EXHIBITSWORKSHOPS
COMPETITIONGALA CONCERTGUEST ARTISTS
JR. & SR. FESTIVAL
ORCHESTRASLIFETIME ACHIEVEMENTPRESENTATIONAMERICANACCORDIONISTS’ASSOCIATION

85th Anniversary AAA Festival
July 12-16, 2023
MARRIOTT PHILADELPHIA WEST
111 CRAWFORD AVENUE
WEST CONSHOHOCKEN, PA 19428
SUBSCRIPTION - $20

Welcome to theAmerican Accordionists’ Association
85th Anniversary Festival
Greetings, AAA members and festival attendees! It has been far too long since we have gathered
together live, and I can’t think of a better way to get reacquainted than here at the 2023 AAA festival
as we celebrate 85 years!
We’ll kick things off right away on Wednesday with exhibits, competitions, a workshop, andsocializing during our Meet & Greet Reception.

Thursday will start off with two workshops and more competitions before we step out of the hotel tocelebrate Accordion Day at the King of Prussia Mall (160 North Gulph Road in King of Prussia,
PA). And when we return to the hotel in the afternoon, we’ll have our first AAA Festival Orchestra
rehearsal, soon followed by Pasta Night, with entertainment provided by AAA champion Mario
Tacca, acclaimed vocalist Mary Mancini, and the Westmont Philharmonia Accordion Orchestra.
After doing some carbo-loading on Thursday night, get ready for a full Friday, thanks to more timein the Exhibit Room, a pair of morning workshops, and our Luncheon concert with entertainment
provided by world champion Grayson Masefield, AAA Coupe Mondiale representative Nathan
Chapeton, and the Westmont Accordion Club. Then follow all of that up with two more afternoon
workshops, competitions, the second AAA Festival Orchestra rehearsal, and our Gala Concert
featuring Grammy winner Joey Miskulin, world champion Grayson Masefield, AAA champion
Mario Tacca, and the Accordion Pops Orchestra.
On Saturday, we’ll start early with a workshop, competitions, another visit to the Exhibit Room, ourawards concert, and the final AAA Festival Orchestra rehearsal. Then it’s time to dress up for the
Gala Banquet and enjoy the 2023 AAA Festival Orchestra conducted by world-class conductor Joan
Cochran Sommers, The United States Air Force Strolling Strings, and the AAA Lifetime
Achievement Award presentation to Frank Busso Sr.
During Sunday morning’s breakfast and open meeting, we’ll have a chance to recap the festival andgather your ideas for future AAA events and initiatives.
Finally, I invite you to become an AAA member for the first time or to renew your membership here
at the festival. Your membership will help you stay up to date on accordion events and helps to fundAAA events and projects.

I look forward to connecting with you during the festival!
Very best musical wishes,Frank Busso, Jr.
President
American Accordionists’ Association
P.S. - Be sure to join us in Salon E each night for our After Hours
Club! Bring your accordion if you’d like, or just come by to enjoy
some camaraderie and good music.

Frank Busso, Jr., President
Frank Busso, Sr., 1st Vice-President
Sam Falcetti, 2nd Vice-President
Rita Davidson Barnea, Secretary
Ray Oreggia, Treasurer
GOVERNING BOARD
Manny BobenriethAlex Chudolij
Dr. Joseph Ciccone
Beverly Roberts Curnow
Joanna Darrow
Kevin Friedrich
Donald Gerundo
Mitch Guido

Dominic Karcic
Emilio Magnotta
Dr. Robert Young McMahan
Edward Monteiro
Linda Soley Reed
Mario Tacca
Al TerzoFrank Toscano

APPOINTMENTS
FESTIVAL CHAIRPERSONARTIST IN RESIDENCE
Frank Busso, Jr.
Mario Tacca
COMPTROLLER
Donald Gerundo

HISTORIAN
Joan Grauman Morse
PRESIDENT EMERITA
Faithe Deffner*

AFFILIATIONS
Confédération Internationale des Accordéonistes (CIA)International Music Council (UNESCO)
National Music Council
A World of Accordions Museum*deceasedMayor Danelle FournierWest Conshohocken Borough112 Ford St
West Conshohocken, PA 19428
Mayor Yaniv Aronson
Conshohocken Borough400 Fayette St, Suite 200
Conshohocken, PA 19428
June 27, 2023
What a tremendous honor it is to welcome all of you to the American Accordionists’
Association 85th Anniversary Festival. Thank you for choosing West Conshohocken tohost this celebration, competition and festival, and no doubt, you will cross the
Matsonford Bridge to venture into Conshohocken! You will find both boroughs to bewelcoming, friendly and highly interested in the arts. In fact, the Conshohocken Arts
Festival was started in 2018 to cater directly to residents’ requests for expanded arts
programming.
You are truly witnessing a marvel in both West Conshohocken and Conshohocken as
two former Pennsylvania manufacturing towns have transformed into the vibrant, fun,lively boroughs that you will have the pleasure to explore during this festival. We are sothrilled to see that the AAA has thrived through 85 years in its mission to unite, educate
and facilitate bringing people together to play, study and honor the accordion and theartists who play the accordion. A special congratulations as well to Frank Busso, Sr., on
being awarded the AAA Lifetime Achievement Award!
We wish all of you the warmest welcome from our two boroughs. We will be a richer
community for your visit, patronage, and friendship these next four days.
Sincerely,

Danelle Fournier
Mayor, West Conshohocken BoroughYaniv Aronson
Mayor, Conshohocken BoroughAAA Lifetime Achievement Award
LICERIA MUSICSCHOOL PROD.

A personal message fromFRANK BUSSO, SR.
It is with profound gratitude that I accept the AAA Lifetime Achievement
Award. This prestigious recognition is truly an honor and I extend mydeepest appreciation to the American Accordionists' Association.
This award is the culmination of a lifelong journey filled with passion for
the accordion. I have built a professional career creating and sharing musicwith others. My life has been enriched by each of my students, teachers,
and musicians of all genres. I am grateful for your collaboration andfriendship.
In this wonderful musical journey, I have been especially lucky to be joined
by my family. When I began accordion performance as a solo competitor
65 years ago, I could hardly have imagined I would go on to take the stage
alongside my children and now my grandchildren. And of course, my wife
has been at my side, as my partner and audience member in chief. This
shared family love for music brings me joy beyond measure.
As the AAA marks 85 years, I am
delighted to celebrate with all of you
as we recall the joys of past decades
and imagine the bright future ahead.
Your friend and colleague in music,Frankthe world’s standard of accordion excellence

The rich history of Titano Accordions includes many important
artists and educators who have developed and popularizedthese world-class accordions …
♦ Bill Palmer ♦ Bill Hughes ♦ Joan Cochran Sommers ♦ Grayson Masefield ♦Jeff Lisenby ♦ The “K” Trio ♦ The International Trio ♦ Helmi Harrington♦ Kevin Friedrich ♦ The Busso Trio ♦ Mary Tokarski ♦ Harley Jones ♦ Bill Schimmel ♦…just to name a few.
You’ve heard our music since 1934!
ernestdeffner.com  info@ernestdeffner.com(703) 941-9300  P.O. Box 11663  Alexandria, VA 22312 USA

AMERICAN ACCORDIONISTS’ ASSOCIATION
85th Anniversary Festival - July 12-16, 2023
Schedule of Events
Wednesday, July 12, 2023
3:00pmRegistration Desk opens (until 8:00pm) ................................................................... Ballroom Foyer

3:30pmCompetitions ............................................................................................................ Academy Room

5:00pmWorkshop: Playing with Others, including Beginner Adult Band rehearsal
by Dee Langley ................................................................................................... Salon E
Exhibit Room opens (until 9:00pm).......................................................................... Walnut Room

7:00pmMeet and Greet ........................................................................................................ Ballroom Foyer

8:00pmReception (included with Festival Registration) ...................................................... Salon D

9:00pmAfter Hours Club - bring your accordion! ................................................................. Salon E

Thursday, July 13, 2023

8:00amJunior Festival Orchestra Rehearsal (until 9:00am) ................................................. Ballroom B

9:00amExhibit Room opens (until 11:30am) ........................................................................ Walnut RoomRegistration Desk opens (until 11:30am) ................................................................. Ballroom Foyer

9:30amWorkshop: The Indefatigable Elsie Bennett and the AAA Composers
Commissioning Committee, by Dr. Robert Young McMahan ............................ Salon E
Competitions ............................................................................................................ Academy Room

10:30am Workshop: Tips & Tricks for Successful Accordion Gigging,by “Papa Joe” De Clemente................................................................................ Salon E

12:00pm Accordion Day at the King of Prussia Mall (5 miles from the festival hotel)
2:00pmExhibit Room reopens (until 3:30pm) ...................................................................... Walnut RoomRegistration Desk reopens (until 7:00pm) ............................................................... Ballroom Foyer

3:30pmFestival Orchestra Rehearsal #1 (until 5:30pm) ....................................................... Ballroom B

7:00pmPasta Night and Entertainment (ticket required)..................................................... Ballroom B
featuring AAA champion Mario Tacca, acclaimed vocalist Mary Mancini,and the Westmont Philharmonia Accordion Orchestra

9:00pmAfter Hours Club - bring your accordion! ................................................................. Salon E

AMERICAN ACCORDIONISTS’ ASSOCIATION
85th Anniversary Festival - July 12-16, 2023
Schedule of Events
8:00am9:00am

