------------~~======================~--~------------~--

RENE FRANK

SOL I DEO GLORIA

March 21, 1965, marked the homegoing of Dr. Rene Frank,long-time and beloved member of N.C.M.F. His one aim inlife was to love and serve the Lord, and this he did throughhis compositions, his teaching, and his counsel with studentsand fellow musicians.

Rene Frank was born of Jewish parents in Alsace-Lorraineon February 16, 1910. He grew up in a musical atmosphere,for his mother was an accomplished pianist and singer. As achild, he willingly accepted the religion of his parents, butthrough the influence of his young friends and because of thehalf-heartedness of religious observance among his people, hecame to doubt the Biblical account of creation and the realityof sin. He confessed later that in the midst of this weakenedmoral climate, the strongest force of purity in his young lifewas music. He began composing when he was 1.3. He was apupil of Rudolph Fetsch in piano; of Nicolai Lopatnikoff,Herman Reutter, and Wolfgang Fortner in composition; andwas a graduate of the Oberrealschule, pforzheim, Germany.But after such encouraging beginnings, his musical work wasinterrupted and he was forced by the Nazi threat to leaveGermany at the age of 25.

In 19.36,therefore, Rene went to Yokohama, Japan, in theemploy of a Swiss export firm with whom he remained untilafter his conversion in 1942. There were many Germans inJapan at the time, including members of the Gestapo who weresent there to persecute the Jews. In the providence of God,Rene escaped their brutality, but was seldom free from thefear of them.

Meantime, Rene's fiancee had come to Japan where theywere married in 19.37. Marriage with a Gentile had beenforbidden by the Nazis while they were still in Germany,but in Japan his wife was a source of comfort and help to,him. It was through her conversion and the influence ofChristian missionaries in Yokahama and elsewhere that Renewas led to think seriously about the claims of Christ. WhenLouise attended church services after her conversion, he couldnot stand seeing ber go without him, so he went along.

Finally, on March 15, 1942, he was brought to the Lordthrough a strange incident which he described in this way:

That night before retiring in my usual manner, I hungmy suit on a door, the upper half of which was glass.During the night I was awakened suddenly and noticedthat the moon was shining through the glass on my gar-ments outlined a dark cross. Just then that shameful word"Tole" (Hanged One) used by my dear grandmother forChrist came to my mind. A burning shame swept over meat the thought of our (the Jews) rejection of Him aboutwhom I had by now heard so many touching and wonder-ful things. At that moment for the first time in my life, Ifelt the presence of God. And many times since that strangeincident, I have marvelled why it was that only that out-line of the cross broke down the wall of separation anddoubt between God and me.

For three days following this experience, Rene was in greatagony of soul because he now saw himself as God saw him,full of vanity and hypocrisy. He was driven to the Scripturesto seek God's will, and when peace came, it was complete.

Rene's new-found faith led him to leave the export busi-ness and to begin life again as a full-time musician. Thecouple moved to Kobe where they rented a home and he be-gan teaching piano. Then the war came. Rene's passport wastaken from him and the Franks became people without acountry-kokuseki nashi, as the Japanese say. The Japaneseno longer mixed with foreigners, and the news blackout madeoutside contact virtually impossible and kept everyone in thedark-almost literally so-about the prograss of the war. Itwas during the very last air raid that their home was destroy-ed, but they started again and were soon established in ahillside house in Kobe. During 1946-1947, Rene commutedtwice a week to teach at the music school for GI's in Kyoto,and on March 11, 1947, a fire again completely destroyed theirhome, the origin of which forever remained a mystery. Lostwas the orchestra score to the "Five Psalms," the work ofmany weeks, which Rene mourned more than all the clothingand music books burned in the fire.

But catastrophe also brought its blessing. The day beforethe fire a German Bible had come from the United Sates.

(Continued from page 9)

Prayer in Memory of My Mathern, for flute,(violin) and piano

_"Variationson "0 come, 0 come, Emmanuel" forviolin and piano 6;2' .'j';': 1954

"Variations on "We Three Kings" for violin & piano 1956Little David. Eight simple pieces for piano \, _ n.d.1. He plays his shepherd's pipe. ';~'"~:~2. He plays his harp.3. The bear prowls around the sheepfold.4. The fight.5. The Philistines' march against Israel.6. David prays for victory.7. The pebble that kills Goliath.8. The song of rejoicing.

