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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>DO NOT make the mistake of think that anybody's
answer is the "right" one, or that there is a general agreement, so that if you
learn the rules, all people will approve of what you do.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>We don't all agree. Most of us don't even
have the same answer at all times.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Master Jan w Orzeldom once said the
following: "</FONT><FONT face=Arial size=2>You can play the dream.
You can play the club. Or you can play the joke. But it's a mistake
to believe that the disagreements are between those who always play the dream v.
those who always play the club, (or any other combination). We all play
all three, at various times. This disagreements are between those who want
to play the dream right now, v. those who want to play the joke right now
(etc.)."</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>A filk to a modern tune (that I recognize as a
modern tune) is playing the joke -- deliberately breaking the mood for
effect. I don't particularly like them, because bardic circles (even late
at night) are places where it can all seem real. So a filk song at a
circle is somebody playing the joke when I'm trying to play the
dream. Other people disagree, and believe that filks should be reserved
for late night, because the dream is only played when official activities are
going on.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Which position is correct? All of them.
None of them. If you sing a filk that sounds too modern to me, I won't
complain; I'll practice my piece, or go get a beer, or whatever. My dream
won't get in the way of your joke, but your joke won't get in the way of my
dream.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Note: a modern tune used, not for special effect,
but simply because it's a tune the singer knows, is probably playing the club
rather than playing the joke. Either way, I'll generally avoid it.
But that's fine.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Another digression: I have no filk songs, but I
have some pieces that break the mood. I avoid doing them around a
late-night campfire, reserving them for more mundane setting -- like directly
after a compatition. Note that this is the direct opposite of the view of
those who reserve the jokes for late at night.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Years ago, the greatest literature scholars alive
today -- globally famous in their fields -- decided to rank the greatest
novels ever written. AND THE COULDN'T AGREE. If scholars who have
spent their lives analyzing literature cannot agree on the most over-analyzed
works of art ever written, we amateurs will certainly never agree about our
amateur productions.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>And that's fine. We can each affect the
growth of SCA performances, because the rules aren't 100%
determined.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>So do what you believe in, have fun, and be
sympathetic to those who are playing a different way than you are right
now.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Robin of Gilwell / Jay
Rudin</FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>