minstrel: A Bardic Primer

[JPAThomas at aol.com]

I sent this out a few days ago, but for some reason I haven't seen it come up
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A Bardic Primer
A Collegium Caidis Class By
Lord Thomas Bordeaux

What are the Bardic Arts and Who is a Bard?

 The Bardic Arts.

 It's a huge, all encompassing term.  We use it when we're talking about
singers, poets, musicians, storytellers and riddlers.  We apply the term to
almost everyone working in a number of different areas, regardless of skill
or style, and no one has yet come up with a comprehensive definition.  Here
are some period terms, all of which would be considered "bards" in the
Society.

Bard Skald Senachie
Troubadour Trouvere Jongleur

 There are many other names, in many languages and from every culture, far
too many to list here.  Suffice it to say that no one can tell you what a
"true bard" is.  For the purposes of this class we will use this definition.
 Limited as it may be, it's the best we can do.

BARD = A person who specializes in individual vocal performance. 

 How do you become a bard?  The definition above provides the answer.  By
making vocal performance (storytelling, singing, or reciting poetry) your
specialty.  Being a bard is a profession, and success in the bardic
profession requires the same dedication as success in fighting or costuming;
you must have some ability and be willing to learn the required skills.
 There are no short cuts:  natural talent will carry a fighter a long way,
but in and of itself will not win the Throne.  The fighter must learn to
control his sword and shield and the bard must learn to control his voice.
 The costumer must learn to choose and fashion her fabric and the bard must
learn to choose and fashion her material.  The only difference is that while
the fighter goes to work in the morning the bard goes to work at night.

 Does this mean that before you can sing at a bardic circle you have to spend
hours learning Welsh and poring over old books of ballads?  No, not at all.
 Just as there are fighters who will choose never to fight in Crown Tourney,
there are many people who will be happy to sing a song or two now and again.
 This class is designed to provide the occasional performer with easy access
to songs, stories and poems that are well known in Caid and in the Society as
a whole.  For the aspiring bard, this class will provide a good base on which
to build a bardic repertoire, and some guidelines and helpful information on
the sources available and where to find them.

Types of Bardic Material

Filk, Folk, or Period?

 Once again, there is no set answer to this question.  In some parts of the
Known World, even the terms mean different things.  So we'll have to come up
with our own definitions again.

FILK = Lyrics written to an existing tune
FOLK = modern style of musical performance
PERIOD = Documentably pre-1650 material and style

 Filk music (although stories and poetry can also be "filked") is common in
differing degrees through the Society.  Even within a single Kingdom,
attitudes about filk can vary widely. In the West Kingdom very popular
contests like "Best Beatles Filk" are held at some events, but at the same
time other groups pride themselves on their high standards of period music.
 In Caid, filk is considered acceptable in most (though by no means in all)
places, but to a lesser degree than in the West.  A contest like "Best Filk
of a Beach Boys Tune" is very unlikely to be sponsored in Caid, and though I
have heard new words to the old Bob Dylan tune "Blown' In The Wind", they are
not generally well received.  It is also considered impolite to filk the work
of people who live in your Kingdom or area unless you have gotten express
permission to do so.  The best rule of thumb may be to avoid a tune if it is
well known.  Still, as one person I know put it, "You're not really a bard
until you've done a filk of 'Men of Harlech'".

 Folk (the term applies as much to the style of the performance as to the
style of the music), is also something of a mixed bag. It should not be
confused with "filk", as performing a piece in a generic "folk" style is
quite different than writing new words to an old Eagles tune.  As a general
rule, folk is acceptable throughout Caid, but you must avoid taking it too
far:  don't choose excessively modern music styles.  It is, however, the most
popular form for music in the Society as a whole.

 Period, as in pre-1650 (the technical cut-off date for the Society), is the
standard by which all bardic arts are judged.  Period material, while exempt
from the criticisms associated with filk and folk, has its own unique
drawbacks.  The primary complaint about period performance (and period music
in particular) is that it sounds strange to the modern ear.  Many people who
would happily sit through an entire evening of filk or folk grow quickly
restless when period music and performance are the order of the day.  None
the less, everyone should know some period songs, stories and poems, and many
people feel strongly that period music does not receive the respect it
deserves.

Bawdy

 Bawdy is not the same as "rowdy" or "raucous".  Rather, it's a perfectly
period term for off-color or risque material which is not suitable for
children (or some adults).  Any type of music may fall into this category,
and many period songs, stories and poems fall far outside the bounds of
acceptable "family entertainment". 