10:00am
11:30am

1:30pm2:30pm
3:30pm
6:30pm

9:00pm9:00am

10:00am
10:20am
12:30pm

3:30pm
6:00pm
7:00pm

9:00pm9:00amFriday, July 14, 2023
Junior Festival Orchestra Rehearsal (until 9:00am) ................................................. Ballroom B
Exhibit Room opens (until 11:30am) ........................................................................ Walnut RoomRegistration Desk opens (until 11:30am) ................................................................. Ballroom Foyer
Workshop: Arranging Your Favorite Songs to Play with Accordion Friends
by Dee Langley ................................................................................................... Salon E
Competitions ............................................................................................................ Academy RoomWorkshop: Eugene Ettore’s Contributions to 85 Years of the AAA
by Rita Davidson Barnea..................................................................................... Salon E
Luncheon Concert (ticket required) ......................................................................... Ballroom B
featuring world champion Grayson Masefield, AAA Coupe Mondiale
representative Nathan Chapeton, and the Westmont Accordion Club
Workshop: AAA Past, Present, and Future, by Frank Busso Sr. ............................... Salon E
Exhibit Room reopens (until 3:30pm) ...................................................................... Walnut RoomRegistration Desk reopens (until 6:30pm) ............................................................... Ballroom Foyer
Beginner Adult Band Rehearsal ................................................................................ Ballroom B
Workshop: Bellows and Articulation Control, by Grayson Masefield ...................... Salon E
Festival Orchestra Rehearsal #2 (until 5:30pm) ....................................................... Ballroom B
Gala Concert (ticket required) .................................................................................. Ballroom B
featuring AAA champion Mario Tacca, the Accordion Pops Orchestra
Grammy winner Joey Miskulin, and world champion Grayson Masefield
Artist Reception immediately following concert (ticket required) .......................... Salon D
After Hours Club - bring your accordion! ................................................................. Salon E
Saturday, July 15, 2023
Junior Festival Orchestra Rehearsal (until 10:00am) ............................................... Ballroom B
Exhibit Room opens (until 11:30am) ........................................................................ Walnut RoomRegistration Desk opens (until 11:30am) ................................................................. Ballroom Foyer
Workshop: Phrasing, Dynamics, & Musical Styles, by Joey Miskulin ....................... Salon E
Competitions ............................................................................................................ Academy RoomAwards Concert and Entertainment AAA ................................................................. Ballroom B
Exhibit Room reopens (until 3:30pm) ...................................................................... Walnut RoomRegistration Desk reopens (until 6:00pm) ............................................................... Ballroom Foyer
Festival Orchestra Rehearsal #3 (until 5:30pm) ....................................................... Ballroom B
Cocktail Reception .................................................................................................... Ballroom Foyer
Gala Banquet (ticket required) ................................................................................. Ballroom B
featuring the 2023 AAA Festival Orchestra, The US Air Force Strolling Strings,
and the AAA Lifetime Achievement Award presentation to Frank Busso, Sr.
After Hours Club - bring your accordion! - will begin after Gala Banquet ends ....... Salon E
Sunday, July 16, 2023
Breakfast (ticket required) and Open Meeting ........................................................ Ballroom B

AMERICAN ACCORDIONISTS’ ASSOCIATIONFOUNDED 1938

AAA FOUNDERS
Left to right, front row: Pietro Frosini, Abe Goldman, Sidney Dawson
Center row: Anthony Galla-Rini, Charles Magnante, Pietro Deiro Sr, Charles Nunzio
Back row: Gene von Hallberg, Joseph Biviano
Not pictured: John Gart, Sam Roland, Byron Streep

85 Years of American Accordionists’ Association Presidents
1938-1939
Pietro Deiro, Sr.

1940-1941
Charles Magnante

1942-1945
Joseph Biviano

1946-1947
Eugene Ettore

1948-1949
Joseph Biviano

1950-1951
Charles Magnante

1952
Pietro Deiro, Jr.

1953-1954
Eugene Ettore

1955-1956
Charles Magnante

1957-1958
Louis Iorio

1959-1960
Pietro Deiro, Jr.

1961-1962
Joseph Biviano

1963-1964
Eugene Ettore

1965-1966
Carmen Carrozza

1967-1968
Joseph Biviano

1969-1970
Charles Magnante

1971-1972
Maddalena Belfiore

1973-1974
Elsie Bennett

1975-1976
Maddalena Belfiore

1977-1978
Carmen Carrozza

1979-1980
Maddalena Belfiore

1981
Frank Busso, Sr.

1982-1984
Addie Cere

1985-1986
Faithe Deffner

1987-1988
Anthony Ettore

1989-1991
Carmen Carrozza

1992-1994
Frank Busso, Sr.

1995-2000
Faithe Deffner

2001-2004
Dr. Carmelo Pino

2005-2014
Linda Soley Reed

2015-2018
Mary Tokarski

2019-2022
Dr. Joseph Ciccone

2023-present
Frank Busso, Jr.

85th Anniversary AAA Festival
Competition Schedule
Solo & Duet categories will be in the Academy Room
Ensemble & Band categories will be in Ballroom B
ETHNIC SOLO ADULTEVALUATION SOLO C

Friday, July 14 - 9:00am

Friday, July 14 - 10:10am

Mike Silvia

Francesca Busso
Iven Kavich

EVALUATION DUET

Julianna Busso

Wednesday, July 12 - 3:30pm
Janine Lenguadoro & Michelle Reasso

EVALUATION SOLO D
Saturday, July 14 - 10:20am

EVALUATION SOLO A

Gabe Abreu

Wednesday, July 12 - 3:40pm

Dan Riccio

Michelle Reasso

Kaidson Davis (A)Janine Lenguadoro

Ava Yip

Karen Blisnuk (A)Judy Monro

Dan Badecki

Kaidson Davis (B)Kathy Haywood
Karen Blisnuk (B)FOUNDERS SOLO ADULTBob Klatte

Friday, July 14 - 10:00am

Lisa DeAngelis

Mike Silvia

EVALUATION SOLO B

HONORS SOLO JUNIORETTE

Thursday, July 13 - 10:10am

Friday, July 14 - 9:10am

Grace Wu

Iven Kavich

Ethan Davenport

Julianna Busso

Daniel Latch

Prize money for the Honors Categories has been generously donated by
The Mary and Frank Tokarski Musical Arts Fund

85th Anniversary AAA Festival
Competition Schedule
Solo & Duet categories will be in the Academy Room
Ensemble & Band categories will be in Ballroom B
HONORS SOLO JUNIOROPEN SOLO ADULT

Thursday, July 13 - 9:30am

Saturday, July 15 - 11:10am

Maksim Liam Toft

Mike Silvia

Ava Yip
Caroline Lammers

POP SOLO JUNIORETTE
Saturday, July 15 - 11:20am

HONORS SOLO INTERMEDIATE

Francesca Busso

Thursday, July 13 - 9:50am
Alexander Lammers

POP SOLO JUNIOR

Max Hoffmann

Saturday, July 15 - 11:25am

Nicholas Busso
OPEN SOLO JUNIORETTE
Saturday, July 15 - 11:00am

EVALUATION BAND

Julianna Busso

Thursday, July 13 - 9:15am

Iven Kavich

Acme Adult Preparatory Band(Westmont, NJ)

OPEN SOLO JUNIOR
Friday, July 14 - 9:25am

Caroline Lammers
Vladimir Maximilian Stefanik
OPEN SOLO INTERMEDIATE
Friday, July 14 - 9:40am
Max Hoffmann
Alexander Lammers

ENTERTAINMENT AAA

Saturday, July 15 - 12:30pm
Busso Festival Orchestra(Alexandria, VA)

Meet your 2023-2024 AAA Executive Committee
President: Frank Busso Jr has served on the AAA board of directors since 2007 and as theorganization’s 2nd Vice President since 2021. He is the director of the Ernest Deffner Affiliates,
whose brands include Titano, PANcordion, Pigini, Excelsior, Roland, and Hohner. Frank is theaccordionist for The United States Air Force Band in Washington, DC and runs the Busso Music
School in Alexandria, VA. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in business administrationfrom Boston University, later serving as an instructor and arranger with the Boston University
Athletic Bands. Frank studied accordion with Frank Busso Sr at the Staten Island Music School in
New York, eventually becoming an instructor there, where his students earned many regional andnational titles in competition.

1st Vice President: Frank Busso Sr has served on the governing board of the American
Accordionists’ Association for over 45 years. He has held the offices of President, First Vice
President, Second Vice President, and Treasurer. Frank started studying and playing accordion atage 7. Since then, he has achieved great successes as a performer throughout the New York
metropolitan area. As director of the Staten Island Music School in New York, Frank taught many
award-winning students and conducted numerous classical & festival accordion orchestras. He wasalso the music teacher at two parochial schools for over 25 years. Currently a resident of northern
Virginia and Palm Beach, Florida, Frank continues to perform and arrange orchestral works.
2nd Vice President: Sam Falcetti graduated from the University of Hartford with a degree in
Theory & Composition. In the 70s and 80s, he was an adjunct professor at Westfield State
University and Holyoke Community College, where he had an accordion ensemble that twice
performed at Carnegie Hall. As a conductor, Sam’s Springfield Accordion Orchestra was invited
to perform at the World’s Fair in Osaka, Japan and also toured Italy performing concerts. As anentrepreneur, he founded Falcetti Music, a 60-year eight-store music chain in both Massachusetts
and Connecticut. Today, Sam is involved in teaching over 30 digital accordion players at Falcetti
Music and online. He is also a Roland V-Accordion dealer and conducts the 20-member New
England Digital Accordion Orchestra, performing at major events in Massachusetts andConnecticut. Sam is a past president and charter member of the Accordion Teachers Associationof Massachusetts, an honorary member of the Massachusetts Accordion Association, and a past
officer and member of the AAA since the 70s. In 2019, he was awarded the first International
Scholar Award at the “IDEAS Symposium” in Ohio.
Secretary: Rita Davidson Barnea is an honors graduate of the University of Connecticut, having
received a Bachelor of Science degree in Music Education, and has been a member of the AAA
board for many years. For over 14 years, Rita has served as the national editor ofaccordionusa.com, covering accordion artists, concerts, and other events taking place in North
America. She presents workshops and concerts on “The Life and Music of Eugene Ettore,” “TheUse of the Accordion in the Teaching of Music in School,” and “How to Organize a Children’s
Birthday Party” centered around the use of the accordion. Rita has adjudicated for many accordion
competitions over the years, and performed in concerts, for workshops, and at accordion festivals
throughout the USA. She retired from a 30-year career as a public school music teacher in West
Orange, New Jersey, where she used her accordion every day in the classroom and as anaccompanist for concerts and programs. Rita is the creator and curator of the Eugene Ettore
Memorial Website, which contains photos, articles, and other valuable information about Eugene
Ettore, prominent accordionist and composer.
Treasurer: Ray Oreggia has been an American Accordionists’ Association governing board
member for several years and has served as the organization’s Treasurer since 2017. He studied
accordion under one of the AAA’s founding members, Joe Biviano. Ray received a Bachelor of
Science degree in Life Science from the New Institute of Technology. Over the years, he has
performed at countless venues and with numerous ensembles and orchestras of varied
instrumentation. Ray has been a strong supporter of the Long Island Accordion Alliance since its
inception in 2010.

