By Harold Goldberg

I began my professional writing life as a music writer in New York. Years later, I love music that’s made right here in New York City – more than ever. The New York Game Awards event has always happily featured musicians from the area, everyone from Wyclef Jean to MC Frontalot to Tom Clark to The Dictators’ Handsome Dick Manitoba.

I’m proud to say that this year on January 19th, the New York Game Awards will feature a performance of video game theme songs by seven members of the Main Squeeze Orchestra. They’re a really talented group of women who play accordions with the same passion with which, say, Amy Hennig or Jade Raymond make games.

I’ve seen Main Squeeze a half dozen times over the years, everywhere from small, dark Lower East Side dives in winter to bright, outdoor park settings in the summer. After their performances, I’ve always had a smile on my face.

They’ve achieved an excellent amount of recognition, too. For instance, Main Squeeze provided music for Steve Buscemi’s Park Bench series. And, as the Wall Street Journal reported in 2015, they’re known for their “unusual repertoire, which ranges from Shostakovich to Joy Division’s haunted balled “Love Will Tear Us Apart.”

As you’ll see and hear at the New York Game Awards on 1/19, there’s nothing like a excellent accordion septet to make you feel great inside.

A limited amount of tickets for the event are available now.