
Eugene accordionist Maria Telesheva, shown here in an undated provided photo. The 17-year-old has traveled the globe performing and competing as a solo artist and as a duo with her father, Sergei.
Courtesy Sergei Teleshev
Eugene accordionist Maria Telesheva won her first competition when she was just 6 years old. Now a rising senior at North Eugene High School, Telesheva has traveled the globe performing and competing as both a solo artist and as a duo with her father, Sergei. As recently reported by KLCC, she’s also a fellow with NPR’s performance program “From the Top” and a 2025 recipient of the Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Award.
Telesheva joins us for a performance and to share what she thinks makes the accordion so special.
Note: The following transcript was transcribed digitally and validated for accuracy, readability and formatting by an OPB volunteer.
Geoff Norcross: This is Think Out Loud on OPB. I’m Geoff Norcross. Maria Telesheva grew up with the accordion. Her dad is an accomplished accordionist in his own right, and she has been playing since she was 6 years old. She’s about to begin her senior year at North Eugene High School. She has performed all over the world as a solo artist and accompanying her dad. Maria Telesheva now joins us from the studios of KLCC in Eugene. Maria, welcome to the show. It’s good to have you.
Maria Telesheva: Hello, I am happy to be here.
Norcross: Let’s just get right to the music. You’ve got a Bach piece that you would like to play for us. Can you do that now?
Telesheva: I do, yes. I would like to play the “Prélude in C minor,” by Johann Sebastian Bach.
[Telesheva’s rendition of “Prélude and Fugue No. 2 in C Minor” by Johann Sebastian Bach]
Norcross: That is Maria Telesheva performing “The Prélude and Fugue No. 2 in C Minor,” by Johann Sebastian Bach. She’s joining us from KLCC in Eugene.
Maria, my technical director just sent me a note. It’s one word. It’s only, “Wow.” [Laughs] I agree with that assessment. Beautifully done. Can you first give us a brief crash course in how you make those sounds? How do you actually play the accordion?
Telesheva: Yes. So, the accordion is a very interesting instrument. It is comprised of two sides which have buttons – I play the button accordion. The centerpiece is called the bellows. It’s kind of like the lungs for the accordion. It’s what you see moving back and forth, and it’s what allows you to create the sound. If you just press a button without moving the bellows, it won’t make any sound. So, you have to do three things at once: You have to press buttons on the right side, press buttons on the left side, and push and pull the bellows.
Norcross: I’m going to ask this question because I know you’ve been doing this since you were 6. Is it heavy?
Telesheva: It is, yes. The one that I currently play is about 40 pounds, so I have to go to the gym to be able to play it.
Norcross: A total workout. A lot of people associate the accordion with polkas, maybe Oompah bands. But you obviously have expanded the boundaries of the instrument. What do you see as its range? What can it play? And what can’t it play I guess is a bigger question?
Telesheva: I honestly think it’s a very versatile instrument. It can play anything, and it can play with everything. I think it’s very compatible with other instruments. I grew up hearing my dad play with many different groups. He just made it work with any instrument. It can be a solo instrument or, like I said, accompany other instruments. It can play a variety of styles, any piece, and it can imitate other instruments, which I think is pretty cool.
Norcross: What are your earliest memories of seeing your dad play?
Telesheva: I remember just hearing him practice on his own and [he would] have his bandmates come over as well. He would just practice with them, and I would just think it was like home to me. I would come home, and I would just hear him play. I remember at around age 6, I came up to him and I was like, “hey, can you teach me how to play this?” We had a little box in our living room. So, yeah, I just started learning a couple chords and then it progressed and now here I am today.
Norcross: Many kids are just not into the things that their parents are into, but you seem to be the opposite. What was it like for you to learn directly from your dad?
Telesheva: Oh, it can be a little frustrating. But I’m very grateful to have a teacher in the house. I think anytime I have a question, I can just go ahead and ask him. My siblings, on the other hand, they do not play the accordion. [Laughter] But I really do enjoy it.
Norcross: Have you ever experimented with other instruments, or has it always been the accordion for you?
Telesheva: I have, yes. Just to gain some background knowledge I learned a bit of violin, a bit of flute in my sixth-grade band, and I professionally sing as well. I play percussion in our programs. I also learned a bit of guitar. So, just … yeah, to get some background knowledge.
Norcross: You mentioned you singing. In fact, we have some tape of you singing a rendition of the Bossa nova song called “Água de Beber.” Let’s hear a little bit of that now.
[Telesheva’s rendition of “Água de Beber”]
Norcross: That’s a song called “Água de Beber,” which is performed by my guest Maria Telesheva, who is a senior at North Eugene High School. She’s also a brilliant accordionist and, it turns out, a good singer too.
Maria, why did you decide that you wanted to try to develop your voice as well as your skill on the accordion?
Telesheva: Me and my dad play as a duo, and we usually play only two accordions. But, when we started playing more and more on the stage, I wanted to add a bit more variety into a program. I really do like to sing, so I took a bunch of vocal lessons. I just wanted to make our program a bit more versatile. So, yeah!
Norcross: You won your first competition just a few months after you started to learn to play at age 6. Do you remember how it felt to be on stage for the first time performing your accordion for others?
