Instrumentation:

• baritone voice — violin — cello — piano

Duration: 31:00

First Performance: 30 April 2017 / O’Connell Hall, West Hartford, CT / Andrey Stolyarov, baritone; Julie Haring, violin; Benjamin Stayner, cello; Sira Seradi, piano

Program Note:

• In five movements, two of which feature text explores universal themes that I find to be extraordinarily powerful: lost love, and the journey from pain and suffering to ultimate salvation and acceptance. I primarily use harmony to portray this journey. The melodic and harmonic materials of the first two movements feature a dissonant pitch set of C, C#, D, F#, and G. It represents the bastardization of one of the purest intervals, the perfect fifth. The third movement represents the departure from this pitch set to purer harmonies and the eventual attainment of peace.