Tap ~ tap ~ tap-tap-tap ~
sticks like feathers, softly flap ~
tap ~ tap ~ tap-tap-tap ~
in the dance from Dil~wyn~
THWACK ~ THWACK ~ THWACK-THWACK-THWACK~
sticks like weapons, loudly crack ~
THWACK ~ THWACK ~ THWACK-THWACK-THWACK~
in the dance from Dil~wyn~
Crabs skip to left and crabs skip to right ~
scuttling the Wye with dance delight ~
crabs skip to left and crabs skip to right ~
in the dance from Dil~wyn~
Repeat Tap and THWACK verses
Stars spin to left and stars spin to right ~
circling the Wye with dance delight ~
stars spin to left and stars spin to right ~
in the dance from Dil~wyn~
Repeat Tap and THWACK verses
Repeat Stars verse
Repeat Tap and THWACK verses
Repeat Crabs verse
Repeat Tap and THWACK verses
Cheer (‘huzzah!’ etc.)
* * *
The P-i-R apologises for her time as ‘P-i-A’ (Poet in
Absence) over the summer. Many are the demands of unrelenting masters Work and
Ill-Health, resulting in the silence of Creativity, alas. Yet here is one
afternoon between projects, between treatments – so to return to Sudeley, if
for a brief while.
As Brother Adrian and I neared the Terrace on our first
outing, we were met by the joyful sounds of ‘Dilwyn’, recognised from previous
performances. Here’s Happenstance’s 2011 Cotswold Beer Festival performance on
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rG_LmJG7Os
The Dilwyn tune is one of my favourites to date, and its
structure and rhythms inspire this simple poem. I perform using iambic tetrameter, but
not as strictly as in previous pieces (for example, ‘Isbourne’), sustaining (~)
and splitting beats to capture the overall form. Dear Mrs T. was able to
enlighten me concerning the choreography, the stars and crabs, and these shapes
return in my next piece.
