Epitaph for a Man Who Dreamed (In Memoriam Martin Luther King, Jr.)

• Epitaph for a Man Who Dreamed (In Memoriam Martin Luther King, Jr.) was written in 1979 and coincided with Congress’s decision to designate a national holiday to Martin Luther King, Jr. Hailstork wanted to create a musical work that could be played for such an occasion.¹
• The death of MLK Jr. in the previous decade greatly affected the composer and was the direct catalyst to Hailstork pursuing his doctorate in music.
• Epitaph for a Man Who Dreamed premiered in 1980 with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra conducted by William Henry Curry.
• In the score, Hailstork wrote the following about the piece:

“A great man is being buried. A few mourners ring the gravesite singing a spiritual. Gradually, more bereaved gather and join in (strings). They reflect upon their memories of hopes and dreams inspired by their fallen leader. The service concludes and the bowed heads begin to lift. They will carry on.”²

1. “Music with Purpose: A Conversation with Dr. Adolphus Hailstork,” Minnesota Orchestra (2022), accessed February 7, 2023, https://www.minnesotaorchestra.org/stories/music-with-a-purpose/.
2. Kathryn Brown and Paul Schiavo, “Program Notes: Dvořák New World Symphony,” Seattle Symphony (2022), accessed February 7, 2023, https://www.seattlesymphony.org/en/beyond-the-stage/program-notes-dvorak-new-world.