I was extremely honored when James Tully, on behalf of the South Carolina CBDNA, asked me to write a piece for the 2008 South Carolina Collegiate Honor Band, Michael Haithcock, conductor. It is not often that I have the opportunity to write for such a wonderful collection of fine musicians and such a talented conductor. My intention for the piece was simply to try to write something that would be exciting and challenging to play, while still maintaining a sense of an underlying spirit. The concept for the resultant piece is clear from the beginning when the horns and sleigh bells present a constant, but not consistent, pulse, which remains present throughout the work. By that I mean that the pulse is always there, but there are occasional "hiccups" and accelerations of the pulse to suit the music.

The piece is structured in four large sections. The first presents the pulse itself before adding a tuneful melodic line, initially presented by the soprano saxophone. This section repeats the melody three times, gradually becoming more and more chaotic as the passage continues. The second section continues to develop the opening material, again building to a more chaotic climactic moment before "re-starting." The third section takes the concept to its fullest extent, moving farther and farther away from the original tune and eventually finishing in almost complete chaos. Out of this emerges the final section, including extensive singing in the ensemble, and representing a calm and peaceful conclusion to the work.