February 5, 2011

In Memoriam: Frank Longay (1948-2011)

An international community is mourning the loss of guitarist and educator Frank Longay, credited for spearheading the adaptation of the Suzuki method of music education for the classical guitar. Longay passed away suddenly from a blockage in his lung on Jan. 19 at the age of 62.

He was celebrated for his compassionate and kind but firm nature, his impact on parents, educators, and his impact on students was immense. Deepti Midha’s son Ayush was one of Longay’s long-time students. “He was more than our guitar teacher,” Midha says. “He was a true mentor to me as a parent. In his very simple ways, he taught me how to understand and build a strong relationship with my child. His keen sense of ethics, integrity, and high expectations while being gentle and compassionate is what inspired us to be better human beings.”

One of five guitarists in the world to collaborate on formalizing the Suzuki method for guitar some 30 years ago, he and colleagues like William Kossler and Elio Galvagno authored the nine standard method books, accompanying CDs, and a series of teacher training books used worldwide. Longay was known internationally for his leadership in festivals and training workshops in Australia, Japan, South America, and Europe. He was chair and founding member of the Guitar Committee of the International Suzuki Association and the Suzuki Association of the Americas. His presentation of a group of students in 1999 at the International Suzuki center in Matsumoto, Japan, solidified the guitar as an officially recognized Suzuki instrument.

Longay was born in San Francisco and moved to Guerneville, California, in his teens where he taught himself to play rock guitar. He attended college in Santa Rosa, before transferring and graduating with a Bachelor’s degree from San José State University in 1982. He studied the classical guitar with Bay Area greats George Sakellariou and Rey de la Torre. After graduating, upon hearing a Suzuki cello recital, he was inspired by the poise, skill, and confidence of the students, and decided to adapt the teaching method for guitar. In order to learn its underlying philosophies, Longay studied the method by playing cello, conferring with specialist Barbara Wampner before codifying the repertoire and method for the guitar. After years of teaching in his home and various studios, Longay moved the Longay Conservatory of Guitar to Santa Clara in 2005, building a thriving community of over 120 students to date. He was awarded the Suzuki Association’s Creating Learning Community Award in 2006.

Over the years, with his partner, Kim Bueller, who served as administrator, the two built the school into a booming hub for guitar learning for both children and adults, as well as for professional development. Guitar teachers at the school were also apprentices of the Suzuki method under Longay’s tutelage. Christopher Mallett has taught at the school for one year. He says: "In my 10 years as a teacher I have never come across an educator as adept as Frank at teaching young children guitar. He could take a seemingly uncontrollable 3-year-old who had never touched an instrument and transform him into a budding musician with impeccable technique. That was Frank’s skill; that was Frank’s joy. He was more than a mentor to me, he was a friend. When Frank invited me to teach at his school, I was living in New Haven. He opened the doors of his home to me until I was able to find a place to live. That’s the kind of man Frank was.”

Bueller helped him realize his dream of hosting an international convention in 2008, at the Santa Clara Convention center, which included performances by guitar giants Bill Kannengeiser and Celso Machado. Students and teachers from nine countries attended. She extolled his skills as a savvy businessman and musician, who knew that his impact would ultimately come as an educator. “He dedicated himself to bettering the world through his music but through his service to children. In keeping with the Suzuki philosophy, he ‘empowered children to know their noble heart’.”

Ben Werdegar studied with Frank from age 3 to 13, his current age. Says Ben, “Frank wasn’t only my music teacher, but more of a second father and father to many. He taught me about music but also about many life lessons within music, like the importance of an honest relationship. I wouldn’t be the same person without him — he shaped my character.” Werdegar raises money for charity by playing the guitar. His foundation, called I Play for Peace, has raised almost $19,000 to date. Visit his blog to learn more and to see videos and memories of Frank Longay.

Frank Longay is survived by partner Kim Buller of Los Gatos, daughter Kelley Henry of Forestville, stepson Gabe Wilds of Los Gatos, brother Bill Fredericksen of Santa Rosa, and three grandchildren.

View remembrances from around the world on www.suzukiassociation.org. See performance videos and learn more about the Longay Conservatory of Guitar at www.longay.com