The Recital
Often when I am writing, or creating artwork, I can hear the sound of birds singing outside. I once decided to step outside and just listen to what kinds of “songs” they sing. I ended up hearing many different kinds of bird songs, coming from far and near. The cardinals on the telephone wire, the sparrows in the bushes, the doves on the grass, and the mynah birds that strutted along the top of a fence – they all had different songs.
Now, science has shown the real reasons why birds sing, be it for mating, territorial defense, or alerting others of their kind to the presence of predators.
But sometimes I find it fun to imagine that they are just singing to show off their voices and orate the world with their “hit songs”, like a fine-feathered flock of cocky Chanticleers…
The Recital (Poem)
In a clearing in the forest, a recital carries on
The performers strut in song
with the maestro looking on
The forest echoes loudly with their voices as they trill
And the avian divas show their skill
as the audience they thrill
The feline maestro in tuxedo
brims with pride and strokes his ego
Deep inside, he’s satisfied
his fame won’t this time be denied
His masterpiece will Hit worldwide
Or so he thinks – starry-eyed.
The Recital
NOTES ON THE CREATIVE PROCESS: I wrote the poem while viewing the picture, which I had created previously. And so the poem was inspired by the picture. This is an example of ekphrasis , in which one artform tries to describe the meanings and feelings that have been expressed in another artform, and thus becomes interrelated with it.