Contributed by Amber Masefield

Day 2 – Wednesday 24 July 2024

The day started with a busy round of competitions, with many contestants rushing between rooms to participate in all their classes.

For those with a break in competing, Gordon Kohl ran an instructive workshop on Italian Love Song Ballads, generously giving three of his most recent arrangements to the class.

For the first of the concerts, 1^st Vice President Beverley Fess introduced the Jarosh Ensemble and their conductor Maureen Jarosh to the stage. The Canadian group played a varied selection including the All The Things You Are, the Title Theme for Queen’s Gambit and Angela’s Ashes with a standing ovation.

The afternoon started with the red-carpet entrance of Prof. Joan Cochran Sommers to a special presentation from the ATG Board.  In the lead up to the festival, the ATG members and attendees had been asked for three words to describe the “doyenne” of the accordion world.  These words were read out by the entirety of the Board, and Joan Grauman Morse presented a beautiful piece of art where she had turned the descriptions into the shape of an accordion. Picture below.

After being presented a plaque from the Board of the American Accordionists Association by President Frank Busso Jr., First Vice President Frank Busso Sr. and member of the board Joan Grauman Morse, and with a personal gift from the ATG Board, Joan Cochran Sommers graciously spoke about her recollections of starting the accordion and where it had taken her over the years.

The presentation ended with a surprise video of people from around the world showing their memories and appreciation of the honouree.

Dr. Michael Bridge then hosted a workshop working through the possibilities of Can A Digital Accordion Play Great Accordion Sounds? This illustrated how a newly created suite of User Programs incorporates a digital mirror of Michaels own acoustic accordion, as well as discussing tips on bellows control.

Later that afternoon attendees were treated to the movie premier of ‘A World of Accordions Museum, A Harrington Legacy’. This documentary was made with sponsorship from the ATG and showcases the wonders preserved at the museum in Superior, WI, and the knowledge and research of the founder Dr Helmi Harrington.

The first of the evening concerts at the White Recital Hall of the UMKC featured Stas Venglevski, Nikolay Bine and Gorka Hermosa.
Stas performed two of his own works, the 6 piece Animal Suite, and the newly finished work Poems of Life and Love, which ‘in dedication to the 90th birthday celebration for Joan Cochran Sommers’.

The New York based Nikolay Bine started the second half with a mixture of jazz, tango and French repertoire.

International composer, teacher and performer Gorka Hermosa performed his own works, ending with a solo arrangement of the first two movements of his Peace Dream Concerto to a standing ovation.