Sweet Enigma | guitar solo by Frank A. Wallace

Sweet Enigma | by Frank A. Wallace

enigma: a person or thing that is mysterious, puzzling, or difficult to understand.

“Death is the ultimate enigma and we’ll never know its secrets.”

Deana Blanchard 17 years old

Her Memory

On October 9, 2003 Deana Blanchard was tragically hit by a bus on the streets of Cairo and died shortly after. She was 17 years old. Her father, David Blanchard, was my first classical guitar buddy. We played duets under the tutelage of Ed Bishop at the Peninsula Conservatory of Music in San Mateo CA. He briefly describes her: “Deana was beautiful. She had an infectious smile. She always had time for other people, more than for herself. She had so many friends I could not count them all. She enjoyed life so much. She loved spending time with and mentoring her friends, doing sports, reading, playing piano, and traveling. She loved life. Deana had a special love of angels. She always had pictures or figurines of angels in her room. For us she has become “the Angel of the Nile.” You can read more about her here.

I still have not seen Dave since that time, but we met again online several years ago and have kept in touch. Recently Dave was one of the first to sign up for my Patreon account to support my creative efforts. Sweet Enigma, written on January 27 of 2020, is the result of our friendship and is dedicated to the memory of Deana.

The Music

Was I to write a sad piece? A tragic piece? Nostalgic, loving, full of happy memories? I never met Deana and am struggling with a life-threatening illness myself. “Death is the ultimate enigma…” Rilke says” The artist’s function is — to love the enigma. All art is this: love, which has been poured out over enigma — and all works of art are enigmas surrounded, adorned, enveloped by love.”

And so my conundrum has been answered by my creative urge. An enigma itself. I don’t know if this piece is the right piece, I don’t know if I have done justice to Deana’s memory, to her life. But I have added one small expression to the mystery of life and death. My hope is that Deana’s father, all who knew her, and all who have suffered loss, tragic loss, may derive some solace, even pleasure, from this humble effort.

To be, or not to be? To continue, to contend with suffering, or to end in the unknown? Sweet Enigma chose to be. It chose life. This music has the energy of Dave, Deana, their family, and me at its core. It emerged from a tiny seed, and flowered forth. It is my prayer for the eternal goodness of life and the power of the creative soul.