Leavenworth International Accordion Celebration
Sponsored by the Northwest Accordion Society
Herzlich Willkommen!
JUNE 26-29, 2025
LIAC 2025
SCHEDULE
Festhalle 2025 Performers
Festhalle Schedule (PDF) - Click Here
(Competition and Performance Schedule)
Matt Tolentino
Matt Tolentino “Multi-Instrumentalist, Band Leader, Vocalist, Preservationist, Music Historian…”
Sharing his birthday with Fred Astaire, Matt Tolentino was born May 10, 1985. For nearly two decades he has worked to perform and preserve ragtime, hot jazz, and the roots of swing for today’s modern audience. A true multi-instrumentalist, he plays accordion, piano, clarinet, saxophone, banjo, guitar, tuba, and vibraphone. As a vocalist, Matt has been praised for capturing the flavor and spirit of the 1920s and 1930s with sincerity and authenticity. His ensembles include small combos and multiple large ensembles including The Singapore Slingers and The New Liberty Dance Orchestra. Recent performance highlights include Transatlantic crossings aboard the Queen Mary 2, featured vocalist with the Maui Pops Orchestra, and appearances in the latest Scorsese picture, ‘Killers Of The Flower Moon’. In his native Dallas he founded the Jazz Age Sunday Social, a lawn party centered around the wonderful music of the Roaring Twenties. With a collection of over 6,000 band arrangements, hundreds of 78 rpm records, and notable artifacts including Adrian Rollini’s bass saxophone, he doubles as an archivist to further the preservation of America’s treasured musical past. Matt makes his home in Cincinnati, Ohio, sharing his 1890 Victorian with his wife Danielle, their Chihuahua Doo-Dad, a 1952 Kaiser Deluxe. For more information on Matt, his bands, and his music, please visit www.MattTolentino.com.
Hank Thunander
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National Cleveland Style Polka Hall of Fame
Lifetime Achievement Award Recipient
Every time he picks up his accordion and plays, Hank Thunander pays tribute to his idol, Frank Yankovic. For nearly half a century, Hank has led one of the top Cleveland-Style polka bands in the Upper Midwest. Fans enjoy his energetic polka sound, but Hank also can put across a big-band, light-rock or country tune. His versatility has earned him frequent invitations to festivals, clubs and ballrooms with an average of 300 appearances a year.
Hank was raised in the Gogebic Range of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, in the town of Bessemer. As a youngster he was fascinated with Yankovic’s happy music and took up the accordion. A dream came true when, at age 10, America’s Polka King brought Hank on stage to play along with him. Hank led bands in high school and the Army before settling in St. Paul, Minnesota. Another dream was realized in 1970, when he was invited to record with Yankovic. Since then, Hank has released eight albums of his own.
Some of the entertainers he accompanied include Lawrence Welk favorites Myron Floren and Joann Castle. From 1972 to 1981, Hank hosted a weekly radio show on WMIN, featuring Slovenian-style polkas. He organized polka tours to Europe, Hawaii, the Caribbean and Alaska. For his contributions to music, Hank has been honored by the Ironwood Hall of Fame, the Michigan Polka Music Hall of Fame, and the Minnesota Accordion Club. He received the Lifetime Award from the Mid-America Music Hall of Fame.
Ben Thomas Trio
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The Ben Thomas Tango Project explores tango from its early years as traditional dance music to the modern era with the influence of jazz and classical music. With Eric Likkel on clarinet and Josie Zocco on piano, the group features rhythmic whirlwinds, gorgeous melodies, and fiery improvisations.
Seattle based percussionist/bandoneonist/composer Ben Thomas started playing bandoneon in 2006, traveling to Argentina and working with tango musicians from across the world. He tours regularly with the Atlas Tango Project and can be heard on their most recent album, “Estaciones y Sueños”. He was a guest artist with the Eugene Opera in 2018 as the bandoneon soloist for Piazzolla’s “Maria de Buenos Aires”. Thomas has released five albums of original music on Origin Records, spanning jazz, chamber music, and tango..
Eric Likkel is an active reed player in the Seattle area, performing across a wide range of genres. He is featured live and on recordings with Origin Records, the Earshot Jazz Festival, Ballard Jazz Walk, Lynden Music Festival, Joy Street Orchestra, Smilin' Scandinavians, Hereward, Ben Thomas Tango Project, and his own Crown Hill Combo. Before coming to Seattle in the mid 1990s, Eric graduated from Cincinnati Conservatory.
Born and raised in Toronto, Canada, Josie Zocco began her musical journey with her first music lesson at age 3. In 2007 she graduated from York University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Ethnomusicology and Piano Performance. In 2008 she received her Associates Diploma in Piano Performance and Theory from the Royal Conservatory of Music. She has been active as a teacher and collaborative pianist since 2001. In 2011, Josie followed her heart and moved to Seattle. Josie is also the President of the Seattle Music Teachers Association
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AlpenFolk
AlpenFolk presents the music and folklore of the Alps. With authentic instruments, singing and yodeling, AlpenFolk offers traditional alpine music - the way it was played in rustic inns and mountain chalets of Bavaria and Austria - and as it is still played today throughout the Alps.
AlpenFolk was formed as an Austrian style folk duet in 1987 by Thomas Tilton and Corinne Pflug-Tilton. Now a quartet, Thomas plays the traditional steirische Harmonika, or button accordion, while Cori contributes the lovely ring of the Hackbrett, or hammered dulcimer. Their son, Peter, provides the guitar accompaniment, with the talented Sam Rice on bass.
The combination of these folk instruments, along with traditional vocals and yodeling, gives AlpenFolk a uniqueness and authenticity rarely enjoyed outside of the alpine regions from which their music is drawn.
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The Spokane Accordion Ensemble
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The Spokane Accordion Ensemble is a unique blend of players with a common love of music and the accordion. We really enjoy being together – rehearsals are serious but fun, too. The Ensemble had its beginning many years ago in the fifties, founded by Ilmar Kuljus, and started out as a group of accordion teachers and their advanced students. Its members are a dedicated group – several travel up to two to three hours each way to attend weekly rehearsals. The Ensemble enjoys entertaining for a wide variety of audiences and their repertoire ranges from Bach to old standards, Broadway melodies, Movie themes, Pops Music, Americana, and yes – a couple of polkas! Our conductor for this performance is Beverley Fess from Canada.
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