Celebrating over 85 years!

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World Class Accordion Design
Lightweight Acoustic Models
Digital and MIDI Instruments
Tuning/Refurbishing Services
MIDI and Pickup Installations
Accordion Recordings & DVDs
Sheet Music & Method Books
Amplifiers and Synthesizers
Straps, Parts & Accessories

You’ve heard our music since 1934!
ernestdeffner.com  info@ernestdeffner.com(703) 941-9300  P.O. Box 11663  Alexandria, VA 22312 USA

Meet your 85th Anniversary AAA Festival
Guest Performers and Presenters
Frank Busso, Sr.: Workshop PresenterFrank has served on the governing board of the American Accordionists’ Associationfor over 45 years. He has held the offices of President, First Vice President, Second
Vice President, and Treasurer. Frank started studying and playing accordion at age 7.
Since then, he has achieved great successes as a performer throughout the New York
metropolitan area. As director of the Staten Island Music School in New York, Franktaught many award-winning students and conducted numerous classical & festival
accordion orchestras. He was also the music teacher at two parochial schools for over
25 years. Currently a resident of northern Virginia and Palm Beach, Florida, Frankcontinues to perform and arrange orchestral works. At this year’s AAA Festival, he will
become the twelfth recipient of the AAA Lifetime Achievement Award.
Nathan Chapeton: Luncheon Concert Performer
Nathan is a university student and musician who became interested in playing the accordion at theage of eight when he heard his teacher, Mary Tokarski perform in concert. He has appeared as aguest artist for 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) several times including in Russia, Austria, Lithuania,
and China. Nathan was among participants from around the globe to perform at the 2018 First
Honors Recital at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in New York City, where he performed
Alexander Tcherepnin’s “Partita.” Nathan has also appeared as guest soloist with both the New
Haven Symphony and the Hamden Symphony Orchestra in Connecticut.
Joanna Darrow: Conductor of AAA Junior Festival Orchestra, Westmont Philharmonia
Accordion Orchestra, and Westmont Accordion Club
Joanna Arnold is the personal protégé of Stanley Darrow. During her studies at the Acme
Accordion School, she covered all aspects of musical training, specializing in music of the
Baroque period and chamber music. Joanna has studied with Guy Klucevsek, and also
composition and analyses with Dr. E. Avril. Performing in conjunction with bassoon, harp,
harpsichord, strings, and piano, she has brought the accordion to the attention of local
professional musicians and to members of the Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra, for which she
now serves as staff accordionist. Joanna is Director of the Westmont Philharmonia Accordion
Orchestra and serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the AAA, Accordionists andTeachers Guild International (ATG), and A World of Accordions Museum. She has also been
appointed adjunct accordion instructor for accordion majors at Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey.

Rita Davidson Barnea: Workshop Presenter
Rita is an honors graduate of the University of Connecticut, having received a Bachelor of Science
degree in Music Education, and has been a member of the AAA board for many years. For over 14
years, Rita has served as the national editor of accordionusa.com, covering accordion artists,
concerts, and other events taking place in North America. She presents workshops and concerts on“The Life and Music of Eugene Ettore,” “The Use of the Accordion in the Teaching of Music in
School,” and “How to Organize a Children’s Birthday Party” centered around the use of theaccordion. Rita has adjudicated for many accordion competitions over the years, and performed inconcerts, for workshops, and at accordion festivals throughout the USA. She retired from a 30-year
career as a public school music teacher in West Orange, New Jersey, where she used her accordion
every day in the classroom and as an accompanist for concerts and programs. Rita is the creator andcurator of the Eugene Ettore Memorial Website, which contains photos, articles, and other valuable
information about Eugene Ettore, prominent accordionist and composer.

Meet your 85th Anniversary AAA Festival
Guest Performers and Presenters“Papa Joe” De Clemente: Workshop Presenter“Papa Joe” started playing the accordion in 1956 at the young age of nine. He was interested in playing
because he used to visit his relatives, the Iorio’s, who manufactured accordions in New York City as far
back as 1907. Joe has performed in numerous venues and loves to entertain people. He volunteers
weekly to assist an elementary school music program at Public School 203Q in Bayside, Queens, which
is one of the only elementary schools in New York City with a student accordion band. Joe shares: “Tome, music has been a language that crosses all barriers, speaking to all people and bringing joy to those
who listen. The box has been my pal for over 60 years and I am glad the Lord gave me this special gift.
Dee Langley: Workshop Presenter and Conductor of AAA Beginner Adult Band
Dee specializes in both solo and ensemble works for the accordion, having appeared with theMinnesota Orchestra, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Guthrie Theater, Nautilus Music Theater,
Ethnic Dance Theatre, and Theater Latte Da. She won the 2012 Minnesota Emerging
Composer Award (Orkestar Bez Ime - World Music), the 2011-2012 McKnight Fellowshipfor Performing Musicians. In 2019, Dee was honored at the American Accordion
Musicological Society (AAMS) for her lifelong dedication and service to the accordion as aperformer, educator, director, and composer. She was inducted into the American Accordion
Hall of Fame in 2020. Founder and coordinator for the NE Accordion Festival, Dee is also apast president of the Accordionists and Teachers Guild International (ATG) and currently
teaches accordion for Minneapolis College, as well as privately in NE Minneapolis.
Grayson Masefield: Gala Concert Performer, Luncheon Concert Performer, and Workshop Presenter
Born in Auckland, New Zealand, Grayson is the first person to win world championships inclassical, virtuoso, and digital accordion categories. He is the Instrumental Music Teacher for
Accordion at the University of Auckland and is the founder of AOTANGO. Grayson studied in
France with Frederic Deschamps, earned a Master in Specialised Music Performance degree at
HEMU Lausanne, Switzerland with Stephane Chapuis, and completed a Masters of Studio
Pedagogy degree from the University of Auckland. He is regularly invited to adjudicate and/or
appear as Guest Artist at international competitions he has previously won. At the 2010 Coupe
Mondiale in Croatia, Grayson was elected to the prestigious CIA Music Committee and iscurrently its Vice-Chairman.
Grayson’s extensive repertoire, including concert works and entertainment selections, can beheard on his three albums and in many live performances available on YouTube. He has worked
with several of the world's leading composers, such as Frank Angelis (France), Gorka Hermosa (Spain), Petri
Makkonen (Finland), and Gary Daverne (New Zealand) to perform and record new original works for the accordion.
Dr. Robert Young McMahan: Workshop Presenter
Dr. McMahan is an accomplished accordionist and author, specializing in contemporary music,
assisting composers, presenting workshops, and performing premieres of new accordion works. In
recent times, he presented an educational workshop, "Radio Days Accordion: A Sampling ofOnce Popular Accordionist Composers of the Past and an Examination of their Music,” which
included accordion duet performances by Dr. McMahan and Albert Schlisserman of “The
Rooster,” by Joe Biviano and “Allegro,” by Gene Von Hallberg. On the literary front, Dr.
McMahan has written numerous articles, including an in-depth analysis of many of the works
commissioned by the AAA's Composers Commissioning Committee. In addition, he wrote andcollaborated with noted American composer and author of “The Study of Orchestration,” Samuel
Adler, in creating the first entry ever of the accordion in the Keyboard Instruments chapter of the
new 4th edition, published in 2016.

Meet your 85th Anniversary AAA Festival
Guest Performers and Presenters
Joey Miskulin: Gala Concert Performer and Workshop Presenter
Joey is the first accordionist to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. His 2018
induction into the '"Nashville Cats” is the highest accolade given to a very select few
recording session musicians. The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum's Nashville Cats
series spotlights musicians and session singers who have played important roles in country
music history, and his award ceremony highlighted the hundreds of albums he recorded withsome of music's greatest names that, to date, resulted in over 100 million sold. The GarthBrooks album where Joey was featured using his PANcordion has reached over 50 million insales! He is the tenth recipient of the AAA Lifetime Achievement Award.
Joey is extolled nationally as accordionist, arranger, spontaneous improviser, studiomusician, pedagogue, and unequalled entertainer. In a music career spanning more than four
decades, Joey has collaborated with a range of artists including Paul McCartney, John Denver, Ricky Skaggs, Andy
Williams, Ricky Van Shelton, Emmylou Harris, Frankie Yankovic, Garth Brooks, and many others. Althoughprincipally known as a superb performer, his talents extend to many production credits that include Disney/Pixar in Toy
Story, and recently in Shanghai, China, where he spent two weeks working with the Walt Disney Company.
Joey toured the United States with Frankie Yankovic as his featured accordionist for six years, writing and arranging
songs between performances. In the 1990s, he joined Riders In The Sky, and with them is billed as "Joey the Cowpolka
King." This wholesome Western-style group brings smiles, laughter, and excellent musicianship to every audience.
Joan Cochran Sommers: AAA Festival Orchestra Conductor
Joan was awarded the title of Professor Emerita upon her retirement from the University ofMissouri - Kansas City Conservatory of Music, where she established and taught the accordion
degree program for 40 years. She has arranged innumerable works for accordion orchestra overmany years, often for the UMKC Accordion Orchestra, which, under her direction won more
first prizes than any other American group. Joan taught numerous accordionists over many
decades, many who went on to distinguish themselves as artists, competition winners, and music
professionals.
In both 1955 and 1956, she earned the right to represent the USA in the Coupe Mondiale, and it
was those experiences that opened her eyes to the tremendous opportunities available toaccordionists; perhaps it also fixed her lifelong interest in worldwide accordion activities. Joan isthe founder of the CIA World Accordion Orchestra, which has presented concerts and premieres
in many countries around the world.
Joan has held positions in several music organizations, including the Accordionists and Teachers Guild International(ATG) and the Confédération Internationale des Accordéonistes (CIA-IMC-UNESCO), where after her retirement, she
was unanimously awarded the status of CIA Honorary Member. Today she enjoys guest conducting accordion
orchestras around the world, making new arrangements, and leading the UMKC Community Accordion Ensemble infrequent performances. She is the seventh recipient of the AAA’s prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award.
Mario Tacca: Gala Concert Performer
Mario Tacca was born in Italy. During his childhood, his family moved to the Alsace Lorraine
region of France, where he began his musical studies. This is where his love and intense desire
to play the accordion began. He loved the sound! He would pick up the accordion and imitate
some of the songs his mother used to sing. The desire and love never diminished, despite
having to walk three miles weekly to his teacher with his instrument strapped to his back!
While in France, he was the winner of many regional and national accordion competitions. He
went on to become a world champion, winning the World Cup of Italy, the Grand Prix of Paris,
the US National Competition, and the International Accordion competition held at CarnegieHall in New York City. Always dazzling his audiences around the world, Mario is the eighth
recipient of the AAA Lifetime Achievement Award.

