Songs
City of Song-Ghosts [Narrator reprise]
by Cheryl Frances-Hoad From Six Songs of Melmoth (2020)
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Text
City of Song-Ghosts [Narrator reprise]
English source:
Sophie Rashbrook
Melmoth has wandered the earth
seeking the one who can take her place
For centuries, not one has consented
But then, Melmoth heard of a place
where the sorrow of ghosts
is bottled in song
Now Melmoth sits
on the top of the church spire
and listens
Moping poets
Hurdy-gurdy men
Sirens of the spinning-wheel
Melmoth drinks these cocktails
of despair and desire
never satisfied, until one night
she hears a voice
that is liquid melancholy
At once, Melmoth knows its secrets
The singer who hides her own despair
behind the melody-miseries of others
Yes, she will do;
Yes, she is the one
Melmoth flies down
and enters through the door
Only the singer can see her…
seeking the one who can take her place
For centuries, not one has consented
But then, Melmoth heard of a place
where the sorrow of ghosts
is bottled in song
Now Melmoth sits
on the top of the church spire
and listens
Moping poets
Hurdy-gurdy men
Sirens of the spinning-wheel
Melmoth drinks these cocktails
of despair and desire
never satisfied, until one night
she hears a voice
that is liquid melancholy
At once, Melmoth knows its secrets
The singer who hides her own despair
behind the melody-miseries of others
Yes, she will do;
Yes, she is the one
Melmoth flies down
and enters through the door
Only the singer can see her…
Composer
Cheryl Frances-Hoad
Cheryl's music has been described as “like a declaration of faith in the eternal verities of composition” (The Times), with “a voice overflowing not only with ideas, but also with the discipline and artistry necessary to harness them” (The…
Poet
Sophie Rashbrook
Sophie Rashbrook is a writer, librettist and opera dramaturg. https://sophierashbrook.com/.