From whence cometh my help?(Psalm 121) SSA with piano or organ

Thy Word. SATB with piano or organ.II Timothy 2: 15 (Chorus)Fear Thou Not. SATB (Hope)When I See the Blood. SATB, with organ orpiano (Hope) 1962

Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace. SATB (Hope) 1962"Evening Prayer. SATB n.d.The Love of My Savior. SATB (Zondervan?)tZC.eeo+ n.d."Sanctify Yourselves (Josh. 3:5) Chorus ~ 0iP, ,,; 1962"Delight Thyself in the Lord (Psa. 37:4) Chorus !, 1963Our Father. For Unison choir (Hope) .~"1963

~ Ye Are Witnesses. SATB (Hope) 1964

1946

n.d.n.d.n.d.1961

CHORALWORKS

FROMCONCORDIA

3558 South Jefferson Ave., St. Louis, Mo. 18Love of the Father-Old 124th arr. S. Drummond Wolff,

98-1514 Pentecost or general. Big ending. 30¢.In Dulci Jubilo-Buxtehude. SAB cantata 194 measures, easy,

score. 98-1500, 901'. Choir copy 98-1501, 25¢. Familiarmelody, 2 violins or flutes, continuo (cello).

Ye Servants of God, Your Master Proclaim-Carl Schalk. 25¢.98-1536 Familiar Hanover tune set simply, optional trum-pet( s).

Palm Sunday Procession-To F. H. Candlyn Text: Ride On.25¢. 98-1064. Includes unison sections for men-wornen-youth. Effective, big ending, organ fanfare and accmpt.

Be Filled with the Spirit-Ludwig Lenel, 3 pages. 22¢. Maybe repeated to lengthen. Good strong setting of (flS-1l57)Eph. 5: 18-20, hut easy. Might omit 4 Amen measures firsttime.

----- .'"The Lamb"'The Divine ImageThe Little Black Boy (H. W. Gray)

I'gnorama of Hell and Heaven, op. 9,for flute, oboe, clarinet, trumpet, and strings

(Romans 8:6) 1947Ten Hymns on words by Claude Heileman, op. 10

SATB 1947"The Prodigal Son. Cantata based on Luke 15,

for soli, mixed chorus, and organ, op. 11 1947-48Japanese Bible Songs on verses selected by Anne M.Pfaff and Esther S. Bower (Japanese text) op. 12 1947

The Hundredth Psalm, op. 13aSAB, with piano or organ 1947

Sonata for violin and viola, op. 14 1949The Spite of Michal, op. 15. Biblical episode based onII Sam. 6: 13-23, for SSA, soprano and baritone soli,piano. Winner of the Ernest Bloch award, 1948(Transcontinental Music Co., 1674 Broadway, N.Y.) 1948

"Three songs from the slums (Kagawa) for mediumvoice and piano, op. 15b 1948

_..Salomo's Judgment, for baritone solo, SSA, and piano,op. 16 1949

"Songs to Sing to Your Children (Stevenson), for highvoice and piano, op. 17 1950

__Whatis Man? op. 18. Anthem for.mixed voices, SATB 1951"Evening Prayer, op. 18b SATB 1951Missionary Psalm, op. 18e (Zondervan) SATB 1951Love Divine, op. 18d (Zondervan) SATB 1951"Prelude, Pastorale and Cortege for organ, op. 19 1951J>TheNew Birth, for baritone and piano, op. 20 1951"Hymns of the Cross. Fantasy for piano solo, op. 21 1951Two Christmas Meditations for SATB, op. 22 '-

Mary's Thoughts (Zondervan)Whither, Wise Man? (Zondervan)

Two male choruses, op. 23Message for Today (Isa. 40) 1952To all Joshuas (Josh. 1 and 6) 1952

"The Call of Gideon. An opera in one act, op. 24. 1952-53OWO):ship the King, op. 25. SATB and instrumentstrumpet, violin, cello) based on Haydn's tune' withwords by Sir Robert Grant. May be used withaudience participation 1952?

