The Artists: Mary-Lou Vetere, accordionist
Canadian musician Mary-Lou Vetere has performed extensively in three performance areas: piano, accordion, and voice. She holds a Bachelor of Music (cum Laude) in Voice Performance from the State University of New York at Buffalo, a Masters of Arts in Historical Musicology (SUNY at Buffalo), and is completing her PhD in Historical Musicology. Historically, Mary-Lou is concerned with the development of Italian opera at the turn of the nineteenth-century with a focus on the operas of “La Scapigliatura,” a relatively unknown period of opera from 1860-1890. Her dissertation: “From Verdi to Verismo:” Boito and the translation of “La Scapigliatura” from Literature to Opera” is anticipated to be a landmark publication.
In addition to her academic pursuits, Mary-Lou has performed as a mezzo-soprano soloist in oratorios, operas, and numerous recitals in North America and Europe including her New York City debut in 2001 as the mezzo-soprano soloist in Beethoven’s Messe in C and the Chorale Fantasie with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s. She is also a much sought after voice/opera coach in Canada, the United States, and Europe, and frequently adjudicates voice and piano competitions.
Her great love, however, is the accordion, an instrument of great difficulty, physicality, and virtuosity. Mary-Lou is a fervent advocate for the resurgence of the accordion on the international stage. Consequently, her performance on “L’accordéoniste” caught the attention of the high priestess of Italian opera, soprano Aprile Millo, which resulted in their collaboration for a recent recital in New York City and for future concert events.
Mary-Lou has won numerous prestigious awards, scholarships, and national recognition for her playing. Having been praised for her precise technique, fiery finger-work, and passionate rhythmic verve, Mary-Lou executes the accordion by extracting its individual voice, enabling it to sing on its own merit or in combination with other instruments. Her teacher is renowned Accordion master, Boris Borgstrom.
