Rolf Gjelsten

Rolf started playing the accordion at age 10, became interested in the cello at age 13, and played the trumpet in the Victoria High School band in Grade 11. “There was no orchestra (at Vic High),” Rolf recalled. “So I just practiced (my music) in a free period and played the trumpet in the band.” During his Vic High years, Rolf was a member of the Victoria Symphony Orchestra under conductor Laszlo Gati. Rolf’s parents raised their three children, Eleanor, Freida, and Rolf in their Hollywood Crescent home across from the Ross Bay cemetery. It was so unique in its floral elegance that it became a stop on tourist bus routes. The Gilsteins (Rolf changed the spelling to better reflect his family’s Norwegian heritage) were known for their folk dancing and were part of the establishment of the Norway House still standing on Hillside Avenue. Their dance group was also part of iconic Vic High teacher Tommy Mayne’s 1959 Song of Norway production. Eleanor was in Grade 10 at Vic High at the time. Before beginning at age 15 to study the cello with James Hunter and Janos Starker of Victoria, Rolf had won two consecutive US northwest accordion championships. He graduated from th... more...