Campana to Montale (2004)

Cover photograph: Michael Dean / Cover design: James Fryer

Kendrick Smithyman. Campana to Montale: Versions from Italian. Edited by Jack Ross. ISBN 0-476-00382-2. Auckland: The Writers Group, 2004. [ii} + 190 pp.

Contents:

Introduction
[For an updated list of poets' biographies, consult the 2010 edition]

• Dino Campana
  

  
  Born in 1885, near Faenza; died of septicaemia at Castel Pulci in 1932. Before being committed in 1918 to the mental hospital where he died, Campana’s life was characterised by compulsive wandering, tormented love affairs, and extreme disdain for the literary establishment. Major work: Canti Orfici (1914).

  1. Old Florence
     Firenze vecchia
  2. from The Evening of the Fair
     La sera di fiera
  3. Campana in an Autumn Garden
     Giardino autunnale
  4. Woman of Genoa
     Donna genovese
  5. The Skylight
     L’invetriata


• Sandro Penna
  

  
  Born in Perugia in 1906; died in Rome in 1977. A somewhat isolated figure in modern Italian poetry, Penna is generally described as the one working-class poet among the intellectuals of the Hermetic school. Major works: Tutte le poesie (1970); Stranezze (1976).

  1. untitled
     ‘Esco dal mio lavoro …’
  2. untitled
     ‘Il treno tarderà …’
  3. The Journey
     Il viaggio
  4. untitled
     ‘Tutto il giorno passai …’
  5. untitled
     ‘Con il cielo coperto …’
  6. Morning
     Mattino
  7. untitled
     ‘L’ombra di una nuvola …’
  8. untitled
     ‘Alfio che un treno Porta …’
  9. untitled
     ‘Voglio credere ancora …’
  10. untitled
      ‘Lungo è il tragitto ...’
  11. untitled
      ‘Viaggiava per la terra …’
  12. In a Small Venetian Square
      La veneta piazzetta
  13. untitled
      ‘Lasciami andare ...’
  14. untitled
      ‘Sulla riva del fiume …’
  15. untitled
      ‘Sole con luna …’
  16. untitled
      ‘Se desolato io cammino ...’
  17. untitled
      ‘Nel chiuso lago …’
  18. Woman in a Tram
      Donna in tram
  19. untitled
      ‘Sul campo aperto …’
  20. untitled
      ‘Imbruna l’aria …’
  21. News of Spring
      Cronache di primavera
  22. untitled
      ‘Forse sull’erba verde …’


• Nelo Risi
  

  
  Born in Milan in 1920. A qualified doctor, but writer by vocation, he spent most of World War II in Russia, and was subsequently interned in Switzerland. His work concerns itself mainly with “the dilemma of the individual in an age of mass-consciousness.” Major works: L’esperienza (1948); Il mondo in una mano (1994).

  1. Mister Risi: The Poet
     Il poeta
  2. Risi’s Tautology
     Tautologia
  3. Risi Says Muses Played Out
     Le muse sono stanche


• Giuseppe Ungaretti
  

  
  Born in Egypt, at Alexandria, in 1888; died in Milan in 1970. He served as an infantryman in World War I, an experience which confirmed him in his vocation as a poet. With Montale and Quasimodo, one of the “big three” of twentieth-century Italian poetry. Major work: Vita d’un uomo (1969).

  1. Quiet / Quietus
     Quiete
  2. Evening
     Sera
  3. Nostalgia
     Nostalgìa
  4. The Vigil of Ungaretti
     Veglia
  5. Agony
     Agonia
  6. Ungaretti’s Drowned Port
     Il Porto sepolto


• Leonardo Sinisgalli
  

  
  Born in Montemurro in 1908; died in Rome in 1981. His background in physics and graphic design led him to formulate a poetry of detached understatement, in opposition to the frenzied aesthetics of his contemporaries. Major works: Cuore (1927); 18 Poesie (1935).

