Song for My Children was commissioned by the Northeast Iowa Bandmasters Association in celebration of their 50th Anniversary, and was premiered by that ensemble with me conducting on December 7, 2013. The process leading up to that premiere had begun almost seven years earlier, when Jim Fritz contacted me and invited me to compose a piece with almost no restrictions, an opportunity that comes only rarely as a composer. At the time, I had recently finished a piece dedicated to my wife, Song for Lyndsay, and an idea had begun to percolate in my mind about writing a related piece for my children. This seemed like the perfect opportunity.

The relationship to Song for Lyndsay comes through the use of a pitch set that is personally meaningful to me and that has appeared in many of my pieces over the years, including some chamber works and even my December Dance. It is initially presented in this piece through the opening vibraphone notes of Eb, D, Bb, and Ab, but is used throughout the piece, often as background material, but also as both harmonic and melodic material. The use of horn on the opening melody is another personal reference, as that was my own instrument.

I considered the idea of attempting to embed other references within the piece, a path which I often tend to select when I write. Instead, though, I chose to let my heart guide the compositional process. As I began to compose, I simply sat down at the piano and placed a photo of my children in front of me, allowing the music to emerge as memories washed over me, memories of holding them as infants, watching their first steps, carrying them up the stairs to bed, putting them on the school bus for the first time, seeing the excitement of a Christmas morning; in other words, the myriad of joyous and tender moments that have formed my life as a parent. I am thankful every day to have them in my life and love them more than I can ever fully express. Emily, Noah, Addy, Ethan, Claire, and Ben…this is for you.