Variations on French melody for string quartet, op. 26 1953"Prelude and Fugue on "Jesu, meine Freude"

for organ, op. 27 1952-53"Pilgrim Variations for orchestra, op. 28 1953"Little Suite for flute, viola, and harp, op. 29 1953"Parable of the Virgins, for SSA chorus, with piano or

organ; op. 30 1953"Sonata for violoncello, op. 31 1953"One Day:' Twelve little piano pieces for Grade III,

o~~ 1M3"Sonatina for piano, op. 33 1954"Psalm of Praise and Judgment (Psa. 96), op. 34 Motet

in four movements for mixed chorus, a cappella 1954

19511952

? .,......~--~·.~:c,"Solosfor trumpet and trombone,~) 1954"Andante Cantabile for string orchestra, op. 35a 1954"Six Hymn Preludes for organ Of!. 3&> 1955"String Quartet in E major, op. 37 1955-58"Passion Symphony for orchestra, op. 38 1955-56"Music for Bniss Instruments, op. 39 1955"Magnificat, for high voice and piano, op. 40 1955"The Crucifixion (Whittier), for low voice and piano,

op. 40a 1956"Divertimento for Chamber Orchestra, op. 41 1956-62"Six Pieces for First Grade Pianists, op. 42 1957"Summer Day: Seven piano pieces for a purpose, for

Grade 1, op. 42a 1957Christ Comes in Majesty, op. 42c (Hope) SATB 1957

, Psalm 100, op. 42d (Hope) SATB 1957-~ I'§:ilrnJ28, op. 42e 1957. "-Songof Brotherly Love (Psalm 138) 1957"Triptych of Heavenly Love. Song cycle for low voice

and orchestra (available also with piano accomp) 1957"The Incarnation (op. 43a)"The Crucifixion (op. 40a)"The New Birth (op. 20)

..And God Came. Christmas oratorio for soprano and .baritone soli, mixed chorns, and orchestra/or piano,and organ, op. 44 1958-59

Hymn Variations for Piano, op. 45 (Hymn Classics, 'I; Hope) 1960? .5

"Warfare and Victory, for male chorus and piano. ~Brass optional, op. 46 1961 ~

"Fantasy for Piano Solo, op. 47 1962 """The Narrow Way. Song cycle for medium voice and

piano, op. 48 1962Eleven Short Organ Hymns, op. 49 (Hope) 1962Trumpet Trios, for three trumpets and piano, op. 49a

CLilIonas: Voice of Trumpets) 1962Piano Hymn Classics II (Rodeheaver, Fall, 1965),op. 50 1963

"Song of Assurance. Motet for mixed voices, a cappellaop. 51 1963

o Give Thanks. Cantata for medium voice, mixed cho-rus, organ (or piano) and optional trumpets,op. 52 (Hope) 1963

"Trio for flute, clarinet, and bassoon, op. 53 1963Emmanuel. Cantata for baritone, mixed chorus andpiano, op. 54. (Available Rodeheaver, Fall, 1965) 1964

Bible Miniatures for Piano, op. 5.5 (Available fromRodeheaver in 1966) 1964

$ Hymn Variations for Trumpet, op. 56 1964' "Duo for two violins,./0p:-5j~? g:r « . 1964

WORKS WITHOUT OPUS NUMBERSAs Japanese Children Sing, for violin and piano 1942A Child's Hall of Fame. SA, with overture for piano n.d.

(Incomplete pencil sketch, including "Little Over-ture," "Chorus- Ritornello," and "First Episode").

Japanische Jahreszeiten. SATB, a cappella,auf "Waka" teste

( Please turn to page 10)

1946

( Continued from page 7)administrator, and in his earnest longing to see his Jewishfriends and relatives won to the Savior.

I first met Rene Frank when the National Church MusicFellowship held its conventinon in Fort Wayne in 1956. I wasimpressed by his almost fatherly kindliness and deep devotionto God. As I listened to his organ preludes being performed,I knew that here was a dedicated Christian musician withskill and originality in composition. I was eager to performat least a portion of the "Triptych," which I did subsequently,and also heard a performance of his violin sonata, op. 35, andthe Variations on "0 come, 0 come, Emmanuel," for violinand piano. Members of N.C.M.F. also have performed a num-ber of his works including the more recent male chorus, "War-fare and Victory," op. 46.