Meet your 85th Anniversary AAA Festival
Guest Performers and Presenters
Mario Tacca and Mary Mancini: Pasta Night Performers
Internationally acclaimed vocal artist Mary Mancini has been featured in the New YorkTimes, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, and the Journal News and has performed in avariety of venues around the world. Able to sing in eight different languages, Mary draws
from a deep repertory reservoir. She is adept at pop, showtunes, operatic arias, and sacredmusic and has received worldwide acclaim. Mary has headlined numerous concert halls
and festivals in North America, Europe, and China, and has performed at the Garden State
Arts Center, Resorts International Casino Hotel, Taj Mahal in Atlantic City, and Mohegan
Sun Resort Casino in Connecticut.
Accordionist Mario Tacca is a multiple International and National Competition winner, aprolific composer, teacher, recording artist, and dedicated AAA governing board member
for many years. As a duo, the husband-and-wife team have performed together for over 40 years, sometimes clocking
up as many as 200 concerts in a season. Dynamic entertainers, they engage audiences with musical genres that spanclassical, pop, gospel, and traditional music from Italy and France. As a popular performing duo, Mary and Mario havecompleted two concert tours of China.
Accordion Pops Orchestra: Gala Concert Performers
The Accordion Pops Orchestra traces its roots to 1970 and its first
director, Dr. Jacob Neupauer. After performing under well-known
directors, including Eugene Ettore and Daniel Desiderio, the orchestra
has performed under the baton of Al Terzo since 2011. With members
from numerous states in the northeastern US, the orchestra consists
entirely of accordions, complemented by percussion. The 30 members
include professionals, teachers, and amateur musicians. The orchestra
performs a repertoire taken from a wide range of musical categories,
including Broadway, popular, movie themes, and light classical. It
performs in concert halls, festivals, playhouses, clubs, churches, andretirement homes.
Conductor Al Terzo is a music teacher, arranger, and conductor. He has been a member of the orchestra since its
inception in 1970. In addition to serving on the AAA governing board, Al is a member of the Music Teachers National
Association, the New Jersey Music Teachers Association, and the National Association of Music Educators.
The United States Air Force Strolling Strings: Gala Banquet Performers
The Air Force Strings is the official string ensemble of the UnitedStates Air Force. Stationed in Washington, DC, it is one of six
musical ensembles that form The US Air Force Band. The Air Force
Strings consists of 16 active-duty musicians performing a wide
range of musical styles, from classical symphonic selections andBroadway show tunes to classic rock, bluegrass, and patriotic. The
ensemble often entertains audiences at high-level military andgovernment events in a formation known as the Strolling Strings,
which includes Senior Master Frank Busso Jr on accordion.
Providing a multi-dimensional experience, the instrumentalists
surround the audience and perform from memory.
The U.S. Air Force Band’s mission is to HONOR those who have
served, INSPIRE American citizens to heightened patriotism andservice, and CONNECT with the global community on behalf of the
US Air Force and the United States. The excellence demonstrated
by the Air Force Strings reflects the excellence displayed by all
Airmen stationed worldwide, whose selfless service and sacrifices ensure the freedoms enjoyed by Americans today.

Visit the2023 Exhibits♦ Walnut Room ♦Shop for your next new accordion, browse accessories and music,
and learn more about 85 years of AAA history!
Wednesday, July 12:

5:00pm to 9:00pm

Thursday, July 13:

9:00am to 11:30am
2:00pm to 3:30pm

Friday, July 14:

9:00am to 11:30am
1:30pm to 3:30pm

Saturday, July 15:

9:00am to 11:30am
12:30pm to 3:30pm

ernestdeffner.com

THE MOST RESPECTED
NAME IN ACCORDIONSFor decades, Myron Floren was theaccordionist for the Champagne Music
Makers on the Lawrence Welk Show. His
instrument of choice was the Baton Tone
Chamber, manufactured by PANcordion.
We are now proud to honor thisaccordion icon with the limited edition…

Myron Floren Commemorative
Baton Tone Chamber
FEATURING THE SIGNATURE OF MYRON FLOREN
The most extensive musical range andversatility is yours to command in a tone
chambered PANcordion Baton with superior
handmade reeds. Choose from dry tuning,two sets of bassoon reeds for jazz, or threesets of middle reeds for musette!
MIDI and Sennheiser pickup kits also available.

A portion of each Commemorative Baton
Tone Chamber purchase will be donated to
the USO World Headquarters in honor of
the selfless work performed by Myron
Floren for this organization.

You’ve heard our music since 1934!
ernestdeffner.com  ernestdeffner@aol.com(703) 941-9300  P.O. Box 11663  Alexandria, VA 22312 USA

Two Years of AAA Virtual Competitions
The pandemic led the AAA to find new ways to encourage accordionists of all ages tomake music. Our 2021 and 2022 virtual competitions were organized by Mary Tokarski
and Frank Busso Jr, respectively, with technical assistance provided by AAA member
Mike Silvia. We could not have been more proud of our contestants!
Prize money for the 2021 and 2022 Honors Categories - and the live 2023 Honors
Categories, too! - was generously donated by The Mary and Frank Tokarski MusicalArts Fund. This fund, established in 2018, was created by Mary Tokarski to honor herlate husband Frank, who lovingly supported her music through the decades, and for her
to give young people the ability to “experience the enrichment and the joy that comes from making music.”
The AAA thanks Mary for this beautiful, ongoing legacy.

2021 Virtual Competition Results
Standard Solo Elementary
Mayah Brennan SILVER
Standard Solo Intermediate
Antoine Brennan GOLD
Open Solo Juniorette
Caroline Lammers GOLD
Francesca Busso SILVER
Julianna Busso SILVER
Open Solo Junior
Alexander Lammers GOLD
Open Solo Intermediate
Gia Ciccone GOLD
Open Solo Adult
Kaisu Lankinen SILVER
Pamela Tom SILVER
Ethnic Solo Intermediate
Gia Ciccone GOLD

Ethnic Solo Adult
Kaisu Lankinen GOLD
Michael Silvia GOLD
Pop Solo Juniorette
Caroline Lammers GOLD
Pop Solo Junior
Nicholas Busso SILVER
Pop Solo Adult
Pamela Tom SILVER
Jazz Solo Adult
Kaisu Lankinen GOLDEntertainment AAA
Josie Beach SILVER
Honors Solo Juniorette
Caroline Lammers 1st
Honors Solo Junior
Alexander Lammers 1st

2022 Virtual Competition Results
Open Solo JunioretteFrancesca Busso GOLD
Julianna Busso GOLD
Iven Kavich SILVER
Nemanja Zivanovic GOLD
Open Solo Junior
Caroline Lammers GOLD
Open Solo Intermediate
Adam Fundak GOLD
Alexander Lammers SILVER
Open Solo Senior
Zach Grindle GOLD
Rowena Liu BRONZEOpen Solo Adult
Megumi Hada GOLDFounder’s Solo Intermediate
Adam Fundak SILVER

Pop Solo Junior
Nicholas Busso GOLD
Jazz Solo Senior
Zach Grindle SILVER
Honors Solo JunioretteJulianna Busso 1st
Iven Kavich 2nd
Honors Solo Junior
Caroline Lammers 1st
Honors Solo Intermediate
Max Hoffmann 1st
Alexander Lammers 2nd
Open Duet JunioretteFrancesca Busso andJulianna Busso GOLD
Open Mixed Duet
Julianna Busso (accordion) and
Patrick Hamilton (piano) GOLD

Honors Solo Intermediate
Gia Ciccone 1st
Max Hoffmann 2nd
Honors Solo Adult
Janice Lavoie 1st
Michael Silvia 2nd
Pamela Tom 3rdStandard Duet Intermediate
Antoine Brennan andMayah Brennan GOLD
Open Duet JunioretteFrancesca Busso andJulianna Busso GOLD
Open Duet Junior
Caroline Lammers andNicholas Busso GOLD
Open Duet Intermediate
Alexander Lammers and
Max Hoffmann GOLD

Mary & Frank Tokarski

2022 AAA Virtual Competition Contestants

Max Hoffmann
Caroline Lammers

Francesca Busso
Adam Fundak

Nicholas Busso
Zach Grindle

Nemanja Zivanovic

Patrick Hamilton andJulianna Busso

Congratulations to all of our competitors and their teachers!

Alexander Lammers

Megumi Hada

Rowena Liu

Iven Kavich

2023 AAA Workshops♦ All workshops will be in Salon E ♦Wednesday, July 12 - 5:00pm
Playing with Others
Dee Langley, Presenter
We will focus on learning to gain theconfidence to make music as a group. Play
along with Dee as your skills come together
to make a rewarding ensemble experience.
Part of this workshop will also serve as the first rehearsalof the 2023 AAA Beginner Adult Band, which may perform
later in the festival. Bring your accordion!

Friday, July 14 - 10:00am
Eugene Ettore’s Contributions to
85 Years of the AAA
Rita Davidson Barnea, Presenter
Learn about the music of a world-famous
composer, accordionist, and educator, as
Rita walks us through the chronology of
Eugene Ettore’s most important works, his three terms as
AAA President, and his collaborations with other accordion
giants in his mission to promote our favorite instrument.

Thursday, July 13 - 9:30am
The Indefatigable Elsie Bennett & the AAA
Composers Commissioning Committee
Dr. Robert Young McMahan, Presenter
For most of the second half of the 20th
century, Elsie Bennett successfully
convinced a who’s who of famous
composers to produce much-needed concert works foraccordion. We will open her vast photo albums, allowing
the pictures on screen to guide us through her incalculable
contributions to the classical accordion.

Friday, July 14 - 1:30pm
AAA Past, Present, and FutureFrank Busso, Sr., Presenter
Hear the perspective of “growing up
with the AAA” from theassociation’s newest Lifetime
Achievement Award recipient.
Frank will discuss how the AAA has evolved over the past
several decades, and what might be in store as we look to
the youth of America to help promote our beloved
instrument.

