Each of the four movements of this concert piece has its own character: the first is a free recitative, with slowly rolled chords and long trills, broken up by restless passages; the second is extremely rhythmic (utilizing a special way of playing both staccato and legato notes at the same time) with a recurring note that sounds much like a heartbeat; the third is completely atonal, moving back and forth from fast sections of single-line virtuosic mallet work to slow sections with expressive two-part chromaticism; the fourth is a simple folk-like melody, evoking a Bach chorale played by a music box.

Inspired by a love poem by Robert Graves ('To Sleep'), this work was also set as a pas de deux by the San Diego Ballet. It was dedicated to, and recorded by, his son Russell (Rusty) Burge, a mallet artist who actively performs and records and is also Associate Professor of Percussion at CCM.