Like Lieberson's first Piano Concerto, it was written for the pianist Peter Serkin, who first performed the work with the Boston Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Seiji Ozawa on October 14, 1999.
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Paul Griffiths of The New York Times opined that it is "decidedly not a concerto but rather a symphonic poem with a prominent piano part" and wrote, "Future performances will show whether the piece is perhaps too illustrative: too much of a picture book and not enough of a story.
"[3] The work was also praised by Mark Swed of the Los Angeles Times, who wrote, "The orchestral writing is colorful and of exceptional beauty.
"[4] Andrew Clements of The Guardian similarly lauded the "resourceful solo writing" and remarked, "It's cast as a 25-minute set of loose-knit variations, rapt stillness and teeming energy.