Music for Voice
Translated from the Korean
i
Sonorous music for voice— I hear
a short but elegiac,
pained
melody— for long discarded
dreams of a simple life
and my heart
in fading aches.
ii
Funereal music for voice— I hear
a brisk but elegiac,
pained
melody— for the restless
desire I have for quiet
and the tears
spill down my face.
iii
Tragic music for voice— I hear
a long but stilted,
pained
melody— for my shriveling
spirit, and I smile faintly feeling
a touch refreshed.
iv
Water music for voice— I hear
a high but grounded,
pained
melody— for the soothing blue
inescapable breeze, blowing sweetly
through every corner
of town.
Notes:
Read the translator’s note by Ryan Choi.
Source: Poetry (July/August 2025)