Dawnings
To tiger
By Nicholas Hooper
And so I am to tiger now
Writing notes to show her face
Into her mouth I must to dare
And risk her teeth my flesh to tear
Her beauty sings a raga now
Of notes and modes so strange to me
Of India’s old and noble song
Please God, please God don’t get it wrong
So long I’ve kept away from this
My tunes for nature flowing strong
But bubbling up in swathes of power
I have no cause to hide or cower
This is my place, my muse, my song
I feel the muscle tensed to spring
With rippled body, subtle claw
She calls me back to Ranthambhore
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About Dawnings:
“Every morning at around 5am I get up and go down to my studio. After a short meditation I write down whatever is in my head, giving myself fifteen minutes to do so. Then moving over to the piano, I improvise and record a piece of music inspired by whatever words I just wrote. It is a great way of keeping both my writing and my composing going and I call these small creations Dawnings. They are mostly unedited, like sketches, so that they keep that fresh feeling of an early morning discovery.”
— Nick Hooper