Telesheva: I do. Well, that competition was not the first time I performed in front of others. I honestly don’t remember the first time I did. But that competition actually, I remember thinking it wasn’t a competition at all. I had no idea. I just thought it was like a normal little concert that me and my dad are going to do in front of other people except on a bigger stage. I mean, it wasn’t anything crazy.
Norcross: You and your dad were performing together at that time and that’s something that you do a lot. You, in fact, call yourselves “Two Accordions,” which is a good title. What is it like to be able to share this experience with him?
Telesheva: I think it is very special. Being able to perform with my dad and kind of connect with him on this level is definitely something I wish more people would be able to experience. I hope I can continue performing with him as long as I can.
Norcross: Who’s the better accordionist? You or your dad?
Telesheva: I would like to say myself at this point. [Laughter] But no, I really do enjoy playing with him. It’s just such a joy.
Norcross: What do you do especially well?
Telesheva: Do you mean in terms of music?
Norcross: Yeah, in terms of the accordion, are you an advanced technical player? Do you think you have a good lyrical quality? What is it that you are especially good at?
Telesheva: Well, my dad tells me I’m a bit more of a technician than he is on the accordion. I do like pretty technical pieces, but I am trying to learn from my dad more of the dynamic part of it. How to play very emotional pieces and really convey that emotion to the audience.
Norcross: I want to hear something that has a lot of emotion, a lot of technical skill and also just absolutely rocks. This is a portion of your rendition of the song “Thunderstruck” by AC/DC.
[Telesheva’s rendition of “Thunderstruck” by AC/DC]
Norcross: That’s my guest Maria Telesheva performing AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck” on the accordion.
Maria, we’re all head banging in the studio here. How do you decide what you want to cover?
Telesheva: Well, me and my dad work on this collectively. We kind of come together and suggest a couple of pieces that we want to work on. We actually arrange all of our music ourselves.
Norcross: You mean there’s not an arrangement to accordions of “Thunderstruck” already out there? You had to do that yourself?
Telesheva: Yes, yes.
Norcross: That’s awesome. You had a winning performance at a competition in Leavenworth, Washington last summer that caught the attention of “From the Top,” the NPR program that showcases young classical musicians. So you went through their program. What was it like to learn from other young musicians?
Telesheva: I went through a six-week fellowship program online on Zoom with about 20 other young musicians and a few coaches that came in. They just told us about the life of a musician, and kind of more the media and the online aspects of it. Like, how to maintain a social media account or how to record yourself in a studio. Just the pathway of a musician. It was very interesting. We had a few guest artists come in as well to talk about their lives as musicians. I’d say [for] anyone who aspires to be a musician, that program would be very helpful for them.
Norcross: It also led to some money for you. Through that program you were able to apply for the Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Award. What did that grant mean for you?
Telesheva: Yes. So, I would like to acquire a lighter instrument for myself. [Laughter] The one I currently have is about 40 pounds and I’m aiming to get one that’s about 20 [pounds], which would really save my back a little bit and just give more opportunity on stage. I would be able to play standing up. Maybe even sing while I play or dance while I play.
Norcross: Are there some things though that you can do with a 40-pound accordion that you can’t do with the 20-pound accordion? Is it a more limited instrument in any way?
Telesheva: Well, it definitely has more range of pitch.
Norcross: The big one does?
Telesheva: Yes, the big one. And it has better sound quality, just generally, as an acoustic instrument.
Norcross: Maria, how have you balanced high school and your burgeoning music career?
Telesheva: I really just communicate with all of my teachers whenever I go on trips because they wouldn’t like me being gone without letting them know what happened for so long. Yeah, I just communicate and they all always work with me. I try to get my work in beforehand or afterwards. Just daily life. I go to school, I come back home, and I practice.
Norcross: In a year, there will be no more high school for you. What happens then?
Telesheva: I would like to go to the University of Oregon and possibly major in business. But ideally, I would also like to continue to pursue music and become – well, continue being – a performer.
Norcross: Yeah, but you don’t want to study music in college?
Telesheva: I’m not sure, maybe. If the opportunity presents itself. But I also would like to have just another degree in something else, just in case music doesn’t work out.
Norcross: I’m sure that many of your fellow classmates don’t have quite the talent or the drive for one particular thing that you have. Has that ever been weird or lonely for you?
Telesheva: I wouldn’t say it’s been lonely. I have lots of friends who support me and support what I do, and obviously none of them play the accordion. But they definitely do, yes, support me. I always feel great hanging out with them.
Norcross: What do you love to do when you’re not playing accordion?
Telesheva: I’m a very athletic person, so I like going to the gym on my own time. I just like being outside, especially in summer. I love swimming, so I’m excited to maybe go to the river next week!
Norcross: Well, I bet you’re a strong swimmer because you’ve been hoisting a 40-pound accordion since you were 6. So that’s great.
Could you play us off with a piece? I know you have another one ready to go.
Telesheva: I will, yes. I will play “Moments Musicaux” by Franz Schubert.
[Telesheva’s rendition of “Moments Musicaux” by Franz Schubert]
Norcross: That was Maria Telesheva, an acclaimed accordionist and a senior at North Eugene High School.
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