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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN class=551114423-08012004>To
All,</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN
class=551114423-08012004></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN class=551114423-08012004>Okay, I required
some documentation for the Eisteddfod and I knew that doing so would upset some
people and would simply turn others off. So be it; the competition was mine to
run and I ran it as I thought best. Following are my reasons for requiring
documentation and what I in fact required.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN
class=551114423-08012004></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial><SPAN class=551114423-08012004>Why I required
documentation:</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN
class=551114423-08012004></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN class=551114423-08012004>It is my opinion
that the performance arts in Ansteorra are lacking in authenticity. Now I
couldn't care less about the authenticity of performances given at bardic
circles. Bardic circles are for fun and don't need to be strictly
authentic, but I think that we could and should do a better job of
exploring authenticity in competitions, especially the competition that
determines the Premier Bard of the kingdom. As I've asked before; you wouldn't
expect to enter Kingdom A&S without documentation would you? Would you
submit an entry at the Kingdom A&S that you knew came from the 18th century?
I think not. Why then would you expect to be able to do so at Kingdom
Eisteddfod? We're supposed to be a medieval recreation group, right? Shouldn't
the things that we recreate be medieval? I've heard many people use the excuse
that the static and performance arts are different, and I agree that they're
different. But why should one be expected to be authentic and the other one not?
There is also the fact that performers must be able to document their
work if they ever want to represent Ansteorra and compete at Gulf War and I
wanted to give more people the opportunity practice writing documentation.
Finally, I wanted to challenge some people. Let's face it; it's easy to get in a
rut and do comfortable things, but rarely do great things come from that. I
hoped that by being required to document some of their performances at
Eisteddfod, some folks might discover something new and cool and that they might
actually have fun learning something new. </SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN
class=551114423-08012004></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial><SPAN class=551114423-08012004>What I actually
required:</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN
class=551114423-08012004></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN class=551114423-08012004>Some of you who are
reading these posts but weren't at the competition may be under the impression
that I required research paper length documentation. Okay, I may be a laurel,
but I don't have time to read that much documentation. All that I required was
that two pieces be documented. That's it. I also posted a
guideline for documenting (re-posted below) in which I clearly stated
that a person's documentation should cover the important questions of Who,
What, When, How and Why (when relevant). You should be able to do that
in less than a page. Never did I suggest that a great dissertation was
required or even wanted. I also encouraged people to write to me if they had
further questions about documentation, and some did. </SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN
class=551114423-08012004></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN class=551114423-08012004>So there you have
it; I required some documentation at the competition to choose the Crown's bard.
I guess that makes me an evil laurel authenticity Nazi. But you know what? I've
been magically transported to wonderful places many a time in the SCA,
and it was always when someone was doing something wonderfully period (or
in a period style) and very well done. Whether it was Thomas doing The Song
of Roland or Ragnar performing skaldic poetry, those are the types of
performances that tend to live in memory through the ages of the society.
(Shoot, we even got people to sit through an entire two hour Shakespearean
play!) And you know what else? You might try researching and performing
authentic pieces and find out that it can be fun. And finally, I want to stress
again that I'm only talking about competitions. Who cares if a bardic circle is
authentic as long as its fun?</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN
class=551114423-08012004></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN class=551114423-08012004>You may agree or
disagree with me but I should hope that differing views can be tolerated in our
society and at the very least we can agree to disagree. </SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN
class=551114423-08012004></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN
class=551114423-08012004>Yours,</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN
class=551114423-08012004>Pendaran</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN
class=551114423-08012004></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN
class=551114423-08012004></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN class=551114423-08012004>A guide to
documenting performance (reprinted from 12/1/03 from the Bards
list)</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN
class=551114423-08012004></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN class=551114423-08012004><FONT
face="Times New Roman" size=1> </FONT><FONT face=Arial
size=3>I.</FONT><SPAN
style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><FONT face=Arial>Is verbal documentation
okay?<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"
/><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Arial> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt"><FONT face=Arial>Verbal documentation
is, in my opinion, largely useless. Giving verbal documentation may tell your
judges and audience what you’re performing, and possibly who wrote it and when,
but that is the absolute bare bones of documentation<SPAN
class=657532013-01122003> and it doesn't provide sources from which you can
verify the accuracy of the documentation</SPAN>. Documentation should give more
than the basics, it should dig more into the details of what you’re performing,
but there will be more on that later. There are also no sources available when
presenting verbal documentation and it does little to spread your knowledge of
the work that you are performing. <o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 27pt; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Arial> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 27pt; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Arial> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal
style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-INDENT: -0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left; mso-text-indent-alt: -9.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in"
align=left><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"><SPAN
style="mso-list: Ignore"><SPAN
style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'">
</SPAN><FONT face=Arial>II.</FONT><SPAN
style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'">
</SPAN></SPAN></SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><FONT face=Arial>What should
go into your documentation?<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Arial> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt"><FONT face=Arial>In general judges want
to know that you know what you’re talking about. If you can answer the important
questions of Who, What, When, Where, How and sometimes even Why, then you have
successfully documented your performance piece. For example, if you can
document <B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
class=657532013-01122003>w</SPAN>hat</B> the piece is (example, a
12<SUP>th</SUP> century chanson or a 16<SUP>th</SUP> century sonnet), <B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal">who</B> wrote the piece that you’re
performing<SPAN class=657532013-01122003> (if known)</SPAN>, <B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal">when</B> it was written, <B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN class=657532013-01122003>w</SPAN>here
</B>is was written (different cultures had different styles of the same types of
poetry and it can be important to explain the differences), <B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN class=657532013-01122003>h</SPAN>ow
</B>is important, (as in the meter, rhyme scheme and so forth). Sometimes even
the question of <B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
class=657532013-01122003>w</SPAN>hy</B> the piece was written can be important,
or at least interesting, information to include in your documentation –
especially if the piece was written for a particular reason or for a particular
person. <o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Arial> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt"><FONT face=Arial>Something that most
people don’t know is that judges love it when they learn something when reading
documentation. Remember that many times the person who is judging your
performance is not a performer, or not primarily a performer, themselves. Even
if your judge is a performer, they may not specialize in your type of
performance. Therefore the judge may not know much about the piece that you’re
performing or about your art form in general. If you can educate your judge on
your subject, you will very likely get a good score on your documentation.