If anyone word could be used to describe Dr. Frank'sinfluence on those of us who knew him best and on peoplewherever he went, it would be the word "inspiration." TheSpirit of God filled him, and his music had an inspired qualityimpossible under any other circumstances. I think Harold Bestof Nyack expressed it most aptly when he said:

Rene was first of all a worshiping Christian whosedeep love for Christ made it impossible for his music tocome first. What he composed was therefore always theresult of his experiences in the things of God ... Renecreated out of a deep, undisturbed, wholly committedlife of worship and adoration ... He learned, perhapsbetter than most, that mere technical display and aes-thetic profundity, while necessarily present in thegreatest music, must often be set aside for an elementalsimplicity; a simplicity akin to the simplicity of theWord: easy to grasp, but fresh and pregnant in a wayhard to explain. He seemed to have been given thisgift only as he grew humble in his experience withChrist and more skillful as a composer.Rene was thus a man who reduced praise to its keenestessence without falling into the lush trap of pseudo-simplicity which has ensnared so many who speak ofsimplicity without knowi:1g that it is a cheapness andimmediacy which have beguiled them. His simple musichad all the raw materials of his complicated music andwas thereby elemental rather than elementary. Onecould al~ays envision the large in the small and thecomplicated in the simple; one could recognize thateach proceeded out of a single, undeviating core of in-tegrity, mellowed by years of musical discipline andsoftened by the unction of the Holy Ghost, whose helpto be sure, was invoked at each turn of phrase andchoice of text.

Rene was a personal inspiration to me. In otherwords, the things that I have said above concerningRene are things that I must do, and must surrender to,and I know this largely because I have known Rene.Though I have sought to do so in this article, I have been

unable to separate the man from his music, for the two seeminseparable. A few further comments about Rene's music bymusicians who knew him should be made here, however:

The greatest characteristic of Rene's music is itsvirility. His music always seemed to move with a firmsense of musical line. He wrote what he felt and whathe knew, and that was large indeed. In his sacredmusic, for example, the "Five Psalms" or the "Six HymnPreludes" and numerous anthems, he was always ableto infuse a kind of masculine strength which distin-guished his music as vastly superior to most of the run-of-the-mill sacred music published today.

Frederick Jackisch,Wittenberg University.

As a composer he was a man of imagination andinsight, founded upon tradition, yet able to reach intouncharted waters with security and success. His think-ing was infallibly instrumental, though he recognizedthe capacity of the human voice and restricted hiscompositions for voices to the capacity of that instru-ment. His harmonic idiom was logical and within graspof singers, which it not always true of even the mostwidely recognized contemporary composers.

William Ballard,Northwestern University.

As in the case of so many composers just coming into theirown, Dr. Frank experienced many disappointments in seekingto have his music performed. Only in the last few years ofhis life did he receive any encouragement concerning hismusic's acceptance. A few compositions and collections havebeen published, but most remain yet in manuscript. Throughthe kindness of a friend, copies of many of these manuscriptswere bound and placed in the college library in 1964. Mostof his compositions written prior to his conversion were lost.The following list of his works is as accurate as can be deter-mined at this time. Those marked with an asterisk are avail-able in lithocopy and may be secured by writing to MissMarlene Langosch, 800 W. Rudisill Blvd., Fort Wayne, Indi-ana 46807. Publishers of music available in print are indi-cated within brackets following the title.

1938?1943

RENE FRANK COMPOSITIONS .~ (CHRONOLOGICAL INDEX)

"Sonata in G for piano solo, op. 1Autumn. 9 little piano pieces, op. 2iiFrvePsalms, op. 3. High voice with piano or orchestra

1946-53Appeal to America, op. 4, for two pianos (4 hands) 1946

~--- On the title page of the manuscript are these words:In misery the nations smart;To thee with longing in their heartThey look ... 0 blessed land ...Wilt thou open thy hand?

Dance suite for piano solo, op. 5Sonata for violin and piano, op. 6Two Oriental Poems for high voice and piano, op. 7

. (mms. lost) 1946?Jhree Spiritual Songs on words by William Blake,op. 8, for medium voice and piano.

19461946

1947

After a restless sleep at a friend's home the night of the fire,Rene opened the Book and his eyes fell on Psalm 40 fromwhich he derived much comfort and assurance. This psalmwas to become his life Scripture portion. The second verseconfirmed the Franks in their resolve to go to the UnitedStates as soon as possible to establish a new life there. It sohappened that they were among the first to receive visas, inspite of what seemed to them impossible odds. Verse threestood out to them as peculiarly their own. Rene often quotedthese verses in his testimonies at Fort Wayne Bible College,cach time with a glow of joy and assmance.

Rummaging among the ruins of the fire two days later,the Franks came upon a half-burned copy of the vocal scoreof the "Five Psalms"-a further comforting sign. But this wasnot all. During the air raid that had taken their first home,Rene had entrusted his compositions to a Japanese pupil forsafe-keeping. Since they had never been returned, Renethough them lost; but now suddenly the pupil returned withthem. Rene said later:

"Among the manuscripts so wonderfully recovered, Ifound several interesting pieces, which quite naturallyarranged themselves into a pattern that would illustrate tothe music lover the new life in Christ. The whole seriesI compiled in one unit which I called 'Panorama of Helland Heaven'."

