Strange Music

Mahler’s 2nd (The Resurrection) and the Ants

Behind the notes’ invisible drama is God. Hearing Mahler

as if lunatics and gravity and ants ceaseless as the first

and second movements the strings and pregnant loads

of differing directions, of front and side and pivoting

chords, or ants unable one at a time to stand still.

Ants as tendency, ants as ants in columns on grooves

like dots on CDs the focal movement irrelevant the Sign

and crotchety anywhere of their purpose, their restless

mania for abstraction. No programme notes to read but

then what do Mahler’s say — why do you live? Is it all

a huge joke? they carry sawn-through leaves as big as

key-signatures, sugar to the living (they rise again) (and again).

No falling back for a cigarette a quick snort a sinus moment

of whisky or cocaine just to keep their fingers and limbs

agitative, the job the job, ants as the minor keys the swell

of doom, ants run onto the track of brassy and timpani

exoskeletons, in Mahler’s grimmest anti-closet . . .

She cries out in heart-stopping anty-mezzo Oh believe

O glaube Es geht dir nichts verloren No, you will not

be lost. And only after the heavy chords, only after

burden-bearing back and forth the difference the diff

-erent and the diffident ants (there have to be some

like us): Die as I shall, so as to live! Who isn’t moved

by their famous power-to-weight ratio so very serious

(lift and lift! they lift us up! they are the Resurrection!)

Sterben werd’ ich um zu leben! sings the soprano,

Yes yes and ja ja say the ants.

Philip Salom