Videos at: 2018AAA80th (11th July).
Video 1: “Sonata in Fm K386” by Scarlatti
Video 2: “4th mvt, Zolatariev Sonata”
Video 3: “Tango pour Janet” composed by Nathan Chapeton.

17 year old Nathan Chapeton from Middletown, Connecticut is the winner in two prestigious categories at the 2018 AAA Festival held July 11-15, 2018 in Alexandria, Virginia.

Nathan is the winner of the 2018 Junior Coupe Mondiale category. He will represent the USA at the  2018 71st Coupe Mondiale to be held from September 24-30, 2018 in Kaunas, Lithuania hosted by the Lithuanian National Accordionist’s Union. His performance is in Videos 1 and 2 above.

Nathan is also the winner of the Elsie Bennett Junior Composition Competition. You can hear him performing his composition in Video 3 above.

Accordionist Nathan Chapeton was among participants from around the globe (all over the United States and internationally from Russia, Ukraine, China and Canada) at the February 25, 2018 First Honors Recital at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in New York City. He performed Alexander Tcherepnin’s “Partita”.

Nathan Chapeton is a young musician who became interested in playing the accordion at the age of eight when he heard his teacher, Mary Tokarski perform in concert. He has attended multiple music festivals sponsored by the American Accordionists’ Association and the Mid-Atlantic Music Teachers Guild where he captured the Virtuoso Category prize twice so far! 

Mr. Chapeton has appeared as a guest artist in many local musical organizations including the Long Island Accordion Alliance, the Brooklyn Accordion Club, and as a frequent performer at Connecticut Accordion Association events. Nathan has earned the privilege of representing the United States-AAA at the Coupe Mondiale (World Accordion Championships) three times so far and this September he will be entering for the fourth time.

At the Coupe Mondiale in Austria (2014) and Russia (2016) he was among excellent accordionists and musicians from around the world. His plan now includes learning baroque and classical music and to compete in more rigorous categories at the competition.

Nathan’s plans for the future include teaching the accordion and piano, improving his composition skills (he took first place in the 2017 Elsie M. Bennett Composition Competition), and ultimately wants to bring the accordion to the youth of the United States. He loves performing as a soloist, appearing as a guest artist at events all over the East Coast, but also enjoys performing with his friends on other instruments as well including organ and saxophone.

Nathan was a member of the Jazz Ensemble at Middletown High playing his accordion, piano, and other miscellaneous keyboard instruments. His interest in jazz was sparked when he was part of the Youth Involvement Program jazz ensemble at an American Accordionists’ Association festival, with other young accordionists and instrumentalists. In 2017  Nathan auditioned for the honor to perform with the New Haven Symphony when his school, Middletown High School (Connecticut) Goes to the Symphony on May 22, 2017 and the Hamden Symphony Orchestra (Connecticut) on April 30, 2017. He was selected by BOTH to be a guest performer for their concerto concerts.

Nathan was graduated this June from Middletown, Connecticut High School and will be attending Central Connecticut State University in the fall to study music.

Nathan’s music teacher, AAA President Mary Tokarski said, “Nathan is quite a talented musician . . . born to be an accordionist!  He always amazes me with his ability to absorb and execute even the most difficult things with ease, and his recent accomplishments make me very proud.  I look forward to a future of more incredible achievements from him.”

AWW congratulates Nathan and wishes him success at the 2018 Coupe Mondiale!

For further information: mary.tokarski@comcast.net