Cycle of six songs distilled from James Joyce’s early poetry in a book titled Chamber Music. In deceptively simple language, Joyce illuminates the beauty of earthly life, while all the timeactually speaking about love and the pain of love’s loss. The journey begins with Love sounding a string instrument along the river. Then the sound of an old piano drifts in the

air as twilight enfolds the earth. That piano becomes a harp of the heavens at night. Reading by the hearth, the poet imagines the golden-haired lover singing cheerfully,

leaning out the window. Then a meditation on the tide of the sea, “the noise of waters making moan...flowing to and fro.” Finally, a dream vision of an army on horseback

charging from the sea, arrogant, shouting, and laughing, tearing away denial, raining despair, and wresting a final heart-wrenching plea from the poet: “My love, my love, my

love, why have you left me alone?”

Text

Lights of Amethyst

Poetry of James Joyce (from Chamber Music)

1. Strings in the earth and air

Strings in the earth and air

Make music sweet;

Strings by the river where

The willows meet.

There’s music along the river

For Love wanders there,

Pale flowers on his mantle,

Dark leaves on his hair.

All softly playing,

With head to the music bent,

And fingers straying

Upon an instrument.

***

2. The twilight turns from amethyst

The twilight turns from amethyst

To deep and deeper blue,

The lamp fills with a pale green glow

The trees of the avenue.

The old piano plays an air,

Sedate and slow and gay;

She bends upon the yellow keys,

Her head inclines this way.

Shy thoughts and grave wide eyes and hands

that wander as they list—

The twilight turns to darker blue

With lights of amethyst.

***

3. O lonely watcher of the skies

At that hour when all things have repose,

O lonely watcher of the skies,

Do you hear the night wind and the sighs

Of harps playing unto Love to unclose

The pale gates of sunrise?

When all things repose do you alone

Awake to hear the sweet harps play

To Love before him on his way,

And the night wind answering in antiphon

Till night is overgone?

Play on, invisible harps, unto Love,

Whose way in heaven is aglow

At that hour when soft lights come and go,

Soft sweet music in the air above

And in the earth below.

4. Goldenhair

Lean out of the window,

Goldenhair,

I heard you singing

A merry air.

My book was closed;

I read no more,

Watching the fire dance

On the floor.

I have left my book,

I have left my room,

For I heard you singing

Through the gloom.

Singing and singing

A merry air,

Lean out of the window,

Goldenhair.

***

5. To and fro

All day I hear the noise of waters

Making moan,

Sad as the sea-bird is, when going

Forth alone,

He hears the winds cry to the waters'

Monotone.

The grew winds, the cold winds are blowing

Where I go.

I hear the noise of many waters

Far below.

All day, all night, I hear them flowing

To and fro.

***

5. I hear an army charging upon the land

I hear an army charging upon the land,

And the thunder of horses plunging, foam about

their knees:

Arrogant, in black armor, behind them stand,

Disdaining the reins, with fluttering whips, the

charioteers.

They cry unto the night their battle-name:

I moan in sleep when I hear afar their whirling

laughter.

They cleave the gloom of dreams, a blinding flame,

Clanging, clanging upon the heart as upon an

anvil.

They come shaking in triumph their long, green

hair:

They come out of the sea and run shouting by

the shore.

My heart, have you no wisdom thus to despair?

My love, my love, my love, why have you left me alone?