Welcome to the 78th Annual Competition and Festival to be held at the Hyatt Regency in Lisle, IL (Chicago) from July 25-28, 2018. This year you will have the opportunity to hear some of the world’s finest accordion artists in concert, attend a variety of interesting and informative workshops, perform in the popular ATG Festival Orchestra, celebrate at the Gala Banquet and Luncheons, shop at the ATG Marketplace, enjoy a variety of Concerts and meet your fellow accordionists from around the world!
All events are open to the General Public. You will find a diverse array of musical genres performed by a variety of accordionists. There is truly something for everyone. Discover the magic and diversity of the accordion as presented by this year’s ATG Guest Artists. You are invited to purchase an all-inclusive package of tickets (with details available on the Registration Form at www.accordions.com/atg or you are also welcome to buy individual General Admission Tickets at the door for each event. Free parking is available at the Hotel.
The festival includes great concerts, workshops and food and also provides two opportunities for accordionists to perform with a group and have a lot of fun:
1) There is the Festival Orchestra which gives you the opportunity to perform some incredible orchestra music under the baton of the world famous accordion orchestra conductor, Joan Sommers.
2) There is also a fun Mixed Ensemble that will include high school students from local high school bands mixed with accordion players and is open to all players and all ability levels under the leadership of Murl Allen Sanders. Last year was the first year, enjoyed by both participants and audience!
2018 guest artists include:
Matthias Matzke, Germany
Leoni Kratz (Soprano), Germany
Cory Pesaturo, USA
Mike Alongi, USA
Donna Dee and Dennis Ray, USA
2018 workshop Presenters and Topics:
1. Joan Cochran Sommers: FIRST LESSONS FOR BEGINNERS….
This workshop is planned for a 50-minute presentation and is intended for use by accordionists, pianists or other musicians who may never have taught accordion but might like to teach some.
For attendees who do not have an instrument, we may have some 12-bass accordions available for demonstrations.
There will be handouts for workshop attendees. This workshop has been presented in the past to teachers actively teaching accordion students at all levels and they often expressed appreciation for the presentation, saying it gave them several new ideas to use in their own teaching methods. This workshop can be presented with or without participants, but works nicely using volunteer students for demonstration purposes, limiting participants to to students with a 12-bass accordion.
ATG can provide some but if you have one and would like to bring it with you to the workshop that would be helpful. A 12-bass instrument when teaching beginner students is very helpful and eye-opening when applying these teaching techniques. There are so many accordionists in the world who have perhaps just returned to playing and might assume they can teach the instrument or are pressured by others to do so. Therefore, this workshop hopes to help all attendees and teachers at any level become better teachers and may even encourage them, especially the non-accordionists, to take some lessons, too.
2. Cory Pesaturo : AUTHENTICITY OF STYLES….Just because you know a Frank Marocco arrangement, does not mean you know a lick about Jazz. Just because you play Nunzio’s version of Under Paris Skies, does not mean you know anything about French music. Playing a style takes years to understand, let alone master. Cory will take you through over 10 genres, and dive into the details of each, using just one simple song as an example all the way through.
The song will transform in groove, ornaments, tempo, key, touch, feel, and many other aspects as it is put through the paces of each genre. By the end, you will have an idea of how to identify certain details in a style, apply them to your playing, and hence, make yourself sound more authentic.
Title: IMPROVISATION/ENHANCING YOUR MUSICIANSHIP…Improvisation is the door that leads you to a Massive room in your musician house that you never knew you had. Cory will give you some keys to unlock your potential, even just simple ideas of how to change a melody, so that every time you play a song, it’s slightly different. He’ll also get into how to hear different chords inside your head that can add to an arrangement you are playing, and also improve your ability to “borrow” ideas others have played / learning a song on the radio you heard only once.
3. Mattias Matzke
: DIGITAL ACCORDION BETWEEN HOPE AND MISAPPREHENSION
Matthias demonstrates his approach to increasing the accordion’s attraction by focusing on the following topics:
Sound and arrangement for solo and band performances
Accompaniment of a vocalist
Accessing current literature
4. Mike Alongi : REHARMONIZATION AND A SURVEY OF USEFUL FACTS CONCERNING THE LH STRADELLA SYSTEM…The two-fold subject matter in this workshop consists of (1) Simple ways to view reharmonization. (2) A discussion on how the LH Stradella System gives us a clearer understanding of root movement with respect to the progression of chords.
5. Helmi Harrington : WHAT MOST ACCORDIONISTS DON’T KNOW ABOUT THEIR INSTRUMENTS AND CONVENTIONAL NOTATION SYSTEMS….Our system of two-clef notation evolved over centuries and continues to develop as contemporary music introduces new symbols for sound and action. Beginning with diatonic accordion notation in tablature forms, we will next consider implications and problems in standard accordion music. Among these are shifts vs. keyboard placements, bass/chord notations vs. reed contents, and dynamic balance between instrument sections. If you think you understand what conventional notation presumes of your sound product, awareness of its imprecision will cause reconsideration of your accordion’s components while exposing covert implications of notation. This information will promote improvements in your musical delivery and encourage advanced technical skills.
6. Murl Sanders: ACCOMPANYING EFFECTIVELY AND BEAUTIFULLY….Suggestions to make yourself a better accompanist and team player with your accordion. Learning to integrate or “fit in” with an ensemble of any size. This is a hands-on workshop. Bring your accordion. Be prepared to play because you will be asked to play with other folks during the workshop. If you play another instrument other than accordion, please consider bringing it so we can have realistic examples. If you are a singer, please consider singing and bring music for a simple song of your choice. Some simple sheet music will be provided as well.
7. Nick Ballarini
: BLUES AND BASS WORKSHOPS COMBINED….
This is a hands-on workshop, accordion Required For Admission and music will be provided. • To Swing or Not To Swing
* Blues Riffs To Develop Your Swing
* 12 Bar Blues, 8 Bar Blues
* Major and Minor Blues
* Lazy (Wo)Man’s Blues/Rock Bass
* Stradella Bass System Chord Structure
* Plucking Bass, Walking Bass, Strumming Bass
8. Gordon Kohl : WORKSHOPS I AND II: MIXING YOUR ACCORDION REGISTRATIONS WITH DIGITAL INSTRUMENT SOUNDS ….Placing an importance to the accordion tones being included and mixed in with other digital musical instrument voices. His workshops includes the accordion (voicing, registers, tuning, and chords); combining accordion reed voices with Digital Piano, Strings, etc.) He also mixes sounds from Broadway, French, Italian, County, and European music.
Read future USA News publications for additional information on guest artists and workshop presenters. For further information: ATG