Thus did sorrow and grief yield joy and peace, and the chaosof doubt become a quict certainty.

On Thanksgiving Day, 1947, the Franks arrived in SanFrancisco. From there "t-.1rs.Frank tok a plane to Philadelphiawhere they were to stay in the home of a missionary theyhad known at Nino Oka, a health resort at the foot of Fuji-ama. Rene followed hy train with the few belongings left tothem. They remained in Philadelphia until the Spring of 1948at which time Rene took a position as instructor of music atPikeville College in Kentucky.

In the fall of 1951, the Franks moved to Fort Wayne andimmediately Rene set to work at Indiana University to obtainhis graduate degrees, earning his M. Mus. in 1953, and hisD. Mus in 1956. For llis doctoral study, Rene composed the"Passion Symphony," a work which he always considered hismasterpiece, for into it he poured himself without stint. Somethings came to him without seeming effort, hut this workrequired much toil.

Concerning his music, Dr. Frank's major professor atIndiana University wrote: "The greatest stylistic influence inhis own work was certainly Hindemith, and more specificallythe Hindemith of the 'Gebrauchsmusik' period; he found him-self a simple and direct mode of expression, technically notvery complicated, clean and unpretentious." Rene liked con-temporary dissonant music, hut felt that this element wasonly temporary, so cUI·hedits use in his own composition. Hecould not ahide atonality and the electronic productions ofsuch composers as Stockhausen, for to him this music was'symbolic and even symptomatic of the unresolved confusionof mind and spirit in the present age. This same feeling car-ried over into the field of art of which he also was fond.

For many years after coming to Fort Wayne, Dr. and Mrs.Frank spent part of their summers in Wisconsin to escape thehay fever season, during which Rene suffered greatly. Therehe came to know Dr. Thor Johnson, Director of the Inter-lochen Arts Academy, who pays him this tribute:

From our initial acquaintance several years ago,I was immediately impressed with the great beauty ofhis personal mission in life. It was always apparent thathe knew that he was called to be a servant of our Lord.I always felt better after having been in his presence.Dr. William Ballard of Northwestern University said of

him:As a person, Rene always proved himself affable,

thoughtful, generous, appreciative, warm, approachable,kindly, concerned for the welfare of others, communi-cative-in brief, simpatico, to use an Italian adjectivefor which there seems to be no easy English equivale:tl.t.Dr. Bernhard Heiden of Indiana University, who was

Rene's major professor, also remarked: "Rene was a trulymodest person, and I believe his music reflects this quality."Along this vein, this writer for one will never forget how heinsisted from the beginning of our acquaintance that I addresshim as "Rene"-none of this "Dr. Frank" stuff!

In the Fort Wayne area, Rene was an active member andparticipant in the Performers Workshop, where his chamberand solo works were played and respected by the leading ~musicians of the community. I had the privilege of attending ~the premiere of his Christmas oratorio, "And God Came," ~performed by the Indiana Central College Choir in Indiana- ~polis in the fall of 1960, and of conducting its first perform-ance the next year in Fort Wayne with the assistance of somemembers of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic Orchestra. Thisorchestra, in 1959, under the direction of its conductor, IgorBuketoff, performed the "Passion Symphony" and in 1962 thesong cycle for baritone and orchestra, "Triptych of HeavenlyLove," sung by a Fort Wayne musician friend, Mr. HenrySimminger.

One of the orchestra members with whom Rene had muchin common as a musician, said of him:

He taught me that the tongue blessing God withoutthe heart is but a tinkling cymbal; the heart blessingGod without the tongue is sweet but still music; bothin concert make their harmony, which fills and delightsheaven and earth. With the passing of his body, part ofme died also, but his spirit will live on and from this Ican get strength to know and reason what really isone's purpose on earth.It has been my privilege to know and work with Dr. Frank

as colleague anC:friend for the last four years. During thattime I saw many sides of his character, both his weaknessesand his strengths. He was a man of strong conviction (bornand bred in him in Germany), and wholly loveable. It wasthe man-the Christian man-that made the musician: the mantransformed, inspired, and infused with a burning desire toplease God. This he did in his professional contacts in the,Fort Wayne area and elsewhere, in his work as teacher and

( Please turn to page 8 )