The Music Lovers

I went to hear some chamber music last night and was reminded of the marks that violinists and violists usually have on their necks from the instrument they play, marks that resemble those left by very passionate kisses.  That's where this poem began.

                                                     The Music Lovers

                                         The violinist has a hickey on her neck.
                                         So does the violist. It’s from their
                                         instruments, as if they were teenage
                                         lovers, making out to Bach in the
                                         backseat - or being abused by Schonberg.

                                        The cellist must have different bruises
                                        since he always plays with the instrument
                                        between his legs.

                                        In this strange string quartet,
                                        only the bass player is upright
                                        and unblemished, but then again
                                        his date always stands him up.


Notes on possible Americanisms for foreign followers:
1. A hickey is a mark left by a passionate, sucking kiss – usually on the neck.
2. When a date stands you up, it means that (s)he doesn’t show up for a rendezvous.
3. A string bass is also called an upright bass (and upright also means morally sound and strict).
4. This is a strange string quartet since the string bass is not a chamber instrument.