Video: “Tango Frenetico” by Joseph Natoli. This is the winning composition for the American Accordionists’ Association 2024 Elsie M. Bennett composition competition.

Joseph Natoli shares, “Very happy and grateful to have been chosen the winning entry for the 2024 Elsie M. Bennett composition competition announced by the American Accordionists’ Association (AAA) at their annual festival near Philadelphia, PA last week. My composition is called “Tango Frenetico” and I am performing on this recording. Many thanks to the AAA and the judges for this award and for an amazing festival.”

Elsie Bennett established the AAA Composers’ Commissioning Committee in 1954. As its permanent chair, she succeeded over the remainder of the century up to a short time before her death in 2005, in commissioning 55
works from 33 composers, many of whom were world famous. For further information, see the memorial tribute of Elsie M. Bennett (1918 – 2005) by Faithe Deffner.

In addition to winning the Elsie M. Bennett Composition Competition, Joseph Natoli was a featured performer and workshop presenter at the 2024 86th AAA Festival in West Conshohocken, held from July 12 – 14, 2024. AAA President Frank Busso Jr. shares, “No stranger to the AAA, Joseph Natoli has been a performer, composer, arranger, and advocate of the accordion since age seven.”

Joseph is the co-founder and director of GR8 Ideas, an organization dedicated to the dissemination of knowledge of digital accordions and digital peripherals via its web page as well as its accompanying GR8 Ideas Facebook page. Joseph also founded his publishing company JANPress Music.

To view photos and video of a performance at the 2024 AAA Festival, July 12-14, check out the website: 2024AAA86th