I stole the title from the NWAS monthly newsletter, but it is always a great theme because Gary Blair has so much going on year round.
For instance, this past season Gary, and Robin Hyland, took part in the 28th Edition of Raduno Internazionale Della Fisarmonica in August. The town literally has a museum dedicated to the handprints of famous accordionists from around the world. In September he played at the PIF Accordion Festival in Castelfidardo. Earlier in the summer he played at the Leavenworth International Accordion Celebration in the state of Washington.(one of our favorites, Maria Teleshev, won the Classical Accordion Competition at Leavenworth playing a J.S. Bach Prelude and Fugue in C minor and the Franz Schubert Moment Musicale in C minor.).
In the midst of all this travel I ran into Gary in downtown Cotati just passing through from an exploration of our West Coast. We made a commitment for him to come back to Cotati in 2025 and we can hardly wait. Gary Blair is not only one of the best accordionists in the world, but he is superb in his ability to connect with the audience and keep them engaged through his whole set.
