Five Magnet Poems

SATB Choir, a Cappella

In the craziness of college, I had trouble finding time to write full-fledged pieces. Instead, I used this limitation as a challenge, trying to squeeze as much music and sophistication out of a few bars that I possibly could.

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I came across a twitter post online where a woman showcased this poem she made on her fridge with refrigerator magnets. As the post suggests, it was incredibly deep for how short it is, and it is one of the only poems I have ever memorized. I took a look at her other work, and found that she had a wealth of other poems made using the same medium--refrigerator magnets. Many of which are written about characters in her Dungeons and Dragons campaign, meaning that they are chock full of imagery and grandiose intent, all in a couple of words.

As such, I initially drafted this piece as "Two Magnet Poems," and after getting the poet's blessing, I added more and more miniature "pieces" until there were a total of five--each one being short vignettes, only around 16 measures long. Each piece has as much symbolism as possible squeezed out of it, and every note has its own purpose and meaning. Of particular note is the piece based off of the viral werewolf poem (as I understand it, the only authorized musical setting of it in the world), and the starsong poem, which I commissioned from the author specifically for inclusion in this work.

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It is always a joy to collaborate with other artists, and Lindsey has been amazing to work with on this. I hope you enjoy these brief and poignant settings of otherworldly and mystical poems.

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Image credit: Steve Johnson / flickr / CC BY 2.0