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



verse contest

Form
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

A structured competition where poets perform or write poems in opposition

Detailed Definition
Verse contest is a structured competition where poets submit or perform original verse to be judged based on criteria such as originality, craftsmanship, thematic depth, and delivery. These events can range from local gatherings to prestigious literary awards, and may involve formal recitation or live slam performance. Historically, verse contests reflect traditions of poetic rivalry, such as medieval tournaments of flyting, while modern versions continue to encourage both artistic excellence and community engagement.
Example
Example in poetry:
Verse contest appears in ancient Greece’s dramatic competitions, where Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides vied; in medieval France’s “puys,” poets competed in Marian hymns; in Japan’s uta-awase, aristocrats judged linked verse; in 18th-century England, Alexander Pope and John Dennis engaged in poetic duels; contemporary slams like Brave New Voices foster youth verse contests with performance criteria.
Additional Notes
Verse contest involves competitive poetic composition, often judged on wit, form, or speed. Related to poetic duel and verbal jousting. Requires technical skill and quick thinking—study historical models like Welsh eisteddfodau for structure and stakes.
Also Known As
Poetry contest Rhymed competition Verse tournament Poetic trial Flying
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