Welcome to the Silicon Valley Accordion Society website!
Sunday June 1, 2025 - Bonhomie, with Richard Noel and vocalist/percussionist Janice Hubbard
Richard Noel, originally from Portland, Oregon, is a retired Professor of Psychology from CSU Bakersfield. He began playing at the age of 7, first in Albany, Oregon, then in Portland Oregon, under the tutelage of Eileen Hagen.
Richard's first love was athletics, however, and he attended the University of Portland on a tennis scholarship. The accordion took a back seat to tennis, academics, career, and family until his retirement in 2004. That's when he began soloing, developing an extensive repertoire, and creating an identity as a digital accordionist. Although many know him today as a digital accordionist, until recently he continued to be an active competitor in both tennis and pickleball, having earned state and national titles in both sports.
The Roland v-accordion provided the impetus to expand his career in creative ways. He has recorded numerous songs on youtube under the channel of “bakersfieldaccordion." This channel has 15,000 subscribers and more than 9 million hits. Richard orchestrates and arranges songs specifically for the digital accordion. Some of his most popular selections include "2001: A Space Odyssey,” "Phantom of the Opera," "The Swan," and "The Pink Panther." His unique programming allows him to instantly change styles as needed, and digital accordionist from around the world continue to benefit from his programming. His website, www.noelaccordion.com, provides examples of his playing as well as links for purchasing his programming.
Richard plays music from various cultures and in various styles. His concerts consist of diverse selections played with energy and creativity. In the past few years, Richard has performed and offered workshops at the Dallas American Accordion Association convention, the Leavenworth Accordion Festival, and the International Digital Electronic Accordion Society. In Bakersfield he recently was the featured artist at the Bakersfield Jazz Workshop and the soloist for the Dukes Concert Series. Richard relishes the opportunities to introduce new audiences to the versatility of this wonderful instrument.
Since 2022 a productive partnership with singer/songwriter/instrumentalist Janice Hubbard has led to a shift in focus of both musicians. Janice was a longtime member of the internationally acclaimed “Parachute Express,” a group that performed mostly children’s music across the world, with a dedicated following devoted to their unique music. Her musical background is extensive and her transition to different musical genres and even to a new instrument has been seamless. The diverse musical backgrounds of Richard and Janice offer audiences a unique treat as they creatively weave instrumental and vocal ideas throughout their songs, whether standards, swing, rock, folk, country, Latin, or music from around the world. The duo Bonhomie has delighted audiences from Ventura, California, to Leavenworth, Washington. Janice smoothly transitioned to playing the Cajon tab portable drum unit, and she now both sings and accompanies Richard in their extensive repertoire. Both artists have welcomed the opportunity to creatively develop a new repertoire that takes advantage of their versatility.
The Bonhomie duo is now centered where they reside in Ventura, California, but they are happy to play out of the area for interested audiences. A weekly 3-hour gig at The Greek Restaurant in Ventura Harbor has allowed them the freedom to continue to expand their offerings. Stop by on a Sunday afternoon if you are in the area!
Richard's first love was athletics, however, and he attended the University of Portland on a tennis scholarship. The accordion took a back seat to tennis, academics, career, and family until his retirement in 2004. That's when he began soloing, developing an extensive repertoire, and creating an identity as a digital accordionist. Although many know him today as a digital accordionist, until recently he continued to be an active competitor in both tennis and pickleball, having earned state and national titles in both sports.
The Roland v-accordion provided the impetus to expand his career in creative ways. He has recorded numerous songs on youtube under the channel of “bakersfieldaccordion." This channel has 15,000 subscribers and more than 9 million hits. Richard orchestrates and arranges songs specifically for the digital accordion. Some of his most popular selections include "2001: A Space Odyssey,” "Phantom of the Opera," "The Swan," and "The Pink Panther." His unique programming allows him to instantly change styles as needed, and digital accordionist from around the world continue to benefit from his programming. His website, www.noelaccordion.com, provides examples of his playing as well as links for purchasing his programming.
