Sigma Alpha Iota

sai-national.org • Winter 2025 17 The fascinating world of professional accordion music is not new to the Oak Park Alumnae Chapter: member Mary Ann Covone is an illustrious accordionist. Initiated in 1977 to the Tau Sigma chapter, Mary Ann graduated from University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music with a Bachelor of Music in Accordion Performance. After graduation, Mary Ann affiliated with the now-defunct La Grange Alumnae Chapter in Illinois. When the La Grange chapter dissolved, Mary Ann was one of many members who chose to affiliate with Oak Park Alumnae. Alongside a career in performance, Mary Ann teaches her instrument to students of the Chicagoland Accordion Academy. The academy began during the pandemic, first offering online classes and then moving to distanced, outdoor rehearsals. In the years following its conception, the academy has grown to two trained teachers, about thirty students, and an after-school program for Chicago Public Schools. It also has beginner and advanced adult ensembles, and a children's accordion band of eleven students. All ensemble members take private lessons to further their craft. Mary Ann is further kept busy as a member of the Accordionists and Teachers Guild, International. She is currently 1st Vice President of the Guild after having served as the last president. As 1st Vice President, Mary Ann manages all international contacts and development. Readers might remember her best, though, as a performer at the 2022 50th National Convention in Greensboro, NC. Convention-goers were treated to an accordion recital that included works by Astor Piazzolla and Adolf Göetz, but perhaps the most exciting were pieces composed by fellow SAI Karen Fremar. Mary Ann recalls: "[The second piece] brought the audience to their feet. It is a duet written for accordion and synthesized tape with fun melodies and a lot of great sounds coming from a recorded MOOG Synthesizer." The fun doesn't end there, either. In April 2025, Oak Park Alumnae Chapter will be honored to appoint professional accordion player Michael Bridge as a National Arts Associate. Following the ceremony, Dr. Bridge will give a digital accordion concert for the wider community. Learn more about Dr. Bridge, also a board member of the Accordionists and Teachers Guild, through the biography on his website (www.michaelbridge.ca). Oak Park Alumnae Chapter extends an invitation to attend Dr. Bridge's concert on Sunday, April 27, 2025 at 4:00 p.m. We will gather at Harper College in Palatine, IL in the Center for Performing Arts auditorium. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased through the chapter website at www.sai-oakpark.org. Pete Petersen was initiated to Psi Chapter at Knox College in 2017 and affiliated with Oak Park Alumnae in Oak Park, IL in 2021. Pete currently holds the offices of Editor, Yearbook Editor, and Historian and is exploring synthesized music compositions. "It all began when Bridge was five, growing up in Calgary. His mom bought him a $5 accordion at a garage sale and Michael was hooked. Since then, he's won numerous awards in Canada and abroad, including the 2024 Canada Council Virginia Parker Prize— the country's highest honor for young musicians. Dr. Bridge received his DMA in accordion performance from the University of Toronto in 2023, studying with Prof. Joseph Macerollo (the first Canadian to do so), and he was a Rebanks Fellow at the Glenn Gould School. He gives 90+ concerts annually as a soloist, member of Bridge & Wolak and Ladom Ensemble, and with his partner, violinist Yolanda Bruno. He gives lectures and masterclasses at North American and European conservatories, and he teaches Music Business at the University of Toronto. Dr. Bridge embraces a musical aesthetic that is alternatively irreverent, deadly serious, meticulously prepared, and completely in-the-moment. He's at home with classical, contemporary, jazz, and folk music, and has premiered over 60 new works. Ultimately, he aims to make your world more bearable, beautiful, and human— even if only for the length of a concert." — www.michaelbridge.ca Squeezebox Sessions Oak Park Alumnae Chapter Member Mary Ann Covone (center) and her daughter, Boston Alumnae Chapter Oak Park Alumnae Chapter Member Mary Ann Covone (center) and her daughter, Boston Alumnae Chapter member Anne Marie Carden, run into National Arts Associate nominee Michael Bridge in New York. member Anne Marie Carden, run into National Arts Associate nominee Michael Bridge in New York. Mary Ann Covone performed for Mary Ann Covone performed for the Welcome Luncheon of the 2022 the Welcome Luncheon of the 2022 SAI National Convention in Greensboro. SAI National Convention in Greensboro. Perfmances

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