Players return for seventh annual Accordion Fest

Carla Drost of Alton and Lyle Koehlmoos of Granville attended the first Art Pahl Accordion Festival in 2003.

They have returned each year for the the musical event in the Plymouth County Historical Museum's Old Central Gym.

They are two of eight accordion players who plan to be part of the Seventh Annual Art Pahl Accordion Festival this Sunday, April 19.

They include: Roger Christiansen of Storm Lake, Harvey De Boer of Orange City, Carla Drost of Alton, Sherry Kezar of Alcester, S.D., Lyle Koehlmoos of Granville, Helen Moffatt of Akron, Audrey Rolfes of Alcester, S.D., and Norm Hogrefe of Storm Lake.

More may join the list by Sunday.

The event pays tribute to the late Art Pahl, a well-known Plymouth County accordion player who died in 2003. He provided accordion music for non-profit organizations and area care centers.

Just weeks before his death, the museum honored his request to have the jam.

"The first time I met Art was at the festival," Drost said. "He was so happy to see the people."

Now the festival continues with accordion players from across the area.

Drost has played since more than 30 years, starting as a teenager.

"My dad had an accordion and it looked fascinating," Drost said. She took piano lessons, and eventually she and her father looked for used accordions, and she chose one for herself.

What does she like about the accordion?

"I like being able to play polkas and waltzes," she said. "I also like that you can carry it with you."

She enjoys meeting the people and having a good time entertaining at the accordion festival.

"It's just a fun time on a Sunday afternoon," Drost said.

Her first song at the first festival was the "Festival Polka."

"I had to play it twice so people would come down to dance," she recalled.

Koehlmoos brings his buttontina, a concertina remade to a button accordion, to the festival each year.

He enjoys the jam time at the festival.

"There aren't many of us around, so it's fun to hear others play," Koehlmoos said of his fellow accordion players.

Now retired, Koehlmoos started playing when he was about 10 years old.

"When I was a kid, I got a harmonica every Christmas," he said.

After his father died, he picked up the button accordion at home and just progressed from there.

He entertains at area nursing homes and adds "I play pretty much for anyone who'll listen."

Koehlmoos doesn't read music, but rather listens to the songs and picks them up.

Sherry Kezar and her mother, Audrey Rolfes, both of Alcester, S.D., have attended the festival several times.

Kezar said she started playing when she was just 6 years old, "quite a while," she quipped.

"We play off and on together," she said of her mom. "Life is so busy, we don't get to play near as much as we'd like to."

Rolfes made her first appearance at the festival alone. Now for several years Kezar and Rolfes have joined together at the festival.

"I love accordion music, it's wonderful," Kezar said. "And I think the festival is a nice idea."

"I think Art's looking down and smiling while it's going on," she said. "I look forward to coming to it each year."

Sunday's music fest begins at 2 p.m.

Bill Renken of Brunsville, a longtime friend of Pahl's, will give the welcome. Renken's wife, Janice, will put together a display of Pahl's photos and accordions. The couple helped make the fest a reality.

Several of Pahl's relatives are expected to once again attend the event and possibly play in the jam.

Movylene Haack of Remsen returns for the seventh year to emcee the accordion fest.

Pahl resided in Brunsville, and the community helps in sponsoring the special day. The Rev. Dan Gerrietts, pastor of St. Peter Lutheran Church in Brunsville, will deliver the invocation. Providing the lunch are the St. Peter Lutheran Church Women and the Four Seasons Garden Club of Brunsville.

Accordion players who would like to join the Art Pahl Accordion Fest are invited to call the Museum, 546-7002, or e-mail: pchm@lemarscomm.net as soon as possible.

The museum is open from 1 to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday, with a free-will donation. The five floors are completely handicap accessible.