Trieste, or Three Poems by James Joyce

Song Cycle by Geert van Keulen (b. 1943)

1. On the beach at Fontana [sung text not yet checked]

Language: English

Wind whines and whines the shingle,
The crazy pierstakes groan;
A senile sea numbers each single
Slimesilvered stone.

From whining wind and colder
Grey sea I wrap him warm
And touch his trembling fineboned shoulder
And boyish arm.

Around us fear, descending
Darkness of fear above
And in my heart how deep unending
Ache of love!

Text Authorship:

by James Joyce (1882 - 1941), "On the beach at Fontana", written 1914, appears in Pomes Penyeach, no. 6

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Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

CHI Chinese (中文) (Dr Huaixing Wang) , "丰塔纳的海滩上", copyright © 2024, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Sur la plage à Fontana", copyright © 2009, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , "Am Strand von Fontana", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

First published in Poetry, November 1917.

Researcher for this page: Barbara Miller

2. Watching the needleboats at San Saba [sung text not yet checked]

Language: English

I heard their young hearts crying
Loveward above the glancing oar
And heard the prairie grasses sighing:
No more, return no more!

O hearts, O sighing grasses,
Vainly your loveblown bannerets mourn!
No more will the wild wind that passes
Return, no more return.

Text Authorship:

by James Joyce (1882 - 1941), "Watching the needleboats at San Sabba", written 1912, appears in Pomes Penyeach, no. 2

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Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "En regardant les yoles à San Sabba", copyright © 2009, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , "Betrachtung der Ruderer vor San Sabba", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

First published in the Saturday Review, September 1913

Researcher for this page: Barbara Miller

3. Nightpiece [sung text not yet checked]

Language: English

Gaunt in gloom
The pale stars their torches
Enshrouded wave. 
Ghostfires from heaven's far verges faint illume
Arches on soaring arches,
Night's sindark nave. 

Seraphim
The lost hosts awaken
To service till
In moonless gloom each lapses, muted, dim
Raised when she has and shaken
Her thurible. 

And long and loud
To night's nave upsoaring
A starknell tolls
As the bleak incense surges, cloud on cloud,
Voidward from the adoring
Waste of souls.

Text Authorship:

by James Joyce (1882 - 1941), "Nightpiece", appears in Pomes Penyeach, no. 9

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Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

First published in Poetry, May 1917

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

Total word count: 173