  1. Children Tossing Red Coins
     I fanciulli battono le monete rosse
  2. How Sr Sinisgalli Eyeballed the Muses
     Vidi le Muse


• Alfonso Gatto
  

  
  Born in Salerno in 1909; died in a road accident near Orbetello in 1976. He was imprisoned in Milan in 1934 for opposition to the Fascist regime, and was active in the Resistance during World War II, experiences which informed much of his later poetry. Major works: Poesie (1941); La madre e la morte (1960).

  1. For the Martyrs of Loreto Square
     Per i martiri di Piazzale Loreto


• Vittorio Sereni
  

  
  Born in Luino, Lago Maggiore, in 1913; died in Milan in 1983. Fought as an infantry officer in Greece and Sicily, where he was taken prisoner. His initial adherence to Hermeticism was succeeded by a more realistic approach to war and post-war austerity. Major works: Diario d’Algeria (1947); Stella variabile (1981).

  1. Vittorio Sereni’s First Night out from Athens
     Prima sera d’Atene
  2. Airborne
     Non sa piú nulla
  3. At Six in the Morning
     Le sei del mattino
  4. Vittorio Sereni and His Great Friend
     Il grande amico


• Camillo Sbarbaro
  

  
  Born in Santa Margherita, Liguria, in 1888; died at Spoleto in 1967. Generally seen as an adherent of the turn-of-the-century Crepuscular school, Sbarbaro’s melancholic self-absorption in fact has more in common with later poets of disillusionment such as Montale or Eliot. Major works: Pianissimo (1914); Rimanenze (1956).

  1. Now You Have Come
     Ora che sei venuta
  2. La bambina che va sotto gli alberi
     La bambina che va sotto gli alberi


• Luciano Erba
  

  
  Born in Milan in 1922. Scholar, translator and critic, Erba’s elaborately ironic undercutting of traditional poetic language and attitudes have helped him to build up a biting commentary on post-war Italian values. Major works: Il prato più verde (1970); Il nastro di Moebius (1980).

  1. Luciano Erba in Lombardo-Veneto
     Lombardo-Veneto
  2. Luciano Erba Entertaining Them
     Lo svagato


• Mario Luzi
  

  
  Born in Castello, near Florence, in 1914. An early exponent of the hermetic movement, whose motto “letteratura come vita” [literature as life] dominated Italian literature in the 1930’s, his later work is less liable to assume the capacity of poetry to palliate suffering. Major works: La barca (1935); Tutte le poesie (1979).

  1. Mario Luzi: But Where
     Ma dove
  2. Mario Luzi on Judging
     Il giudice
  3. From (Mario Luzi) One to Another
     L’uno e l’altro


• Giorgio Orelli
  

  
  Born in Airolo in 1921. He studied Italian literature with Gianfranco Contini at Fribourg, then went to teach in Bellinzona, where he has been living since 1945. He is onsidered by many the greatest poet of Italian Switzerland. Major works: Poesie (1953); Sinopie (1977).

  1. The Trout
     La trota


• Elio Pagliarani
  

  
  Born in Viserba, near Rimini, in 1927. Teacher, editor, journalist, Pagliarini’s poetry attempts to replace the conventions of the Romantic lyric with a neo-realist but linguistically complex presentation of the lives of ordinary people. Major works: La ragazza Carla e altre poesie (1962); Lezione di fisica e fecaloro (1968).

  1. from The Girl Carla
     La ragazza Carla


• Lucio Piccolo
  

  
  Born 1903 in Palermo. Died in 1969 at his Sicilian property at Capo d’Orlando. Like his more famous cousin Tomasi di Lampedusa, lived out of the mainstream of Italian cultural life. Major works: Canti barocchi (1956); Plumella (1967).

  1. Lucio Piccolo’s Days
     I giorni


• Eugenio Montale
  

  
  Born in Genoa in 1896; died in Milan in 1981. His poetry, perhaps the most influential in twentieth-century Italian literature, constantly circles back to his childhood on the coast of Liguria. Largely self-educated, he lost his job as an editor in 1938 as a result of anti-fascist opinions, and supported himself afterwards with occasional journalism and translation. Major works: Ossi di seppia (1925); Le occasioni (1939); La bufera ed altro (1956); Satura (1971).

