[Bards] What's your Favorite Piece?

[Jay Rudin]

Favorite piece that I have written:

 Hmmm.... I'm stuck between "The Baron" and "The Chaplain's Tale".  Or maybe
"Improved Bounds for the Online Scheduling Problem".

Picking my top favorite pieces by somebody else is impossible.  (And it's
worth pointing out that "favorite" and "best" are NOT synonyms.)  Here are a
few of the many potential nominees (alphabetical by author):

Alaric's "Sword Brothers"

Alden's "The Squire and the Knight"

Cedric's "The Birth of Fame" (Ansteorra's first great battle, told in the
style of the Saxon "Battle of Maldon"

Cipriano's "The Man Who Would Not Die"

Desiree's "How Lancelot Felt"

Eleanor's "Lorena's Song"

Ivar's "Whack-for-the-diddle"
(Yes, I *know* it's a filk of a 19th century Irish song.  But it was the
anthem for the late-principality / early-kingdom Ansteorrans, and had a lot
to do with what the Black Star came to mean.  It was stronger and more real
to us than, for instance, "The Rising of the Star")

Ivar's "Born on the Listfield"

Tiggy's "So You Seek to be a Warlord".  (Yes, "Antigonus" should be filed
under "A". but his REAL name is Tiggy.)

Ulf's "Harald the Herald"

Valeria's song for Mahdi.

Vashti's "Reynard the Fox"

Willow's "Three Squires"

As I said, I just can't pick my five favorite pieces.

But picking my absolute favorite piece is very easy.  Cadfan's "Chanson
d'Ansteorra".  Listening to this over two decades ago, I decided I wanted to
be a bard.

There are those who say that knighthood's flower
Belongs to an ancient, distant hour,
That honor and valor our age have forsaken,
That chivalry sleeps, and shall never awaken.
So say the scoffers -- believe them not!
The Chevalier lives, and the grail is still sought.
A noble few still keep the dream,
Hold grace and honor in high esteem,
Their hearts and minds to this cause bequeath,
And fealty owe to the Laurel wreath.
....
None can contain the Lion's rage
Nor the noble eagle long encage,
So Ansteorra must take her place
'midst other nations, and nobly grace
The company of kingdoms -- aye,
The Black Star one day shall shine on high.
....

It's not history -- it's legend, and the speeches in it never happened in
truth.  (Of course, that makes it more correct, not less.)

Robin of Gilwell / Jay Rudin