This piece had a unique genesis. Dr. Pozdro and I had worked together on several occasions, notably on the two GCNA commissions (Winds of Autumn and especially Triptych), and I had been in contact with him several times over the years regarding aspects of his carillon pieces. He once expressed an interest in writing a piece for me, and not long thereafter, I approached him about the possibility of my commissioning a new piece from him. I was particularly interested in a piece appropriate for a nighttime recital, being especially fond of that ambiance. Over a period of time, he sent me many pages of sketches, and I was very enthusiastic about what he was doing. For personal reasons, however, it seemed for awhile as though the piece would not be completed. I then asked him in the fall of 2003 if he would be amenable to my trying to assemble a piece from the best musical ideas in his drafts; he enthusiastically agreed. Since he had sketched many musical ideas representing various aspects of a night scene, I used most of them, at times extending some ideas a bit (generally in his musical language). The musical representations of the stars, moon, clouds, Venus, and the comet closely follow his original ideas and concept. Soon we were taking turns revising and tweaking the content and shape of the piece with a surprising sharing of the same impressions of the developing score. The result is a fruitful, most happy collaboration between us, which was, as Dr. Pozdro put it, "devoid of both contention and bruised sensibilities."

A Summer's Night is episodic, suggesting not only the appearance of the stars and moon but also fleeting thoughts and memories while one is pondering the beauty of the night sky. A short introductory chord sequence establishes a rather dark ambiance; the halting, high notes represent the first manifestation of stars. The quick scale and tremolo (rapidly reiterated chords) represent a shooting star. This is followed by a special, rolled chord (arpeggio) based on the so-called "mystic chord" created by Russian pianist-composer Alexander Scriabin. Immediately thereafter, the same chord is presented—somewhat re-arranged—as a block chord, boldly, in the bass range. New melodies are introduced, including a dance-like section dedicated to Venus and other sections representing the moon. Rich octatonic figurations beginning in the bass range suggest clouds forming, in one instance leading to a thunderclap. The moon reappears brightly, unexpectedly, from behind the clouds (three sudden, brilliant arpeggios). The passage that opened the piece returns, followed by a cascading figuration (a short meteor shower) and a comet fading off into infinity, flickering as it disappears from view. This being a dreamy, atmospheric piece, the performer must approach the music with great rhythmic freedom, responding not only to the music but also to the effect on each particular carillon. In cases where there is a thick chord dying away, it is often desirable for the performer to introduce the following section as if it were emanating from the previous harmonic structure—like the moon, for example, appearing as the clouds thin out. The suggested tempi were those that worked best at Culver, naturally. It is expected that these would change considerably in other situations.

—John Gouwens