I did a little reading on the topic of reading silently to myself or hearing someone else read. I discovered that I may be among the minority by preferring to read a poem to myself silently.
I learned that reading the poem silently engages the eyes and mind, while listening to someone else read requires mind, ears, and sight. Sight? Yes, because we watch the speaker's mouth as she/he reads. One day last week, I attended a meeting via zoom to hear a friend read her poems from a recently published book. She was at a library and required to wear a mask as she gave her presentation. It made me realize that not all words come across clearly when the speaker is masked, and that I didn't realize how much we do watch a speaker's mouth.
When a poet reads his/her work aloud, he/she can stress certain words. The silent reader would not know which words the poet hoped to stress. He/she can also control the speed of the reading.
Rhythm and acoustic devices are easier to pick up when hearing a poem read aloud. Devices like onomatopoeia--when a word actually indicates a sound. An example given was 'crackle.' It made me think of the old advertisement for Rice Krispies--snap, crackle, and pop. Each of those words fit an acoustic device.
What about alliteration? Meaning a phrase uses words with the same initial letters, like 'simple songs of summer.' When heard aloud, the alliteration might stand out more.
What it all comes down to is that reading silently allows for the reader's interpretation, and listening to the poet read aloud gives us the speaker's interpretation. It's up to each person to decide which way they prefer--reading silently or hearing the poet read aloud.
One reason I like reading a poem silently is that I can read it multiple times. Doing so seems to allow me to appreciate the poem more, to see something the second or third time that I did not on the first go round. Also, some poetry is so beautiful that it deserves to be read more than once.
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