I wrote the opening G-sharp minor melody of this piece in 1978, one of the first times I ever tried to compose music. I dedicated it to a friend, someone who had encouraged me to pursue my love of music. This little fragment sat unfinished for 13 years, until 1991, when I was a teacher and the choir director at a small elementary school and I needed a finale for a program I had written entitled, “One Family”. I wrote words to the tune I had already composed and named it, “Broken Hearts”. Then I added a short transition section (“The Other Side”) and, finally, a rousing finale in the relative major (B Major) called “Rise”, which was intended to finish off the program on a hopeful note. The piece is best as a choral piece, but in this recording I play the melodies on piano.