Video 1: “We’ll Dance Again” Composed and performed by Joseph Natoli
Video 2: Michael Bridge closed the Symposium with a breathtaking orchestration of Khachaturian’s “Toccata”:

The extremely successful IDEAS Symposium 4.0 is now in the history books, completing Jan 30,2022. IDEAS, as you know, stands for the International Digital Electronic Accordion Society, and they hold an international symposium each year for dedicated digital accordionists around the globe who want to learn as much as possible and optimize the use of their digital instruments and peripherals. This year was no exception. Take a look at this year’s schedule embedded here to get a good IDEA of how saturated and diverse these learning opportunities were for attendees over an incredible 10-day period!

Workshops included topics like:
* Understanding optimal settings for Zoom
* The Magic of Walking Bass (2 sessions)
* Level1/2 and tips/tricks courses on the Roland FR-4X, FR-8X or Bugari Evo digital accordions
* Orchestration workshop on the Concerto digital accordion
* Audio Interfaces (understanding and optimizing for recording or streaming)
* Hand health for accordionists (Dr. Angela Natoli)
* DaVinci Resolve video creation software techniques
* Rehearsal Live Share (real time online ensemble or orchestra rehearsal software)
* Achieving realistic percussion on digital accordions
* Performing live with arrangers (like the Ketron SD-90)
* Learning comping techniques for vocalists or melody instruments
* Augmenting standard harmonies

Each and every one of these sessions (90.2 hours worth!) were recorded and will be made available to registrants for at least the next year so that they can go back and reference the recordings repeatedly for continued learning. Furthermore, one can still pay the registration fee to “attend” the symposium via the recorded sessions, which is just like being there live! No other organization on the planet offers this much information while then making it available for such an extended period. Many people said in the first few days of the symposium, that if it ended right then, they would have gotten their money’s worth! That’s a testament to the incredible knowledge share that the symposium has become.

Additionally, some of the greatest digital artists in the world performed and were also part of the faculty, including Michael Bridge, Uwe Steger, Cory Pesaturo, Eddie Monteiro, Joe Natoli, Annie Gong, and Julie Wisniewski (See photo on left). There were two major concerts, each repeated the following day at an earlier time to accommodate time zones across the earth.

Concert #2 was dedicated to Donna Dee Ray, who we lost Nov 8, 2021 and who had been an avid acoustic and digital accordion performer all her life, as well as a very hard working ATG Board member much of her adult life. Donna Dee was honored on the concert with a new composition by Joseph Natoli dedicated to both Donna Dee and her surviving husband Dennis, and it is entitled “We’ll Dance Again”. See Video #1. (Attendees on Concert #2 1/28/22 in photo down).

Additionally, you will definitely want to hear a video from Michael Bridge that closed the Symposium which was a breathtaking orchestration of Khachaturian’s “Toccata”. See Video #2

Here are some thoughts from two Symposium Attendees:
John Modrowsky: The IDEAS Symposium was a unique vehicle for people interested in digital accordion (owners or just curious) to participate with a community of like-minded people.  Topics ranging from basic music theory and tutorials on the basics of their digital instruments to audio and video capture and editing. As if not enough, there were breathtakingly creative concerts provided by artists from all over the globe (including Australia, New Zealand and Germany as well as the Americas) – a truly world-wide virtual event. This symposium and the GR8 IDEAS web site and forum are must do’s.  Digital accordions such as those from Roland have been around for some years, but they are complex instruments with lots of capabilities – and there is virtually no aftersales support. GR8 IDEAS is the place for people to go for guidance and inspiration.  There are no questions that are too simplistic. The purpose is to get everyone to be able to become familiar and comfortable with their instrument so that they can enjoy playing and share their musical talents!  Thank you Joe Natoli for creating this wonderful experience.

Laura Jean Niland: IDEAS Symposium 4.0 Teaches All Accordionists: I just finished attending the 10-day online International Digital Electronic Accordion Society (IDEAS) Symposium 4.0 with Joe Natoli at the helm. You might ask: What are you doing there… you are an acoustic player right? Well, yes I am an acoustic player, but I also love learning and this is the place to be if you want to experience great teachers, thinkers, and performers for all things accordion both digital and acoustic as well as audio/video editing peripherals.

There were outstanding presentations on everything regarding digital accordions (Roland, Concerto, Bugari-EVO, Proxima) as well as instruction on video and audio editing for video presentations (glitzy shows too).

Master instructors included: Bob Donovan, Joe Natoli, Dr. Angela Natoli, Mike Soloway, Paul Pasquali, Gordon Kohl, Don Gerundo, Uwe Steger, Lenny Feldman, Don Hall, Alex Chudolij, Michael Bridge, Cory Pesaturo, Eddie Monteiro, Mitchell White, and Marco Cinaglia.

Two major Concerts included these performers: Cory Pesaturo, Eddie Montiero, Joe Natoli, Michael Bridge, Kevin Solecki, Valeriya Grechenkova, Don Gerundo, Gordon Kohl, Bob Donovan, Julie Wisniewski, Uwe Steger and Annie Gong,

In addition, there were online Happy Hours with performances from participants and Attendees Concert as well.

For ten days Jan 20-30, 2022 there was a plethora of wonderful workshops and online chats with the BEST instructors in the digital world sharing ideas with attendees from across the globe! Yes, folks from Australia, New Zealand, Germany and Canada too!

I loved the demonstrations of Resolve software (Donovan & Steger) to create professional video and audio editing. It is amazing what these programs can do on your own computer! All you need is the time to learn and apply your knowledge. Many attendees demonstrated their skills at creating videos, as they submitted these for presentation at the Attendees Concert.

What I learned is that there is so much more that I can learn. Learning can be fun, especially when you meet a cadre of individuals at the Symposium with the same interests. Help is just a click away, especially in the technology age. There was so much information about electronics too, and how to resolve problems and most importantly, how to work with your new purchase, a digital accordion. Believe me, you need tutorial and once you have it, you are on your way to GREAT experiences with the instrument. Although I am an acoustic player, I have great respect for the digital accordion and its incredible applications. As Mitchell White would say: “Laura, we may convert you yet!”. Maybe… I am certainly thinking about it!

Many thanks to all the presenters and to Joe Natoli for his organizational skills in presenting this outstanding Symposium. I look forward to attending IDEAS Symposium 5.0. Congratulations on another successful IDEAS Symposium. I loved every aspect of the Symposium. Now it’s time to go back and review the 90.2 hours of recordings from the Symposium! More fun!

For inquiries about Symposium 5.0, Nov 6-16, 2022, please reach out to Joseph Natoli: thegr8.ideas@gmail.com.