Cello Tears ─ Symphonic Poems

While poetry often uses precise phrases and carefully constructed stanzas to create a kind of written music, author Geza Tatrallyay ups the emotional and structural ante through literary translation. The result is Cello's Tears, a testament to universal truths that is unhindered by the constraints of a single language. A multilingual world traveler, Tatrallyay wrote his debut poetry collection over many years and in many locales, as evidenced by the poems' myriad forms and origins—including original haikus, tankas, and translations from German, French, and Hungarian. Beyond their varying origins, the poems playfully push the boundaries of meaning through the use of unconventional words and phrases. Many verses, inspired by the deeply emotive quality of great music, evoke a similar sentimental response in the reader. And in a final ode to the musical quality of the poet's work, Tatrallyay arranges the verses in four parts, just as a composer arranges a symphony. Emotion, form, and musically influenced symbolism deliver a compulsively readable collection that will delight lovers of contemporary poetry.

Geza Tatrallyay was born in Hungary before his family escaped the Hungarian Revolution by fleeing to Canada. After graduating from Harvard University and studying at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar, he went on to earn a master's degree in economics from the London School of Economics. An avid fencer, he represented Canada in the 1976 Olympic Games.

A lifelong reader who speaks fluent English and Hungarian, as well as conversational French, German, and Spanish, Tatrallyay first delved into poetry in high school. Cello's Tears, his debut collection, is the culmination of his longtime fascination with poetic verse and human emotion.

Tatrallyay is now semi-retired and divides his time between France and Vermont. He is married and has two grown children.