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"The scarcity of rhinos" on the television (2004)
SATB Chorus
(Based on a poem from Ursula K. Le Guin's book Sixty Odd)
Approximately 5 Minutes
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Performed by the University Choir of the California State University at Long Beach during the world premiere in April 2005.

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I think, at its core, this piece is not about Rhinoceroses at all. I would not presume to offer the only interpretation of Ursula K. Le Guin’s work, but from my perspective the piece is more about how we get so caught up in ourselves that we miss what is really going on in the world. Certainly, we live in frustrating times, where the public discourse seems to only degenerate further and further. We get so caught up in the nonsense that we don’t notice that the metaphorical rhinoceroses of our better nature seem to be slinking out of the room with embarrassed looks on their faces. One of my favorite images in the poem is of the "politicians of paucity" which I have found to be distressingly useful.

I cannot thank Ursula K. Le Guin enough for allowing me to set this poem. The piece is dedicated to the University Choir at the California State University at Long Beach, who gave the premiere on April 29th, 2005.

The text is from Le Guin’s book Sixty Odd. It was published in 1997 by Shambhala Publications and is used with the author’s permission.

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