Thursday, July 13 - 10:30am
Tips & Tricks: Accordion Gigging“Papa Joe” De Clemente, Presenter
Learn some of what it takes to findsuccess as a working accordionist from aseasoned professional! Papa Joe will
cover many of the basics, including being
prepared with the right equipment, showmanshipfundamentals, advertising, filling your gig calendar,assorted genres, and connecting with your audience.
There will even be a little singing! Bring your accordion!

Friday, July 14 - 2:30pm
Bellows and Articulation Control
Grayson Masefield, Presenter
Have you ever wondered what sets
professionals apart from amateurs, and how
to elevate your playing, even if you “just”
play in your living room? World champion
Grayson Masefield will shed some light on bellows
techniques and other fundamentals to recognize potential
improvements in your playing and to help those intangibles
become more...well...tangible!

Friday, July 14 - 9:00am
Arranging Your Favorite Songs toPlay with Accordion Friends
Dee Langley, Presenter
This hands-on workshop focuses on thebasic concept of playing with others melody, harmony, bass, and rhythm - tocreate your own ensemble arrangements of favorite songs.
You will create an arrangement from a lead sheet andexperience some of Dee’s own arrangements. Sheetmusic will be available. Bring your accordion!

Saturday, July 15 - 10:00am
Phrasing, Dynamics, and Musical Styles
Joey Miskulin, Presenter
Playing selections in different styles will not
only affect your individual selections, but also
the feel of your entire performance. A legend
who has played everything from polkas to jazz
to showtunes and more, Grammy winner Joey Miskulin willcall upon his decades of performing & production
experience to help you explore phrasing and dynamics inyour playing. Bring your accordion!

AAA Membership
The AAA offers several membership tiers:• Full/Professional• Certified Teacher (Exam Required)• Associate• Affiliated Organization• Student

Become an AAA member today!
ameraccord.com/information.php

Happy 85th, AAA!
You have been a hugepart of my life since1996. Sure wish I could

celebrate with you now!

Joan Grauman Morse,
AAA Historian

Accordion Day at theKing of Prussia Mall
Thursday, July 13 - 12:00-1:30pm
Help us promote our beloved
instrument to the public!
160 N. Gulph Rd. King of Prussia, PA 19406~approximately 5 miles from the hotel ~The American Accordionists’ Association celebrates 85 years!

What Events Led to the Formation of theAmerican Accordionists’ Association?
By: Joan Grauman Morse, AAA Historian“When the musical history of our times comes to be written, one
chapter will stand head and shoulders above all others in point ofinterest and importance, and that chapter will deal with the growth of
the accordion movement during the last four years!”—Accordion News, October 1937
When one reflects on the 1930s, two things
immediately come to mind: the Great Depression andthe emergence of the radio. By 1932, the radio
dominated mass media throughout the industrial
nations.
The piano accordion, still in its infancy, had been ahuge hit in Vaudeville for many years. The
accordions in the 1920s were filled with rhinestones
and other ornamentation to “wow” the Vaudevilleshow audiences. When radio became the rage - a new,inexpensive form of entertainment at a time whenmoney was scarce - Vaudeville simply died out.
The Vaudeville accordion stars were soon hired by
the radio stations. By the late 1930s, one could hearaccordions playing on the live radio programs all overthe country. Many of the founders of the AAA
performed weekly on the radio (these founders all
worked in New York City):

•
•
•
•
•

Charles Magnante: CBS, NBC - four programs
weeklyPietro Frosini: WOR, “John Gambling’s Musical
Clock” - daily except Sunday
John Gart: WJZ - four programs weekly
Joe Biviano: NBC, WOR, CBS - three programs
weeklyCharles Nunzio: WOR - three programs weekly

While long distance calls to other accordionists werepretty much unheard of, and long letters were few andfar between, musicians from all over the US andCanada would meet annually in Chicago for theMusic Trades Convention, where discussions on“everything accordion” would take place day andnight. The performers and educators listed above
were busy arranging music for the radio programs,
plus they were teaching, performing outside of thestudios, composing solos and band pieces foraccordion, and writing accordion instruction books.
Yet, these five men, along withseven other giants in the musicworld (all from the New York
City area) -- Pietro Deiro,
Anthony
Galla-Rini,
Byron
Streep, Sidney Dawson, Abe
Goldman, Gene Von Hallberg,
and Sam Rowland – werepassionate
about
the
new
instrument they had grown to loveand to master: the piano
accordion. Sam Rowland, who
had founded the American
Drummers’
Association,suggested they form a newnational organization for theaccordion, headquartered in New
York City. Thus, the American

Accordionists’ Association
established, holding its
meeting on March 9, 1938.

was
first

Why create this organization? The
ideas were flowing and excitement
was at an all-time high for the new
instrument. “What can we do to
make the accordion boom last?”
was asked and discussed at eachmeeting. First on the agenda was todevelop standards of notation forthe bass in sheet music for theaccordion. Up until this time, somecomposers wrote the basses intreble clef, some used full chords,
some used numbers for chords,
while others used letters, and so on.
The AAA Standardized Notation,using one note for chords withletter designations, was created andwas required for all accordion music printed in the
US. The AAA founders, along with a rapidly growing
group of new members, recognized the need for more
original music for the accordion, better instruction
and instructional manuals, and, most of all, they were
determined to elevate the status of the piano
accordion in the music world to that of a serious
instrument.

accordion. While many of the concerns we, in theAAA, have to this day about the acceptance andpopularity of the instrument are the same as they werein the 1930s, one thing remains the same and likely
always will: the versatile accordion is intensely loved
and cherished by those who play it!

The first AAA president, Pietro Deiro (known as the“Daddy of the Accordion”) lectured and wrote
articles for music publications such as Metronome,
Etude Magazine, and the Accordion World for
decades. Charles Magnante, Sidney Dawson,
Anthony Galla-Rini, and Joe Biviano also wrote forthese publications regularly with topics from “How to
be a better radio accordionist” to “Accordions inpublic schools.” Many excellent articles by thesefounders can be found in the aforementioned
publications from the 1930s and early 1940s.
So many of the early pioneers in the AAA dedicatedtheir entire lives to this instrument and worked
tirelessly and passionately for the advancement of theOriginal AAA Logo

“The American Accordionists’ Association’s aims and accomplishments, if itemized, would fillvolumes but, suffice it to say that, since its beginning, it has been dedicated not only towards
building a position for the accordion and the accordionist in the family of music and musicalinstruments, but in helping to further the musical culture of the world.”—Pietro Deiro, Jr., 1962

Pasta Night
Thursday, July 13 - 7:00pm♦ Ballroom B ♦Celebrating the AAA’s 85th Anniversary!
Mary
Mancini
and
Mario
Tacca

Westmont
Philharmonia
Accordion
Orchestra Joanna Darrow,
Conductor...and other entertainers!

Ticket RequiredAcme Accordion School
322 Haddon Ave.
Haddon Township, NJ 08108
856-281-4035

Founded 1948

Professional Faculty - Ensembles

Private and Class Instruction
Accordions - Accessories
Home of:
American Accordion
Musicological Society

Celebrating
75 Yearsof Accordion
Education and
EducatingAccordionists
Worldwide

Westmont Philharmonia
Accordion Orchestra
Westmont Accordion ClubAAMS Tribute CD to Stanley Darrow

Balkan Fantasy
Ukrainian Fantasy
Dance of the Winds and more.
$20. Includes shipping
CDs available thru
Acme Accordion School
acmeaccordion@gmail.com
856-281-4035
acmeaccordion@gmail.com

Luncheon Concert
Friday, July 14 - 11:30am♦ Ballroom B ♦Celebrating the AAA’s 85th Anniversary!
World
Champion
Grayson
Masefield

CIA
Representative
NathanChapeton

Ticket Required

Westmont
AccordionClub Joanna
Darrow,
Conductor

Congratulations to theAmerican Accordionists'
Association
for its

85th anniversary!

Joe Cerrito

Gala Concert
Friday, July 14 - 6:30pm♦ Ballroom B ♦Celebrating the AAA’s 85th Anniversary!
GrammyWinnerJoey
Miskulin

World
Champion
Grayson
Masefield

AAA
Champion
Mario
Tacca

Artist Reception in Salon D immediately following the concert!
Tickets required for Concert and Reception.

Awards Concert
Saturday, July 14 - 12:30pm♦ Ballroom B ♦Competition Prizes ♦ Busso Festival Orchestra♦ Junior Festival Orchestra ♦Included with your Festival Registration

Gala Banquet
Saturday, July 15
6:00pm Cocktail Reception
7:00pm Banquet♦ Ballroom B ♦2023 AAA
Festival
Orchestra Joan CochranSommers,
Conductor

The
UnitedStatesAir Force
Strolling
Strings

AAA Lifetime
Achievement Award
Presentation toFrank Busso, Sr.

Ticket Required
Cocktail/Business Attire
Celebrating 85 years of the AAA!

