Alexander Sevastian
Alexander "Sasha" Sevastian (October 2, 1976 – February 16, 2018) was a well-known virtuoso Russian-Canadian accordionist.
He was born on October 2, 1976, in Minsk, Belarus where he started, at age seven, to play the accordion. Sevastian was the oldest child of Nadya, a computer engineer, and Mikhail, a chemist, and amateur accordionist. Much of Sevastian's education and very early career was in Russia. In April 2001, he moved to Canada, finished his education, and joined the well-known Canadian ensemble Quartetto Gelato. In 2004, he returned to Russia to marry Anna (Anya) Budennaya and bring her back to Canada to start a family. Sevastian became a Canadian citizen in 2005.
After moving to Canada, over the next 16 years, Sevastian won four major accordion competitions, including the well-known world championship the Coupe Mondiale in 2007 in Washington DC representing Canada. He also developed an extensive worldwide solo career, and continued to perform in Quartetto Gelato.
In interviews, Sevastian spoke of his desire to more popularize the accordion and was always "an indefatigable accordion ambassador", encouraging the creation of new works by major composers, and more performance opportunities for accordion in music festivals. He performed in a wide variety of music styles including classical, both original and transcriptions, also frequently performing Argentinian tangos, French waltzes, gypsy tunes, and newly commissioned works. On four occasions, he performed with known American accordionist Cory Pesaturo, including at both US accordion organizations festivals (AAA & ATG).
Sevastian died suddenly of a massive heart attack at age 41 on Friday, February 16, 2018, while on tour with Quartetto Gelato in Mexico. Major Canadian news organizations reported on his death, including CBC Radio One and The Globe and Mail.
Tango Dreams
- 2013-10-01T00:00:00.000000Z
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