After lunch, Cory’s father said, “Cory, please come into the living room, I have something to show you.” Cory heard his father moving a few things in the closet. He took the last bite of his grinder and walked into the living room.  Cory saw his father take out a box which he had never seen.  His father took the accordion out of the box which he used to play many years ago.  Cory’s father said, “Would you like to learn how to play?”    Cory told me, “My father used to play the accordion at the age of 10 through 15. However, he had stopped playing for about 38 years and then decided to play again.”  Cory’s father gazed at his son and touched his arm lovingly that day as he handed him the accordion.   Cory was eager to play the accordion from that day forward. 

One afternoon, Cory’s friend said, “Cory, do you want to come over and play baseball?” Cory thought about the accordion and said, “No, I’ve got to practice the accordion today.”  Cory had a passion for playing the accordion. His parents were proud of him and the fact that Cory had advanced so quickly. About one year later, Cory’s father found a man named Tulio Gasperini.  He was a well known, respected, and passionate accordion player in Rhode Island.  Since he was retired, Cory’s father persuaded him to come out of retirement to specifically further Cory’s teaching of the accordion.  Cory’s gift at an early age was apparent.  He began to play songs such as “Arrivederci Roma,” “O Sole Mio,” and many Neopalitan songs. 

One afternoon, Cory’s father put on his shoes and sweater and sat next to his son at Tulio’s house so that he can take lessons, too.  Since his father had not played the accordion in years, he wanted to take lessons with his son. “My father took lessons with me just for fun,” Cory said. “I took lessons for about 1 hour and my father took lessons for about ½ hour.”  

A couple of Cory’s friends stopped over his house a couple of days later while his mother baked cookies.  However, Cory was not distracted by the scent of cookies or the sounds of his friends’ laughter, so he kept on playing the accordion.  Cory said, in a serious tone, “I didn’t like practicing the accordion, but I loved playing it.” Cory’s mother carried the freshly baked cookies into the living room as the beautiful accordion music filled the room. “I used to practice about one hour per day, while other accordion players practiced two to three hours per day.”  His passion spread from his heart to his fingers as he played his first Italian song, “Al Di La.”  Cory added that he learned to play “Malefemmina” by ear.  Presently, Cory added, “I now can listen and learn a song within 3 minutes.”

Every minute of my conversation with Cory was a special gift to me on two levels. First, he is a man who stays close to his roots by playing Italian songs.  Also, he continued his father’s dream of playing the accordion.

 “Anema e Core” filled the Rhode Island streets as the sun set and turned into a fiery ball of orange. I felt like I could have written an entire book about Cory.  My heart was touched by this passionate musician.  Also, he educated me and corrected me when I used the words, “Accordion player.”  Cory responded, “I am a musician, not an accordion player.  Second, I am an instrumentalist,” he said. Also, he mentioned that he loves Italian music. “The first level of music is the melody.  The melody is built on top of chord changes so you can improvise.”  Also, he mentioned that there are a lot of interesting chord changes in “Anema e Core.”  I sipped my espresso and I wondered, “How does he remember all of these songs?”  Finally, I asked him and Cory responded, “As long as I play a song twice, I will basically remember it forever.”

He recalled the time that he picked up his accordion at his maternal grandparents’ home, Frank and Connie, back in 1996.  The empty coffee cups and half eaten pies were on the dining room table as he played at the Sunday family gathering.  However, his first, “gig” was at a nursing home.  He carried his accordion down the hallway of the convalescent home and smiled at the nurses.  Cory told me that he played for his maternal great grandmother, who was French Canadian. He referred to her as “MeMe.” She sat in a comfortable chair, next to a vase filled with lilies of the valley.  Her eyes filled up with tears as a handmade afghan was laid across her legs.  His beautiful accordion music brought smiles, tears and warmth to his great grandmother and  to others at the convalescent home.

