Mark Stephen Hierholzer
You’ve heard it said that some people come into your life for a moment; some people come into your life for a season; and some people come into your life for a lifetime. If Mark Stephen Hierholzer came into your life for any length of time, consider yourself a blessed person.
I was fortunate enough to spend two (2) seasons with Mark. The first season was from 1978-1982, which I will call the ‘College Season’. The second was from November 2017-September 2018, which I will call the ‘Last Season’.
THE COLLEGE SEASON
In the Fall of 1978, I decided to declare myself a Music Major at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA). I had already spent two years at UTSA, floundering around, not knowing what I wanted to be when I grew up. After some deep soul searching and advice from dear friends, I decided I would become a Music Major. It was there, in the Music Building of UTSA that I first met Mark Hierholzer. In some ways, we were as different as night and day. He, the very learned, extremely gifted Classical Musician/Piano Prodigy; I, the wide-eyed, ‘what am I doing here’, self-taught, Rhythm Guitar playing Church Musician.
I struggled through every single music class – Aural Skills, Music Theory and Music History. I even had to hire a tutor just to help me catch up to the rest of the class; to learn the skills that I had never heard of, much less developed.
Mark, on the other hand, seemingly breezed through every music class! I was pretty certain that he could’ve taught every course and probably knew far more than the Professor who was teaching it!
I remember one time in Music History class, we were going to have a BIG test over one of the chapters. Most of us had spent hours upon hours studying the material. We were a sleep-deprived bunch as we showed up to class, still cramming at the very last second. Mark sauntered in, layed his books down on the desk next to mine, looked me square in the eye and asked me, ‘Hey Eddie, do you know what chapter we’re having a test on today?’ This was typical. There was simply nothing about music that he didn’t already know.
In our Aural Skills class, we were called upon to ‘sight sing’ melodies. For those of you not familiar with sight singing, you are given a piece of music that you have never seen before and you are asked to sing it in what is called, ‘Sol Feg’ (Do-Re-Mi). Our professor, Dr. Riley, was the master of sarcasm and would say something like…’Oh, I can’t wait to hear _______ sing this song for us! I’m sure it’s going to be lovely!’ Then, he would proceed to call upon some hapless fool (like me) to perform it.
This is the class that made me break out into hives…I pleaded to God, please don’t let him call on me! For one thing, I had never heard of Sol-Feg before and I had certainly never seen a bunch of notes on a page and been asked to sing them in front of a professor and other music students ! Mark, on the other hand, would be busying himself (writing music or something), not even paying attention. However, if he was called upon to sight sing, he would promptly find the spot and sing it PERFECTLY and he wasn’t even a singer, per se! It was like he had these special music powers that nobody else had!
If his classroom performances were not impressive enough, it was his piano playing that separated him from the rest of us. During Student Recitals, other singers/instrumentalists would play their selections. Most were ho-hum and nothing to write home about.
His piano performances at these Student Recitals, however, were nothing short of extraordinary and thrilling! You knew that you would be hearing a flawless, sparkling and exquisite performance every time. The rest of us would be in awe, knowing that we were in the midst of something special, something great indeed!
He would put every ounce of energy, every single emotion, EVERYTHING he had into every performance. You would NEVER get cheated. He didn’t know how to play music any other way…it was simply his passion, his life, his whole being. It was who he was…
Despite our musical differences, we connected on a much deeper, personal level. In most of our classes, we found ourselves sitting next to each other. He had this strange, yet hilarious humor about him that would have me laughing non-stop…he would make comments (during class) about something or someone that would have me in stitches. It was good that we sat close to the back of the room where I could put my head down and try to stifle my laugh. Believe me, nothing/nobody was off limits when it came to his humor…Students and Professors were his favorite targets!
During our ‘College Season’, Mark and I were dating the women who would soon become our brides! He was dating Melinda, his High School sweetheart; I was dating Laura. Soon, we became a four-some, hanging out together, going to the movies, going to Concerts and of course, our very favorite thing to do – going out to eat! Our favorite place was Valerios, a quaint little Italian restaurant that no longer exists but used to be located on Broadway Street (in San Antonio). We ate many an Italian dishes there! Mark’s favorite (as I recall) was the Veal Parmesean! It became such a special place for us, it was where I proposed to Laura in May 1982!
Our ‘College Season’ eventually ended. Somehow, desite myself, I received my Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education in May 1982. Mark received his Bachelor’s Degree in Piano Performance that same year.
Mark and Melinda got married in the Summer of ’82! Laura and I were present at the Wedding and it was beautiful, as you can imagine. I’m sure it inspired us because Laura and I were married in June 1983 (a year later).
Over the next few years, Mark and Melinda would leave San Antonio to follow Mark’s musical journey which led them to Rochester, NY where Mark earned his Master’s Degree in Piano Performance and Literature from the prestigious Eastman School of Music. They were also busy raising a family as they welcomed, Aaron, Cassandra, Peter and Thomas into their home.