  1. Promenade by the Sea
     Lungomare
  2. untitled
     ‘Portami il girasole ...’
  3. Intermezzo
     Intermezzo
  4. The Customs Officers’ House
     La casa dei doganieri
  5. The Eel
     L’anguilla
  6. untitled
     ‘Un tempo …’
  7. Honour
     L’onore
  8. When I Began to Paint
     ‘Quando cominciai a dipingere …’
  9. After the Rain
     Dopopioggia
  10. Heroism
      L’eroismo
  11. Reading Cavafy
      Leggendo Cavafis
  12. Disguises
      I travestimenti
  13. A Poet
      Un poeta
  14. On The Lake Of Orta
      Sul lago d’Orta
  15. In the Negative
      In negativo
  16. Culture
      La cultura
  17. In a Northern City
      In una città del nord
  18. The Inhuman
      Nel disumano
  19. A Dream, One of Many
      Un sogno, uno dei tanti
  20. That Woman from the Lighthouse
      Quella del faro
  21. From the Other Side
      Dall’altra sponda
  22. On the Beach
      Sulla spiaggia
  23. untitled
      ‘Si aprono venature pericolose ...’
  24. Aspasia
      Aspasia
  25. A Letter Not Sent
      Una lettera che non fu spedita
  26. untitled
      ‘Oltre il breve recinto …’


• Salvatore Quasimodo
  

  
  Born in Modica in 1901; died in Milan in 1968. His Nobel prize for literature in 1959 was awarded mainly for the wartime poems collected in Giorno dopo giorno [Day after day] (1943-46), an advance on the austere Hermeticism of much of his early work. The life of the Sicilian countryside and the classical Mediterranean past are two interests which constantly resurface in his poetry. Major works: Ed è subito sera (1943); Tutte le poesie (1960).

  
  
  from Acque e terre (1920-1929)
  
  
  1. Your Dress is White
     E la tua vesta è bianca
  2. Deadwater
     Acquamorta
  3. Winter in the Old Days
     Antico inverno
  4. Sorrow of Things I Don’t Know
     Dolore di cose che ignoro
  5. The Dead
     I morti
  6. Alley
     Vicolo
  7. Refuge of the Birds of Night
     Rifugio d’uccelli notturni
  
  from Òboe sommerso (1930-1932)
  
  
  8. Sunken Oboe
     Òboe sommerso
  9. To My Land
     Alla mia terra
  10. Word
      Parola
  11. Of a Young Woman Lying Back among Flowers
      Di fresca donna riversa in mezzo ai fiori
  12. Lamentation of a Friar in an Icon
      Lamentazione d’un fraticello d’icona
  13. Without Memory Of Death
      Senza memoria di morte
  14. Prayer to the Rain
      Preghiera alla pioggia
  15. Woods Sleep
      Dormono selve
  16. To Night
      Alla notte
  17. Metamorphoses in the Saint’s Urn
      Metamorfosi nell’urna del santo
  18. Island
      Isola
  19. Where the Dead Stand Open-Eyed
      Dove morti stanno ad occhi aperti
  20. The Angel
      L’angelo
  21. Water Decomposes Dormice
      L’acqua infradicia ghiri
  22. Seed
      Seme
  23. First Day
      Primo giorno
  24. Green Drift
      Verde deriva
  
  from Erato e Apòllion (1932-1936)
  
  
  25. Apollyon’s Song
      Canto di Apòllion
  26. Apollyon
      Apòllion
  27. Dead Heron
      Airone morto
  28. On the Hill of the “Terre Bianche”
      Sui colle delle “Terre Bianche”
  29. In Your Light I am Wrecked
      Al tuo lume naufrago
  30. Insomnia
      Insonnia
  31. Often a Shoreline
      Sovente una riviera
  32. Ulysses’ Isle
      Isola di Ulisse
  33. Salt-Pan in Winter
      Salina d’inverno
  34. Sardinia
      Sardegna
  35. In Light of the Skies
      In luce di cieli
  36. Quarries
      Latomìe
  37. For My Mortal Smell
      Del mio odore di uomo
  38. Stranger City
      Città straniera
  39. In the Feeling of Death
      Nel senso di morte
  
