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Many thanks to Albert Jackson for the amazing cover art, “Witness to Glory“ View more by Tyler Harrison at Symphony No. 3 was commissioned by the Music & Moore Foundation in Memory of Mr. William Battistoni. World Premiere conducted by Elliot Moore. Below are the program notes with timings for each movement. PROGRAM NOTES Symphony No. 3 “The Garden of Tears“ is my answer to Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 6 “Pathetique“. Symphony No. 3 is in four movements. I. Repression & Depression (47:55) The first movement addresses two issues that both Tchaikovsky and I struggled with in our lives. We grew up repressed in societies overtly hostile to same-sex relationships, and we suffered from depressive episodes. II. Mania (54:55) The second movement is a musical depiction of the tension and euphoria experienced in mania. I used sharp changes in major and minor to portray this, along with “cloud” canons to convey the feeling of racing thoughts. The movement ends with what always follows a mania, an inevitable and crippling crash. III. The Teacher (58:25) The third movement is about how I discovered my passion for teaching. My identity as an educator has become an integral part of my life. I have learned more from my students than they could ever learn from me. Since I often teach piano, this movement features two pianos playing to each other in a canon, where the student learns by imitating the teacher. IV. The Garden of Tears (01:06:10) The fourth and final movement considers life after escaping the darkness and finding purpose – how I turned my tears into joy and laughter. This part features multi-voice canons and fugues, including a “laughing canon”, where the orchestra “laughs“ using the canonic theme. The third and fourth movements take themes from Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 6 and transform them into a chorus of elation. My Symphony No. 3 invites the listener to consider a new narrative where sadness and depression can be overcome by hope and triumph. Mental illness is an ongoing battle, but it is not cause to give up hope. In fact, it can be a path to a glorious new beginning. I once saw my illness as a tremendous burden. I now understand that it is this very illness that has allowed me to see, feel, and hear the songs of the mountains. The Garden of Tears is a metaphor embodying both the struggle of mental illness and the hope required to survive it. The Garden thrives on the tears that water it, but it is the laughter and joy that ultimately defines its beauty.
