String me a serenade to soundtrack
The hours I should have been asleep
But did my dreaming consciously.

They all sound like film scores to me:
Sounds painting pictures of feelings
To which her carefully choreographed words
Could dance, leaving me to try to
Keep up in a language I did not understand.

How much of what I know was
Her, and how much was the character
She thought she should play?

Had she listened, perhaps she would have
Heard how important were all of
The parts, regardless of billing or
Recognition by the uninformed masses.

Twenty three years on, I follow
The score as I listen to music
She never played for me, and find
Her line, less intricate but
Nonetheless essential to
The composer’s aural vision and
The listener’s sonic picture.

And in the final movement,
The second violins get their moment
In the Sun; I hope she hung on
Long enough to bask in it.

06/06/2023

Author's Note: Response to Serenade for Strings in E major op. 22 by Antonín Dvořák.

Posted on 10/14/2023
Copyright © 2024 Richard Vince