro De Federicis, he has achieved the classification of the 20 best musicians of the year (for piano, keyboards, guitar, accordion), achieving second place to the accordionist Antonello Salis in a referendum held by the magazine ‘Jazz Music’ (ed. Hachette, Rusconi). The CD also contains numbers featuring the famous vocalists Antonella Ruggiero and Milva. You can purchase the CD ‘Terre’ online. In the same referendum, the rankings included pianists Stefano Bollani, Franco D'Andrea, Danilo Rea, and Enrico Pierannunzi. In 2008, Sardinia Island, Italy, ran whole page advertisements in various airline magazines including the Ryan Air In Flight Magazine with most of the whole page advertisement featuring accordionist Antonello Salis. Congratulations to Antonello Salis and Renzo Ruggieri for these successes. |
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NAO Composers’ Competition 2009 - UKby Anna Bodell of Charnwood Publications |
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 The National Accordion Organisation of the United Kingdom (NAO) is delighted to announce, that in line with its policy of promoting all aspects of the accordion in the UK and internationally, it will from 2009, be organising the UK National Accordion Composers Competition. This competition was formerly run by the North Staffs Accordion Club who founded the event in 2000. The competition aims to encourage new compositions for the accordion and the publication of the best entries. The competition categories are: Professional, Amateur and Junior each with sub categories for solo, duo, and ensemble/orchestra. The competition rules and entry form are online on the NAO website. The Finals will be held during the NAO UK Championships April 24th to 26th, at The Metropole Hotel and on the North Pier, Blackpool, UK. For full details of this competition as well as the NAO festivals and the NAO UK Championships, please visit the NAO website or email: naouk@btinternet.com |
‘Accordion Dreams: A Journey into Cajun and Creole Music’ – USAby Rob Howard |
 ‘Accordion Dreams: A Journey into Cajun and Creole Music’, by Blair Kilpatrick, tells of her unlikely obsession with Cajun culture and the accordion.By age thirty-nine, Blair Kilpatrick had settled into life as a practicing psychologist, wife, and mother. Then a chance encounter in New Orleans turned her world upside down. She returned home to Chicago with unlikely new passions for Cajun music and its defining instrument, the accordion. Captivated by recurring dreams of playing the Cajun accordion, she set out to master it. Yet she was not a musician, was too self-conscious to dance, and didn't even sing in the shower. Kilpatrick's obsession took her from Chicago's Cajun dance scene to a folk music camp in West Virginia, back and forth to south Louisiana, and even to a Cajun festival in France. An unexpected family move brought her to the San Francisco Bay Area, home to the largest Cajun-Zydeco music scene outside the Gulf Coast. There she became a protégé of renowned accordionist Danny Poullard, a Louisiana-born Creole and the guiding spirit of the local Louisiana French music community. This book is Blair Kilpatrick's account of the possibility of passion, risk-taking, and change - at any age. For further information email: syates@ihl.state.ms.us |
Journalist’s Accordion Wins Hearts in Afghanistanby Rob Howard |
 Gregory Warner, away from his career as a radio journalist, has played the piano in bars in New York, and is also an accordionist.When Gregory Warner went recently to Afghanistan for a reporting assignment, he took his accordion with him, hoping music would help him where his phrase book failed. The instrument turned out to be a better ambassador than he ever imagined. His amazing video, “Afghanistan: An Accordion Journey”, available on Global Post, shows how his music helped bridge the gap between foreigner and natives by recalling Afghanistan’s own accordion hero, Ahmad Zahir. (Thirty years after his death, Zahir is still Afghanistan’s most popular and enduring musical icon.) Warner can be seen and heard performing Johnny Cash’s ‘Ring of Fire’ for a cheering Afghan crowd. |
Volunteers Needed to Play World's Largest Accordion - UKby Romano Viazzani |
