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.

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


1500

Event dated 1500–1560

Economy Culture

Growth of Antwerp as Global Trade Emporium

Poet involved

What happened

By 1500, Antwerp had emerged as Europe's premier trade emporium, attracting merchants from across the continent. The city became a bustling center for spices, textiles, and financial services, facilitating international commerce and cultural exchange. Antwerp's strategic location and advanced port facilities contributed to its growth as a hub of economic activity during the Renaissance. This rise in trade played a significant role in shaping the economic landscape of Europe and the development of global trade networks.

Literary impact

The growth of Antwerp as a global trade emporium in 1500 inspired humanist writers and poets to reflect on urban luxury and exchange. Poets like Erasmus and Thomas More infused their works with themes of cosmopolitanism and the moral implications of wealth, enriching the intellectual discourse of the time.

Source: Wikipedia

Poets alive in 1500

5 poets

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