[Bards] A small Bardic survey....

Quill darkphoenixbc at gmail.com
Fri May 11 20:29:35 PDT 2007


If I may throw in a tuppence, as a relatively new (can I still say that now
I've crossed the one-year threshold?) Bard - some things I've discovered on
my own:

Put the blinders on for awhile. Being ignorant while you're still new at
something isn't a bad thing! It didn't hit me until long after the fact that
my debut, first performance, at my first event, at my first ANYTHING was in
front of the Baron, Baroness, and King (and god knows who else. Hey for
belated peer fear!) Had I known all that beforehand, I never would have
stepped up. (Well, I'm Quill, so I probably still would have, but I doubt
I'd have done as well.) And in this same vein...

Be bold. While this can't be taught, it can be encouraged. No matter how
crap I am on a given day, I haven't been shot down yet just because I go in
with self-confidence, knowing that what I have to give is my best.

Experiment. Your niche might not be what you think it is. Before SCA my
talents lay mainly in song. Now that my voice is changing, I've had to try
new things and find I have a knack for memorizing poetry, which is similar
but also vastly different. I've talked to people who discovered that once
they started familiarizing themselves with the spirit of the thing, even if
they thought they were totally tone deaf and tin-eared they could find an
instrument that fit. It's amazing. Leave no stone unturned.

A basic bardic class should definitely give a really good, comprehensive
list of the areas that fall under "bardic". Lady Prudence the Curious told
me she won Titled Bard of Dragonsfire Tor with some Japanese Tanka. WHAT is
that about!? And I seem to remember Finnacan telling me when I first met him
that if I could mime Beowulf and that was my strongest piece then to go for
it. At the time I thought he was joking - now I'd really like to see that
done!

Take time to define. I've talked to a couple of young Bards (what is this,
my crusade??) who are struggling with some very real questions about what
their art means to them (mostly because they're crossing that threshold
between youth and adult competition). What are you doing it for? What does
being a Bard mean to you? Just like picking up a sword and unsheathing it -
now what are you going to do with it? I discovered a great term which
changes every time I meditate on it: Awen.

Of course this is all mostly advice for other /new/ Bards, not for the
seasoned salt who might still attend a "basic bardic" class.

As for this: "Should I include how to find bardic music info?"
YES! And while you're at it, share that with me! It's easy enough to find
lyrics these days, and songbooks galore, but ye gods it's hard to learn the
tunes! (One little word: Brobdingnagian Bards.) It's also come to my
attention that a lot of people don't actually know how to read music. (How
they managed that escapes me.) I don't know that you'd have time to cover
that in your class, but making it a suggestion might be a good idea - you'd
have to feel out your attendees though.

You might have samples of different styles available. What's the difference
between an 8th century Welsh dirge and an English ballad from the 14th
century, for instance? Or, how much contemporary and non-period traditional
is acceptable. How to keep a balanced repertoire? (Agh! I've got all love
songs and stories and they want something about war!)

As for basic bardic etiquette... er... nothing to add. Either I'm screwing
up and no one's told me, or I'm really as perfect as I think I am. Or, more
likely, just haven't had enough experiences to really apply etiquette.

I lied. That tuppence was actually about three pounds. Sorry. But that's all
the sort of thing I talk to people (non-Scadians) about when they ask how to
"be a Bard".

Cheers!
-Quill


*"On the outside Trelac blue*
*but to kingdom I am true;*
*Azure is but armor for*
*the Sable soul and heart of Or!"*

------------------------------------------------

Genie Barrett wrote:
> Hi everyone,
>
> I have agreed to teach a basic bardic class at Steppes Artisan.
>
> Do you have any suggestions/requests regarding what to include in the
> class?
>
> I would rather make it more inclusive than just "bardic" which can
> have such a narrow meaning, and include basic bardic etiquette and all.
>
> Should I include how to find bardic music info?
>
> Any other suggestions would be very much appreciated.
>
> Thanks
> Maggie MacPherson
> Glaslyn's Bardic Defender
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