A Word on Inspiration

I suppose it should be fairly obvious that all writing takes some form of inspiration, whether it be in the form of strong emotion, caffeine, lack of sleep, or just a random collection of words and ideas that slaps one upside the head, we are all inspired.  I've always found that concept interesting, and I thought I may as well enlighten you as to the inspiration and context behind Scarlequain. 

The first time I began to write short poetry was in my Sight Singing class my Sophomore year of College here on the Hill at Bryan College.  It was a class with Dr. Wilhoit, and it was generally highly embarrassing as we all had to sing in front of the class.  To distract myself from the feelings of great discomfort, I would write short poems in the margins of my book, describing the situation that was going on, or certain people in the class.  This tradition carried over into another Wilhoit class (Music History 3), and I began cataloguing my work on my Instagram account under the hashtag "#Scarlequain" and "#poetryonnotes," since I wrote my poetry in the actual class notes (I still update my Instagram nearly once a week with new poetry.  If you would like to keep up with them past this blog, check out the hashtags.).

At any rate, in keeping with my tradition of avoiding the awkward situations in class, I write poetry.  The more awkward the situation, generally the more obscure the poem.  For your enjoyment, one such poem:

When chopping heads,

Best be wasted.

Good for libertines,

Advent: Guillotine!

French Revolution.

Obviously, since these poems are written in a music history class, they may contain references to obscure operatic reformers or revolutionaries who changed the psychology of romantic composers.  In short, Scarlequain is full of historical and musical characteristics that require a certain amount of taste and nerdom.  Enjoy at your own risk.

-J