A quiet notice V2Melody closes at midnight on , Spanish time.

Closes

A note from Richard

V2Melody will close at midnight on 20 January 2028

This site has been a retirement project in musical poetry: poems chosen with care and set to music, offered freely for as long as it felt right to keep the garden open.

The work no longer holds the place it once did in my life. I have gone as far with it as I wish to go. Like a sand mandala, it was made to be completed and then released. I am not attached to its permanence, and I do not believe any of it needs to last beyond the time it was given. The poems were already here before I arrived and began to experiment with them. They will still be here when these musical experiments, and indeed myself, have been swept away, like the sand of a mandala. Nothing has been lost.

I want a simpler end to my life, days of simple love and enjoyment with my wonderful wife of 20 years. The work of maintaining a server, the monitoring, and the residual obligations that come with keeping a site alive no longer fit that life.

From 4 November 2026 I will not be adding new poems or musical poems to the site.

The experimental music I am making now is on my Suno profile. Those pieces stay there, and are not added to this site.

Until midnight on 20 January 2028, Spanish time, everything remains available exactly as it is. That is when my VPS server contract comes to an end, and it will not be renewed. After that, the server will be switched off and the site will disappear.

The Mandala Is Finished explains this more fully.

Thank you to anyone who found a poem, a track, or a quiet moment here.

The pleasure was in the making.

Richard

Home › Glossary › Letter A

alarum

Archaic Terms
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Alarum is an archaic spelling of "alarm," used in poetry to denote a sudden call to arms, a warning signal (often a bell or trumpet), or a state of excited disturbance and tumult.

Detailed Definition
In the context of archaic terms in poetry, "alarum" refers to a loud, urgent signal—typically a military or dramatic summons to action—evoking urgency, chaos, or impending conflict. It appears frequently in early modern English verse, particularly in Shakespearean drama and epic poetry, where it heightens dramatic tension by suggesting the clamor of battle, the ringing of warning bells, or metaphorical inner turmoil. The term carries a sonic and visual intensity that modern "alarm" often lacks, blending auditory alarm with collective panic or readiness. Its use adds historical flavor and rhythmic weight to lines, distinguishing elevated or antiquated poetic diction from contemporary language.
Example
Example in poetry:
From William Shakespeare's Macbeth (Act 5, Scene 7): "Alarum within. Enter Macbeth." Or in a poetic context evoking battle: "The alarum sounds across the field, / And steel-clad ranks awake to war's grim yield."
Additional Notes
Historical context and origin: "Alarum" derives from Old French and Italian roots related to "all'arme" (to arms), entering English in the Middle Ages and flourishing in Renaissance literature. It was commonly used in stage directions and poetic descriptions of war or crisis in works by Shakespeare, Spenser, and Milton. Related terms or variations: Often interchangeable with "alarm" in older texts; contrasts with modern "alert" or "tocsin" (a specific alarm bell). Variants include "alarums and excursions" (a Shakespearean phrase for battle noise and movement). Usage tips: Employ "alarum" sparingly in contemporary poetry to evoke antiquity or formality—overuse can feel affected. It excels in sound-driven verse due to its rolling syllables. Cross-references: See also "tocsin," "clarion," or other archaic auditory signals in the "Archaic Terms" category; contrasts with quieter terms like "knell" (a mournful bell).
Also Known As
alarm call to arms alarum and excursions
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