 We are looking for accordion players or anyone who can read music and perhaps play the piano, to assist with a project by artist Ruth Ewan, who is taking part in the Triennial exhibition at Tate Britain, a gallery situated at Millbank in London. Ewan takes as her focus the history of protest and activism. As part of 'Squeezebox Jukebox', the world's largest accordion will be shipped over from Italy and installed in the galleries at Tate Britain. The largest playable accordion in the world is 253-cm (99.6-in) tall, 190-cm (74.8-in) wide, and 85-cm (33.4-in) deep, and weighs approximately 200 kg (440 lb). The instrument, built by Giancarlo Francenella (Italy), bears the name "Castelfidardo" after the city in Italy, where it was constructed. A selection of protest and political songs are currently being transcribed for playing on the giant accordion throughout the exhibition. This is where we need help. The accordion is to be played daily and requires two people to play it; a rota is currently being drawn up to schedule in players and we need volunteers to fill it. A 'shift' on the rota would typically mean playing one or two songs (at a set time - tbc) and would take a commitment of around 10-15 minutes. The exhibition runs from February 2nd to April 26th 2009. For accordion players and able music lovers alike this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to experience playing an unusual instrument on a gargantuan scale! Volunteers travel expenses will be covered. For further information email: abi.spinks@tate.org.uk |
Reports for Concerts, Masterclasses, Competitions, Festivals, etc. |
Grzegorz Stopa at Vienna’s famous Musikverein – Austriaby Dr Herbert Scheibenreif Manager of Friedrich Lips Productions |
 Polish accordionist Grzegorz Stopa recently made his debut as a soloist in Vienna’s world-famous Big Hall of Musikverein performing Kalevi Aho’s ‘Sonata No.2 (Black Birds)’.He was born in Przemysl (Poland) in 1973, and studied accordion with Professor W. L. Puchnowski at the F. Chopin Academy of Music in Warsaw, and as a scholar of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), with Professor Mie Miki at the Folkwang Hochschule für Musik in Essen, and also at the Hochschule für Musik in Detmold, Germany. During his studies, Grzegorz Stopa, was also a teacher at both academies. Grzegorz Stopa is a prize-winner of 11 international and national solo and chamber music competitions, among others the Grand Prix of the International Accordion Competition in Tokyo, Japan (2002) as well as numerous scholarship foundations. He has made several concert tours as soloist and chamber musician in Europe and Asia. Since his debut concert in Tokyo (2003), he has given regular recitals in Japan (e.g. Casalas Hall or Kioi Hall, Tokyo; Phoenix Hall, Osaka). Grzegorz Stopa was the first accordionist to perform in the concert series ‘Soloists of the Young Elite’ in the Mecklenburg Vorpommern Festival (2003), and has numerous first performances within the scope of contemporary music. He has worked with the ensemble "die reihe" and with composers such as Kalevi Aho, Sofia Gubaidulina, Lukas Ligeti or Makoto Nomura. In 2005 Grzegorz Stopa was appointed to the Vienna Conservatory as teacher of the first university accordion class, and since 2007 also a teacher at the University of Music and Dramatic Arts in Graz. |
Folk Orchestra Concert Features Accordionists - Russiaby Alexander Poeluev |
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| The Russian Folk Orchestra of the Music School Ippolitov-Ivanov, conducted by Galina Shishkina, featured accordionists for their concert at the large Philharmonic Hall in Rostov on January 18th. 2009 in Russia has been named the "Year of Youth" The audience enjoyed this concert very much as the level of the orchestra showed a high professional standard with powerful emotions. Very impressive was the performances of outstanding musicians, Honored Artist of Russia Yuri Shishkin (accordion), Vladimir Kolontaeva (balalaika) and Honored Musician of Culture of Russia, Vladimir Skiba (accordion). The performances of young artists, winners of international competitions, was especially interesting and exciting! Virtuoso playing accordionist Andrew Zamkovogo (A. Holminov "Scherzo); made a vivid, emotional performance. Accordionist Vitaly Hitushka (Bernie Miller "Bernie`s Tune"); brilliant, temperamental, filled with special joy and humor. Duet bayan by Arthur and Arcadia Kazaryan, accompanied by percussion instruments Dugoli was exciting with no one wanting to leave the room! For further information conctact Alexander Poeluev. |
Roland FR-1 North American Release at NAMM - USAby Harley Jones |