New Directions for the Ongoing Historical andAnalytical Series of Articles on the
AAA’s Commissioned Concert Works
Robert Young McMahan, DMA
Professor Emeritus, The College of New Jersey
AAA Composers Commissioning Committee Chairperson
It has been quite a while - four years, to be exact - since we lastgathered in person for the much anticipated, uniquely eclectic, andalways exciting annual mid-summer event the accordion world
knows as the AAA Festival. During our difficult time of solitude,
cautious mask-wearing and nervous coping with new “realities” inpractically every aspect of daily life, many of our past patterns of
thinking and acting changed to a considerable degree. This, myseries on the history and analysis of the AAA’s commissioned
contemporary concert repertoire, was affected in certain ways aswell by this upheaval of normalcy. This said, however, we often
hope that change, pleasurable or not, will lead to something better,and I believe such did happen for this ongoing, multi-year projectchronicling and examining the commissioned works and activitiesof the AAA’s Composers Commissioning Committee, founded by
Elsie Bennett in the mid-1950s.
To review, in 1997 I elected to launch a series of articles on thehistory and general analysis of every AAA commissioned work,
starting with the first in 1957, Paul Creston’s solo Prelude andDance. These writings were to appear, one by one, every year in
the annual AAA Festival’s membership print publication AAA
Festival Journal. And so they did across the next 21 years.
The first issue, in 1997, gave a brief (but soon to be greatly expanded) historical overview of the AAA
Composers Commissioning Committee. The next 21 articles were spread across every year from 1998 through2019, excepting 2007 when our organization was busy preparing to co-host the Coupe Mondiale in Alexandria,
Virginia. Each one discussed one to four of the compositions, following the chronological order in which they
were contracted by its chairlady. I decided to organize this string of writings in this way rather than bycomposer or style of composition to make the entire project a single ongoing history, delivered annually inserialized segments. As of my latest writing, which appeared in the 2019 issue of the Journal, I had reachedthe 34th and 35th commissions, the solos Fables, by William Schimmel, and Scaramouche, by John
Franceschina, both of which were commissioned in 1974. Then came COVID.
Because of the pandemic, the Festival, along with the publication of its journal and hence this series of articles,
reluctantly went dark for three years out of an abundance of caution. However, the lights are back on now, the2023 Festival is in full swing, and the Journal is back in print,
carrying with it the possibility of resuming this series of articles. Regarding the last point, however, and as
alluded to at the beginning of this writing, some things have changed, and in my opinion not only for the betterbut in some ways by necessity as well. To explain, excluding for the moment the assumption and fervent hopethat more compositions will be commissioned by the AAA in the near as well as ongoing future, there remains
on the present list 27 existing ones I must revisit for historic and analytical expansion. Even if an average of
two such compositions are featured in each annual article in the Journal starting now, the task would not be
concluded until the year 2037.

Continued…

AAA Commissioned Works…continued
Considering all of the above and given that I am of a “mature” age, thus making it statistically chancy toassume that I will still be around and, if so, as active as I am presently near the end of this century’s third
decade, things need to be sped up so that I can produce and publish more than just one article per annum. The
obvious solution, of course, is for me to write numerous articles back-to-back, as time and circumstances allow
in these, my retirement years, across each entire year. This procedure, in fact, is already underway and was put
into action in August of the second “dark year,” 2021, but not initially for future articles but rather for the
much-needed expansion of the past ones (to be described below). This action was set into motion largely by
the prompting and generous support of Harley Jones, creator and head of the
all-important international accordion organization and website, Accordions
Worldwide (accordions.com), who felt they should go viral in the worldwide
accordion community. Progress on this project has, in fact, been going very
well, thanks largely to Harley’s generous contribution of countless hours spentgradually converting my texts into html format and putting them on the AAA
website. Regular monthly reports on this ongoing project have been and willcontinue to be made in the Accordion USA section (accordionusa.com) of
Accordions Worldwide. In addition, reports made prior to the current monthly
issue may be easily found by clicking on “Previous News,” appearing in the
opening banner of Accordion USA. As of this writing, I have completed
expansions of 18 of the 22 articles, which will be discussed and described indetail below.
Harley JonesMy expansions of my past articles consist of 1) further historical research and reporting; 2) more extensive anddetailed analyses of the works, including the new features of musical examples and occasional sound samples;and 3) additional photographs, most of which are from Elsie Bennett’s extensive personal collection portraying
commissioned composers (as well as many she visited who turned down commissions) and associatedaccordion artists, with all of whom she usually posed, in various locations either at their homes or at special
events that usually, but not always, involved the accordion. Elsie was quite a documenter in both print andvisuals and is affectionately remembered by all who knew her as an almost compulsive shutterbug, taking
countless photos of every event, accordion-related or not, she attended, and generously mailing copies to her
subjects afterwards. (Though an able typist, Elsie never employed the computer or internet in her work.)
The reader might wonder from reading the above description of this project how a sound sample can workwithin a printed article on paper. The answer is quite simple: These expanded articles are not in that format,
but rather are or will be online within the AAA website in a special section dedicated to the commissioned
works. To read those that are already there, please visit ameraccord.com/aaacommissions.php. To read myarticles on the commissioned works, please visit ameraccord.com/aaacommissions2.php, where you will see apage still in a state of development but allowing you to view the 22 articles in their various evolutionary
stages.
In addition to the expanding list of articles on the AAA commissioned works, there is a second section on thearticles page listing articles I have written regarding contemporary original works for or including accordion
both inside and outside of the AAA and its repertoire.
So, with this switch from paper to electronic media, all future articles in my series will appear exclusively on
the Music Commissions homepage of the AAA website where you will always be able to find them and alltheir predecessors. I will, however, contribute a small article in future AAA Festival Journal print issues
regarding the work of the previous year and announcing any other pertinent news regarding activities
pertaining to them and the Composers Commissioning Committee.
In the meantime, enjoy browsing the Composers Commissioning homepage and, I hope, reading the articles!

Continued…

AAA Commissioned Works…continued
In closing, the AAA can proudly count to date 62 works by a total of 38 composers who have produced one tofour works each for our organization and artists over a period of 66 years. At least 17 of these composers areindisputably world renowned and will be found in every textbook on contemporary music; another 10 are
highly respected, outstanding composers of less notoriety, but of high worth whose music is frequently
performed and recorded; and many of the remaining numbers are classical-level accordionists of similar status
who often hold advanced degrees in composition and high positions in academia and whose works for or
including accordion as well as for other instruments and various ensembles have been widely performed,
published, and recorded. It has been and continues to be my great pleasure and privilege to research and write
about all these outstanding composers’ and performers’ work and theirgreat contributions to the accordion’s contemporary classical repertoire.

Elsie Bennett

It is my strong conviction that the release of these articles, recordings, andother CCC-related news and information from our accordion “village,”large and international as it has gradually become over many decades, into
the yet more diverse musical vastness of cyberspace in general will draw
increasing attention from the classical music world at large, thus attracting
more serious composers and concert venues to consider the accordion’s
possibilities and importance in contemporary music and for composers towrite for it or include it in their instrumentation for chamber, orchestral,and operatic works (all of which has already happened to a considerable
degree across the past century). These actions will also help to awaken
many important and influential musical scholars who are major critics andauthors to the rise of the accordion’s presence in so many works by someof the most famous composers in the world (for example, Henry Cowell,
Ernst Krenek, David Diamond, Samuel Adler, and Lukas Foss to name justa few among the AAA commissioned composers alone) to its growing
significance and usefulness in these times.

For all the above reasons, the accordion has long deserved and by now certainly earned over its almost 200
years of technological evolution and ever growing inclusion in more and more advanced concert music theexalted status of what I like to term the “fourth keyboard instrument,” fully deserving of joining in importanceand usefulness its three historic predecessors, the piano, organ, and harpsichord, in their enormous
contributions to the development and evolution of so many of the western world’s musical masterpieces. Allfour have unique technical, timbral, and expressive qualities that lend themselves extremely well to music of
all kinds, including that highest level we generally refer to as “classical.” The AAA is among the earliest
organizations to put into motion this upward climb of the accordion in advanced 20 th and 21st century
repertoire which now abounds in hundreds of solo, chamber, orchestral, and dramatic works for or including
its presence worldwide. This is why its story must be often told and music for or including it widely andcontinuously created, published, publicized, promoted, disseminated, and frequently heard in both live andrecorded performance. To these ends, the AAA is and has long been a tremendously important and deservedly
proud and pioneering advocate and driver. May it long continue to be so and may my own small contributions
to the movement, in addition to those of many others, past, present, and in the future, spur it on to many more
and increasingly greater and more publicly heard successes.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Final idea and friendly request: I would like to propose that across this next year (and hopefully every year
thereafter) accordionists anywhere in the world who have read this or previous articles in this series, or havenot, but have heard from those who have and are interested in its cause to promote original contemporary
concert music for our instrument, please report to me any performances they have given of AAA
commissioned or other contemporary classical works for or including accordion so that I may list them in thisannual journal and periodically online in Accordions Worldwide. The world needs to know! Send informationor any comments you wish to make to mcmahan@tcnj.edu. Grateful thanks.

Works Commissioned by the American Accordionists' Association - 1957-2021
Composer
Adler, SamuelBakasa, Robert
Bennett, Robert Russell
Bennett, Robert Russell
Biviano, Joseph
Brant, Henry
Brickman, Joel
Cowell, Henry
Cowell, Henry
Creston, Paul
Creston, Paul
Creston, Paul
Creston, PaulDavidson, Roger
Diamond, David
Diamond, David
Diamond, David
Flagello, Nicholas
Foss, Lukas
Foss, Lukas
Franceschina, John
Franceschina, John
Franceschina, John
Fremar, Karen
Fremar, KarenFriedman, Gary William
Gordon, LouisHalac, Jose
Holshouser, Will
Katehis, George
Kleinsinger, George
Klucevsek, Guy
Krenek, Ernst
Lockwood, Normand
Luening, Otto
McMahan, Robert Young
McMahan, Robert Young
Natoli, Joseph
Natoli, Joseph
Oliveros, Pauline
Pisk, Paul
Pisk, Paul
Riegger, Wallingford
Schimmel, William
Schimmel, William
Schimmel, William
Schimmel, William
Siegmeister, Elie
Serebrier, Jose
Serebrier, Jose
Soldier, Dave
Still, William Grant
Still, William Grant
Surinach, Carlos
Surinach, Carlos
Tcherepnin, Alexander
Tcherepnin, Alexander
Tcherepnin, Alexander
Thompson, Timothy
Thompson, Timothy
Thompson, TimothyThomson, Virgil

