Long fascinated and stirred by Sousa marches, film orchestrator Ira Hearshen decided in 1990 to transform popular march music into a "legitimate piece for concert stage." The result is this symphony, with each of its four movements based on a theme from one of the "march king's" famous works. Today we are performing the second movement, based on the familiar trio from The Thunderer – which has been slowed down and cast in the style of Mahler's third symphony. --James Huff 23:44, March 28, 2007 (EDT) (from the program notes of The Claremont Winds, submitted with permission)