Program Note:

Valse Triste: Wayfaring Stranger originated in June 1997, when the composer’s brother, Britt, requested an arrangement of his favorite hymn tune for a church service in Springfield, Illinois. The resulting work weaves together two contrasting traditional versions of the hymn—one in a major key, the other in the parallel minor—into a set of rhapsodic variations suitable for use either as a liturgical prelude or a concert encore. Like the spiritual on which it is based, the piece centers on the transcendent journey of the soul, portraying death as a sacred homecoming and a timeless reunion with those we have lost.

The manuscript remained unexamined for decades, briefly revisited only during the composition of the composer’s third piano trio, written in Britt's memory. In August 2026, while organizing sketches for institutional archiving, the composer rediscovered the original pencil manuscript. Nearly thirty years after its inception, this independent work was engraved and published on its own merits.

In its final form, Valse Triste serves as the anchoring installment of a broader instrumental triptych. This trilogy also encompasses Valse Blanche: How Love Comes, Tangiers, October 1958 for violin and piano, and Valse Noire: Assignation at the Palm Court, 28 June 1914 for cello and piano.

— August 2026