Mary Ann Covone Performs in Two November Benefit Concerts 

October 31st 2024
Rita Barnea

Mary Ann Covone, immediate past president of The Accordionists & Teachers Guild, Int. will perform two benefit concerts in November. The first, in Napa, CA, on November 10, 2024 will be a collaboration with her daughter, a soprano, and her brother, a bass baritone. It is a fund-raising event for the Napa Valley Community Choir. The second concert on November 23rd, in Western Springs, IL, is also a benefit concert, in memory of Rachael Schopp (a dear family friend).

Rachael Schopp, a dear friend of Anne Marie Carden, Mary Ann’s daughter and Mary Ann, passed away in 2020, at the age of 24, after a 3-year battle trying to regain consciousness after being hit by a car in 2017 while crossing the street. She was a young woman full of life and love — a bright spark of a soul who briefly illuminated this world with her voice, laughter, and beautiful spirit. Rachael grew up in Chicago’s western suburbs, where music played an integral role in her life.

At the time of her accident, Rachael was a pre-med student at St. Louis University. Rachael’s parents have created a scholarship fund, “Rachael’s Voice,” to keep Rachael’s spirit alive and provide scholarships for students studying music and the healing arts.

In both concerts, Mary Ann will perform works by Scarlatti, Khatchaturian, Astor Piazzolla, Gorka Hermosa and Karen Fremar. Mary Ann and her daughter, Anne Marie, will present the world premiere of a piece commissioned by Mary Ann for soprano and accordion, “The Recipe of Life” composed by Gorka Hermosa.

The Western Springs program will open with Mary Ann performing Astor Piazzolla’s “Ave Maria”with strings followed by soprano, Anne Marie Carden performing Schubert’s “Ave Maria”. The program will conclude with Karen Fremar’s “Irreplaceable” for accordion and flute. One highlight of the program will be The Chicagoland Accordion Academy Ensemble accompanying Ron Dake, saxophone soloist from Kansas City, in “Concert Samba”, a piece originally arranged by Liz Finch for the UMKC Community Accordion Ensemble.

Mary Ann Covone holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Accordion Performance from the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music where she studied with Professor Joan Cochran Sommers. After graduating from the University, Mary Ann spent several years performing and teaching in the Chicago area before entering law school. After a thirty-plus year career as an attorney, four years ago, Mary Ann returned to the accordion and has embarked on a new journey in music. In 2020, she founded the Chicagoland Accordion Academy in Western Springs, Illinois where students of all ages learn the foundation of good accordion technique applicable to any style of music they choose to play.

Mary Ann is delighted to announce these November concerts marking the beginning of her return to solo performing. She also travels to Kansas City, Missouri on a regular basis to play in the UMKC Community Accordion Ensemble under the direction of Joan Cochran Sommers. Mary Ann is the immediate past president of the Accordionists & Teachers Guild, International and an active member of Sigma Alpha Iota, an international professional sorority for women in the field of music.

Anne Marie Carden is a Boston-based lyric soprano. In addition to her Bachelor of Music degree in Voice Performance from Lawrence University, and her Masters Degree in Voice Performance from Boston Conservatory at Berklee, she has had the opportunity to perform in various places such as the renowned Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, Salzburg, Austria with the Frost School of Music at University of Miami, as well as Chicago Summer Opera. Anne Marie has a wealth of experience in ensembles of fully-staged operas, and her training has provided multiple opera scenes performances where she has shown her versatility in many Romantic and Baroque roles. She is currently employed by the Boston Symphony in their Development Department.

If you wish to make a donation to “Rachael’s Voice,” a nonprofit scholarship fund, please contact Mary Ann Covone via email: maryanncovone@gmail.com.