Richard plays music from various cultures and in various styles. His concerts consist of diverse selections played with energy and creativity. In the past few years, Richard has performed and offered workshops at the Dallas American Accordion Association convention, the Leavenworth Accordion Festival, and the International Digital Electronic Accordion Society. In Bakersfield he recently was the featured artist at the Bakersfield Jazz Workshop and the soloist for the Dukes Concert Series. Richard relishes the opportunities to introduce new audiences to the versatility of this wonderful instrument.
Since 2022 a productive partnership with singer/songwriter/instrumentalist Janice Hubbard has led to a shift in focus of both musicians. Janice was a longtime member of the internationally acclaimed “Parachute Express,” a group that performed mostly children’s music across the world, with a dedicated following devoted to their unique music. Her musical background is extensive and her transition to different musical genres and even to a new instrument has been seamless. The diverse musical backgrounds of Richard and Janice offer audiences a unique treat as they creatively weave instrumental and vocal ideas throughout their songs, whether standards, swing, rock, folk, country, Latin, or music from around the world. The duo Bonhomie has delighted audiences from Ventura, California, to Leavenworth, Washington. Janice smoothly transitioned to playing the Cajon tab portable drum unit, and she now both sings and accompanies Richard in their extensive repertoire. Both artists have welcomed the opportunity to creatively develop a new repertoire that takes advantage of their versatility.
The Bonhomie duo is now centered where they reside in Ventura, California, but they are happy to play out of the area for interested audiences. A weekly 3-hour gig at The Greek Restaurant in Ventura Harbor has allowed them the freedom to continue to expand their offerings. Stop by on a Sunday afternoon if you are in the area!
Please join us at the church (address below) and share the festivities with us! Bring your accordion and play for us if you can. Let one of the officers know to sign you up.
As of January 2023, we will not be holding Zoom meetings anymore. Thanks so much for your support on this decision. We hope you can join in person! Thank you for your continued support!
As of January 2023, we will not be holding Zoom meetings anymore. Thanks so much for your support on this decision. We hope you can join in person! Thank you for your continued support!
Our dedicated President Colette Ogata has done a great job leading us on this adventure during COVID and back. We are very happy to have her on board. Now we are going back to in-person performances at the church. We'll either have members or a member band play before any professional performers. Bring your accordion and play for us!
Silicon Valley Accordion Society
We'll meet in-person at the church where we were meeting before the COVID pandemic.
Christ Episcopal Church of Los Altos
1040 Border Road
Los Altos, CA 94024
650-948-2151
Directions click here
Silicon Valley Accordion Society meetings are held the first Sunday of each month unless noted.
In-person meetings start at 1:30 with announcements and introductions. Performances start immediately after a break and raffle. This is usually around 3:30. We have club members play before the break. Bring your accordion and let one of the board members know if you are interested in playing for us.
We invite you to visit one of our meetings and listen to wonderful performances by our guests. Our members are more than happy to answer any questions you may have about SVAS and how you can join.
We value your feedback; send us your comments and suggestions. By building an effective web site, we hope to get our message out to a larger audience of people interested in the accordion.
Happy squeezing!
Pamela Kawashima
Webmaster of SVAS
email: pamk@svasociety.org
Christ Episcopal Church of Los Altos
1040 Border Road
Los Altos, CA 94024
650-948-2151
Directions click here
Silicon Valley Accordion Society meetings are held the first Sunday of each month unless noted.
In-person meetings start at 1:30 with announcements and introductions. Performances start immediately after a break and raffle. This is usually around 3:30. We have club members play before the break. Bring your accordion and let one of the board members know if you are interested in playing for us.
We invite you to visit one of our meetings and listen to wonderful performances by our guests. Our members are more than happy to answer any questions you may have about SVAS and how you can join.
We value your feedback; send us your comments and suggestions. By building an effective web site, we hope to get our message out to a larger audience of people interested in the accordion.
Happy squeezing!
Pamela Kawashima
Webmaster of SVAS
email: pamk@svasociety.org