Leavenworth International Accordion Celebration
Sponsored by the Northwest Accordion Society
Herzlich Willkommen!
JUNE 25-28, 2026
2025
JUDGES
​PRIVATE COACHING Schedule Details
Chairman: John Giuliani
FRIDAY:
9:30 - 11:30 am with TBA
12:00 - 1:00 pm with TBA
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SATURDAY:
9:30 - 11:30 am with TBA
12:00 - 1:00 pm with TBA
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COST $25
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LOCATION Grange Lower Level​​
Private Coaching
with Chairpersons John Giuliani, Bonnie Birch
with out-of town artists
TBA​​
A PERSONALIZED COACHING OPPORTUNITY
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A PRICELESS OPPORTUNITY TO PERFORM A SELECTION OF YOUR CHOICE BEFORE ONE OF OUR PERFORMING ARTISTS WHO STARTED OFF JUST LIKE YOU DID AND WHO WILL APPRECIATE WHAT YOU HAVE ACCOMPLISHED SO FAR AND WILL OFFER YOU SOME TOOLS TO FURTHER ENHANCE YOUR ABILITIES AND YOUR LOVE OF MUSIC. ​
For a very reasonable price, you can get valuable feedback which will enhance and supplement current practice and studies.
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To register, go to the "Registration Form" under the "Competition" section.
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Lori Beth Brooke
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If the perfect combination of Old West and Old Bavaria could be found, it would be Lori Beth Brooke; an accordionist, yodeler, and songwriter from Austin, Texas. Growing up in the Lone Star State, she was immersed in the combination of both Western and German music that has inspired much of Texas culture. She began accordion lessons at age 7 and progressed to writing her own songs at age 12. That passion for music led her to seek a Bachelor of Arts in Music. After college she continued her studies, becoming a top yodeler, a main feature of her accordion performances. Awards and accolades have followed Lori Beth throughout her career, winning the 2016 International Western Music Association Female Yodeler Award, the 2020 IWMA Western Swing Album Award, the 2020 Academy of Western Artists Female Western Performer Award, and the 2021 and 2024 Walnut Valley Festival Humorous Song Award.
Gail Campanella
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Gail Campanella has a flair for the dramatic as she brings the old accordion classics to life for new audiences, which is no surprise as she began her accordion journey at a young age. She first cracked open that “mysterious suitcase” as a young girl on a farm in rural Colorado which led her to begin accordion lessons at age 10. By age 14 she was teaching her own students while studying with Anthony Pennetti in Denver. She did a piano major in college while simultaneously studying accordion with Robert Davine. She put her music skills to work professionally teaching music in the public schools of Denver and playing honky-tonk piano on weekends. This mix of skill and performance panache has brought her to performances for accordion groups all around the US and in Europe. She is a board member of the ATG, plays in Stas Venglevski’s Houston Accordion Orchestra, teaches and performs at the Rose City Accordion Camp in Oregon, and maintains an active teaching studio near her home in Santa Barbara, California.
Andy Mirkovich
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Andy studied accordion starting at the age of five. He graduated with a B.A. in Music from Seattle University and studied composition at the University of Washington, Graduate School of Music.
He was the featured performer at the Space Needle Restaurant in Seattle, for 11 years, and has performing experience in radio, television, movies and concerts.
He has performed with or for many artists, including Lawrence Welk, Myron Floren, Dick Contino, Frank Yankovich, Liberace, Burl Ives, The Vienna Boy's Choir, King Hussein of Jordan, and the King and Queen of Norway.
He continues to perform and teaches Master Classes. He’s adjudicated and performed at music festivals in Leavenworth, Seattle, Portland, Spokane, Yakima, Vancouver, BC and Victoria, BC.
He has a knack for playing just what his audience loves to hear. Accompanying Andy will be one of our favorites, John Giuliani with his bass.
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Beverley Fess​
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Beverley Fess is a Master accordion and piano teacher - originally from Canada but now splitting her time between Blakely Island, Washington and San Diego, California.
Classically trained, she started playing the accordion at age 6, was teaching by age 14 and conducting by age 17. She has competed extensively and has had many award-winning students and ensembles.
Her fifty plus years teaching career has involved giving private and class lessons, instruction via the Internet, workshops, conducting accordion ensembles and orchestras and training teachers. She also performs, adjudicates and serves as a music examiner. She has served on numerous accordion association committees, was a founding member of the Accordion Association of Calgary and presently serves on the board of the ATG. Bev is the conductor of the Spokane Accordion Ensemble and the recently formed Fess Accordion Ensemble in San Diego
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