Gottschalk wrote on November 1st 1864, 'I am composing five new pieces....', one of which was the almost embarrassingly sentimental work, The Dying Poet for piano. This struck a special note with the American public of the day, becoming one of the most popular pieces of the Civil War era, so much so that for a period of about five years, this was the most performed piece of classical music in the USA. It works very well as a flute solo, too.
