Online Reunion to Remember Frank Marocco
"Meant So Much" - USA

March 5th, 2022 by Dan Grauman

Video 1: Amy Jo Sawyer’s tribute to Frank Marocco

Video 2: FMAE 2022 Reunion Virtual Orchestra

Video 3: 2011 FMAE Parisian Medley

Video 4: Frank Marocco enjoying his accordion camps 2007-2011

A virtual reunion over Zoom to commemorate the 10th anniversary of Frank Marocco’s passing was held on March 5. Forty-five Frank Marocco Accordion Event (FMAE) alumni and friends from the US, Canada and Italy participated in nearly 3½ hours of reminiscing and viewing videos together. A highlight of the reunion was the participation of Frank’s three daughters, Cynthia, Venetia and Lisa. Their heartwarming reactions can be summed up in a quote from an email I received from Cynthia following the reunion:

"Thank you Dan so much for hosting this event . . . What a lovely community of accordion players were present. It meant so much to my sisters and myself. This was a particularly difficult anniversary of death for all three of us and this in a way helped pull us through it on to the other side. I miss my dad so much it makes me cry even as I say the words. But knowing how he was loved and the wonderful stories shared makes up for some of the heartbreak."

Other highlights of the reunion included: a beautiful short piece dedicated to Frank that was composed by Amy Jo Sawyer and performed by Joe Natoli (Video 1); a "virtual orchestra" consisting of 14 accordionists from the US, Canada and Italy (Video 2) playing Frank’s arrangement “Parisian Medley”, which was performed by a 62-piece orchestra at the 2011 FMAE (Video 3); and a video featuring five of Frank Marocco’s original compositions performed by Frank (Video 4).

A variety of stories was told by the reunion participants – some funny and some serious. The common thread was the love everyone had for this soft-spoken and humble musical genius. As one participant said, "Sadly, Frank is no longer with us, but his music will be with us forever!"