Farewell to a Teacher

Frank Loch

2/25/08

      Like all the people who have known Frank for many years, I am not quite prepared to bid farewell to him. I am still in a state of shock and cannot quite accept the fact that Frank has left us so soon. My family and I met Frank and Lenna sometime in the summer of 1990, at a party at Tyler Beam’s house celebrating the success of the Yamaha competition with the kids. That morning I had just let Felix quit his piano lessons because we anticipated the heavy load of homework as he was starting high school. That same afternoon, we were so impressed by the kids and the music at the party that we made an appointment with Frank to visit the studio which was at the time above the Carpet Yarn in Vienna. Little did I know, we had started a relationship with Lenna and Frank that has lasted to this day. Looking back, I don’t believe it was just a mere coincidence that we met the teachers; all three of my kids have been truly blessed with good karma to cross paths with them and be under their tutelage. I would like to celebrate Frank’s life by sharing with you my memories of him. 

        Personally, I always pictured Frank as a talented teacher full of energy. Not just because he paced back and forth so fast while he was teaching my kids, but because I could feel the intensity of energy that emanated from his musical compositions. I could never forget the times when he taught the kids the Ballad as he was composing it. The kids could not wait for the subsequent week to learn a new section. Eventually, Frank completed the Ballad as the kids had it ready for the concert. What an exciting time that was! At the concerts, I always wondered how he could transform the kids to such performers on stage. The students flawlessly performed all the awesome pieces such as Transformation, Awakening, Silent Spring, Berceuse, Reflection in G and last but not least Remembrance. As I have spent the time with my kids at almost all their lessons, I also had the privilege to be close to some of Frank’s pieces, which many times had moved me deeply. The skillful arrangement of the powerful sequences that almost push one to the edge is followed by a soft and almost lonely and lamenting violin segment that always got me. I believe music reflects the deepest and most intimate parts of a composer’s feelings; there are no words with which to describe the amplitude or the depth of these emotions. Frank has been so generous to share his feelings with all of us. 

       Over the years, my children have had lessons with a few music instructors. But I have always thought of Frank and Lenna as their only true teachers. It has always been much more than about the technique to interpret a piece of music. Listening to the kids perform over the years, I felt that they performed from their hearts. I hope and I believe that the SMS teachers and their music have indeed enabled my children to experience and appreciate these beautiful feelings. They are such valuable gifts! I believe some of us are born with these faculties; however, without an inspiring teacher, these inner feelings tend to stay dormant and lost for the rest of our lives.  

      I can never forget Felix’s first concert at the Reston Community Center. During the intermission, I had a chat with a lady about Frank and how great the music and the studio were. In the back of my mind, I was trying to see if I could get her to switch her kids’ piano teachers to Frank and Lenna. She patiently let me finish talking and then she calmly said to me “I know, I am his wife!”.

       First, Felix started his lessons with SMS, while Vivian enjoyed hanging around the studio. Eventually, I also let her join SMS. I still remember the day when I went to the studio at Bowman Green and announced that Vivian just had a baby sister! Eventually Yenni started her first piano lesson with Frank. She was so young that Frank used to spend time singing with her before letting her get on the piano. Yenni now plays a variety of music as well as Frank’s pieces. The last few months, Zoe, Felix’s daughter, started her lessons with Lenna. Except for the few weeks a year that we went on vacation, I cannot recall a time when we have ever stopped piano lessons. Indeed, time did fly! Up until the SMS studio closed two years ago, we saw Frank almost every weekend. Frank has given my children and me a rare experience that we will cherish for the rest of our lives. It is all still so unbelievable!

      This morning I saw a Boxster on the road and I thought about Frank. I wish I had conveyed these thoughts of mine to him, but I did not when I could have. We will surely miss Frank a lot.