Special Section: Irene Emanuel

Irene Emanuel

Chords to Childhood

Formal lounge filled with music

within warm wooden panels;

whispers of Louis, Ella, Brubeck, New Orleans waves of jazz;

classic collisions into Beethoven, Grieg, and Mozart’s

art of concertos, symphonies and orchestral harmonies of joy.

The wooden panels gleam with pulsing tempo,

drawing out operatic majesties of Carmen, La Traviata, Rigoletto;

then segueing into Gilbert and Sullivan.

This continuum of sounds, styles and crescendos

sends my senses into scenes of sadness, gladness

and shivers of delight that draw out

the melodious memories of my musical childhood.

Embedded in my soul are the piano lessons;

my big brother’s tonette, my sister’s soprano;

shadow dancing in front of the gramophone.

I, too, sang and dreamt of being a recording artist.

The wooden panels are the echoes of a life

filled with music twined within my soul,

responsible for my survival.

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Setu, November 2025