By Sunday, October 5, 2025
2 pm.
Sam Falcetti, internationally recognized accordionist and music educator, will conduct the 20-member New England Digital Accordion Orchestra (NEDAO) in concert at the Stone Church Cultural Center, 283 Main Street, Gilbertville, MA, on Sunday, October 5, 2025 at 2 pm. The program of popular and ethnic music is dedicated to the memory of beloved founding member and Gilbertville resident Stanley A. Midura (1938-2017). Stanley played the accordion his whole life; driving to Springfield for lessons as a youth.
Presenters Friends of the Stone Church (FOSC) will serve snacks at a reception following the concert, which is free to all. Donations to help finish stabilizing the building are appreciated.
Anselmo (Sam) Falcetti formed NEDAO, the nation’s first-ever digital accordion orchestra, in 2015. Falcetti started playing accordion at ten and was teaching by age 16. Earning his BA in Music Theory and Composition from the University of Hartford, he taught accordion through his own studio, at Holyoke College, and at Westfield State University. Forming an ensemble of graduate accordion majors who twice performed at Carnegie Hall, Falcetti became known among professional educators and performers for his pioneering championship of the instrument. His Springfield Accordion Orchestra performed at the 1970 World’s Fair and internationally. A mentor to students and other music educators, Falcetti also founded his eponymous music store, a leading source of instruments and music education in Western Massachusetts and Connecticut.
The modern digital accordion, essentially a portable piano with responsive bellows, is capable of producing all the sounds and sound effects of its acoustic predecessor. A prominent Celtic accordionist was recently overheard saying ‘the accordion is a dangerous instrument in the hands of the wrong person.’ Stanley Midura was one of the right people. One of his friends remarked “He will be playing Polish music for the angels.”
This concert is supported in part by the Mass Cultural Council, a state agency. For more information about this support and the New England Digital Accordion Orchestra, contact samfalcetti@gmail.com..
FOSC, a non-profit organization, presents a series of ticketed and free concerts and silent films and is in the process of stabilizing and preserving its 1874 landmark building, formerly the Gilbertville Trinitarian Congregational Church. More information about concerts can be found here. Donations to FOSC can be made here.
Friends of the Stone Church 