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Mad Heart: Sappho's Fragments in Song: Live at LitCrawl 2022

by Cadence Chung

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1.
O, my goddess be good to me O, my goddess crush me down O, my goddess Release me Somewhere I won’t be found. Help this mad heart in your soft ways I know you can help this mad heart Help this mad heart, help this mad heart In its beating, in its beating Save this poor soul, save this poor soul From its longing, from its longing From your golden house Fly to me now. Then shone the lightning And sparrows drew her near and she smiled oh so sweetly And asked what was wrong with her poet so dear. And I said, I don’t know. But she knew right away She saw the love Staining my face Said, though, now she flies Soon, she won’t flee. Soon, though not yet she will love thee. Help this mad heart, help this mad heart In its beating, in its beating Save this poor soul, save this poor soul From its longing, from its longing End this great ache If for nothing, then for my sake And goddess, if you will My mad, mad heart, with love fill Release me, release me I’m lonely, lonely Fulfil me, fulfil me Or just end me just end me just end me just Ah, ah, Ah…..
2.
O my love, O my love, O my love O how I wish that we could stay forever O my love, O my love, O my love O how I wish we’d not untether And she spoke, and she spoke with salt like rivers on her face “O Sappho dear, O Sappho dear, how wretched is this time and place Where I must leave, and you must stay, and we both age and flowers wither O Sappho dear, know that I leave, know that I leave Against my will, against my will.” And so you go, you go, you go, you go, and I hope you know, you know, you know, you know I loved you so, I loved you so, I loved you so. And sorrow, sorrow, sorrow, sorrow, sorrow Hello, hello, hello, hello, hello Old friend It’s been a while. But all I said, all I said, all I said, is “Go, my dear, be free.” Remember me, remember me and all the love I had for thee… And remember flowers in your hair And the soft beds where we’d share In all the joy of longing set free Remember me, O, me. And so you go, you go, you go, you go, and I hope you know, you know, you know, you know I loved you so, I loved you so, I loved you so. And sorrow, sorrow, sorrow, sorrow, sorrow Hello, hello, hello, hello, hello Old friend It’s been a while.
3.
Even as the soft morning rain falls down on this crumbling scene the man, he seems quite unchanged this man who can look at you in the rain This man who smiles and laughs through it all Like life is nothing but a charm to put on his wrist and flaunt to the world this man far greater than any girl like me - he seems to be a god a god with his smile and his pretty talk, O God, I’m nothing but a poet and all I have are these words for it These words that will last but a lifetime but a lifetime then no more left alone in the desert to rot and sing no more and your laughter fills the silence brushes through my heavy thoughts my mouth is full of words inexpressible so I say nothing at all Still my mouth moves, my skin it flushes Like a flare in the lamplight, I am drowning in my shame and envy of how that man’s name fits in your mouth, like honey, like something sweet sweeter than my bitter mead, my bite with an aftertaste of addiction my poet’s tongue, my wit, my incisions But at night, I dream I close my eyes, and I see Cities will fall and beasts will die In the time it takes for you to make up your mind And you will never be mine, I’ll exhale you Spit you out like the remains of last night If you aren’t mine, I hope he’ll have you I hope my body stops shaking with this bitter craze And yes, I love you, I am covered in salt, and stained with love, and I feel close to death.
4.
O, ye sweet mountain flower Blooming in the mist O, ye sweet mountain flower with the morning dew you are kissed, kissed O’er the hills comes the shepherd with his careless feet who can blame him, who can blame him for crushing something so sweet so sweet, sweet For beauty is a flame that goes unfed It burns so bright and leaves you hungry Beauty is a siren Calling, calling, with no answer but the rain, oh, beauty is not made for me I wither under your cruel feet my beauty Have mercy, mercy on me O, ye sweet mountain flower Blooming in the mist O, ye dead mountain flower By Hades you were kissed In death’s dream. But a stain, but a scarlet stream. But a stain, but a scarlet stream. Ah, ah, ah, ah.
5.
Now comes the night in all its sweet darkness darkness from whence everything came. Then rise the moon all of her silver beauty mocking me for being alone mocking me for being alone mocking me for being alone on this night. Mocking me for being alone Mocking me for being alone with the Heaviness of my crude human heart threatening to burst on these tangled bedsheets good for nothing but reminding me of the taste of another’s sweetness How I’d kill to feel that again! How I’d kill to know even then That loneliness can kill that drinking all your fill Will only bring such thirst in the morning How happiness can hurt In spite of all the mirth as soon as they still leave I feel they never once would have loved me I feel they never once would have loved me. For who would love a fool such as I? A girl who looks upon the sky and sees the moon as some wretched sister though she is a god, I swear that I know her I’ve told her of my love and her silver facepaint never flakes til-til the morning til her love comes back, him so bright and beautiful bringing light, not sorrow and now she shines her light on my tired human skin, on her way to the Pleiades Must be nice to be able to touch the sky. And I tell myself she’s alone like me for a cold comfort is all I need she feels the light of her love but cannot touch him why, my moon, my friend, my ally, we are fighting the same war so just stay until the dawn Just stay until the dawn. So, rise the moon over the Pleiades I’ll stay in bed alone.
6.
They once blamed me for those words in my mouth They once blamed how my soul tastes of salt Not sugar, not sweetened to their liking And they hate the want, the want of a woman, the wanton, the desire, the fountain of love, only meant to sing lullabies Sleep now my dear for the night is near Lay down your head on the hide and dream of All the things you wanted, all the things that make you wanton You want them, you wanton little thing Are you there, are you there my love? Bring me a lover, O goddess above Make her sweet, make her melt on my lips And if not that then at least let us kiss And those words on my teeth in the back of my mouth like permanent runes of longing, longing I want, I want, I want, I want And I will not deny it any longer I want, I want, I want, I want The more I deny it the more it grows stronger I want Come now, let’s dance, darling Would you take my hand? Blood in my mouth, darling Would you take my hand? I’m so in love, darling Would you take my hand? So in love with love, darling Would you take me as I am? Would you take me as I am? And those words on my teeth in the back of my mouth like permanent runes of longing, longing I want, I want, I want, I want And I will not deny it any longer I want, I want, I want, I want The more I deny it the more it grows stronger I want I want What’s wanting ever given me but all these untouched histories and salt in my teeth in my dreams all the bad dreams it has given me Still, here they are in my sleep these words the gods have given me my prayer to nobody I want I want I want, I want, I want, I want And I will not deny it any longer.

about

Let Cadence Chung transport you to 600 BC with her original lyre compositions inspired by Sappho's fragments. Played on an authentic 7-string lyre and accompanied by fellow young musicians, these songs are full of ancient and modern yearning. Chung brings her experience as both a poet and classical performer to try and breathe life back into verses that were always meant to be sung.

This performance was recorded live at LitCrawl 2022, as part of the Verb Literary Festival. The venue was St Peter's on Willis.

credits

released January 18, 2023

Composer: Cadence Chung
Lyrist and Vocalist: Cadence Chung
Violinist: Darren Breeze
Cellist: Jamie Beardsley
Percussionist: Ossian Lynch
Sound engineer: Alistair Isdale
Cover photography: Rebecca McMillan Photography for Verb Wellington
Cover designer: Erin Dailey

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Cadence Chung Wellington, New Zealand

Cadence Chung is a poet, composer, musician, and student from Te-Whanganui-a-Tara. Her poetry has been published widely, with her debut chapbook 'anomalia' released in April 2022 with Tender Press. Her original musical 'In Blind Faith' debuted at BATS Theatre in August 2022, and she is currently studying Classical Voice at the New Zealand School of Music. ... more

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