And All The Rest

 In the Society you will hear many types of bardic presentations, not all of
which are described above.  Material that falls well outside our period but
does not fit into any of the groups I've discussed includes most of the
popular Irish drinking songs and many, though not all, of the Childe Ballads.
 There are also a number of songs and stories representing the "Victorian"
chivalric ideals (Kipling, Tennyson), and as such masquerade as period
pieces.

The Five Basic Tasks of Bardic Arts

Task #1 - Collecting Material

 You should collect all the material you can, from as many different sources
as possible.  There are a host of books on period music available
commercially, and many good songbooks published by and for the people of the
Society.  Check your local university library for obscure and out-of-print
works.  (Used bookstores, too.)  You need not limit yourself to resources
that deal solely with our period, or that deal with it at all for that
matter, as much useful information can be found in books on related topics.
  You will find some that are not very good, but you won't know that until
you've read them.  The more information you have, the more you will be able
to find just what you're looking for.  Finding just the right piece is like
finding a needle in a haystack, but you have to have a haystack to look in
first.

Task #2 - Choosing a Piece

 The first thing anyone who wants to perform in the Society must do is choose
something to perform.  This is also the most difficult thing for the novice
or occasional performer.  There are many factors to take into account:

1) Is it something I want to do?

 Not everything appeals to everyone, and performers are sometimes requested
to perform things that they might not really like.  In most cases you're
better off politely refusing to do a given piece.

2) Is it something I can do, and if so what will it take?

 Not every performer has the ability to do every piece.  If a good
performance of a given piece is beyond your range or requires accompaniment
you cannot provide (or have provided), you should wait until you can give a
good performance or acquire the accompaniment you need.

3) Is appropriate for the group I'll be performing for?

 Every group has a personality and a tone which you must learn to recognize.
 If you will be singing in an area where period music is considered the
standard, save the war songs and perform your most period or period-sounding
material.  If filk or folk are more to the local taste, don't feel that you
can't do period pieces, but choose ones that are light, accessible, and
shorter rather than longer.  If the audience includes children, small or
otherwise, you should never perform bawdy pieces, and be cautious in regard
to raucous ones.

4) Is it a piece that someone else is doing and if so will that person be 
planning on performing it?

 In many areas, one performer is associated with a particular song, because
they wrote it or because they have made a point of performing it often.  In
either case, it is considered good manners not to perform material that has
already been, or is likely to be, performed by someone else.  Master Baldwin
of Erebor has sat though more than one performance of his very popular song
"Burden of the Crown", and for many people in Caid "The Great Silky" can only
be done justice by Sir Charles of Dublin.  This does not mean that you must
never perform these songs, but you should be sensitive:  if the piece you're
considering was written by or is regularly performed by someone who lives in
the area, it's best to avoid it when you're there, or when they are present
at the event.

Task #3 - Practice, Practice, Practice

 With enough practice, 100% of the problems encountered in bardic performance
can be eliminated.  It's really that simple.  You must know the piece forward
and backward.  You must be able to do it surrounded by complete silence, in
the middle of a crowded feast hall, or around a fire with smoke in your eyes
and people talking in the distance.  You must practice because practice breed
confidence, and confidence is the difference between reading a piece and
performing it .  There is no substitute.  These are some things you should
keep in mind:

1) Practice is performance for an audience of one.

 Don't do anything in practice that you do not intend to do in performance.
 Most of all, don't stop in the middle of something to correct yourself, and
don't do anything to acknowledge to anyone that you've made a mistake.  If
you should mispronounce a word practicing, then stop and start over, it's a
sure bet that when you make a mistake in performance you'll stop and start
over.  This is not good.  Nine times out of ten the only person on the planet
that knows you've made a mistake is you...right up until you stop, say
something like "Oh, sorry," or "I screwed up", and start over.

2) Practice is performance for an audience of one, part two.  
 
 If you plan to walk around, gesture to the clouds, whatever, you need to do
that thing in practice.  Don't trust to luck what can be insured by
preparation.  You may feel slightly foolish, beckoning to phantom fighters
alone at home, but the action will be much smoother and more graceful in
front of a audience if you've done it before, and the more often before the
better.

3) Be consistent in practice.  

 Don't rearrange words or change melodies or meter from one practice to the
next.   If you have an idea for a change you'd like to make, give it a try,
spend a little time and play with it.  If you decide to keep it, practice the
piece that way from that point on. 

