I composed this lament out of a feeling of empathy for the people of Ukraine, who have suffered during the Russo-Ukrainian War. The original version is for viola and piano. Vola virtuoso Rivka Golani gave the premiere at Western University in March 2022. Shortly after the premiere, Ms. Golani requested the version for solo viola and string orchestra, to be premiered at the Proto 2 Festival in Spain the following July. Numerous additional versions were added subsequently.