Meaning of "Take This Waltz" by Leonard Cohen

In "Take This Waltz," Leonard Cohen uses vivid imagery and metaphors to convey a sense of longing, desire, and the transient nature of relationships. The song is set in Vienna, a city known for its beauty and elegance. The opening stanza describes the city, mentioning the presence of death, the fragility of life, torn pieces of time, and a gallery filled with coldness and emptiness. The waltz, a traditional Viennese dance, is used as a symbol throughout the song, representing life and its inevitability. The waltz is personified with a clamp on its jaws, symbolizing the constraints and limitations that life imposes on individuals.

Cohen expresses his desire for connection and intimacy in the second stanza, yearning for someone's presence even in mundane settings like a chair with a dead magazine. He seeks love and passion in spaces where they have never existed before. The moon sweating on a bed symbolizes the intensity of emotions and the longing for physical and emotional connection. The broken waist of the waltz represents the fragility and imperfections that come with human relationships and how they must be embraced.

The third stanza alludes to the transient nature of fame and acclaim. The concert hall in Vienna where mouths received countless praises represents the fleeting nature of success and how it eventually fades away. The boys in the bar who have been silenced by the blues symbolize the depressive and melancholic forces that can dominate one's life. Cohen wonders who appreciates and understands the emotional depth of his work, symbolized by climbing to his picture with a garland of freshly cut tears.

In the fourth stanza, Cohen dreams of an attic where children play, symbolizing a space of innocence and joy. He plans to lie down with his lover in this dreamlike setting, surrounded by Hungarian lanterns and a misty afternoon. The sheep and lilies of snow represent the burdens and purity of their shared sorrows. The waltz, once again, becomes a vessel for their memories and experiences, with its breath of brandy and Death.

The final stanza brings the listener back to Vienna, where Cohen promises to dance with his lover in disguise, wearing the wild hyacinth on his shoulder and indulging in the intoxicating beauty of the moment. He speaks of burying his soul in a scrapbook, preserving memories forever. The reference to the cheap violin and cross implies a sense of sacrifice and suffering that is inherent in love. The song ends with Cohen surrendering to love and embracing the waltz as all there is.