On June 16, 2010, something new happened at the famed Rochester Jazz Festival that has never happened before. The accordion was given front and center stage with two Roland artists, Eddie Monteiro and Joseph Natoli.

Thanks to the hard work last summer of the late Ron Lankford from Roland Corporation along with Rose Caccamise of Roxy’s Music, their efforts got the accordion very much noticed this year at a hugely famous week-long jazz festival where the accordion shared the venue with the likes of Herbie Hancock, Gladys Knight, and Stanley Jordan.

The Festival is sponsored by Xerox Corporation with 14 different concert halls in the downtown Rochester district provided in a campus setting for jazz artists from all over the world. Xerox’s own auditorium in Xerox Plaza was provided exclusively to Eddie and Joe who performed two shows entitled the “Rochester/Roland All-Star Accordion Jam!”

There were certainly all types of listeners in the audience, from accordion skeptics, to accordion enthusiasts, to jazz aficionados, to everyday music enthusiasts. However, Joe Natoli started the program, and from the very first notes coming out of his Roland FR7X virtual accordion with huge concert percussion sounds as he began a very accurate recreation of Aaron Copland’s orchestral piece “Fanfare For the Common Man,” there were audible gasps in the audience, as they realized they were in for something completely different.

Joe continued a program of classical, light classical, and jazz. Eddie Monteiro then performed with a trio, showcasing his incredible talents as a jazz artist, performing a number of wonderful jazz standards including his trademark “One Note Samba.”

Needless to say, the accordion made a lasting impression on an audience who has come to expect the best that this festival has to offer. They may have come in with some preconceptions about what they were about to hear from an accordion, but certainly they left with a completely different set of expectations for next year.

A huge debt of gratitude goes out to our dear deceased friend, Ron Lankford, Roland Corporation, and Rose Caccamise of Roxy’s Music in Batavia, NY for making this opportunity possible.

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