It is hard to explain the numbers of people who came to the Cotati Accordion Festival this year. The high profile performers could be part of the answer; or the residual effects of people needing to escape the confines of Covid could be part of it; or, it could be partly because of our brand new newsletter that first came out in December of 2022. `Whatever the answer, we had a great year, notwithstanding the errant Iphone weather report that claimed that it was raining all morning on Sunday. Of course it was not raining , but many have told me they did not come into town because they thought we were rained out. Meanwhile, we had two dozen more vendors than usual,and the acts, one after another, extracted huge audience responses. We also had an increased number of sponsors and volunteers who helped keep all the moving parts running smoothly. We want to give the volunteers our utmost thanks, as we don’t come back each year without the contributions of their valuable time.
Very few make the full rounds of the festival, as timewise it is hard to take it all in and still catch the fire of Cory Peaturo and Yasmine Asieaz, or the personable Kiwi Tracey Collins wearing the crowd on her finger, or Those Darn Accordions rocking another Paul Roger’s original. However, if you had the time to explore the far corners of the festival you could visit the Church of the Oaks and enjoy the youngsters in the annual accordion competition for scholarship money(everyone wins something); or take part in the zydeco dancing inside and outside at Spanky’s; or sit in with the music lovers packed in the 20’ x 30’ jam tent; or pet the exotic reptiles at the Petaluma Wildlife Museum booth; or be part of the growing scene at the Apocalypse Stage at the southend with the younger eclectic acts; or you could try out your polka steps in the polka tent; or you could visit the 80 vendors and 20 food vendors; or maybe take your children to the playground amidst the vendor booths; or finally join the crowd at the two main stages. I always say, at the Cotati Accordion Festival, there is something for everyone.
