Before I was a composer, I studied physics and computer science, was a coder, and a science teacher. So when I get a chance to combine music, math, and science, I’m all over it.“Silver Deity of Secret Night: A Love Song to the Moon” was commissioned by Cantus as part of their “One Giant Leap” concert series. Because the mathematicians and scientists were key to the success of launching and navigating a rocket, I wanted to be sure to integrate some equations into the song. I also wanted to capture humanity’s longing for the moon. When I found Lady Mary Wortley Montagu’s poem “A Hymn to the Moon” I knew I would have a balance of math, science, and poetry. At its heart, “A Hymn to the Moon” is a love poem. It touches that place in our hearts that humans have felt for millennia — our longing for this beautiful, yet cold celestial body and the idea that she often serves as companion on life’s journey. As our companion, the moon has been muse, friend, and guide for many through the ages. As I was working with the poem, I was especially drawn to these lines: By thy pale beams I solitary rove, To thee my tender grief confide; Serenely sweet you gild the silent grove, My friend, my goddess, and my guide. I envisioned the astronauts alone, under the moon’s pale beams, roving though space in their moonlight-gilded rocket — the emptiness, a grove of planets, stars, and star dust.