In this Between Birds of Prey program we pay tribute to the american writer Edgar Allan Poe, whom was born in this day 199 years ago, so the title for today’s program is: Once Upon a Midnight Dreary – 199 years after Edgar Alan Poe’s Death.
Edgar Allan Poe was one of the most influential writers of the romanticism in 19th century. He is best know for his tales of the macabre and also for starting the so-called detective fiction and for giving a very important contribute to the emerging style of science fiction.
By listening to today’s playlist, you’ll find some of Edgar Allan Poe’s great poems (Annabel Lee and The Sleeper) and works based on some of his most famous short-stories, such as The Pendulum or The Fall of the House of Usher.
Before the playlist, here is the poem Annabel Lee by Edgar Allan Poe:
Annabel Lee
It was many and many a year ago,
In a kingdom by the sea,
That a maiden there lived whom you may know
By the name of ANNABEL LEE;
And this maiden she lived with no other thought
Than to love and be loved by me.
I was a child and she was a child,
In this kingdom by the sea;
But we loved with a love that was more than love-
I and my Annabel Lee;
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.
And this was the reason that, long ago,
In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling
My beautiful Annabel Lee;
So that her highborn kinsman came
And bore her away from me,
To shut her up in a sepulchre
In this kingdom by the sea.
The angels, not half so happy in heaven,
Went envying her and me-
Yes!- that was the reason (as all men know,
In this kingdom by the sea)
That the wind came out of the cloud by night,
Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee.
But our love it was stronger by far than the love
Of those who were older than we-
Of many far wiser than we-
And neither the angels in heaven above,
Nor the demons down under the sea,
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee.
For the moon never beams without bringing me dreams
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And the stars never rise but I feel the bright eyes
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
Of my darling- my darling- my life and my bride,
In the sepulchre there by the sea,
In her tomb by the sounding sea.
Today’s playlist is as follows:
- André Previn: London Symphony Orchestra & Chorus – Rachmaninov: The Bells, Op. 35 – 2. Lento (Prokofiev: Ivan The Terrible, Alexander Nevsky; Rachmaninov: The Bells [Disc 2])
- André Previn: London Symphony Orchestra & Chorus – Rachmaninov: The Bells, Op. 35 – 4. Lento Lugubre (Prokofiev: Ivan The Terrible, Alexander Nevsky; Rachmaninov: The Bells [Disc 2])
- Cynthia Lee Wong – Piano Quartet with Excerpts from Edgar Allan Poe’s ‘Ligeia’ (Piano Quartet)
- André Caplet – Conte Fantastique (The Masque of the Red Death) (Conte Fantastique (The Masque of the Red Death))
- Nox Arcana – Darkest Hour (Shadow Of The Raven)
- Nox Arcana – Murders In The Rue Morgue (Shadow Of The Raven)
- Nox Arcana – The Black Cat (Shadow Of The Raven)
- Weh – Desolate (The Coffees Cold In The Morning, The Beers Warm At Night)
- Nox Arcana – The House Of Usher (Shadow Of The Raven)
- Nox Arcana – The Tell-Tale Heart (Shadow Of The Raven)
- Fire + Ice – Annabel Lee (Seasons of Ice)
- Fredrik Klingwall – Spirits of the Dead (Works Of Woe)
- Fredrik Klingwall – An Enigma (Works Of Woe)
- Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows – The Sleeper By Edgar Allan Poe (Dead Lovers Sarabande)
- Nox Arcana – The Cask Of Amontillado (Shadow Of The Raven)
- Fredrik Klingwall – The Valley Of Unrest (Works Of Woe)
- Lily’s Puff – The Pendulum (The Raven, The Thirst And The Pendulum)
- Fredrik Klingwall – The City In The Sea (Works Of Woe)
- Nox Arcana – Midnight Dreary (Shadow Of The Raven)
- Lily’s Puff – The Raven (The Raven, The Thirst And The Pendulum)
- Nox Arcana – Lenore (Shadow Of The Raven)
- Nox Arcana – Madeline’s Lament (Shadow Of The Raven)
- Chansonoir – Ligeia (Ligeia)
- Vincent Price – The Pit and the Pendulum (An Evening With Edgar Allan Poe)
If you prefer to download the audio, you can do it with the following link: