What filk *isn't* (was minstrel: Re: To All Filkers )

[Mike C. Baker]

(Quoted message _follows_ my .sig block; I'm tired and lazy
this evening... Amra)

Crystal asked for the opinion of other Ansteorrans as to the mix performed
in this kingdom.

My Milage Mostly Varies.

Using her category numbers with expansion, and ranging across ALL 
performances witnessed in the last umpteen years (my personal 
20th-year SCA celebration is next spring), I'll claim to have seen 
about 10% #1, around 15% #2, 30% #3, perhaps 10% #4, and the 
balance, which I will call type #5, filk of the type which is NOT 
"outside looking in":  the original set of Ansteorran verses for 
"Rising of the Star" gave none of this impression, IMNSHO, although 
some of the later additions fit under categories #1 & #2 -- and RotS 
certainly doesn't fit the "medieval feel" category, it's Irish Rebellion
heart&soul.  (I expand lightly here, and include all vocal performance,
to arrive at these approximate figures.)  In this category #5 I will
include
many of my own published / publically performed items, other songs
using a post-1600 tune but words which avoid your category #2, and
most story-telling and original poetry.  Plus some modern poetic
works that are fully "compatible" with pre-1601 style or thought
(Sir Galen of Bristol recites a marvelous poem about St. Olaf, Patron 
of Gamblers, that I have myself told as a story: both of us know that 
the poem was originally appeared in the _Dragon_ FRPG gaming 
magazine years ago.)

Now, I'll be happy to admit perhaps I travel with a different crowd, 
but I must say if she is regularly hearing nearly 20% researched 
period music, I doubt that the lady is visiting some of the same 
campfires that I am.  Or even some of the same competition
circles I have known.  Recently, there _has_ been more emphasis
upon researched material for competitions, particularly pieces 
sung in (often non-English) original language, so that no doubt
represents part of the discrepancy. 

Now, I am more than a little curious: Crystal, presumably you are 
classifying such abominations as "The Moose Song" and such 
indulgent delights as "Waltzing with Bears" and Othar's rendition 
of "The Bear Hunt" in your category #1 ("Boyscout songs" -- mind 
if we re-title that "Youth camp songs / stories", please, since a great 
many of the songs I suspect you refer to here would NOT be acceptable 
at either Boy or Girl Scout camps if the leaders are doing their jobs...)?
Would you place "Black Widows in the Privy" here in #1? Would you put
"Lie to the Council" in category #1 or #2?  How about the (choreographed)
"Banks of the Vergio"? Where do you choose to place SCA-traditional fare 
of the after-midnight forms (adult bawdy stuff, such as "Ball of
Ballyknure")?

If this is reasonably close, where do you propose to categorize such 
renditions as "The Ballad of Bowie Gizzard's-Bane", "Lutefisk & Yams",
my own rendition of "Kanana the Coward" (also known as "Kanana of the
Lance"), Ioseph of Locksley's "Reeds of Runnymede", and the ever-
popular "Song of the Shield-Wall"?  

How about Ragnar's (may his horn never be empty!) tale of two valiant 
bands of heroes battling over the control of a leather ovoid (crib notes 
courtesy of Andy Griffith, I believe, updated to relate the action of a 
specific football game)?  

And how have you come away with the thought that so little of the 
overall entertainment falls into your categories #1 & #2?  Were you 
including ONLY competition circles? If so, have we got a few things
to let you in on, cousin!

My simple point: every solo SCA performer typically acquires at least one 
funny, feel-good, or non-authentic piece which audiences ask for, again
and again. Don Alden's rendition of "Dragon Road", Don Robin's "Culture
Medley" or his tale of the not-so-cowardly sea captain, William Blackfox 
(may he rest well and his memory live long) and "Barret's Privateers":  
I've heard of or seen times when these men simply had to say "no", and 
others when the performer knew it was the right time for the tune or
recitation.

Every form of composition has an appropriate venue for performance.  Not
all entertainers in the SCA are particularly good at separating the venues 
when they choose to perform.  We should be thankful that the process is 
largely self-correcting.

As Ansteorrans, we seldom have post-event revels -- at least few that I
have
encountered in the last half-dozen years.  We do tend to have camps at 
events that have become known for particular flavors of entertainment: 
dancers and drummers over there, bawdy tales and drinking songs out
back, serious instrumentalists around the corner, general grab-bag _here_,
etc.
There is occasionally some deliberate cross-over. There are theme-based
competitions from time to time, and formal titled-bard competitions as
well.
The state of bardic arts in the kingdom is the total of all these, and
more.

My zwei pfennig, as an Ansteorran bard, a Bard in the traditional sense 
mundanely (of the lineage of Gwydion and of the White Bard), and also 
as a modern filker who reinforces the observation that filk can and often 
does have original tunes -- or even no tune at all... or no words!

Mike C. Baker
SCA: Amr ibn Majid al-Bakri al-Amra
currently a resident of Barony of the Steppes, Ansteorra
"Other": Kihe Blackeagle (the Dreamsinger Bard)
My opinions are my own -- who else would want them?
e-mail: kihe at ticnet.com OR kihe at rocketmail.com

----------
From: Crystal Simpson <cab at scientific.com>
To: minstrel at rt.com
Subject: FWD: Re: What filk *isn't* (was minstrel: Re: To All Filkers )
Date: Wednesday, October 07, 1998 11:31 AM

I think that their are two ideas here that are different.  I thought that
Filk referred to any piece that was new words to an old tune.   While this
person (I am sorry, I forgot who sent this initially) uses the term Filf to
refer to something else.  Actually, I am not really sure what you
definition is.

To me, you are lumping a number of things in together, and I thought that I
would lay them out as I think of them.

1) Boyscout songs - these are songs that while they may be cute, they have
nothing to do with the SCA and seem to be more appropriate for teenage boys
around a campfire.  I definitely agree that these do not belong in public
areas at SCA events.

2) Filk "Outside looking in" (I really like that title, I think I will
start referring to them that way) like "God rest ye merry autocrat".  I
have always thought of these as "Denny's Songs" similar to what you are
referring to as "Post Revel Songs" basically, related to the SCA, but NOT
midieval in any way.  Best to do these at some non-event sca-dian
gathering.

3) Midieval-like - but not period.  The people that I have been singing
with locally and I have discussed what we think is appropriate for events. 
We came to the conclusion that we felt like, it was okay to perform a piece
at an event "if it did NOT yank the average SCA-dian back to modern life". 
ex: no mention of cars, events, etc.  Now granted, if you are a scholar of
period music, you will be able to differentiate between period and
Midieval-Like music, and you might think that anything not actually period
yanks you back to modern. But, we were considering the average ansteorrean
for this purpose.  Now, in my opinion, there are many things that fall into
this category - which includes most original pieces, filks (original words
to existing music), many "folk" songs, etc.

4) Period.  Actual documentable period pieces.

>From what I have seen, at most events in Ansteorra, public bardic circles
consist of about 1% Type 1&2, 80% Midieval-like music and 19% Period music.
 Does anyone from Ansteorra have a different opinion on that?  Do other
kingdoms have a higher proportion of Period songs?

Crystal
Ansteorra
--------------------------------------
> Part of why I really don't like hearing filk at events is that the
> majority of it *is* from the outside-looking-in perspective.  That
> makes it interesting and revelent to us as people, but it's *really*
> at odds with the atmosphere.


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