Everyone who knew Mark knew that he would someday/somehow make his mark in the Music world! And make his mark he did! Mark and Melinda and family settled in Fredericksburg, TX and during the next several decades, Mark would direct music at the Hill Country Evangelical Free Church and Zion Lutheran Church. He led numerous choirs, including the Fredericksburg Chorale, the Arion Mannerchor, the Hermannsohne Gemischter Choir, and the League of David, a Boys Choir that he was passionate about. He taught hundreds of piano students and played countless weddings, funerals and other events.
As impressive as the credentials that I just mentioned are, it was his Composing/Arranging skills that put him on a much bigger stage!
His composition talents led to the publication of more than twenty works that have been performed all over the world, including Carnegie Hall, considered to be the crowning moment for any musician! But not just ANY musician; it is reserved for only those considered to be the VERY BEST, which Mark Stephen Hierholzer certainly was!
THE LAST SEASON
My Elementary Music teaching career lasted 33 years. I retired from Northside ISD, San Antonio, TX in June 2017. Like Mark, I had also been busy writing music for the church and for the schools.
In the Fall of 2017, I found out that Mark had lost the majority of his hearing. I would learn that he had Meneire’s Disease, a disorder that affects the inner ear which is responsible for hearing and balance. The condition causes vertigo, the sensation of spinning. It also leads to hearing problems and a ringing sound in the ear. In Mark’s case, he had lost all hearing in one ear and most of his hearing in the other ear. I was devastated by this news and felt the sudden urge to reach out to Mark.
Forty years is a very long time. In the Bible, the number 40 is used to designate important time periods:
- Jesus fasted ‘forty days and forty nights’ in the Judean desert
- Forty days was the period from the resurrection of Jesus to the ascension of Jesus.
- In Christianity, the season of Lent consists of the 40 days preceding Easter.
- Rain fell for ‘forty days and forty nights’ during the Flood.
40 years was also the amount of time, more or less, that it had been since I had seen Mark. I was a little nervous about reaching out to him…how would he react…would it be the same…would he even respond? This GIANT in the music world…maybe he wouldn’t even really want to see me…the questions/reservations were many.
I started out by doing what most of us do when we have a question…I ‘googled’ him. I found his website and found an email address. And I wrote a lengthy email, pushed ‘send’ and waited.
Lo and behold, I had a response from him in less than an hour. He told me that he was so grateful that I had reached out to him. He said that many times he had wanted to do the same, going so far as to try and find me on the Internet but that he wasn’t very good at computer stuff. I was giddy with excitement and I emailed him back…the back and forth emails finally led to,
‘Hey, why don’t we meet up sometime when you’re not busy’. So, we set a meeting date: November 17, 2017
So, on November 17, 2017, I made the drive to Fredericksburg, TX. I had made that drive many times before because Laura and I really liked to visit the quaint little town. Oftentimes I would wonder if perhaps we might run into Mark at some coffee shop or just wandering the streets. But it never happened. This time, however, I would be meeting up with him and I was grateful, excited and nervous about it. He told me he would have a note pad…that I may have to write down my comments/questions/responses if he couldn’t hear me.
I arrived at his home that chilly morning and found him sitting in his backyard, in front of his Studio. As I walked towards him, I could see the sparkle in his eyes and we both automatically reached out our arms towards each other to embrace. As we stood in his back yard, hugging each other, it was as if two boxers were embracing after beating each other up for 15 rounds. Except in our case, LIFE had beaten us up and beaten us down. The 40 years of bumps and bruises were evident on the both of us but at that moment, they trickled away.
My day with Mark was perfect! We laughed, we shared old stories about our ‘College’ season, reminding each other of funny stories about our UTSA Professors and students. We excitedly told each other about our children. His face lit up as he spoke proudly about Aaron, Cassandra, Peter and Thomas. It was evident that he adored his children! He spoke about his current wife, Rebekah and his new 7 year old daughter, Genevieve, who he was passionate about. He spoke of his life/career in Fredericksburg, his music, his Choirs…we tried to cram 40 years into a few short hours. Somehow we succeeded. He invited me into his house to eat. He had put a lasagna in the oven to warm it up, however I’m not sure if he even turned the oven on because mine was cold but I didn’t care. I was eating with my friend and that was the important thing.
While we were emailing back and forth, Mark had asked me to bring my music to our meeting. Though honored, I was hesitant. Understand, that was like approaching the throne of God to ask him for a cup of sugar. I just did not feel worthy. One of the things I knew full well about Mark was that his musical taste was extremely picky. How in the world could I ever measure up? I was quite certain that he would be nice and pretend to like my music but in my mind, that would be the best that I could hope for.
So, swallowing all my inhibitions, I proceed to share my work with him, holding my breath all the while. The first piece I showed him was a song called, ‘Reaching High’, a song I wrote for Unison Choir.
