On Performing
By THLaird Colyne Stewart
June 2014 (AS 49)
While I know some may wonder why I would write upon such a
subject, since I do not often perform myself, I feel it is a subject that
should be explored. Though I do not perform often I do have experience singing
and storytelling around camp fires and in feast halls, as well as having
non-SCA performing experience.
As such, I though it might be useful, especially for novice
bards or those who are thinking of taking up the bardic arts, to have a discussion
about the following.
Where to Perform
The most common place to sing a song, tell a story or recite
a poem is around a campfire. In fact, many events that feature camping will
have a campfire set aside specifically for bardic pursuits. Whether it’s a
dedicated bardic circle or not, most people will welcome a song or two.
Another great place to perform is in the feast hall. You can
approach head table and ask to perform for the royalty in attendance, or to
perform for the entire hall. If performing for the entire hall keep in mind
that conversations may well continue as people have had an exciting day and
want to discuss it with their friends. Do not take it personally if the entire
hall does not go silent for your rendition.
A different approach to use in the feast hall is to go from
table to table and ask if anyone would like to hear a song or a tale. If they
say yes, you will have a smaller audience who will easily be able to hear you
and will be able to give you their full attention. I have actually seen bards
play for their dinner in this manner, being given some of the feasters’ dinner
as payment for their performance.
A third option for the hall works best for music, and that
is to provide ambiance for the room by playing off to one side. I have attended
feasts where a harpist played throughout the meal, and it added so much to the
experience.
Besides the bardic circles and the feast halls, where else
might a bard ply their trade? During the day you could take on the role of a
wandering minstrel and simply walk about the site while singing a song or
playing your instrument. This is another excellent way of adding ambiance to an
event without the other attendees needing to stop what they are doing.
Court can be another place to perform, but this should be
cleared with Their Majesties, Their Highnesses or Their Excellencies before
hand. Ealdormere is known as the land that sings, so some of our courts do
feature music. If you want to ensure that music plays a part in the court you
are attending, talk to the royalty and offer to lead the populace in song. This
can be a great way to end a court.
Keep your eye out for bardic challenges and contests. Often
someone (especially Royal Bards and Baronial Bards) will issue challenges to
the people of the kingdom to write or perform a song or story or poem. This can
be a great opportunity to meet other bards, hear new works, and perform your
own. The Atheneaum Hectoris, a school in Ealdormere dedicated to teaching the
populace how to write, is planning to hold several such contests throughout the
year.
What to Perform
Assuming you have now found your venue, what item from your
repertoire should you perform? The answer to that comes from reading your
audience.
Are the people present calm and focused on you? Then this
might be a good time for a story or a poem. Are they riotous and energetic? A
popular song might be best. Is the mood upbeat? Then don’t sing a dirge. Is the
mood downbeat? I’d suggest picking something a little brighter to try to bring
the mood up, or stick with something serious in nature.
It is important to read your audience, as I have seen bardic
circles killed by someone telling a long, dry story and destroying the momentum
the circle had been experiencing. Remember, we as bards should not be trying to
showcase ourselves and telling what we want to tell, we are providing a service
and should be telling what the audience wants to hear.
Around a campfire your best bet is always singing, as it is
interactive and the audience can join in on the chorus. The basis of great
storytelling is keeping the audience invested, and including them in the
experience is the best way to do so.
Though not often seen in Ealdormere, another option for
performance is the play. There are many extant plays from period you could
perform, or you could write your own.
How Long to Perform
This is an extremely important topic. Again I have seen rousing bardic circles
dwindle and die as a bard decided to tell a fifteen minute long story. If your
piece is too long, the audience will get bored, and a bored audience is never a
good thing. A bored audience will get restless, loud and may even leave the
area. Not good.
When around a general campfire, if you want to tell a story
or recite a poem I would encourage you to keep the piece to under five minutes.
If the venue is dedicated to storytelling or poetry, that’s a different story.
This audience knows what they are in for and is expecting longer pieces and
will be able to stay focused on you. Otherwise, you run the risk of engendering
boredom. (Which is the exact opposite of what we want to accomplish as bards!)
If you are performing a play, again, try to keep it short.
Your audience will not want to sit still for too long, as there are so many
other things to do at events! Between five and ten minutes is a good run time.
Again, if you can make the experience interactive in some way, you will better
keep your audience’s attention. When the Septentrian Performing Arts Troupe
performed its version of Twelfth Night,
Baroness Gaerwen came up with interactive activities (ala Rocky Horror), such
as booing certain characters, cheering others, and so forth. She did this on
the fly, and it saved the performance (in my opinion).
I’m new!
If you are a novice bard or someone interested in taking up
the bardic arts, Ealdormere does have a Bardic College
Links
Below I have included some links which can help you on your
way to bettering your performances, or help you make contacts within the bardic
community.
Atheneaum Hectoris (Ealdormere’s school of writing), http://athenaeumhectoris.blogspot.ca/
SCA Bardic Arts (Facebook group), https://www.facebook.com/groups/bardicarts
SCA Bards (Yahoo group), http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SCA_BARDS/
SCA Bardic Arts Resource Page, https://sites.google.com/site/scabardic/
Addendum
Things I state are rare in this article may not be so in your own area. Mileage will always vary.
THLaird Colyne Stewart
is a student of the written word. He is the Curator of the Atheneaum Hectoris,
the Precentor of the Scriptorium, the Royal Historian of Ealdormere, the
Baronial Historian of Septentria, a chronicler and a member of the Bardic
Colege of Ealdormere. He is a past Bard of Septentria and one of the founders
of the now defunct Septentrian Performing Arts Troupe. In the modern world he
holds a degree in English and Creative Writing and has studied writing,
storytelling and folklore.
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