Confédération Internationale des Accordéonistes (CIA) President and New York based accordionist, Kevin Friedrich, has registered the first event in celebration of the newly established CIAWorld Accordion Day.

World wide performances are being coordinated on or near May 6th, the official date of World Accordion Day and the date of the original accordion patent, as a means of bringing increased awareness to the diversity and popularity of the accordion and the many musical genres in which it is found.

Kevin will perform ‘Gem of the Kaipara’ with the Auckland Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Gary Daverne, who is also the composer of the work. Written for solo accordion, String orchestra and percussion, the concerts will take place on May 3rd at the Auckland Town Hall and May 10th at the Bruce Mason Center, both in Auckland, New Zealand.

His fourth and fifth appearances with the Auckland Symphony Orchestra, this piece was written as a musical tribute to the late Jenny Cocurullo, a strong support of the accordion and the arts in the Northern region of New Zealand called the Kaipara. Mrs. Cocurullo always promoted the Kaipara as the Gem of the North, however, she was in turn considered the ‘Gem of the Kaipara’, thus the name of this work in her honor.

In addition to these concerts in May, the Auckland Symphony Orchestra will also feature works with solo accordion at the opening concert of the upcoming 62nd Coupe Mondiale in Auckland, New Zealand, from Auckland 25-30th, 2009.

For more information, please visit the website of Kevin Friedrich. To buy online Gary  Daverne CD’s and Music.