On Thursday, October 26, 2006, at 04:34 PM, Alden Drake wrote:


<excerpt>While it might be late in the schedule for *this* Eisteddfod,
is Eisteddfod a biddable event for any group to host?  I have no
objection to Steppes hosting it if they desire to do so, as it
provides a relatively central location, but there's something to be
said for a kingdom championship that rotates through the various
regions too.  For one, it might bring experienced bards into regions
that are bard-light who might enjoy hearing some performers that they
don't get to hear that often.  It could also inspire bards to travel
around more, and thereby gain a bit more kingdom-wide renown.

 

Alden



</excerpt>

Okay, I'll jump in on this topic.


Eisteddfod used to be a bid event in a way. The current Kingdom bard
would arrange for the competition to occur within roughly a year at an
event, a different event than the one previous. I took it at an
Emerald Keep event, and passed it on at a Stargate Yule Revel.
Stargate was more than willing to host the event, but that may not
always be the case. Basically, the Kingdom bard shopped the event
around, hoping for some likely takers. There were a couple of issues
with this.


One, we have had a few Kingdom bards who simply fell off the face of
the world after winning, usually due to understandable mundane
reasons. They didn't really pursue the next Eisteddfod until the last
minute, which led to a lot of folks not knowing where the competition
would take place, what the format was or what material to prepare.


Second, a number of groups honestly don't worry about bidding for the
Eisteddfod. It never occurs to them to bid for much of anything beyond
Crown Tourney and the occasional A&S event. That is nothing to
complain about, as most groups have plenty on their plates to begin
with. I recall an Eisteddfod in Weisenfeuer years ago that many people
were unaware of, both performers and even attendees to the event. When
some of the folks present realized a kingdom bardic competition was
underway at the event, their response was one of mild curiousity. They
were there for a Yule Revel. Everything else was decoration. Nothing
wrong with that at all, but it presents a problem when trusting groups
to bid for this event on their own.


My suggestion dovetails with yours, Alden, but with some specific
ideas. We now have a Deputy Minister for bardic arts (Hi, Ihon, you
cute little Protestant, you!). This Deputy could be the scheduler for
the event. They would make sure it visits each region in a particular
order, just like Crown Tourney. Performers would know which region was
going to be hosting the event next year even before they competed for
the title. A Northern performer like myself would know before I
offered my first piece in an Eisteddfod that if I won, I would have to
visit the Coastal region next winter. 

Regional A&S Ministers could rally their groups to place a bid for
this event six months out. The event would be held after New years and
before March.


So, I'm supportive of group bidding if there is a little more
structure in place for the system.


~Finnacan