Seven Ways of Looking at Music

First post for my Sophomore year: a poem, written in the style of Wallace Stevens' 'Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird'.

Seven Ways of Looking at Music

I

Black on white is not animated, but

the sound that comes from black on white

can be breathtaking.

II

Music left unplayed

is a wasted opportunity

to live.

III

A, F, G, E, C...

They are

they can be

So much more than letters.

IV

Both are beautiful: the potential that is in a beginning

And the thrill of making a perfect finish;

An empty staff

And a Symphony.

V

First there is panic as we seem to suddenly forget

what we have spent months perfecting,

though the music is in front of us.

But when our fingers find familiar keys,

we remember.

VI

The silence just before we begin

the anticipation

Can be more thrilling than the music.

VII

When I look at the notes, I see more than music:
I see memories.