Adrian Wanner's native language is German, but in high school, he discovered a love for Russian poetry.

"I was so fascinated by the sound of it," said Wanner, professor of Slavic languages and literature and comparative literature. "You can be seduced by the power of great poetry in a foreign language."

Wanner will introduce the event, "Found in Translation: World Poetry Read by World People," tonight in Irving's basement, 110 E. College Ave. The event features 20 native speakers of different languages, who will read both original and translated versions of poems from their respective countries.

Wanner, who is also a translator, said it is impossible to translate poetry precisely. Even if people don't understand the foreign languages, they will gain something from the event by hearing the originals.

"For me, that's the charm of it," he said. "Instead of focusing on the semantics of it, you focus on the music of it.

Natsuki Ikeda will read a poem by Hakushu Kitahara, a poet from her hometown of Yanagawa, Japan. But before she reads, she plans to explain the uniqueness of the Japanese language.

In the poem she will read, translated as "Canal," she said the poet recreates some sounds people don't normally hear through the work.

"There's a sound of fireflies flying quietly in the evening," Ikeda (senior-international politics) said. "There's a lot of different sounds of rain."

Ikeda hopes that people will appreciate the way the language illustrates those noises.

"Maybe people can travel around the different countries in Irving's," she said.

The event is sponsored by Global Connections, a community nonprofit organization with an office in the Boucke Building.

Global Connections Executive Director Merrill David said the event is meant to support diverse cultures in the community.

"It's a really nice way for people to come together to share their voice, words and poetry of countries around the world," David said.

People don't need to understand the languages to enjoy the event, David said. Even though she doesn't know the languages herself, she enjoys listening to them. The event is a way for people to "come together in peace of poetry," she said.