About the Dedication:

Caryn was my first crush while working at Disneyland. We worked together in the Main Street East Stores for several months and she suggested that I apply to become a Lead. A Lead is sort of like a shift manager. You check people in, assign duties to the cast members, and make sure that the stores run smoothly. It is the next step up the merchandise totem pole at Disneyland, and I remember it being a really big deal to me at the time. Caryn helped me prepare for the interview and gave the managers a great recommendation on my behalf. She was a wonderful mentor and helped me out tremendously. When I received the promotion, Caryn and I made a good team and we found an excellent rhythm working together. We got things done quickly, and had a lot of fun at the same time. Caryn was a virtuous friend and working with her was one of the highlights of my time at Disneyland.

This prelude was premiered in 2008 during my Junior Piano Recital at Chapman. It was one of my encores, and Caryn was there to hear it. I remember being pretty nervous while playing it for her and even more nervous afterwards while waiting to hear what she thought.

The form of the piece consists of two sections that begin with similar harmonic material followed by a coda. The difference between the two sections lies in where they modulate. The first section modulates uses a ii-V-I sequence while the second section modulates using an abrupt chromatic-mediant relationship combined with mode mixture. The second section uses the same material from the first section, but in a drastically different way. It climaxes into the coda section where the piece eventually ends as it begun, on the C Major 7 arpeggio.

The work uses arpeggios heavily and is also an homage to Bach and Chopin’s C Major Preludes. The arpeggios must flow nicely in order to make the melody in the crossed left hand pattern sing. There are a lot of harmonic changes and the performer should follow the tenuto markings and dynamics closely in order to maximize their impact. Caryn was very beautiful, and the rich arpeggios and harmonies are my way of conveying her beauty.