<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Arial> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal
style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-INDENT: -0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left; mso-text-indent-alt: -9.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in"
align=left><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"><SPAN
style="mso-list: Ignore"><SPAN
style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'">
</SPAN><FONT face=Arial>III.</FONT><SPAN
style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'">
</SPAN></SPAN></SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><FONT face=Arial>How long
should it be?<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 27pt; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Arial> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt"><FONT face=Arial>The proper length of
documentation has been widely debated amongst the laurels in the kingdom for
some time. This is not to say that everyone needs to try to become a laurel or
that if you want to become a laurel that you need to necessarily worry about the
length of documentation. Rather, it’s merely recognition of the fact that you
are most likely to be judged by a laurel and of the fact that the laurels
generally set the standards for arts in the SCA. <o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Arial> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt"><FONT face=Arial>Some people think that
documentation should be kept to a minimum – even to keeping it to 3x5 cards.
Others want to see several pages of documentation while still others prefer the
happy medium of two or so pages. Some people play it safe and provide both long
and short versions of their documentation. In the end, the documentation is
yours and it’s up to you how long you make it. The length of the documentation
is also largely determined by the subject. If you’re writing about sonnets, you
will have a wealth of information that can be found and conveyed in your
documentation, but if you’re performing something more obscure, there may be
less information on the subject. In the end, it’s more important to be sure that
your documentation is factual and explains your work to your judges.
<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Arial> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal
style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-INDENT: -0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left; mso-text-indent-alt: -9.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in"
align=left><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"><SPAN
style="mso-list: Ignore"><SPAN
style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'">
</SPAN><FONT face=Arial>IV.</FONT><SPAN
style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'">
</SPAN></SPAN></SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><FONT face=Arial>Is the
internet a good source?<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Arial> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt"><FONT face=Arial>As time goes by, the
internet is becoming a more reliable source for research, but you should steer
clear of using it as your only source. The reason for suspicion regarding the
internet is simply because you can’t truly count on the reliability of many of
the sites. However, if you stick to collegiate sites you’re safe. Still, you
can’t beat the reliability of good books and authoritative authors. I strongly
recommend that you include books and journal articles in your research in
addition to the internet. <o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Arial> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Arial> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Arial> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal
style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-INDENT: -0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left; mso-text-indent-alt: -9.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in"
align=left><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"><SPAN
style="mso-list: Ignore"><SPAN
style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'">
</SPAN><FONT face=Arial>V.</FONT><SPAN
style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'">
</SPAN></SPAN></SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><FONT face=Arial>Get feedback
from the judges<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Arial> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt"><FONT face=Arial>While this isn’t
actually about writing documentation, being sure to get feedback from your
judges can greatly help you improve your documentation. A judge’s job should be
more than determining a person’s score, it should be helping the person to
improve their performance and their documentation. So be sure to get commentary
from your judges. If there is insufficient commentary on your score sheet, call,
and talk to or email your judges and ask for commentary and suggestions. If the
judge is insightful and knowledgeable about A&S, they can give you great
tips for how to improve your documentation. If however, you disagree with the
comments that you get, just smile, say thanks and forget about it - especially
if you asked for the comments. Most of the time, however, if you have an
experienced judge, you’re likely to get good commentary that will help you to
improve your documentation. <o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Arial> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal
style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-INDENT: -0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left; mso-text-indent-alt: -9.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in"
align=left><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"><SPAN
style="mso-list: Ignore"><SPAN
style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'">
</SPAN><FONT face=Arial>VI.</FONT><SPAN
style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'">
</SPAN></SPAN></SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><FONT face=Arial>Explain
things even if you think its obvious<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Arial> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt"><FONT face=Arial>There will undoubtedly
be aspects of your performance that you will think are well known or obvious and
that don’t need to be explained, but remember that your judge may not know
anything about your art form. A perfect example comes from the first time I
wrote documentation for a sonnet. I stated that English sonnets were written in
Iambic Pentameter and figured that everyone knew what iambic pentameter was. In
their commentary on my score sheet, the judges asked me to explain iambic
pentameter. Sure they remembered learning something about iambic in high school,
but they didn’t remember exactly what it was and they wanted to know. So every
time you use a poetic or musical term – even if you think that they term is
common place - you should define it and site your source. Terms such as foot,
measure and alliteration are perfect examples. Remember, you have the chance to
teach the judge something and that’s something that judges love. <SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Arial> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal
style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-INDENT: -0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left; mso-text-indent-alt: -9.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in"
align=left><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"><SPAN
style="mso-list: Ignore"><SPAN
style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'">
</SPAN><FONT face=Arial>VII.</FONT><SPAN
style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'">
</SPAN></SPAN></SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><FONT face=Arial>Explain
variances <o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Arial> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: left"
align=left><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt"><FONT face=Arial>One good general rule
when writing documentation be it for performance or other wise, is to explain
any variances in what you’re doing. By that, I mean that if you do something
different from the way it was done in period, you should state in your
documentation that you’ve done so and explain why. If you’re performing a song
as a spoken piece rather than singing it because you (like I), can’t sing, then
just say so in your documentation. It also helps if you can prove in your
documentation that what you are doing was done in period.
<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P></SPAN></FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>