poems about Beethoven...

[Preston]

Thought is could/might be a good idea to post any poems that anyone has read or written (including the forum members) about Beethoven.

I found this one in an older book that I downloaded from Archive (thanks Cocchini). It came from a newspaper clipping. Thought I would share it.

THE HOROSCOPE
(On Beethoven)

Thou shalt go darkling all thy days
With brooding heart,
Thou shalt go bitterly thy ways,
Bowed and apart.

Thy sleepless bed shall be a rack
Of twisting pain,
Where thy taut soul shall burst and break
In gasping strain.

Thou shalt be scorned of the grim gods
When silence shuts thee round,
Thou shall be mocked in all thy prayers
With dreams of sound.

Long loneliness shall be thy part,
Despair be long,
And thou, for this, lo! thou shalt take
Thine hour of song.

- Elise Aylen

[Peter]

We had some very lovely poems about Beethoven posted here by Stephen Wade (a past forum member) and I hope he doesn't mind me quoting some here again.

Benediction No. 5

From across the valley of the shadows
He came to me.
On the same winds that wrapped the earth
When he walked among us.
With the same brute force
Same righteous self indulgence
Of his father before him,
In
A symphony of light
He came to me!
And I shall never sleep
The same again.
Love the same again.
Never use eyes or ears
The same again.
For these
Are the shortfalls
Of mortal men!

Copyright Stephen J. Wade 2000
(from ludwigs fifth symphony)

[Hofrat]

If anyone has the recording of Lizst's "Cantata to Beethoven," will find a wonder poem about Beethoven. It is just too much for me to type it.

[Megan]

If anyone has the recording of Lizst's "Cantata to Beethoven," will find a wonder poem about Beethoven. It is just too much for me to type it.

Here we have it Hofrat.







Franz Liszt composed his "Cantata for the inauguration of the Beethoven Monument at Bonn", on May 12th 1845.

The words were written by Bernhardt Wolff.



I. What draws the multitude together?
What business summons you here?
To judge by the throng,
today is a day of celebration.

You who come from hill and dale,
tell me what brings you here?
You who rest on the steps,
say, who summoned you here?

Come and give of your best,
come, whether high-born or lowly,
with the richest, most beautiful songs,
today is truly a day of celebration.

It is the day devoted to genius.

II. Like the waves of the sea,
all nations rush past
on the river of time.
Above them, eternally unchanging,
is heaven's dome alone!
But beneath them
in unceasingly circling motion
the incessantly changing earth.

Today there comes what is gone tomorrow,
today there labours what dies tomorrow,
destined to perish,
never acquiring permanence.

Rapidly vanishing even as it happens,
scarcely appeared, already escaping,
always fleeing, never staying:
only in death is there permanence.

III. The nations who passed by
sank into the night of nights:
only their rulers' names tell
a later generation of their actions.

In the book of world history
and at the Last Judgement,
as though spellbound,
the prince speaks up for his country.

But shall humankind's aspirations
flood away with us when we die?
Will nothing that they achieved
be preserved till the end of time?

If a prince represents his people
in the annals of history,
who then will tell of their torments
and proclaim what they have suffered?

Who will stand up for them
in the book of world history?
Who will make their name
shine through the ages?

Poor humankind, a heavy fate!
Who will be sent out by you
at the end of time?
The genius!
In his actions eternally true and great.


IV. He whom no night enshrouded,
he who is not led astray by everyday scorn;
he who unites humankind with God;
he whose brow is crowned by God
has boldly placated fate.
He lends to the brief span of time
the reflection of brightest eternity.

As he reveals his work,
so what he offered is divine;
never is he bowed down by the weight of years,
but like a hero he overcomes death.

Holy! Holy! Holy
is the genius's sway on earth.
He lent us a foretaste of heaven,
immortality's surest pledge.

This celebration has united us!
Set foot within the circle;
let us devote these varied hours
to his memory,
to him who gazes down, transfigured.
And even unto the end of time
his image shall tell posterity
that his contemporaries all revered him.

Hail! Hail! Beethoven, hail!

[Hofrat]

Thanks Megan. My digits are not what they use to be.

Lizst's "Cantata to Beethoven" is a lovely piece of music. It was a stroke of genius to include the 'Cantabile' from the Archduke Trio.

[Preston]

Peter, Stephen's poem is indeed touching.

[Preston]

If anyone has the recording of Lizst's "Cantata to Beethoven," will find a wonder poem about Beethoven. It is just too much for me to type it.

Indeed it is a wonder poem. I will have to read over a few times to understand it better. Thanks for posting it Megan.

I had no idea Liszt set a poem about Beethoven to music. What a slendid idea!

[Preston]

All this talk about poetry, I decided to write a poem about Beethoven. I wrote it in around 35 minutes. So, expect it to be sloppy. Anyway, hope you enjoy.

Out of Place Thoughts on Beethoven

Filled, with sound, only of the soul.
Thou, purest of thought shall whole.
Through, tones of life,
Thy story shall be told.

Surrounded by life's purest of melodies,
and the wretched stench of dark wasteful weight.
Thou, shalt grasp with all strength,
To try and seize a, pure, hope-filled fate.

Deaf, no sound, except ringing of the ears,
Similar to the bells of hell.
To cry! Such sorrow filled tears,
for so many long years!

Yet, the beauty of light will always return,
especially when,
Thou, is in thy worst of turns.

The peace that is felt,
And the sanity that is held,
Will be the guiding light,
When, Thou, cannot see.

The dark forces will not prevail,
as to a conquering triumph of hell.
Thou, shall prevail!
Through, purity and sound.

OH, the pain thou has suffered!
Tormented!, Mutilated!, Humiliated!
What souls feel in hell,
Thou shalt feel in a life.

Though, the blessings received,
Far exceed,
Any waste! Any weight! Any pain!

Through the tones of life,
All beauty shall be found,
And, in the end,
All beauty will be sound!

-Preston

[Quijote]

(Message deleted)

[Peter]

Peter, Stephen's poem is indeed touching.

Yes, I have another for you which I think you'll like:


What Was It?
.
What was it,
That the spirit said to you?
.
I will look deep into my loves devotion.
I will not rest
Till I have found
That which moved him.
Which touched his soul
So profoundly,
As to reverberate
And sustain itself
Until this time.
.
What was it,
That the spirit said to you?
.
Were men envious of you.
You must have known
Some would be.
For few men have enlightened minds,
Able to see into eternity,
See beyond there times.
None the less
You saw for them!
You lifted the veil for them!
.
What was it,
That the spirit said
To YOU!
.
Copyright Stephen J. Wade 1999

[Preston]

Yes Peter, I like that poem quite a lot. I like how he Stephen focuses on what moved Beethoven and what was it that moved him.