With a single chord, I am prisoner,
My capture immediate and absolute.
An injection of electric sound-silk
Tangles my veins
And I am immobilised
By its essential truth.
With a single chord, I am devoured.
I savour each note – touch it, taste it;
I would eat it if I could.
But it is delicate, bird-like,
And it must be treated gently
In order to soar.
With a single chord, I am changed,
Lighter yet full to the brim.
The walls of the world are thin enough
To catch sight of a vast heaven,
And I breathe in its iridescence
At the point where music and person overlap.
With a single chord I am awakened.
Memories long pushed aside
Seep again into my soul.
Sensual, soft and clinging,
They tug at my being, dress me in silver,
And the cloud lifts.
Vicki Watson © 2014
Feb 13, 2014
Feb 13, 2014 at 5:50 PM UTC
With a single chord, I am prisoner,
My capture immediate and absolute.
An injection of electric sound-silk
Tangles my veins
And I am immobilised
By its essential truth.
With a single chord, I am devoured.
I savour each note – touch it, taste it;
I would eat it if I could.
But it is delicate, bird-like,
And it must be treated gently
In order to soar.
With a single chord, I am changed,
Lighter yet full to the brim.
The walls of the world are thin enough
To catch sight of a vast heaven,
And I breathe in its iridescence
At the point where music and person overlap.
With a single chord I am awakened.
Memories long pushed aside
Seep again into my soul.
Sensual, soft and clinging,
They tug at my being, dress me in silver,
And the cloud lifts.
Vicki Watson © 2014
This poem is about the emotional power of a single opening chord in a piece of music. If you are a classical music aficionado, think of the openings to Prokofiev's 'Romeo and Juliet Suite No. 2 (VII)', Strauss's 'Blue Danube', Elgar's 'cello concerto, the second movement of Beethoven's 7th symphony or the opening of Brahms's 1st symphony. And if you don't know any of these pieces, visit YouTube and listen, even if it's only for the first few seconds. Then read the poem.
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