Analysis of A Dreamer’s Chamber Music
Karl Constantine FOLKES 1935 (Portland)
Behold, the dreamer dreameth !
Composing chamber music.
From deep recesses of the mind,
Emerging something rustic .
Nocturnal nocturnes in my dreams,
Languido e rubato.
They come to me like rapid streams,
Expressively obbligato .
Tympanic symphony in my ears,
Prolonged like sweet legato.
Smoothly flowing, my eyes moving,
Like a dancer’s minuetto.
Now I’m carefree, cheerful, festive,
Like a merry rondo.
Smiling happily in my dreams,
Da Vinci’s Florentine Giocondo.
So if music be the Spriggan Sap of sleep,
Give me a Cornish harp.
And while dreaming, fingering A-minor,
I’ll, eyes closed, play in G-sharp.
| Scheme | XABA CBCB XXXB XBCB XDXD |
|---|---|
| Poetic Form | Quatrain |
| Metre | 010101 0101010 11100101 0101010 0101011 111 11111101 11 010100011 011101 10101110 10101 1111010 10101 10100011 11101 1110101111 110101 0110100010 1111011 |
| Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
| Characters | 620 |
| Words | 117 |
| Sentences | 11 |
| Stanzas | 5 |
| Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
| Lines Amount | 20 |
| Letters per line (avg) | 24 |
| Words per line (avg) | 5 |
| Letters per stanza (avg) | 96 |
| Words per stanza (avg) | 19 |
About this poem
I sincerely believe that all musical compositions, all forms of art, all things created, originate in the deep recesses of the sleeper’s mind where, like fire ever burning, and cauldron ever bubbling, they are forever toiling; and where, from latent, hidden caverns, they manifest themselves in waking realms, elegantly arranged, yet somewhat distorted. This poem is called “A Dreamer’s Chamber Music” because it emerges from hidden chambers, and because the poem is suggestive of the dreamer’s dreaming ears resonating with musical instruments while asleep. The reference to the Cornish Spriggan Sap suggests that the REM dream state is alchemical in nature, something indeed, quite magical. more »
Written on December 01, 2021
Submitted by karlcfolkes on December 01, 2021
Modified by karlcfolkes on May 31, 2023
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"A Dreamer’s Chamber Music" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 5 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/114902/a-dreamer%E2%80%99s-chamber-music>.
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