Ballade - Shakespeare's Monkeys

Ballade

This is one of my favourite forms, but it does take quite a lot of work because you've only got limited rhymes -- on the up side, one of those rhymes is partly taken care of by a refrain. The ballade is a French form which was originally intended for singing so it should be lyrical. There are a few variants but the most common is three stanzas of eight lines each plus an envoi or summary stanza of four lines. The last line of each stanza is the refrain. There are no specific meter requirements but in English it's best to keep it to a regular meter (the French think they're language isn't accented but they're French, what do they know?) Lines are usually either 8 or 10 syllables throughout.

The rhyme scheme is ababbcbC ababbcbC ababbcbC bcbC, where C is the refrain or repeating line.

Anchorage

I gently lay my hand against your cheek
Although I cannot touch your skin from here
And in this silent language that we speak
You soothe the trace that lingers of my fear
With chart and instrument the course you steer
Shall set us on a wild euphonic ride
As silent rain is seen to disappear
The distance melts and you are by my side

This bond of heart and mind is so unique
You whisper dreams that only I can hear
And should I feel my spirit growing weak
You strengthen me with words of love sincere
Though time and troubles seem to interfere
So turbulent the churning of the tide
I cast a rope and anchor at your pier
The distance melts and you are by my side

If one accord should be the goal we seek
I've found it in this strange, compulsive sphere
With metaphor delightfully oblique
And sweet romantic notion without peer
Your music blows with passion in my ear
As two poetic forces now collide
And so, ‘tis with abandon cavalier
The distance melts and you are by my side

So with these words my soul I volunteer
As over waves dividing I shall glide
To be within your mind again my dear
The distance melts and you are by my side

(from Odd Verse Effects)

Comments

Paradiso, Tracey Associate, 1902 posts	on June 3 2007 Buy Odd Verse Effects! (Shameless promo of a member and friend.)
Laurie Blumfrom Cloud 9 Associate, 2074 posts	on June 8 2007 That is such a beautiful ballade, that I was inspired to go buy your book Leanne! Now I am going to send it to you so you can autograph it personally for me. Although I am going to have to read the entire book first! Really, I just read your ballade again and it is exquisitely crafted.
Leanne Hansonfrom Just west of the lounge room Associate, 3708 posts	on June 8 2007 Laurie, you're wonderful Now it's your turn to write a ballade so you can see how easy it is to fool people into thinking you're clever, like me!
Sinnaminsun	on Jan. 15 2008 Wow, that's beautifully written. I picked up on the lyrical rhythm in your ballade, and your story within this is written clearly and concisely. Sometimes when writing in a more difficult genre, the story can become lost within the rhyme scheme, and a person can end up with complete nonsense by the end of a piece. I enjoyed reading this Leanne:) I think it was nice that you added the background and rhyme scheme of a ballade, that's always so helpful since the memory can fade if one doesn't always write in that genre.
Leanne Hansonfrom Just west of the lounge room Associate, 3708 posts	on Jan. 15 2008 Writing in forms really isn't difficult -- not technically speaking anyway -- once you've practised it enough, you can turn your hand to pretty much anything. But the trick, as you've pointed out, is to make sure that YOU are in charge of the poem, not the rhymes. A lot of people say that rhyming poetry is limiting, and I just don't think that's true. There is always a rhyme that suits what you want to say, and if there isn't then you just go back a couple of lines and change another word to make it work -- it's not limiting, but it IS disciplined. Many thanks for your lovely comments