Joseph Charles MacKenzie’s Sonnet 5 Inspires the World of Pop (Video) The Society September 9, 2019 Beauty, Culture, Poetry, Readings, Video Originally published here. ALBUQUERQUE, NM — July 27, 2019 — Sonnet 5, a marriage poem from MacKenzie’s Sonnets for Christ the King, has inspired award-winning producer, composer, and vocalist D.G. Hall to put forth a timeless song in the contemporary pop genre. With its positive vibe, soaring vocal lines, and beautifully textured orchestration, Hall’s setting combines classic style with the best of today’s popular sound. The remarkable collaboration of a traditional lyric poet with a genius producer has resulted in the creation of MacKenzie & Hall, a partnership operating under the PoemSongs.com label committed to producing beautiful songs based on MacKenzie poems. MacKenzie is a member of the prestigious Society of Classical Poets and has appeared in Trinacria (New York), America’s top review of formal verse. The relationship is groundbreaking in that so-called “lyrics,” created by committees and serving only to set up a chorus, have become shopworn and conventional in today’s industry. Only exquisite, traditionally-crafted poems, composed by authentic men of letters with humanistic backgrounds, are able to convey a classic sense of timelessness. MacKenzie & Hall have thus confirmed a truth of songwriting first demonstrated by David Gilmour’s setting of Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18: The 400-year old English sonnet continues to stand the test of time. For Elizabeth If charm were a country, then you would be Its capital of many domes and spires Gilded and gleaming off a crystal sea, And graced with every art that love inspires. If beauty a nation, then you, its queen, Would wield the scepter of love’s dazzling power Beguiling all thy subjects with serene And regal allure from a silver tower. Alas, the fairest flow’rs remain unknown Behind the garden walls of married life; And thou, the loveliest, shouldst not bemoan The humble title of a poet’s wife: To capitals yet made these lines proclaim Eternal love, and gild thy beauty’s fame. ©Joseph Charles MacKenzie NOTE TO READERS: If you enjoyed this poem or other content, please consider making a donation to the Society of Classical Poets. The Society of Classical Poets does not endorse any views expressed in individual poems or commentary. Trending now:
