Day 631 – Ensemble (Monach)

Day 631 of the daily poems.  Our poet Jane Monach acclaims a performance of Mozart’s Clarinet Quintet, in a poem that seems
close to a synaesthetic perception of this exquisite music.

Ensemble          
after a performance of Mozart’s Clarinet Quintet
at Music in the Round, Sheffield

A clarinet’s clear voice weaves
               among violins, cello and viola
silver keys shining on black wood,

threads its sound to lead
               follow and encircle
warp and weft of strings,

rises above and dips below
               traces patterned intricacies
while four bows flow and flicker.

The reed’s high notes expand
                and soften, touch
a melody and mood in me.

Jane Monach
published in: Reflected Light, 2020, Grey Hen Press