  Nuove Poesie (1936-1942)
  
  
  40. The Magpie Laughs, Black in the Orange Trees
      Ride la gazza, nera sugli aranci
  41. A Street in Agrigentum
      Strada di Agrigentum
  42. The Gentle Hill
      La dolce colline
  43. What are You up to, Shepherd of Air?
      Che vuoi, pastore d’aria?
  44. Before the Statue of Ilaria del Carretto
      Davanti al simulacro d’llaria del Carretto
  45. Now Day Breaks
      Ora che sale il giorno
  46. The Rain is Already with Us
      Già la pioggia è con noi
  47. One Evening, the Snow
      Una sera, la neve
  48. The Piazza Fontana
      Piazza Fontana
  49. The Tall Ship
      L’alto veliero
  50. Elegy for the Dancer Cumani
      Elegos per la danzatrice Cumani
  51. Delphic Woman
      Delfica
  52. Imitation of Joy
      Imitazione della gioia
  53. Moon Horses and Volcanoes
      Cavalli di luna e di vulcani
  54. Once More a Green River
      Ancora un verde fiume
  55. Beach at St Antiochus
      Spiaggia a Sant’Antioco
  56. The Scrawny Flower is Already Flying
      Già vola il fiore maoro
  57. Verging on Puberty
      Inizio di pubertà
  
  Giorno dopo giorno (1947)
  
  
  58. Speaking about Willow Branches
      Alle fronde dei salici
  59. Letter
      Lettera
  60. 19 January 1944
      19 gennaio 1944
  61. Snow
      Neve
  62. Day after Day
      Giorno dopo giorno
  63. Perhaps the Heart
      Forse il cuore
  64. Winter Night
      La notte d’inverno
  65. Milan, August 1943
      Milano, agosto 1943
  66. The Wall
      La muraglia
  67. O My Sweet Animals
      O miei dolci animali
  68. Written Perhaps on a Tomb
      Scritto forse su una tomba
  69. Pilgrim
      A me pellegrino
  70. From the Rock Fortress of Upper Bergamo
      Dalla rocca di Bergamo alta
  71. Beside the Adda
      Presso l’Adda
  72. I Have Heard the Sea Again
      S’ode ancora il mare
  73. Elegy
      Elegia
  74. Of Another Lazarus
      Di un altro Lazzaro
  75. The Crossing
      Il traghetto
  76. Your Silent Foot
      Il tuo piede silenzioso
  77. Man of My Time
      Uomo del mio tempo
  
  from La vita non è sogno (1946-1948)
  
  
  78. Lament for the South
      Lamento per il Sud
  79. Epitaph for Bice Donetti
      Epitaffio per Bice Donetti
  80. Colour of Rain and Iron
      Colore di pioggia e di ferro
  81. Almost a Madrigal
      Quasi un madrigale
  82. Italy is My Country
      Il mio paese è l’Italia
  83. Thànatos Athànatos
      Thànatos Athànatos
  
  from Il falso e vero verde (1949-1955)
  
  
  84. The Dead Guitars
      Le morte chitarre
  85. False and True Green
      Il falso e vero verde
  86. In a Distant City
      In una città lontana
  87. How Long a Night
      Che lunga notte
  88. Beyond the Waves of the Hills
      Al di là delle onde delle colline
  89. Near a Saracen Tower, for His Dead Brother
      Vicina a una torre saracena, per il fratello morto
  90. Laude, 29 April 1945
      Laude, 29 Aprile 1945
  91. To a Poet Not Well Disposed
      A un poeta nemico
  
  from La terra impareggiabile (1955-1958)
  
