Dr. Helmi Harrington, founder and museum curator of The World of Accordions Museum in Superior, Wisconsin will present several workshops at the 73rd ATG Festival, July 17-20 at the Hyatt Lisle, Ill. (Chicago).

In her workshop, “Memorization Skills”, Dr. Harrington will explain how everyone can learn to play music from memory. Special innate “gifts,” and hundreds of rote repetitions are not required. The accordion is the most natural instrument to promote this ability by use of its Stradella bass organization and a few harmonic principles.

This workshop identifies types of memorization techniques and the means by which they are developed and applied. One or more volunteers from the audience will be used to demonstrate the learning and memorization of pieces, proving that rational, knowledge-based thinking leads to rapid accomplishment.

Dr.Harrington will also present a workshop called “The History of the Accordion”.The history of accordions is a history of the creative spirits of peoples of many cultures. It involves awareness of the values and aesthetics of cultures as represented in the music, song-texts, and artistic life of real people. On all continents of the earth, creative artistry is represented and delivered by accordion-family instruments. This music cannot be understood without knowledge of the instruments themselves, what they were created to accomplish, and the means given to the tasks. Preserving accordions, then, can be seen as a study of humanity. This is the goal and task of A World of Accordions Museum and Harrington ARTS Center.

Beginning with early accordions and concertinas (1829) and progressing chronologically to modern state-of-the-art examples, this session will sound, identify and explain the complex family known as bellowed free-reed aerophones through their major representatives: piano, button chromatic, button diatonic accordions, English, Anglo, Chemnitz concertinas, and Bandonions. Beautifully artistic historic examples as well as hybrids and rarities will be part of the display and demos. Audiences are usually astounded by the varieties and tunings, and the acquired knowledge base enhances appreciation.

For further information on the World of Accordions Museum: Email:accordion@sprynet.com or
Call 218-393-0245 or 715-395-ARTS(2787)