Designate a Foundation Fellow: a great way to honor a teacher. (MTNA Foundation News).(Brief Article)

When Brian Chung proposed his idea for initiating MTNA FOUNDATION Fellows, I immediately began thinking of my thirty-year relationship with Anna McGrosso. Brian's plan would make it possible for former students and colleagues to honor someone who had been important, influential and inspirational in the lives of other musicians. The required paperwork was minimal and the potential for the financial growth of the FOUNDATION was enormous. What I could not anticipate was the deep personal sense of gratitude that was generated.

I contacted several people who, like me, were fortunate to have worked with Anna. They, in turn, made other contacts. With each e-mail or phone call, memories surfaced. It became an opportunity to reflect on the impact one teacher had made on so many.

Everyone had a story to tell. We quickly exceeded the amount of donations needed to name Anna the third FOUNDATION Fellow. The MTNA national headquarters kept the family and donors informed of the progress of the fund and acknowledged all gifts. The procedure was simple. For Anna's family and friends, it has been much more.

I read the December 2000 AMT article describing Anna McGrosso and was reminded that one of her guiding principles was to aim high. "Anna demanded from all of us exactly what she demanded of herself, and that was no less than the best. She encouraged us to take flight musically and in our own lives."

Her teaching took place in her studio, surrounded by her paintings, her two grand pianos and her comfy tub chairs. The room, like her teaching, was filled with imagination and practicality. Not only did Anna relate music to paintings, literature and everyday life, she also painstakingly observed details of fingerings, pedalings and practice techniques. She loaned recordings, drove us two hours to Chicago to hear great pianists and gave double the amount of lesson time with no extra charge. Years later, after I had completed degrees and was raising my own family, ...