Coffee Conversations [Kirchner & Razzi]

Musical expression is a continuation of writing Romantic poetry. It involves the use of multiple sensory experiences to convey an idea, a feeling, emotion, etc. In this way, music transcends the page, freeing the poem into a field of expression.

This is problematic. The poem itself is an act of music: there’s sound, rhythm and melody already present in its form. So the question really is—what are we transcending if we’re not transcending the poem itself? We’re transcending the act of interpretation (reading?). By converting or “translating” a poem into an act of sound we’re becoming a new kind of bard. This bard does not rely on the spoken word, but rather upon the emotive side of the poem.
_________________________________________________________________

So far we’ve worked on the middle of the poem [Ode to a Nightingale]. This is point where the false sense of security is there, washes away and the speaker connects with the Nightingale and “flies” with it. In terms of music, we have established a melodic Nightingale theme (which probably will be present throughout the rest of the piece in alternate forms) which moves into darkness/sickness…a very uncomfortable space. There are 2 themes of music playing out—escape or flight and the Nightingale melody. We still need a dark period that is neither escape nor melody, but rather illness and stagnation—i.e. musical chromaticism, instability. Right now we’re really at the stage of establishing themes—sounds for each feeling/mood/instance, but the connections between each stanza and establishment of time have yet to occur.

It would be extremely difficult and almost contrary to Romantic writing/the poem to write “in order” or sequence, basing each musical idea off of a stanza. Rather, it makes more sense to begin by identifying the themes and developing each into a musical idea that will later result in an interpretation of the entire poem. It’s like a puzzle. Each piece is developed and slowly sketched out and as each grows and connects to another piece, the entire “picture” or poem becomes clearer.