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 The NAMM Show is for the music trade only and not open to the public with some 86,000 people from the music trade attending. Ron Lankford of Roland USA reports: "Roland are pleased that the unveiling of the FR-1 V-Accordion for its American release at the NAMM Show was a huge success." "The attention that was given to the new FR-1 and the whole Digital V-Accordion line was the best ever. There are now 4 models that are currently available in the Roland digital accordion line-up and even though the FR-1 is the smallest offering, it's accordion features certainly don't say entry level." "Weighing in at less than 12.5 pounds, 26 treble keys, 72 bass buttons, 4 orchestra voices, 4 organ voices, has 7 accordion models and is a midi controller. It's certainly not the average beginning accordion." "The accordion demonstrations at the Roland NAMM booth were provided by two of the finest, Eddie Monteiro and Cory Pesaturo. For the first time in NAMM history, the accordions were invited to take Center Stage." "This history making hour long Accordion Palooza Event took place on Sunday morning and included both Eddie Monteiro and Cory Pesaturo as well as local Los Angeles accordion instructor Janet Hane and her 12 year old star student, Wilma Rodriguez." |
L'I.M.M.A. (Institut Musical Marie-Andrée), Alsace – Franceby Holda Paoletti-Kampl |
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 IMMA (Musical Institute Andrée-Marie) was born of a passion for teaching and love of music.This school is headed by Marie-Andrée Joerger, a young graduate teacher status. After numerous studies (Conservatoire de Paris, Center for Teacher Education of the music of Dijon, and studies with renowned professors: A. Skliarov, T. Anzellotti, J. Mornet ...), Marie-Andrée decided to turn and transmit her passion by opening the school (IMMA) in Rosheim, Alsace. It boasts a score of accordion students of all ages, as well as training courses in music. Students are shown the various possibilities of the instrument, and motivated towards becoming dedicated musicians, amateur or professional. Among these students, there are already many showing great promise for the future. For further information email: marieandree84@live.fr |
Future events |
2009 Accordion Master Class and Concert Series, New York – USAby Rob Howard |
 Virtuoso accordionist, author, philosopher and composer Dr William Schimmel moderates the 15th annual American Accordionists' Association ‘Master Class and Concert Series’, held at the Tenri Cultural Institute of New York on July 24th, 25th and 26th. Master classes will be at 3pm, and concerts at 7pm.For further information email: billschimmel@billschimmel.com |
NAO North Central Area Festival, - UKby Rob Howard |
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 The National Organisation of the UK - North Central Area Festival incorporating the Yorkshire Accordion & Music Festival, Championships, takes place on February 7th at the Victoria Hall, Saltaire, West Yorkshire.The competition which is one of the qualifying competitions for the NAO UK Championships 2009 to be held in April in Blackpool. The adjudicators include Raymond Bodell, Djordje Gajic, Ken Farran, Karolyn Broadhead, Graham Waterhouse, and Andrew Fearnley. There will be a display of instruments a demonstration of the Roland V. In the evening, there will be a ceilidh to the music of the Rob Thorn Band, featuring an accordion cabaret spot by Thom Hardacre. For further information email: r.smith@ukaccordions.com |
"With 1,000 Reed Tongues", Wiesbaden – Germanyby Holda Paoletti-Kampl |
 After extensive artistic enjoyment of Christmas time and the Epiphany in the ‘Ring’ Church of Wiesbaden, a music concert takes place on Sunday January 25th, 5 pm, titled: "With 1,000 Reed Tongues" - all about the accordion. The 9 musicians (all graduates and students of the Music Academy, Wiesbaden), conducted by the Lecturer Mirjana Petercol, will present works from the classical accordion-literature (Abbott, Brehme, Kagel, etc), as well as spiritual songs of the romantic area for soloists (Franck, Rossini, Dvorak, etc) - accompanied by the accordion. Entrance is free. The accordion, an instrument associated with folk and popular music for a long time, has also found its place in the classical music scene, especially with new music. The instrument - patented by a Viennese in 1829, has now expanded all over the world and is integrated in all types of musical cultures. |
Jeremy Vannereau Concerts – Franceby Rob Howard |
