A Prayer for the Abandoned (2015)

For piano trio
Duration: 5 minutes
Commissioned by Copland House Cultivate

Program Note:

A Prayer for the Abandoned is a piano trio in three miniature movements that are played attacca. The first two movements end with a tremolo sul ponticello in the cello that signals the beginning of the next movement. Though in three parts, the overall structure of the piece traces a single dramatic arc: the first movement is essentially a large crescendo in intensity leading to a lyrical second movement that starts with an expressive and rich chord progression in the piano. In the final movement, the violin melody of the first movement comes back, this time developed and resolved. I wrote A Prayer for the Abandoned to honor and commemorate an old friend who lost his partner in a tragic accident.