To the Editor:

Mr. Mark H. Baumbach passed away this January and I would like to tell your readers a few things about his family and how I knew them.

The Baumbach family lived at 60 Crow Ridge Road in Voorheesville. Ruth Woodin Baumbach and her son, Mark, conducted the Helderberg School of Music from their home, where they taught private lessons to students of the piano, violin, and organ.

I don’t know the exact dates but I believe they started sometime during the 1960s and continued at least into the 1980s. I began taking piano lessons with Mrs. Baumbach in 1971. I would take the school bus, after school, from Voorheesville Elementary School to her house up on Crow Ridge.

At 10 years old, I was a bit uneasy about a bus I wasn’t accustomed to, and the kids I didn’t know, while taking the short ride to a new and unfamiliar place. But the school bus driver, affectionately named “Kingfish,” made me feel at ease and made sure I got off at the right place.

I would  walk up the sidewalk to a beautiful 19th-Century home to be greeted at the door by a smiling, welcoming, well dressed, attractive and proper woman who was Mrs. Baumbach.

Upon entering the home, you were immediately struck by the way it was decorated. The interior seemed to me as a boy to resemble many of the Victorian-era settings I had seen in many old black-and-white movies. It was very different from my home, which was built in 1964.

The most prominent thing was the grand piano and the antique furniture in the living room. The paintings and wide plank floors along with many instruments scattered about, all contributed to a sense of it being a special household.

The dining room had an upright piano and was also filled with many classy and exceptional accoutrements. The interior was dated but exquisitely decorated with a warm feeling that was also prim and proper.

Ms Baumbach always had a pleasant fragrance about her. As I said before, very Victorian-like with her long hair always neatly pinned upon her head.

I began my lessons upon the upright piano with Mrs. Baubach beside me upon the bench. She was an excellent teacher.

I struggled to learn, not having a natural talent and further not practicing as much as I should have. I continued because it was rewarding when I could actually play complete compositions by memory.

My first recital was in June 1972 when I played John Thompson’s “’Round the Village” and an old English Morris dance called “Country Gardens.” I was very nervous, having to perform before all the other students, their parents, and friends.

We did get to use the grand piano at this point of our tutelage. The recital was billed as “Music at Crow Ridge by the students of Ruth Woodin Baumbach and Mark Baumbach.” The recitals were enjoyable and entertaining. Mrs. Baumbach always offered delicious hors d’oeuvres afterwards.

I didn’t know much about her husband, Carl S. Baumbach, but I believe he was an accomplished musician and a World War II veteran. I met him only briefly a few times.

The Baumbach home was built in 1852, as I’ve been told, and was bought by the family in 1955. It seems they bought it from Dr. Gilbert Dalldorf and his wife, Dr. Frances Dalldorf.

Dr. Gilbert Dalldorf was the director of the New York State Health Department Division of Laboratories and Research known as the State Farm on State Farm Road, Route 155, just outside of Voorhesville. He is credited with discovering Coxsakie virus, which can cause a variety of hand, foot, and mouth diseases.

The Van Auken family were the early owners of the farm. Voorheesville Village Historian Dennis Sullivan wrote in his village history book that Crow Ridge Road was once called Van Auken Road and that Frank Van Auken operated the home as a boarding house in the years around 1900.

He advertised it as Valley View Farm, two miles from the train station; on high ground; easy of access; pine grove and lawn; lovely view of the Helderberg Mountains; pure dry air; 467 feet above tide; large rooms. Accommodates 12; terms $6.00 per week.

When the Van Aukens operated their farm, the place was surrounded by pastures and the grand views were wide open. Today, those views are filled in by forest.

I studied for four years at the Baumbach house. During my time there, Mrs. Baumbach spoke to me of local history and sparked my interest in it. She and Mark were early members of the New Scotland Historical Association and, if my memory is correct, she served as president of the organization.

She told me of a contest they were holding, taking design entries for a New Scotland town seal. It seems that, since the town formed in 1832, it was without one. The prize was a $50 United States savings bond.

This was when I was 13. On my own, I researched town history and designed a seal that won the contest and is still in use by the town.

By the time I was 14, I was studying music with Mark. Mark was a very tall man with a quiet disposition and was an accomplished musician. By this time, I was paying for my lessons with money I earned landscaping the Baumbach property.

I wasn’t doing all of it but I loved being there and used the skills my father taught me to keep what I was responsible for looking good and well kept. Even right up to the edges of the nearby pond.

Ultimately, I had discovered that my talents were not in music, much to my dismay. It turned out that I was better suited to agriculture and fixing things. I soon gave up playing the piano.

I want the readers to know that the Baumbachs left their mark and influence on our community through their Helderberg School of Music. Just like all educators and teachers, they touched the lives of many people.

Their impact on the lives of their students extended beyond just music by being an example of how to comport oneself in social settings. The Baumbachs were polite and cultured while not being pretentious. They shared their music with many organizations and people.

It was an honor to have known them. They were an important part of the fabric of the Voorheesville community and beyond. They are remembered!

Timothy J. Albright

Meadowdale

Editor’s note: Mark Baumbach’s obituary is on the obituary page.