Questions

 

So Mister Huang, what’s with the ‘h’ in the Erich - have you Germanic blood in you? Not at all – as far as I know I’m pure Chinese. My parents evidently wanted me to be unique. I think what happened was that my Dad took on that name as his English name when he came to this country in 1975 but then he dropped it so then he gave it to me.

  

Do you speak in Chinese with your parents? Sometimes. I understand what they say. They tried that trick where they’d ignore me if I didn’t speak to them in Chinese. So I’d say, “I sawed off a limb” and they’d respond “in Chinese please.” But that didn’t last very long.

 

You are training for your first marathon – in Richmond, VA this November. How do you cope with running through this horribly humid heat in DC? I think I’ve become resistant to the heat, especially since running with the Front Runners last summer. My training partner Harry [Wilson] and I run through Rock Creek Park, which is largely shaded. That really helps. We stop at water fountains where necessary. I also keep in the back of my mind that the conditions in the actual marathon are most likely not going to be as hot as this.

 

A month ago, you were one of our greatest dancers in the Pride Dance Troupe. To borrow a familiar phrase from that experience - are you a firework, baby? Yes I am. I’m going to let my colors burst. This was my first choreographed dance experience. I was quite accident-prone: I twisted my ankle on the second day, I fell on my head once, I injured my back – and then I lost my shoe when someone stood on my foot during our march formation. But injuries aside, it was a lot of fun.

 

You trained as a classical pianist. How did you get into that? I started when I was seven. I was excited about it from the moment I touched the piano. The motivation came from within me, not from my parents, and that kept me going. I took lessons through high-school and undergraduate studies at Rochester. Then in graduate school in Pittsburgh, I didn’t have much time for anything apart from study, though I did find a really good teacher during my fourth year there. Then, when I came to DC, I discovered the Levine School of Music and took lessons with them.

 

Do you play in competitions?  I did in the past but I don’t really like to anymore because it’s all about playing the game: figuring out who is judging it, what their interpretation is and imitating them. If you have an interpretation that offends even one of the judges – and that can be very easy to do - you’re essentially finished. So I’m happy just taking lessons and giving occasional performances.

  

Which composer do you most resemble? Beethoven for his Type A, obsessive-compulsive temperament. He was very meticulous in his writing, whereas Mozart was very fast by comparison. I think Beethoven’s compositions are a lot more polished and more historically significant. His pieces have a lot more fire in them too and his later pieces especially have amazing depth. 

 

What has been your most memorable moment so far in the DC Front Runners? Doing the National Half Marathon this past March. Everything went perfect in the race. I remember that at the water station at mile 5, there were so many Front Runners cheering me on it gave me a boost throughout the rest of the race. Then I saw Lavar [Curley] cheering me on at mile 13. And at the end, after I finished in 1.31.36, Eric Sonnenschein said to me ‘I told you you’d do better than 1.35’

 

Does your background as a mathematician help your running in any way? Sometimes, I’m figuring out formulas in my head as I am running. I’m a huge math geek. It’s fun and it never really leaves me - apart from when I'm at a restaurant and can't calculate the tip.

 

What is your favorite Front Runner route to run? It’s slowly becoming the run to Fletcher’s Boat House. I know that’s an unpopular route with some but this summer I seem to be having my best runs on it. It’s beautiful, shaded and flat.

 

Who in the club most inspires you? I would say Lavar for his passion for running, Harry for his enthusiasm and spirits, and Seth [Kalish] for being such a strong runner. But there are many other Front Runners that have different character traits that I draw inspiration from too.

 

What is your motto in life? Cherish the good, learn or at least derive amusement from the bad.

 

Interview by Brian Beary, Design by Marcel Acosta

July 2011