Long Vivace Poems

These are my modern English translations of sonnets by the French poet Stephane Mallarme.

The Tomb of Edgar Poe
by Stéphane Mallarmé
loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Transformed into himself by Death, at last,
the Bard unsheathed his Art’s...

Read More

Tower, buzz and scurry
Oh great resilient city
Ahoy!
Alive.  Scramble bustle earth's
 ethnicities
On lurid quests--
A pendulum of tantric turmoil and
Blessed harmony

Quixotic city--brash,
Sangfroid merotomized and
Chrematistic--metro nonpareil.

See a myriad melange of
Tortured splenetic
Souls and great spirits
Noble and soothfast

Great city,...

Read More

OL Doinyo Lengai    

                            ...

Read More

// This is my tribute to the many blessings that music brings to our
lives. I know many of you share this enthusiasm and gratitude. //

Appreciating an amazing artform: allegro, andante, or adagio -
Bach, Beethoven, Brahms:...

Read More

Winter Sonata 11-29-23
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Winter Sonata

In grave allegro solo grey gathers,
Strings of winter fantasias
Brewing staccatos of frozen fall remnants,
Downbeats for the first movement
As shivering sleet wipes away bucolic barcarolles
Rocking on sapphire barges,
Harbingers of hoarfrost and hibernation,
When leafless...

Read More

I build an imagination from your love, sweetheart
Maybe two days from today I'll be in for a sick bay
Struggling to get my breath sustain me at least a day,
To see you again.

Just maybe an hour...

Read More

Might he find it in him self to
see error in his previous thought
than might he recognize the
way his lyrics and music
might blend together to
be heard in the finest hall's
of this world.
Those lovers, and those who...

Read More

Who's voice meatus
with a sweet tenors
tone
which words are sung
so lovely
so smooth and sweet
Nonet Musette?
Atonal Baroque?
Vivace Trill Trombone?
uh, you don't know
Rubato Tutti?
Meatus Tablature ?
sweet, sweet tone
do you have interest
in the clefts notes, huh?
does the whiskey from...

Read More

.



It came down, in the end, to starlight...
dusted lashes blinking, 
eyes trailing intricate arms of galaxies, 
thinking with breaths of blood, 
eons of blood...
one second...one life.
Wait for me, 
I will meet you at the edge...

Read More

there fluffin ditter
is a rubber hose
connected to the
fleckin Strum
( a tuba with no mouthpeice0
The freakin floss say! Mastrao
it
flutes the bassafoss.
where the octavor
octavates.
So the clarcotti can claricott the
freakinfoss dossator!
Noun we can Octavate the 
cantorious octaive!
Sound Mastro...

Read More

Play
it
slowly
adagio
slow, ma non troppo
play it in the time of a slow waltz
“music is the best means we have of digesting time”

And
now
play it
andante
at a walking pace
alla marcia, in march time
“music is the best means we have...

Read More