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


On 5 June in poetry and history

Poets born or who died on this date, plus historical events that happened on this day across history.

610 poets with calendar dates · 6,535 events with calendar dates in the catalogue

Previous Today Next

3 birthdays · 2 death anniversaries · 7 world events on 5 June

Birthdays

Death anniversaries

World events on this day

  • 5 June 1967

    False Egyptian Victory Reports in the Six-Day War

    After Israel destroyed much of Egypt's air force, Egyptian state radio broadcast false claims of major victories and heavy Israeli aircraft losses. Jordanian leaders initially relied upon misleading Egyptian reports when deciding to enter the fighting around Jerusalem and the West Bank. The misinformation compounded the scale of the Arab defeat.

    Event 1967

  • 5 June 1981

    CDC Identifies the First Cases of AIDS

    In 1981, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) published a report identifying rare pneumonia cases in five gay men in Los Angeles, marking the official recognition of the AIDS epidemic. This report highlighted the urgent need for research and public health responses to the emerging crisis. The identification of AIDS catalyzed significant social, political, and medical movements, profoundly impacting the LGBTQ+ community and public health policies.

    Event 1981

  • 5 June 1964

    DSV Alvin Commissioned

    On June 5, 1964, the deep-submergence vehicle Alvin was commissioned at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts. As the first U.S. deep-ocean research submersible, Alvin has since completed over 5,000 dives, including the first manned exploration of the Titanic wreck in 1986, and has played a crucial role in deep-sea oceanography and marine biology.

    Event 1964

  • 5 June 1904

    The Death of Olivia Langdon

    Olivia Langdon, Mark Twain's beloved wife, passed away on June 5, 1904, in Florence, Italy. Her death profoundly affected Twain, plunging him into deep grief and solitude. This personal tragedy influenced his later writings, including his poetry, which reflected themes of loss and longing.

    Event 1904

  • 5 June 1929

    Forssmann Performs the First Human Cardiac Catheterisation

    In 1929, Werner Forssmann inserted a catheter into a vein in his own arm and advanced it into his heart. His risky self-experiment proved that the heart could be reached safely through the blood vessels. Cardiac catheterisation later transformed diagnosis, angiography and interventional cardiology.

    Event 1929

  • 5 June 1288

    Battle of Worringen

    On June 5, 1288, the forces of John I, Duke of Brabant, defeated the armies of the Archbishop of Cologne and the Duchy of Guelders at the Battle of Worringen. This battle was one of the largest in medieval Europe and effectively decided the War of the Limburg Succession. The victory secured Brabant's possession of the Duchy of Limburg, significantly altering the balance of power in the Rhineland.

    Event 1288

  • 5 June 1224

    Foundation of the University of Naples

    The University of Naples was founded on June 5, 1224, by the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, making it the first state-run university in Europe. Frederick's goal was to train a class of loyal administrators and jurists for his kingdom, reducing his reliance on the papacy for education. The university quickly became a major center for legal studies and was a key institution in the intellectual life of the Kingdom of Sicily.

    Event 1224
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