 French accordionist and bandoneonist Jeremy Vannereau, with guitarist Eric Franceries, perform in concert as follows:January 24th, 8.30pm - Théâtre du Casino d'Aix les Bains January 31st, 8.30pm - Salle LA TRAVERSE au Bourget du Lac The program will include works by Piazzolla, Hamann, and Rodrigo. For further information email: jvannereau@hotmail.com |
KTU’s new CD ‘Quiver’, Helsinki – Finlandby Rob Howard |
 The second album by KTU (Trey Gunn, Kimmo Pohjonen, Pat Mastelotto) entitled Quiver will be released in Finland by Rockadillo Records on February 4th 2009. European release via Rockadillo and Westpark Music will follow, exact dates TBC. The Japanese release by Disk Union is set for March 6th. The American release is TBC. KTU (pronounced "K2") features Finnish accordion adventurer Kimmo Pohjonen in collaboration with King Crimson's Pat Mastelotto - rhythmic devices, and Trey Gunn - guitar. Their first album, a live recording from Tokyo entitled ‘8 Armed Monkey’, was released in Europe, America and Japan in 2005. Quiver features all new music, composed, arranged and produced by KTU, recorded at The Zone studios in Texas and mixed at Seawolf Studios, Helsinki. Quiver features guest performances by previous KTU member Samuli Kosminen, who departed the band in 2007 and is also known for his work in Icelandic band MuM. Additionally, three of the pieces were mixed by Porcupine Tree’s Steven Wilson. For further information email: pap@hoedown.com |
Italian Accordion Academy Master Classes, Urbino – Italyby Rob Howard |
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| Master classes organized by the Accademia Fisarmonicistica Italiana take place in Urbino in February and March, as follows: February 21st and 22nd – taught by Claudio Jacomucci March 20th, 21st and 22nd – taught by Jean Luc Manca For further information email: info@accademiafisarmonicistica.com |
New and Updated Sites |
MusicForAccordion.com new eSheet Piecesby MusicForAccordion.com |
| MusicForAccordion.com site releases 2 new pieces - 'Echoes From The Hungarian Plains' and 'Bavarian Snow Waltz - Schneewaltzer'. Samples of the music are available online. The music are in eSheet format, able to be emailed to your computer. Purchase with credit card. |
H S Production New Music Releasesby H S Productions |
| H S Production releases 6 new pieces, 'Masur', 'Hallo, From Mountain, Mountain', 'Behind The Mountains, Behind The Woods', 'Mountain Dance', 'Streamlet' and 'Kuyavyak 01'. Samples of the music are available online. The music is in eSheet format, able to be emailed to your computer. Purchase with credit card. |
Yehuda Oppenheimer Updates 1 composition for Accordion.by Yehuda Oppenheimer |
| Yehuda Oppenheimer updating 1 composition for acccordion - 'Bingo Arrangement'. Samples of the music is available online. The music is in eSheet format, able to be emailed to your computer. Purchase with credit card. |
MusicForAccordion.com new eSheet Piecesby MusicForAccordion.com |
| MusicForAccordion.com site releases 5 new pieces - 'Masaniello', 'Quadrille Arrangement', 'Cowboy Melodies', 'Sevillana' and 'Vilia'. Samples of the music are available online. The music are in eSheet format, able to be emailed to your computer. Purchase with credit card. |
Joe Burke new CDby Joe Burke |
| A new site selling a CD titled "The Morning Mist" with sound samples. Music performed by Joe Burke. Purchase online. |
Yehuda Oppenheimer Release 1 ARRANGEMENT for Accordion.by Yehuda Oppenheimer |
| Yehuda Oppenheimer release 1 ARRANGEMENT for acccordion - 'Symphony No. 40, 1st Movement'. Samples of the music are available online. The music is in eSheet format, able to be emailed to your computer. Purchase with credit card. |
H S Production New Music Releasesby H S Productions |
| H S Production releases 6 new pieces, 'Admist the Dale so Wide and Even “and” Shines the Crescent', 'Little Apple', 'Oh, My Jasek!', 'What’s There In The Woods?', 'Where Do You Go Janek?' and 'I Am a Mountaineer'. Samples of the music are available online. The music is in eSheet format, able to be emailed to your computer. Purchase with credit card. |
Charnwood Publications New Accordion Compositionsby Charnwood Publishing |
| Charnwood Publications releases 6 new pieces by ccomposer Gina Brannelli titled, 'Paris Lament', 'Study In A Minor', 'Lucky Star', 'Snow Waltz Arrangement', 'Highland Lament' and 'Blackpool Rocks'. Purchase with credit card. |
CD Reviews |
"Sai-Ko" CD by Trio Miyazakiby Renato Belardinelli |
 CD Reviews Index for the Review of "Sai-Ko" CD by Trio Miyazaki |
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