The recent Connecticut Accordionists’ Association (CAA) meeting attendees were surprised by an unexpected appearance by accordionist Tony Mecca, a well known jazz accordionist, originally from Waterbury, CT. Tony, now 91, recently relocated back to the area from Florida.

Tony’s accordion career saw him in New York, while his brother Domenic ran the Mecca School of Music in Waterbury, CT. Local accordionists, Bob and Anita Siarkowski both studied at this school at various times, meeting at a later date as part of Dom Mecca’s all accordion orchestra concert!

Several of the CAA attendees enjoyed meeting up with Tony again including Bob Siarkowski who was Tony’s jazz accordion student for a couple of years in New Rochelle, New York, Don Gerundo of Westchester, NY, who also studied jazz with Tony Mecca and Gerry Hertel who remembers hearing Tony play at Carnegie Hall. Tony’s son, Bill, commented that Tony was the first accordionist to perform at Carnegie Hall.

In photo above seated Left to Right: Mary Tokarski, Julie Cardona and Marilyn O’Neil. Center: Karen Buccitti, Ginger Grider, Dorothy Gondek and Michael Dran. Top row, Dennis Maxfield, Mark Schaarschmidt, Art Piel, Steve Balog, Bob Czarnecki, Art Daigle, Fred Schwinger, Don Gerundo, Bob Vitale, Ralph Corbo (guitar) and Linda Soley Reed, conductor.

Absent from photo: Sandy Zera, Gerry Hertel, Jeanine Cariri, Pam D’Angelo, Mary Mascolo, Kathy DiCocco, Ken Reed and Mike Rasimas (percussion)