Dr. William Schimmel, Dr. Robert Young McMahan, and friends performed at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts on Jun 16, 2022. The concert showcased the accordions melodic dimension. With his distinguished associates, new takes were presented on Schubert from the accordions’ point of view and other pieces he feels that Schubert would have loved.

Performers for this program included:

• Dan Cooper
• Corn Mo
• Brian Dewan
• Dr. Hugo Goldenzweig
• Will Holshouser
• William Komaiko
• Dr. Denise Koncelik
• Erica Mancini
• Dr. Robert Young McMahan

PROGRAM ATTACHED: 2022Schubert.pdf

Dan Cooper is a composer & multi-instrumentalist from Manhattan with academic background at Columbia & Princeton; performing experience at Berlin Philharmonic Hall, Birdland, CBGB’s, Joe’s Pub, Royal Albert Hall, Sydney Opera House, & Town Hall; awards, commissions, & performances from Albany Symphony, ESYO, Harlem Chamber Players, lmani Winds, Shakespeare & Co., & SBDNY; & professional experience at Composers Concordance (Co-Director), Goddard-Riverside, Greenwich House, Marymount College, 92Y, Southbridge, SUNY-FIT, & Tanglewood, among others.

Brian Dewan is a visual artist and musician living in Catskill, NY. He has published recordings of both original songs and historic material with accordion, zither and autoharp accompaniment. He has performed at Town Hall, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Brooklyn Museum, the New Museum and the Museum of Jurassic Technology. He is represented by Pierogi Gallery in New York City.

Dr. Denise Koncelik, DMA has performed on accordion at Carnegie Hall with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, the American Symphony Orchestra, Off-Broadway in the Yiddish Fiddler on the Roof and The Last Boy, in concert; Bruno Walter Auditorium, Symphony Space, Joe’s Pub, and le poisson rouge. She is a recipient of the Neupauer Conservatory Order of the Shield under studies with Dr. William Schimmel. Dr. Koncelik is bass accordionist and resident arranger for the Main Squeeze Orchestra.

Dr. Hugo Goldenzweig has performed as a recitalist, soloist with orchestra, and chamber musician in over 1,000 concerts worldwide, including five major New York recitals. He has also given master classes for leading conservatories and universities in the U.S. and abroad. Peter Davis of The New York Times hailed his debut at Weill Recital in Carnegie Hall: “A satisfying performance…a sharply profiles and warmly committed interpretation. Mr. Goldenzweig elucidated textures crisply and cleanly.”

Will Holshouser’s music draws on many sources, from accordion folk styles to jazz and classical music. Will has recorded three albums with his trio, as well as collaborative projects with trumpeter Eric Vloeimans, Musette Explosion, and Han Bennink & Michael Moore. He has toured and recorded with violinist Regina Carter and clarinetist David Krakauer, and has presented his solo pieces at Bill Schimmel’s seminars for many years. He teaches at Brooklyn College.

William Komaiko has a dual background in jazz and classical performance. His style has been cited for exceptionally fine detail, beautiful shifting colors like a Calder mobile (Leighton Kerner, The Village Voice) and pianist comparisons: Ahmad Jamal, Thelonius Monk, Glenn Gould (John S. Wilson, New York Times). As pianisUcomposer/ he appeared is a recipient of a national commission as composer/pianisUconductor with the jazz/classical contemporary music-combined He was educated at the Juilliard School where he was awarded the George Gershwin Memorial Prize.

Com Mo has toured with the Bindlestiff Family Cirkus, Wheatus, Nick Offerman, Ben Folds, They Might Be Giants, David Bowie, and the Polyphonic Spree. Recording credits include Ben Folds’ cover of “Get Your Hands Off My Woman”, Polyphonic Spree’s “Together We’re Heavy”, Die Winterreise with Dr. William Schimmel, and TMBG’s “Particle Mo”, and his own albums. He wrote for a ballet called SEVERED:The Tragic Loves of Frankenstein’s Monster with The Love Show.

Erica Mancini is an accordionist, vocalist, multi-instrumentalist based in New York City. She has performed with Smokey Hormel, Frank London, Walter Thompson, Karl Berger, and Matt Wilson. She recently was in Rashaad Newsome’s Assembly, at the Park Ave Armory. Additionally, she incorporates the use of accordion with electronics in her original bands Ghost Pony, and La Banda Chuska.

Dr. William Schimmel holds BM, MS and DMA degrees, with a doctorate from the Juilliard School. He performed with virtually every ensemble in New York, from the New York Philharmonic, the Metropolitan Opera, Jazz at Lincoln Center, many contemporary ensembles, and on Broadway as well as on numerous European tours. His Tango Project albums have reached #1 on the Billboard charts along with Stereo Review Album of the Year and Grammy nominations. He has performed in many movie soundtracks, and can be seen and heard in Scent of a Woman starring Al Pacino. His current album, The Theater of the Accordion features trumpeter Wynton Marsalas. lt has reached #2 on the Amazon charts. Dr. Schimmel resides in Manhattan with his wife, Micki Goodman, a dancer/ choreographer and video artist. Together they have produced numerous videos that can be seen and heard on YouTube. Dr. Schimmel’s works are currently being archived at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.

Dr. Robert Young McMahan is a composer, music research writer, and accordionist, specializing in original contemporary music for his instrument. He studied accordion with Louis Coppola and composition with Stefalils Grove, Robert Hall Lewis, and Jean Eichelberger Ivey at the Peabody Conservatory. Active in the New Jersey/New York region, Dr. McMahan is Professor Emeritus of The College of New Jersey, where he taught music theory and composition.

About the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, one of NYPL’s renowned research libraries, houses one of the world’s most extensive research collections in the fields of theatre, film, dance, music, and recorded sound, as well as a wide array of circulating and reference materials.

Program pdf link: 2022Schubert.pdf

For further information: accordionbill@gmail.com