Photo by Fritz Busch Leon Olsen performs during the 2024 Bavarian Blast.

NEW ULM — Leon Olsen, a New Ulm concertina player, bandleader and teacher, died Tuesday at age 72 after a brief battle with cancer.

In his life, Olsen recorded more than 250 songs on vinyl, cassette and CD, including at least 19 full-length albums. Volume 17 features his daughter, Alyssa, performing on concertina, continuing the family’s musical tradition. His recordings span decades of polka, waltz and old-time dance music, reflecting his dedication to performance and the loyalty of fans who followed him for years.

Ann Olsen, his wife, said his death came as a surprise to the family.

“This came as a complete shock to us,” Ann Olsen said. “He was a wonderful husband, a great father and a proud grandfather. We have so many good memories of the band, the traveling, and all the bus trips. He was truly one of a kind.”

Ashley Olsen, his daughter, recalled her father’s steadfast support throughout her life.

“I was proud to be his daughter, and I was very proud to call him my father,” she said. “He would drive me and my sister to school every morning until I was 16. Every day, without fail, he would give me a kiss on the forehead and say, ‘I love you. Have a good day.’ Knowing how proud he was of us kept me motivated throughout school, and I’ll never forget that.”

Olsen was born Sept. 2, 1953, in Tyler. He began playing trumpet in fifth grade but soon focused on the concertina. His first paid gig came at age 11 at the Checkerboard Café in Lake Benton, where he earned a small fee along with a meal and drinks.

After high school, Olsen moved to New Ulm where he built concertinas and taught lessons at Brown’s Music Store. He instructed more than 100 students and formed the Leon Olsen Show, performing polkas, waltzes, two-steps and other dance hall music. The band played widely across Minnesota and the U.S., including Arizona, Nevada, Missouri, Texas, Michigan, Wisconsin and South Dakota.

Olsen and the Leon Olsen Show traveled extensively, performing at festivals, ballrooms and community events. A notable tradition was their annual bus trip to Arizona, where they performed at venues such as Las Palmas Grand in Mesa and Bonita Vista Resort in Apache Junction, giving fans from Minnesota and beyond a chance to enjoy live polka music in a warm-weather setting.

Olsen often emphasized the value of performance in dance venues.

“I really liked playing in places where people would dance. It’s more fun than a sit-down concert,” he said.

Olsen received multiple awards from the Ballroom Operators Association and the World Concertina Congress. In 2013, he was inducted into the Minnesota Music Hall of Fame, recognized for performance, teaching and concertina building. His band was frequently billed as “Minnesota’s Band of the Year.”

For many years, the Leon Olsen Show aired on the fourth Sunday of each month on KNUJ AM 860, hosted mainly by Ann Olsen, with Leon joining on-air when he was home rather than at a gig. Many musicians performed with the show over the years. The current lineup included Loretta Gerasch, Gary Schroeder and Mike Moldan.

Olsen was one of five siblings, second to the youngest. He and his brother Larry were 10 years apart in age but shared a close musical bond. Larry has performed for more than 40 years and continues to play, with his daughter Karissa joining him on his latest CD.

“Leon was my only brother and we shared so many great times together, playing music with each other and with our dad,” Larry Olsen said. “Even though we were 10 years apart, we were close. We played local gigs and festivals, including the Gibbon Ballroom, where the flyers proudly said, ‘The Olsen Brothers are taking over Gibbon.’ I was with him when he passed, and I’ll always remember those last moments. He was a wonderful musician, a great brother, and I’m going to miss him terribly.”