Inside the Hubble Toolbox

I. Intergalactic Mambo; II. Busy! Busy! BUSY! "...all work and NO play will fix the Multi-Object Spectrometer;" III. Imagining the Imaging Spectrograph; IV. A Final Polish; Then We Rest "O sieh, wie klar das Weltall schimmert!" ("Look, how brightly the universe shines!")-Richard Dehmel

Duration: 13 minutes

Instrumentation: solo piano

Commissioned by the Wisconsin Music Teachers Association and the Music Teacher's National Association

Program note: In May of 2009, the Hubble Space Telescope received its final service at the hands of capable technicians. A wonder of technology, the Hubble was placed in service in 1990 to give scientists, astronomers, and the curious, star-gazing public a better look into the mysteries of deep space. While the implications of Hubble's discoveries generate invaluable data for the experts, the notion of a deep space telescope boggles the imagination and inspires artistic, awe-struck rumination.

Taking as a premise the otherworldly collection of drills, screwdrivers and other space-age permutations of common household tools that astronauts use to make the repairs, Inside the Hubble Toolbox attempts to convey to even the most jaded a child's sense of discovery at opening a toolbox for the first time. In a child's hands, common tools become instruments of pure fantasy and imagination barely wedded to their intended practical use. Perhaps by opening Hubble's toolbox for the first time, the rest of us can discover anew the sheer pleasure of invention and novelty by grasping the common paraphernalia of an orbiting workshop.

Concert Premiere: October 31, 2009, by pianist Nicholas Phillips at the Wisconsin Music Teachers Association conference, Wisconsin Dells, WI.