[Bards] Queen's College of Bards

[Jay Rudin]

Michael wrote:

  Very, very well said, Gerald; and the parts I snipped about not letting any focus on a college (or whatever) distract us from a focus on performing, and on encouraging others to perform.[1]

  [1] Yes, Robin. I know. I heard your argument that a college will achieve that. You're very convincing, and I have nothing against that. I just want to sew caution that the means doesn't become the end. I also would prefer that we don't repeat the mistakes of history. Let's make all new ones, if we must make any. :-)

But I haven't really communicated, evidently.  My argument is not merely that a college *will* achieve that.  That's an opinion about the future on which reasonable people might reasonably disagree.  I'm saying something far stronger.  That the Queen's College of Bards actually *did* do that.  When the bards got together regularly and worked on projects together, there were many more bards and many more performing venues.  That's a historical fact that any long-term observer of the kingdom will recognize.

The mistakes made by the old College weren't that it distracted us from performing, but that some members misrepresented it, as Darius has chronicled.  There was never a requirement or expectation that members of the college would always wear their sashes, or even that all bards would join the college.  I generally only wore mine when acting officially as Principal of the College, Premier Bard, or bard of a local branch.

Robin of Gilwell / Jay Rudin
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