Tag Archives: Maurice Ravel

‘… the delicious and always new pleasure of a useless occupation’ — Henri de Régnier

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Dance with me.

a good south african red wine,
caesar salad and vegetable pie,
poetry flowing freely
from an endless cognitive-emotional waterfall,
yet unfinished oil paintings
haunting me with outrageous suggestions,
and — in the background —
a delicious recording of
“Valses nobles et sentimentales”
(my old war horse from my
years as a classical pianist)
dulling the razor sharp edges of
sanity and more sensible pastimes.

poetry, art, music …
these are my “perfect lovers”.
if only You could learn
to embrace their spontaneity
and flippancy.

here —
have a glass of wine,
take your clothes off,
and close your eyes
as i recite a poem to you.
but most of all,
do not promise to
be with me forever.
and do not tell me that
our love will last an eternity.

rather, meet me fully —
in this moment —
and dance with me …
dance with me.

Citation d’Henri de Régnier : « …le plaisir délicieux et toujours nouveau d’une occupation inutile ».

Two works by Maurice Ravel that have challenged and inspired me greatly.

I dedicate this post to four renowned concert pianists that I studied under as a young man in New York City: John Ranck, Berenice Lipson-Grüzen, Arminda Canteros and Jacob Lateiner. They were all inspiring pedagogues, and colourful personalities …

Alas, I was never good enough to perform these works professionally but they have inspired much in the way of my poetry and paintings … Adam Donaldson Powell.