Thomas McGrath's poem "Jazz at the Intergalactic Nightclub" is a world unto itself. McGrath creates an intergalactic coffeehouse-cum-pub. Using cabaret-styled language, a host/philosopher tantalizes us with news of the next act. The act is a conundrum--that exactly at mid-night eternity will begin. I decided to set this poem as if it were miniature scena, a small moment in time inside the Intergalactic Nightclub, with Robert White as the host/philosopher.

I chose this poem to set specifically for Robert White, who has, to me, the quintessential composer's dream voice. His is a timeless voice, which immediately transports the listener away from faddish listening habits of present day into the unique, fragile world of the poet and composer, song after song, from Schubert to Berlin. I hope that in my song, Robert White transports us into the future.