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<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>I've
been listening to the various pros & cons of competition vs. bardic circles,
and I thought it was time to chime in my opinion.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2>Competitions:</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2>Whether at Gulf Wars, Kingdom A&S, or a local group,
the ground rules are generally published beforehand. Most competitions
aren't designed to find the best singer, best poet, or best storyteller - they
are looking for the best overall performer that day. If you don't want
your sonnet compared to a song or story, then be prepared with multiple
pieces.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>We all
know that there's a certain amount of strategy involved. If Master
Robin is coming up after me, I'd better pull out my "big guns." If the
performer before you flubs a bit, you might be able to save your best
piece for later rounds. If I'm also competing against static A&S,
I'd better have my documentation in order with a "wow" factor, and I'd better do
a period/period style piece. (The fact is, static A&S
documentation pretty much blows us out of the water most of the
time.)</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>If I
don't want to play this way, I don't have to enter. The competitions are
by no means required. I personally enjoy them because they help keep me on
my toes - researching new pieces, delving into foreign languages - I feel that
the competitions help me bring out the best in myself.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>If you
don't like the way your local group does their competition, approach your
baron/baroness about a new format. Or, offer to help with next year's
competition. Volunteer to be the event steward! The sky's the
limit.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>I
personally feel that a titled bard should be versatile enough to perform in just
about any situation the baron/king requests - whether you are asked to inspire
the army, perform for a feast hall, keep the populace happy while
court is delayed, entertain drunken nobility with bawdy
pieces, or perform for a period luncheon. I also feel that a
titled bard is not just an honorary position - it is a job. The titled
bard of a group should teach, and help organize bardic circles at that
group's events for the next year. If you can't be available for
that group, you shouldn't enter their competition.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006></SPAN><SPAN
class=546340015-16042006></SPAN><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006></SPAN><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT
face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2>Circles:</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>The
comment has been made that good bardic circles take money to host. I
disagree. Is largess nice? Sure. Are drinks nice?
Sure. Are they required? Absolutely not. How many of you would
get up and leave a bardic circle because you weren't given some trinket after
you perform? How many of you have brought your own soda/beer/mead/etc to a
circle? How many of you wouldn't come to a circle just because it wasn't
hosted by the local nobility?</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>A
bardic circle can be as simple as the folks in your campsite entertaining each
other around the fire, or you can plan a larger circle and include it in
the event activities. (And small informal gatherings often turn into large
circles on their own!)</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>Titled
bards - I offer you all a challenge. Before your term is out, host a
circle for at least one of your group's events!</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>For a
larger circle, you will need:</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>1.)
Someone to bring / collect firewood, and be in charge of getting the fire going,
and putting it out. Or, you can use tiki torches. If your circle is
inside, don't worry about the fire. Some people prefer hosting a circle
under a pavilion lit with lanterns. That works, too.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>2.)
Bring all your chairs, and have your friends bring theirs. Some people
will show up to a circle with their own chairs, but most won't. If you
have a couple of rugs or pillows you can throw down, all the better. Or,
if there are benches available, scoot them together.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>3.)
Yourself and a couple of your bardic friends to be the "seed" group.
Call on the former titled bards & the up-and-coming bards of the
group. Learn something loud that you can perform together. Use a
drum or tambourine if you like. Let everyone hear you. If they can
hear you, they will come. "Come and be Welcome" is a great starting
piece.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>4.)
Don't set up in some remote corner of the event. Let everyone see
you. The middle of the camping area, the list field, etc. If you're
in an indoor feast hall, start your circle before everyone gets cleaned up and
leaves. Otherwise, they won't come back!</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>5.)
Find a herald at the event to announce your circle.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>6.) If
you want alcohol, get in touch with your local brewer's guild. Give them
as much notice as possible, you don't want green mead. We've had some
success passing the hat after populace for the brewer's guild. (Remember,
you can't use SCA funds for this, but our reeve said we could collect money
after populace was over.) Or, tell people it's BYOB.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>7.)
Find a couple of friends who have Igloo water coolers, and set up a table with
water and lemonade. (Drape a cloth over the coolers to hide the
mundanity.) I usually provide some extra goblets - someone
always forgets theirs. Check with your local water bearers - they may be
willing to let you use their equipment, as long as you're willing to clean
it.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>8.)
Don't forget to check with the event steward & baron/baroness to make sure
they don't have anything special planned for the evening, and to invite them to
come.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>9.)
Clean up on Sunday morning or when the circle's over. You don't want
to earn the wrath of the event steward!</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial><FONT size=2><FONT color=#0000ff><SPAN
class=546340015-16042006>10.) Have fun!</SPAN></FONT></FONT></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial><FONT size=2><FONT color=#0000ff><SPAN
class=546340015-16042006></SPAN><SPAN
class=546340015-16042006></SPAN></FONT></FONT></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>If you
are hosting a circle, it's your job to set the tone, keep the circle going, and
fill dead space. Also, to bring the circle back on track if it starts
going downhill before you want it to. (You may or may not want Gilligan's
Island filks.) You can do an open circle, where whoever wants to just
jumps up and performs. This works well for a small-ish group of not-so-shy
bards, but I wouldn't do this with a larger group. A lot of new or more
timid performers tend to get overlooked, and it can quickly turn into a
one-man-show.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>We've
had a lot of success with the "play, pass, or pick" method. You will need
a candle, pinecone, tambourine - something to pass around. This object is
passed around the circle to everyone in turn. When it comes to you, you
can either "play" (stand up and perform a piece of your choosing), "pass" (say
no thank you, and pass it on to the next person), or "pick" (Gerald - I'd like
to hear Born on the List Field). If you "pick," that was still your
turn. Even if Gerald was the next person, he still gets his own chance to
play, pass or pick. (If you use this method, be sure to explain it to new
folks as they arrive.)</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=546340015-16042006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN class=546340015-16042006>If you
decide to give largess, don't feel like you must give something to every
performer, every time they perform. It's much more meaningful if you
only gift items to those performers who really move
you.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN
class=546340015-16042006></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN class=546340015-16042006>One of
the other reasons I believe we are seeing lees circles is that we as a
kingdom are not camping as much as we used to. I'm just as guilty -
it's hard to camp with three kids - but we used to show up on site Friday night,
throw on a cloak, and sit by the fire entertaining each other - or have a circle
at the gate. Saturday, we could stay up as late as we liked, because we
didn't have to worry about driving home. Since I doubt we're going to
change the day-tripping trend, what about having a circle in the "dead" time
after fighting, before feast?" Make it family-friendly, and invite the
kids. Not as much fun as at night, but it might be an option at day-only
events.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN
class=546340015-16042006></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN class=546340015-16042006>Okay,
enough brainstorming for today. I cannot attend Steppes or Stargate, but I
will be at Bordermarch and possibly Ravensfort. And, if there's not a
circle going, I'll be looking for bards to help me start
one!</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN
class=546340015-16042006></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN
class=546340015-16042006></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN
class=546340015-16042006>Katrina of Coventry</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN
class=546340015-16042006>"Kat"</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN
class=546340015-16042006></SPAN></FONT> </DIV></BODY></HTML>