In typical Mark fashion, he went straight to the piano and started to play my song. Hearing him play it on the piano was as if the heavens opened up and all the angels were playing along! My heart swelled and it leapt for joy when he exclaimed that he loved the song! Furthermore, he said he would like to send it to his publisher once we were finished with it!
Long story, made short, Mark (in his brilliance) composed a second voice part for ‘Reaching High’, turning it into a 2 part piece. He also wrote a piano accompaniment for it, making it 100 times better by doing so. True to his word, he sent it to his publisher. I received an email from his publisher, Mr. Henry Leck just the other day that I would like to share with you.
"Many year ago now, I was directing a festival in Texas, which involved the Fredericksburg Children’s Choir. I was very impressed with them. If I recall properly, their accompanist was Mark Hierholzer. This must have been in the mid nineties. I don’t remember just how the conversation got started, but we determined that Mark had been writing music for the choir. I asked if he would be interested in publishing any of this music, because it was good ! At that time I was fairly new in the choral publishing scene. I had a series with Plymouth Music in Florida. I will never forget, Mark sent me a notebook full of pieces. I sorted through them, knowing I couldn’t publish everything. I picked out three pieces. “Circle Round the Moon", "Red Tail” and “Old Buildings”. It is amazing how this music was received. I think nearly every children’s choir in the US has sung Circle Round the Moon. I know I personally have programmed it many many times. Over the years, Mark and I stayed in touch musically. I remember one year he wrote a piece, which I programmed on a Carnegie Hall concert. I was surprised but thrilled that Mark came out, talked to the singers and reveled in having his music performed on that famous stage.
It is rare to maintain such a good professional relationship for so long. I am grateful to have had Mark as a friend and musical colleague. I will miss seeing his handwritten manuscripts arrive.”
In the next 10 months, I would visit Mark in Fredericksburg three more times. The second visit was on January 9, 2018 and was especially memorable because I brought my son, Josh to meet Mark. I had always dreamed of this meeting because, like Mark, Josh is a Composer/Arranger/Piano Player extraordinaire! Over the years, I had often thought that I would love for Josh to meet Mark. My dreams came true on January 9! It was thrilling to hear Mark and Josh excitedly share their passion with one another. When Josh got on the piano to play one of his pieces for Mark, I looked over at Mark (while Josh was playing). His eyes were closed, his body moving to the music that he was feeling, his arm swaying as if he were conducting an Orchestra. His facial expressions mimicked the emotions of the music. After Josh finished, Mark exclaimed triumphantly, in a loud, powerful voice, ‘Now that music has LIFE’! Perhaps the highest compliment one musician can receive from another! Josh and I drove home that day feeling completely exhilarated and excited. Our conversation was filled with stories and stuff about Mark.
During our ‘Last Season’, Mark and I stayed in constant communication. Due to his hearing loss, his favorite way of communicating was by text messaging. We texted daily. My favorite time to text Mark was early in the morning; his favorite time to text me was very late at night (way after I had gone to bed). I would wake up in the morning to receive one of his texts and I would text right back. Through those texts, I learned about his day to day life; the pain and frustrations he lived with; his physical and emotional struggles; his complete and utter love of family; and his love and devotion to God – whenever I shared anything in my life that I was worried or concerned about, he would always offer to pray for me and for whatever situation I was worried about. I will miss his prayers and I will most definitely miss his text messages!
During our ‘Last Season’, Mark and I would collaborate on and complete two more pieces of music. Though we had already made plans to work on many more, I am truly grateful for the 3 pieces that we did finish. To have Mark’s name next to mine on a piece of music is perhaps my greatest achievement in my musical career! After, ‘Reaching High’, Mark composed a piano accompaniment and Orchestral arrangement for, ‘Symphony of Peace’, a 2 part Choral piece that I wrote with my son, Josh. The final piece that we collaborated on was, ‘Deo Gratias’, a piece I wrote a couple of years ago to celebrate the Baptism of my granddaughter, Tinsley.
Mark wrote an SATB arrangement for that piece.
By the way, ‘Deo Gratias’ is Latin for, ‘Thanks be to God’, which I believe is so appropriate, given that it was our last piece we worked on together.
On Monday, September 10, 2018, the day Mark died, we were texting back and forth during that morning. He was making some final edits for, ‘Reaching High’. His publisher, Henry Leck, had made a couple of suggestions on the second voice part that Mark had created. In typical Mark fashion, he made the edits, however, he was going to let Henry know that the initial part he wrote was way better! But, for the sake of getting the piece published, he would compromise this issue. He said that once he received the edited version, he would send our piece back to Henry.
That evening, at 9:10 pm, I felt moved and compelled to text Mark, which as you may recall, was an unusual time for me to text him…
I told him: ‘I pray that you have a peaceful night and a wonderful day tomorrow! Know that I pray for that for you always!’
I believe God did answer my prayer that night…I believe Mark finally found the peace that he was so desperately seeking.
And I do believe he is having a wonderful day in Heaven, probably exclaiming in a triumphant voice: ‘Now this is LIFE’!