  
  92. Visible, Invisible
      Visibile, invisibile
  93. The Incomparable Earth
      La terra impareggiabile
  94. Today, the Twenty-First of March
      Oggi ventuno marzo
  95. From Disfigured Nature
      Dalla natura deforme
  96. An Open Arc
      Un arco aperto
  97. A Copper Amphora
      Un’anfora di rame
  98. The Scaliger Tombs
      Le arche scaligere
  99. In This City
      In questa città
  100. Once More about Hell
       Ancora dell’inferno
  101. Almost an Epigram
       Quasi un epigramma
  102. Soldiers Crying in the Night
       I soldati piangono di notte
  103. At Night on the Acropolis
       Di notte sull’Acropoli
  104. Mycenae
       Micene
  105. Following the Alpheus
       Seguendo l’Alfeo
  106. Delphi
       Delfi
  107. Marathon
       Maratona
  108. Minotaur at Knossos
       Minotauro a Cnosso
  109. Eleusis
       Eleusi
  110. To the New Moon
       Alla nuova luna
  111. An Answer
       Una risposta
  112. Another Answer
       Altra risposta
  113. Inscription for the Partisans of Valenza 1957
       Epigrafe per i Partigiani di Valenza
  
  from Dare e avere (1966)
  
  
  114. Debit and Credit
       Dare e avere
  115. Varvàra Alexandrovna
       Varvàra Alexandrovna
  116. Only If Love Stabs You
       Solo che amore ti colpisca
  117. A Night in September
       Una notte di settembre
  118. Along the Isar
       Lungo l’Isar
  119. From the Shores of Lake Balaton
       Dalle rive del Balaton
  120. Tollbridge
       Tollbridge
  121. The Negro Church at Harlem
       La chiesa dei negri ad Harlem
  122. Cape Caliakra
       Capo Caliakra
  123. Silence Does Not Mislead Me
       Il silenzio non m’inganna
  124. Glendalough
       Glendalough
  125. The Bowmen Of Tuscany
       Balestrieri toscani
  126. In Chiswick Cemetery
       Nel cimitero di Chiswick
  127. The Maya at Mérida
       I Maya a Mérida
  128. Love Poem
       Poesia d’amore
  129. I Have Lost Nothing
       Non ho perduto nulla
  130. To Liguria
       Alla Liguria
  131. To Keep The World In Balance
       Basta un giorno a equilibrare il mondo
  132. I Have Flowers and by Night I Call on the Poplars
       Ho fiori e di notte invito i pioppi

Available:

The Writers Group
6A Hastings Rd
Mairangi Bay
North Shore City 0630
Auckland
jack.ross@xtra.co.nz

Reviews & Comments:

1. C. K. Stead. "I know what I’ll be reading this summer." Sunday Star-Times (5/12/04): C8.
   

   
   For poetry I have the new Ken Smithyman, Campana to Montale, Versions from the Italian, just published in a very nice edition by The Writer’s Group (6A Hastings Road, Mairangi Bay, Auckland 1311).



2. Raewyn Alexander. New Zealand Poetry Society Newsletter (February 2005) 4-5.
   

   
   How lovely to decide to understand another country’s poetry whether you know their language or not. Just as a person may step off a plane or boat abroad into unknown territory, Smithyman explored parallel realities on a page. Perhaps through each line, as one of Salvatore Quasimodo’s poems states so eloquently ‘...we seek a sign that will curve over life...’



3. Bernard Gadd. Spin 49 (2005) 77-78.
   

   
   I’m hoping that this collection will revive kiwi poets’ interest in how fascinating, how sensuous, how deeply felt, how thoughtful poetry can be and how it can so satisfyingly combine the intensely personal with the world of people, creatures, forces beyond the individual.



4. Paula Green. brief 32 (2005) 108-12.
   

   
   Smithyman moves across (trans) the Great Divide from the sides (lati) of Italian (well, English versions) to the sides of English, inserting his own signature and his personal ornaments, yet somehow his performance is animated by a strong allegiance to the original, not at all pious but certainly loyal. Smithyman’s versions represent a tender conversation with the Italian poems; like the iconic sunflower, Smithyman’s conversation is flawed yet, more significantly, is vital and transporting.



5. Joe Wyllie. Takahe 55 (2005): 60.
   

   With his formidable literary and language skills Jack Ross appears to have done a superb job of bringing this, supposedly the last of Smithyman’s posthumous works, to publication. For anyone with an interest in language, Campana to Montale is a goldmine, as much, perhaps, for Ross’s contribution as for Smithyman’s.

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