A Short Song

Artwork – Alexis Rotella

POETRY CORNER

– 7/22/15

Cristian Mocanu

if I write tanka
in this difficult summer
it’s a little song:
treat the poet as you wish,
show compassion to his lines!

Cristian Mocanu lives in Deva,​ Romania, where he makes a living as a freelance translator. He writes mainly in English, and loves to write tanka, haiku and sijo as well as to experiment with various Eastern and Western fixed form poetry genres.

Ο Ο Ο

Artwork – Alexis Rotella

matsukaze

tanka music ​–​
at once low and rhythmic,
or loudly dissonant
against the carpet
of our ears

my tanka is a song
of a creole man
with blue-black negro dreams
i compose them wildly
with nonchalance

in my life
a pleasure called tanka ​–​​
fingers rapidly craft
these earthy melodies
about slices of life

matsukaze is a singer of classical music and lives in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Tanka, a very old form, originally Japanese, has been defined as a ‘short song.’ It is often thought of as a lyrical form, free form in English. matsukaze says​ ​”​as with all music, i also look for less lyricism​ — i love staccato/marcatto, i love syncopated, i even love atonal, almost dissonant and choppy pieces”.​

Ο Ο Ο

Artwork – Alexis Rotella

Jennifer Thompson

the songs I sing​​
without you here
to silence me…
a tattered ribbon flies
wound in wind and birdsong

Jennifer Thompson lives and writes in West Virginia. She has been writing tanka for a few years now and loves the music in its rhythms.

*Artwork by Alexis Rotella, poet/artist of Maryland, USA (photographed by Kathabela).

> We welcome and encourage your response especially in the form of short poems. You may reply by leaving a comment below. The Poetry Corner is hosted by Kathabela Wilson.