Music (with publication or completion dates)
Canto XVIII (2009)
Accordion Sonata (1998)
Four Nocturnes (1960)
Quintet (Psychiatry), for Accordion and String Quartet (ca. 1963)
Quintet in G, for Accordion and String Quartet (n.p., n.d., ca. 1986)
Sky Forest, for Four Accordions (1962)
Prelude and Caprice (1973)
Concerto Brevis, for Accordion and Orchestra (1962)
Iridescent Rondo (1960)
Concerto for Accordion and Orchestra or Band (1960)
Embryo Suite (1968)
Fantasy for Accordion and Orchestra, or as solo (1966)
Prelude and Dance (1957)
Tango Blues, for Flute, Viola, Cello, & Accordion (2010)
Night Music, for Accordion and String Quartet (1966)
Introduction & Dance (1967)
Sonatina (1966)
Introduction and Scherzo (1964)
Curriculum Vitae (1978)
Triologue, for Violin, Cello, and Accordion (n.p., n.d., ca. 2003)
Concerto for Accordion and Orchestra (1987)
For Elsie (2004)
Scaramouche (1975)
Introduction & Allegro for Accordion and Synthesized Tape (1976)
Herricks Road, for Accordion and Percussion (2009)
Accordion Samba for Vocalist, Bassoon, Cello and Accordion (1997)
Aria, Scherzo and Finale for Accordion and Orchestra or Band (1962)
Accordion Shadow for Accordion, Flute and Percussion (n.d., 1993?)
Redbud Winter, for B-flat Trumpet & Accordion,with alt. versions for B-flat Clarinet & Accordion, and 2 Accordions (2021)
Become/Desiccated (2017)
Prelude and Sarabande (1963)
Three Tributes (2016)
Toccata (1964)
Sonata Fantasia (1965)
Rondo (1961)
Apparitions, for Flute (alt. Piccolo) and Accordion (1996)
Incantations, for Cello and Accordion (1995)
Child's Play, for 2 Accordions, Cello & Percussion (2019)
Sonata in F Major (in the Classical Style) (2018)
Shape Shifting (1995)
Adagio & Rondo Concertante, for Two Accordions & Orchestra (1962?)
Salute to Juan (1961)
Cooper Square (1958)
Fables (1975)
Remembering a Legend: Charles Magnante (n.d., 1987?)
The Spring Street Ritual (1979)
Variations in Search of a Theme (n.d., 1976?)
Improvisation, Ballad and Dance (1962)
Danza Ritual (1967)
Passacaglia and Perpetuum Mobile, for
Accordion, Strings, Brass and Percussion (1974)
Sontag in Sarajevo, for Accordion, Melody, Chordal,
and Bass Instruments, and Drums (n.d., 1993?)
Aria (1960)
Lilt (1967)
Prelude to the Sea (1965)
Pavana and Rondo (1959)
Invention (1968)
Partita (1962)
Tzigane (1968)
Growth Cells (n.d., 1977?)
Keyworld (n.d., 1977?)
Rossiniland (n.d., 1977?)
Lamentations (1960)
Most Pagani and Deiro titles available from Ernest Deffner Publications

Publisher
Ludwig Masters
Theodore Presser
Chappell & Co.
Chappell & Co.
Rental Only
O. Pagani & Bro.
Pietro Deiro Publications
Pietro Deiro Publications
Pietro Deiro Publications
Ricordi Music/Ernest Deffner
Pietro Deiro Publications
Mills Publishing Co.
Pietro Deiro Publications
Ernest Deffner Publications
Southern MusicSouthern MusicSouthern Music
Pietro Deiro Publications
Pembroke
Ernest Deffner Publications
Pietro Deiro Publications
Ernest Deffner Publications
Ernest Deffner Publications
150 Music
Pietro Deiro Publications
Ernest Deffner Publications

katehis-music.com
Pietro Deiro Publications
Guy Klucevsek
O. Pagani & Bro.
O. Pagani & Bro.
Pietro Deiro Publications
Ernest Deffner Publications
Ernest Deffner Publications
JANPress
JANPress
Ernest Deffner Publications
Alfred Music
Alfred Music
Pietro Deiro Publications
Ernest Deffner Publications
Ernest Deffner Publications
Ernest Deffner Publications
Ernest Deffner Publications
Sam Fox Publications
O. Pagani & Bro.
Peer International Publications
Ernest Deffner Publications
Sam Fox Publications
Pietro Deiro Publications
Alfred Music
Alfred Music/Ernest Deffner
O. Pagani & Bro.
O. Pagani & Bro.
Pietro Deiro Publications
Ernest Deffner Publications
Ernest Deffner Publications
Ernest Deffner Publications
Pietro Deiro Publications

AAA Congratulates
Lifetime Achievement Award RecipientFrank Busso, Sr.
SPOTLIGHT on Frank Busso, Sr. – musician, educator,
conductor and ambassador of the accordion
By Joan Grauman, AAA Historian
written in 2017, updated in 2023
It is always difficult for me to find just the right opening words for
my articles to set the tone I want to convey. This article was nodifferent –until I received these beautifully expressed words of love andadmiration from Frank’s daughter, Christina Busso:“My dad is my hero and, through the eyes of this adoring daughter, he is larger than life!

Christina and Frank, Jr. withcompetition trophies

At some point, you realize that playing the accordion is asomewhat remarkable thing. But for me, growing up, I simply didn’tknow anyone who didn’t play the accordion! It started with my dad as arole model, of course, and then extended to my uncles, family friends andscores of students in and out of the music school. It was therefore
natural for me to begin taking lessons when I was four, and I was
always so proud to be part of the music school. I loved when I was oldenough to join the orchestra and so excited to have my dad as myconductor.

As my dad was also the music teacher at two schools in our area, it was not uncommon for me tohear in the local grocery store, ‘Ohhh, you’re MR. BUSSO’S daughter!?!’ That was music to myears. I could not have been prouder.
Now that I have my own children, I wasn’t sure whether they would share the same love formusic, and love for the accordion. Apparently, it must be in the genes! Alex (nine years old) has
been playing since he was five, and Caroline (five years old) started lessons at age four. Nothing
makes me happier than to see and hear them practice and to play alongside my dad, my brother,or me. Truly, it is a family affair.
When my brother first started conducting his own orchestra a few years ago, to some it may haveseemed like a passing of the baton, but it was also him picking up his own melody. I recall in thefirst orchestra piece my brother conducted, I played alongside my dad and followed the lead of
my brother, and watched my mother, my husband and our children in the audience. Somewherein the middle of the piece, I nearly lost my place as I teared up.
Playing the accordion isn’t a hobby – it is something that ties our family together across THREE
generations – WOW.”
And all of this because Frank’s childhood home was too small for the piano that his mom had
dreamed her son would learn to play. But there was room for an accordion, and the rest is
history, and quite a delightful story of hard work, dedication and love that continues to this day.

Frank’s Childhood
Frank, the only child of Constantino and Jeanette (Rapino) Busso, was born on Staten Island, NewYork in 1943. Tragically, his father died in World War II on the USS Ticonderoga in 1945, whenFrank was just two years old. After his father’s death, he and his mother moved into a three-roomflat with Frank’s grandparents.
When Frank was seven, he began taking accordion lessons from Prof. Omero Castellucci. An
excellent European-trained accordionist, Castellucci encouraged young Frank to practice daily, andinvited him to join his band. This band consisted of all instruments plus vocalists and met weekly
above the local police station. They regularly put on shows for the community. Castellucci was also
a composer. He composed and directed the world premiere of his opera, “The Prince of Peace” in1955 at the Sailors Snug Harbor auditorium in Staten Island. Renowned musicians and singers
performed in the orchestra and chorus... and one accordion player. So impressed with his 12 year
old student’s abilities, Castellucci wrote a solo part for Frank, which he performed in that world
premiere.
Frank’s mother remarried when Frank was seven years old, and they eventually moved to anothersection of Staten Island. It became difficult for Frank to get across town for his lessons, so when
he was 14, his stepfather found him a new accordion teacher: Tony Ettore.
The Ettore School of Music was filled with “the sound of music”, andFrank really enjoyed being there. Encouraged to enter competitions,Frank took 1st place two years in a row in his elementary school’s music
contest, and he won the American Accordionists’ Association (AAA) US
Senior A Solo Competition in 1963 at the age of 20. From 1959 to
1965, Frank won numerous national, regional and state accordion
championships.
The national and regional competitions weresponsored by the AAA, while the state championships were sponsored by
the New York State Accordion Association.

Frank, 1963 AAA US
Senior A, 1st place winnerWith Tony Ettore’s guidance, Frank started teaching at the Ettore
School of Music at the age of 18 and soon had many private students. He
also conducted ensembles and bands at the school.

Early on, Frank knew that his life would revolve around the accordion. He loved to play and bringjoy to others through his music. At 13, he began performing for church groups and playing clubdates in hotels including the Statler Hilton and the Biltmore. He also really enjoyed teaching,arranging and conducting. When he was 32 years old, Frank started his own band, “Rendezvous”,
which performed all over the NY metropolitan area for decades. But this was just a small part ofFrank’s activities and accomplishments.
While playing out several nights a week, Frank completed his college education. He holds a BS in
Business from St. Peter’s College and an MBA from Wagner College. This background helped him
when he opened a music center, “Music City”, which he eventually expanded to four locations inStaten Island. While running these stores, teaching accordion and playing club dates, Frank also

found time to meet, court and marry his lifetime partner, Carmela(Felitti) in 1975.
And how did they meet? ThroughCarmela’s brother, Gerald – an accordionist!
Carmela enjoys reminiscing about their first days together. “Frankand I started dating and as is true to this day, he always chosefine dining restaurants. After several evenings, I remember goinghome and telling my mother, ‘It’s like dating a movie star!’
Due to his years of performing/entertaining and his music
stores (Music City), he was well-known on Staten Island. People
would come over to chat as well as simply point to him and whisper,
loudly, ‘That’s Frank Busso!’ I am still proud to be his date!”Frank and Carmela’s
wedding, 1975

New Ventures and Faithe Deffner’s Influence
Faithe Deffner took a liking to Frank early on in his career. Faithe was highly respected forher fierce lifelong dedication to the accordion, the manufacturing of fine instruments, as wellas her tireless involvement in the AAA and the international accordion scene. She admiredFrank’s energetic and successful efforts with his students, as well as his work ethic. Faithe also
felt that he shared her desire to heighten interest in the accordion throughout the country at atime when the accordion’s popularity was beginning to wane. Frank and Carmela took atremendous liking to Faithe, and a close friendship blossomed which lasted until Faithe’spassing in 2014.

Staten Island Accordion Orchestra takes Frank accepts 1st place trophy from Carmen
1st place in AAA orchestra competition, Carrozza and prize money from Maddalena
1976 in Washington, DC
Belfiore, 1976

Carmela and Frank Busso with
Faithe Deffner, 1990

Cake celebrating the victory

Faithe’s influence in Frank’s professional life was
immeasurable. In 1975 he owned and managed four music
centers. “I wanted to get out of the business at this point in
my life”, Frank said. Faithe stepped in and, insisting thatFrank was just what the young students and theaccordion world needed, sent him to Les Ray in Florida tolearn how to manage an accordion school.
Frank
returned to Staten Island, closed his four businesses andopened the “Staten Island Music School” in 1977. He andCarmela purchased a building on Main Street in Great Kills.
The music studio was on the first floor and they lived upstairs.
With Faithe’s encouragement, Frank created a very successful

school which, at one time, had 175 accordion students. He sold accordions, his students and thebands repeatedly brought home trophies, and pretty soon he was teaching his own two children,
as well.
Carmela speaks of those early years. “Christina and Frank, Jr. were both born in the same house
where Frank gave music lessons and rehearsed his accordion bands. They were involved inattending and participating in at least three accordion festivals/competitions annually. As a result,
I think they believed that everyone played the accordion! They learned to walk, talk and play theaccordion.”