Cory reaches for one of his 8 accordions, depending on the sound that he wants to achieve.  “I have 8 accordions. Sometimes I use an accordion for a wet sound, while other times, I want a dry sound.”  I asked Cory, “What does that mean?”  He said that a "Wet accordion is used for French songs or Cajun sounds.  However, a dry sound is used at classical concerts.”   He added, “Italian songs are played on more of a wet accordion."  

He remembers his teacher, Tulio, saying, “I know you can do that!. Come on, you can do it, try it again!.”  Cory explained that his teacher was passionate yet firm.  “I made sure that I knew my stuff before going in for a lesson," he said.  His teacher encouraged and motivated him.

I took a journey with Cory back to August of 1998.  Cory walked under the Warwick Musical Tent in Rhode Island. As he looked around, he noticed crowds of people who were wondering what they were about to see.  Suddenly, he put down his bottle of Coke and noticed that the Lawrence Welk Show was there.   There was a surprise for Cory that day, at the age of 12.   Myron Floren was sick that day.  “I was supposed to be the opening act for Myron, but since he was sick, I did a whole show.”  The crowd was silent as he walked on to the stage and began to play.   Some of the people in the crowd swayed back and forth as others tapped their feet. A few people danced with their grandchildren as he played  played "Roman Guitar," "Lady of Spain," and "Roll OutThe Barrel.”  The crowd cheered and his parents embraced him.

He won the National Championship in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 2002, at the age of 15.  One day, he packed his duffle bag and accordion. He looked at the monitor screen at the airport.  “Flight to Washington, departing from gate….” Cory was heading to Arlington, Virginia which was an event sponsored by Roland Corporation. 

In June of 2009, he played at the Leavenworth Accordion Festival in Washington State. He said that he was able to play three songs in any style that he wanted.  He also played at the Accordion Championship in British Columbia.

I was disappointed when the evening was over.  I felt like I could have spoken to Cory for several hours. I really wanted to know more about his passion for music.  He was headed for New Zealand the next day to play at the Coupe Mondiale World Accordion Championships.  I thought about Cory and I wondered how he was doing in New Zealand.  My phone rang after he returned and he said that he had good news! I called him back right away and I was thrilled to hear that he had just achieved his greatest feat yet; winning a World Championship, and becoming the First American in 25 years to win one!

I was touched by the way Cory remains focused and passionate about his music. Most importantly, his story is an example of how the younger generation remains connected to the Italian culture. It all began on the day that Cory’s father took out his own accordion and gave it to his son.  It is more than just his father’s act of passing the according on to his son. It is passing on a special gift, the continuation of his father’s own dreams, and the passing of traditions and culture from one generation to the next.

Cory said, “Accordion playing is currently being renewed. It was popular in the 50’s and 60’s, but then it died out in the 70’s and 80’s. However, it came back again in the 1990’s.”I asked Cory for a special message that he wants to send to anyone who wants to learn how to play the accordion.  “Be a musician first, and an instrumentalist second.  It does not matter which instrument that you play, especially in the jazz world.   It’s what you play, that matters.”   Also, he added, “I would teach music theory for two years before the person even touches the instrument.  They will be fired up when they finally pick up the instrument and start to play.”

If I could sketch Cory Pesaturo, I would sketch his 8 accordions, but at the center of the sketch would be his father passing his own accordion on to his son.   Next to the sketch of his father would be his music teacher who encouraged and motivated him.  Also, I would sketch his great grandmother sitting in her comfortable chair in the nursing home next to the vase of lilies of the valley where he had his first gig.  Additonally, I would sketch the airplanes which brought Cory to his championships, next to his luggage and trophies.  Lastly, I would draw a race track around the picture for his biggest passion, which is motor sports.  I would draw swirls which would represent the wind and trees with their bent branches to represent Cory's love of extreme weather, such as hurricanes and especially snow. Most of all, I would sketch a heart to symbolize his love and passion for playing the accordion, especially for the songs which he learned to play by ear.