4) Be consistent in practice, part two.  

 Find a regular time to practice, every day if possible.  It may be while
you're waiting for a bus, in the shower, or after the kids have gone to
school (or after you've gotten home from school).  Whenever it is, it must
happen regularly .  All too often, practice is conducted on a
catch-as-catch-can basis, and all too often it's not.

Task #4 Performance

 You can ignore everything up to this point and still be a bard (though
probably not a good one).  But the one thing you must do is perform.  You may
have the greatest voice and the finest material, if no one hears it, what
have you accomplished?  It's not easy to work up the courage to stand up in a
bardic circle with all those strangers out there, but it's got to be done,
and you knew the job was dangerous when you took it.

1) Perform every chance you get. 

 And that means EVERY CHANCE, for anyone who'll stand still long enough to
hear you.  This is the best cure for a number of illnesses.  Stage fright,
lack of confidence, inability to read an audience.  Almost everything you
need to know can be learned from the experience of performance in front of an
audience.

2) Learn to keep a critical eye on your own performance. 

 You must be able to distance yourself from your performance, to give it a
critical evaluation while it's happening.  Are the people listening to you?
 If not, what are they listening to?  Maybe you need to be louder.  On the
other hand, if people in the front flinch every time you hit a high note,
maybe you should back off a bit.

3) Don't let yourself be intimidated.  

 We've all had it happen.  We sit down at a bardic circle, and the Lord or
Lady next to us stands up and blows the crowd away.  Maybe they play an
instrument, maybe they have a voice to die for.  They finish amidst
thunderous applause, then all too quickly everyone is looking at you.  You
may think you have choices, stand or flee, but in fact there is only one
choice, STAND!  You came here to perform, and you may not be the best bard in
the room, but you are just as much a professional as anyone, you've done your
homework, you're ready to go, so GO!!  Once you've started running, it's very
hard to turn and face the foe, so don't run.  

4) After it's over, let it go.  

 You're not only as good as your last performance, you're only as good as
your next one.  The last one is gone for better or worse: it cannot be called
back.  If you were great, that's good, but it's over now.  If you were less
than great, that's bad but it's gone too .  So either go on to your next
performance, or go back to practice and get better.  No matter what, you
cannot allow yourself to carry around feelings from the last time you
performed.  If you were good, you may not feel the need to practice so hard,
which is what made you good to begin with.  If you were bad, you may be
sorely tempted to abandon the quest, or too frightened to continue.  Both are
traps you must avoid.

Task #5 An Honest Evaluation

 You did it.  You researched material, you chose the piece you wanted to do,
you practiced until you could do it in your sleep, then you went to the
bardic circle and did it, and it went great!  Now what?  After the tourney's
over and you're back in the real world, you need to ask yourself some
questions, and you need to be honest about the answers.

1) What did I do right?

 Was the pace perfect?  Was your voice in good form?  Did you change the
tempo at just the right moment, and give it that gentle push from good to
great?  Pat yourself on the back and remember what you did for next time.

2) What did I do wrong?

 Did you forget the first line of the second verse?  Need more practice?  Did
you do an eight minute piece in under three minutes?  Need more practice?
 Were you so quiet that no one more than three feet away could hear you?
 Need more practice?  Get it?

3) What would I change?

 Next time don't try and sing to everyone in the feast hall at the same time.
 Next time you do that piece hold the final note a little longer, say the
last line a little slower, pause before revealing the answer to the riddle.
 Smile more, frown more, make more eye contact .


Where to from here?

 As the commercial says, "Where do you want to go today"?  The bardic arts
are vast and ever-changing.  One day you'll be doing Childe Ballads, the next
they'll be screaming for Beatles filks.  One event you'll do scenes from
Shakespeare, the next Comedia, the week after that something about Odin and
an eight legged horse.  The possibilities are endless.  You could learn
Welsh, every version of "The Cruel Sister" (well, a bunch of them at least),
or memorize a 400 line Norse saga.  Whatever you do, if you follow the course
I've set out here you'll do well, and pretty soon people will be asking you
if you'll be at the bardic circle tonight, or if you'll come to their
encampment later and sing something.

 As you make your way through the Society you will meet all sorts of people,
and you'll learn to touch the hearts of people whose names you'll never know.
 In time you'll become an integral and important part of your Kingdom, and
people will leave the tournaments with your songs, stories, poems and riddles
echoing in their hearts and hoping that you'll be at the next event.

Good luck,

Lord Thomas Bordeaux


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