Christina and Frank, Jr. loved their lessons with their father, andthey loved being part of the music school’s bands and orchestra.
Both children were encouraged to learn other instruments.
Christina played the flute and Frank, Jr. played the trumpet.
Frank wrote arrangements that featured each of his children on
these instruments in the accordion orchestra. It was delightful
watching these young teens removing their accordions to begin
their solos.
Peter Tripi began taking lessons
from Frank in the late 1970s.

Staten Island Showband, US
Championship, Springfield, MA
1975

Christina on flute and Frank, Jr. on
trumpet as Frank conducts the Staten
Island Showband. AAA Festival 1996,
Philadelphia

He was 12 years old when he began and he never left. He has
been performing in the Busso Orchestras and Showbands for close
to 40 years! One of his favorite performances of the Busso Music
Showband was at the 2017 AAA Festival in Princeton, New
Jersey, where Peter was as the band’s vocalist. He still plays
his accordion as well. Peter spoke glowingly of his teacher andfriend. “Mr. B. was a very inspiring teacher. He taught us
lifelong lessons such as how to work with others. He set a great
example for all of his students.”
Frank became the President of the Affiliated Accordionists of
New York in 1971 and, with Faithe’s encouragement andrecommendation, became a member of the AAA Governing Board
in 1973. He has been a member of the Governing Board for 45
years.

AAA Governing Board Positions
Frank has faithfully served the AAA as Treasurer, Vice
President, President (1981, 1992-94) and also chaired
many committees including the national festivals and theYoung Artists Concert Series. He has held the position of
the Comptroller of the AAA for many years.
Lana Gore, Frank Busso and former AAA President, Linda
Soley Reed, were all born in the same year. These three

Playing duets with Tony Dannon, AAA
Festival’s Gala Concert, Cleveland, 2001

'comrades' joyfully met each year at all of the AAA competitions and festivals since they were
teens. Linda reflects on these memories:

AAA Tribute to Willard Palmer, Houston, TX 1995. L to R: Sam
Falcetti, Pietro Deiro, Jr., Mary Tokarski, August Arruda, Jr.,
Faithe Deffner, Lana Gore, Maddalena Belfiore, Linda Soley
Reed (back), Elsie Bennett, Frank Busso. Seated in front:
Willard Palmer“I have known Frank, or I should say
have known OF Frank, since I was elevenyears old and attended my first AAA
competition. Held at the Charles Evans
Hughes High School in New York City, thecompetition for the eleven year olds hadover 40 contestants. Fourteen of them camefrom my studio in Connecticut, but the 1stplace winner was some ‘kid from Staten
Island’ – Frank Busso. And there wasanother one who was always there: the ‘kidfrom Detroit’. That was Lana Gore.
There were no 4th place ribbons or ties,
and certainly no ‘attaboy’ awards forjust showing up. At 16, I finally won thatcoveted 1st place solo trophy, but the ‘kidfrom Staten Island’ wasn’t there!!

The three of us baby boomers, Frank, Lana and Linda, became united again as adults, eachwith our own students competing and orchestras to conduct. And then we got involved withorganizing events: Accordion Day, Eastern Cup, Summer Competitions and this became ourlives. Encouraged by both Maddalena Belfiore and Faithe Deffner, we were soon AAA
Governing Board members (Frank and I), then officers and committee chairs.
We were not only ‘accordion friends’ but real life friends,
attending each others’ ‘special’ birthdays, weddings, etc. Frankwas so helpful to me when I realized that the accordion students
started to dwindle and I decided to add a retail outlet to my thenstruggling teaching business. I drove down to Staten Island after
teaching to pick up instruments and merchandise. We would go
to dinner and talk about upcoming events and ideas forentertainment at each. We both held various offices in the AAA,
but Frank was the one who got me through ten years of the
Presidency of AAA. I would call him and say, ‘What do you
think of this...?’, and in an instant he would give me all thepros and cons needed. I treasure his friendship and wisdomand hope this bond will continue for many years to come.”
In addition to his many Board positions, the AAA festivals
have benefitted from his years as Public Relations
Chair, Festival Coordinator, Hotel Liaison, Conductor of
the Massed Band and Conductor of the Festival Orchestra.

Conducting the AAA Massed
Band, Cleveland, OH, 2001

Music Teacher at three Parochial Schools on Staten IslandFrank conducting in the 1970s

When Frank’s daughter Christina was quite young, sherecommended her dad when an organist was needed for a school
production. Although he is not an organist, Frank played the organ
for the event. Impressed with his abilities and his rapport withyoung children, Frank was asked to take over the music classes atthe school. Frank accepted and was soon teaching 600 elementary
school students at two parochial schools. A few years later, he was
asked to teach 7th and 8th grade music students at a third school, andhe accepted. Frank taught for a total of 27 years at these schools,
while continuing to teach private accordion students and direct hisbands and orchestras.

The Busso Trio and More
Impressed with Frank’s children’s abilities and their
joyful “performance personas”, Faithe Deffner suggested
that Frank, with his children, create a performing trio
with two piano accordions and a bass accordion. “TheBusso Trio” was created and made its debut at the2001 AAA Festival in Cleveland, Ohio to a very
delighted audience. The trio still plays together as often
as possible. Christina, married to Marshall Lammers,
is now a mother of two and a lawyer working as the
Executive Director of the Trial Lawyers Association of
Washington, DC. She is delighted that her two children
are study accordion with her brother Frank. MasterSergeant Frank Busso, Jr., now the accordionist with the "The Busso Trio", Frank, Jr., Christina and FrankUS Air Force Strolling Strings, also owns andoperates Busso Music, Inc. and Ernest Deffner, Inc.
in Alexandria, Virginia. Frank Jr.'s oldest child,
Nicholas,now
twelve,startedaccordion
lessons with his
dad
at
five
years old andhisyoungersisters, Francesca
Uncle Frank teaches Christina's children,
andJulianna,
Alexander and Caroline Lammers
now 9, havebeen studying since 2020. Hopefully we will be treated to a
Proud parents with Technicalperformance by “The Busso Octet” in the near future!
Sergeant Frank Busso, Jr. at the 2008
AAA Festival

Frank, Jr., while busy with his young children and his two full-time jobs, is pleased to earn a livingwith the instrument that has meant so much to him his entire life. He attributes so much of what hehas accomplished – and enjoys – to his father’s influence. “I’m the first-call concert announcer for
the Air Force Strings, and that’s probably the case because I watched and learned from my father

serving as the master of ceremonies for countless concerts, recitals and award ceremonies.” Healso spoke about his outlook on his work versus that of many of his colleagues: “Having theopportunity to work with so many accomplished musicians, I’ve had colleagues who now look atmusic as their job, and they don’t really get the same level of enjoyment out of performing as they
did when they were younger. Just recently, I asked my father what motivates him, even after allthese decades of performing, to take out the accordion to play for family holidays and engagements.
Without hesitating, he said, ‘To make people happy’.”
The popular, award-winning Showband is stillgoing strong and is now under the direction ofFrank, Jr. What a joy it is to watch father anddaughter, along with many fine accordionists, playon stage as son Frank conducts the orchestra that
his father founded so many years ago. At the last
AAA Festival in Buffalo, New York, an extra special
treat was seeing Christina’s then eight year old son,Alexander, come up on stage for a duet with his
friend as the orchestra accompanied them.
Busso Music Showband performing at the 2016 AAA
Festival in Buffalo, NY. Father, daughter, grandson
with son, Frank, Jr., conductingFrank and Carmela retired and moved to
Virginia in 2015 to be close to theirchildren and grandchildren, and they winterin Florida. Of course, the accordion still
plays a major role in their daily lives nomatter where they hang their hats. “I amproud to be the sister, wife, mother andgrandmother of accordionists!”, Carmela
beamed. Because of Frank’s influence andthe example he set, all of the Bussos are so
proud to be a part of the accordion world,
and the accordion world is very blessed tohave the Bussos!

The Busso grandchildren with Frank and Carmela: (L to R)
Caroline Lammers, Julianna Busso, Alex Lammers, Nicholas
Busso, Francesca Busso, 2022

American Accordionists’ Association Lifetime Achievement Award Recipients
2002 - Carmen Carrozza - Cortlandt, NY
2003 - Dick Contino - Wood-Ridge, NJ
2004 - Charles Nunzio - Wood-Ridge, NJ
2005 - Tony Dannon - Dearborn, MI
2006 - Frank Marocco - Wood Ridge, NJ
2009 - Faithe Deffner - New York, NY
2012 - Joan Sommers - Charleston, SC
2016 - Mario Tacca - Cortlandt, NY
2018 - Lou Coppola - Alexandria, VA
2019 - Joey Miskulin - College Point, NY
2021 - Linda Soley Reed - Virtual Presentation
2023 - Frank Busso., Sr. - West Conshohocken, PA

AAA Membership Application
AMERICAN ACCORDIONISTS’ ASSOCIATIONFrank Busso, Jr., President

email: ameraccord1938@gmail.com

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AMERICAN ACCORDIONISTS’ ASSOCIATIONThe American Accordionists' Association is a non-profit
organization founded in 1938 for the following purposes andobjectives:• To provide the media and public with information to stimulate
an increasing awareness of, knowledge about, andappreciation for the accordion;• To promote unity within the accordion community byencouraging cooperation among members and with theirorganizations which work on behalf of the instrument;• To set and maintain high standards for those interested in theaccordion, thereby working to facilitate and coordinate thevarious segments of the accordion world;• To increase the number of people playing and studying theaccordion, with a particular emphasis on young people;• To honor achievement throughout the accordion community;• To organize, sponsor, and support competition for accordionists
at all levels and dispense scholarships and/or honors to those
who distinguish themselves through outstanding performance;• To organize, sponsor, and support workshops, advancing
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