The Symphony Poem by Danny Speicher

One line in the symphony
The musician hears it in his head
A single note or, perhaps, a chord
One by one on the paper they see

A melody, a harmony, a theme, or variation
One line is all the musician can see
But, a wall of sound surrounding his line
He finds a crescendo and plays it proudly

But, then the diminuendo follows
And, again, he fades into the mass
On and on the symphony plays
The conductor conducts and the rhythm carries on

Then for a brief moment
A shining moment in time
You hear but your instrument, alone
A solo, your glimmer of fame

Or, is there another playing, just one?
A duet, perhaps, and then it resounds
Yes, the harmony, the connection
One musician playing perfectly in tune with another

Harmony! Oh, sweet bliss!
Harmony! Other instruments play softly, now
They play as a chorus for these two musicians
Gently, gently, they play, not wanting to diminish the melody

For just a few bars
A peaceful sonnet with notes for its verse
No words could speak the unspeakable love
A duet, lasting just a few more bars

But, wait, the discord! Oh, the painful dissidence!
Is it coming from the chorus?
What instrument? What section? Who?
Who would dare bring the minor key?

No! Not them!
How could they break from the melody?
The peace ends as the duet now breaks
One augmented half step

And, the maestro cues the next theme
The moment is gone, and the musician fades
Fading into the chorus
His fame has come and now it has gone

((December 27th,2016))