Astrid Forde was so nervous the day she auditioned for the opportunity to study with acclaimed Polish pianist Countess Helena Morsztyn that she hit a few wrong notes. Forde was still impressive enough that Morsztyn recognized the 16-year-old farm girl's talent and took her on as a student.
That was a major accomplishment, because Morsztyn regularly turned down hundreds of requests. Through study with Morsztyn, Forde developed a deep love and interpretive understanding of the music of Chopin that she would pass on to scores of piano students in the central Minnesota town of Starbuck, said her son Daniel, of Eagan.
"She was always ready to impart her knowledge so they would learn to appreciate how to play good music," he said.
Forde played the organ, directed church choirs and sang at weddings and funerals at three small congregations around Starbuck for 52 years. For her efforts she was named a WCCO Good Neighbor in January 1992.
She died of natural causes on March 26 at the Lyngblomsten Care Center in St. Paul. She was 101.
Forde first tickled the ivories when she was around 9. After eighth grade, she enrolled at the Minneapolis College of Music, where she studied with Morsztyn. She also took classes at the MacPhail Center for the Arts.
In 1937, she performed in concert with her alma mater's orchestra and received rave reviews from Star Tribune music critic James Davies: "Astrid Flack [her maiden name], pianist, contributed the third movement from Saint-Saëns concerto in C minor displaying a flashy technique, warm temperament, musicianship and interpretative skill."
In Starbuck, Forde teamed up with her husband, Gerhard, at Christmas and Easter for 16 years to stage performances of Handel's "Messiah" that featured an orchestra and choir. She also directed choirs at Indherred, St. John's and Immanuel Lutheran churches. When she retired in 1991, it marked the end of 100 years that the Forde family had provided music ministry at the three churches, Daniel said.
