Jangling Memory

About

The text is the 32nd poem in Katherine Mansfield’s 35-poem collection, The Earth Child, sent to a London publisher in 1910. She was 22 years old.The collection was not published, but this poem, Jangling Memory, appeared in a 1911 edition of the literary magazine Rhythm, edited at the time by John Middleton Murry. The challenge for the singer is to convey the layers of mood and meaning expressed in the text.The “old tie” symbolizes the bond between the narrator and her companion and a lost time of youthful innocence.The narrator’s mocking laughter is superficially cheerful but the memory is "jangling"; she laughs but her tears are close to the surface throughout the song.The tears should be almost, but not quite, hidden. Address the audience directly; act the part - you could even use a tie as a prop. Telling the story and acting the part are more important than exact pitches and rhythms.