Audio, visual... or both?
poetry?
music?
music? --or---
What does poetry mean ? When you read it? When you speak it? When you tweak it or bleak its form?
Our interpretations define our meaning of reality itself because we apply thoughts based on our understanding that constructs our world. We all have different reality. It's what makes us individuals. We'd likely most agree about certain things being "reality" such as taking two steps forward will move us "ahead". But what would happen if we broke our "realities" down to the fragments of emotions intertwined with our thoughts constructing our world, so-to-speak? Would are realities remain similar then?
Similar to Hopkins definition of art, I also feel that the effect is diminished if you don’t play it like it’s meant to be played . My experience has been music isn’t fun unless I want to play it. For instance a few weeks ago my friend asked me round up my musician friends who I once played in a band with to shoot a video. I said, it's OK. You guys do it without me. Music, for me at least, takes a certain amount of preparing. He kind of put a guilt trip on me. Though I'm still very happy about the result of my declination because declining to work with him motivated him to take initiative to do the video with "real artists". One with more time and desire to succeed in music, and Perhaps I doubted him, thus diminished his ability--in my reality, though is busy with school and other issues. Below is the project he produced in Austin a few weeks ago managed to stay on the front page of You Tube for about a week. I told him, "Hey, bro., nice work and I'm happy for you.... Our separate meanings about his art compelled me to mention this here because I honestly did doubt him somewhat. However, it appears, at least, he was feeling something that I wasn't in his reality that wasn’t jiving with mine.
Similar to Hopkins definition of art, I also feel that the effect is diminished if you don’t play it like it’s meant to be played . My experience has been music isn’t fun unless I want to play it. For instance a few weeks ago my friend asked me round up my musician friends who I once played in a band with to shoot a video. I said, it's OK. You guys do it without me. Music, for me at least, takes a certain amount of preparing. He kind of put a guilt trip on me. Though I'm still very happy about the result of my declination because declining to work with him motivated him to take initiative to do the video with "real artists". One with more time and desire to succeed in music, and Perhaps I doubted him, thus diminished his ability--in my reality, though is busy with school and other issues. Below is the project he produced in Austin a few weeks ago managed to stay on the front page of You Tube for about a week. I told him, "Hey, bro., nice work and I'm happy for you.... Our separate meanings about his art compelled me to mention this here because I honestly did doubt him somewhat. However, it appears, at least, he was feeling something that I wasn't in his reality that wasn’t jiving with mine.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66w7a1U1f-M
Music by Danny Malone
Video editing by Chris Morse and Jeremy Cohen.
Strangely enough I am excited that I turned down this, according to him, opportunity. One, it meant I was driven by my goals to achieve what I wanted; and my will was tempted yet not swayed. I had things to do and I've played music for half of my life. It's what we do in Austin, pretty much nothing new. My good buddy took it as an insult.
Yet the interesting aspect is the result, which means something different to both of us. I was glad to see him so proud of that. I honestly would have given him the effort, but wasn't able to simply because I hadn't the time. So our interpretation comes from two different schools, metaphorically, yet we've got to the exact same school literally. We went to the same middle and school and UT, though I got here late. This intrigued me to ponder the reality of meaning... and the meaning of things like good buddies.
I then began to think about Hopkins concept of reading poetry aloud for effect making it actual poetry. When I read those lyrics aloud, it's not the same without the music. Listening to the song without the video is not the same. Hopkins is obviously right in that aspect.
Theoretically we an give separate meanings to poetry and music and then talk about how they may give entirely new meanings when incorporated together. I've been a fan of music over half of my life;there was once a time when I didn't give poetry or poets much thought. I ignored reading poetry but I wrote it essentially in song lyrics and I've written a few of those over the years, though you'll catch me dead before you catch me singing. With poetry something strange happened that changed my attitude entirely.
I then began to think about Hopkins concept of reading poetry aloud for effect making it actual poetry. When I read those lyrics aloud, it's not the same without the music. Listening to the song without the video is not the same. Hopkins is obviously right in that aspect.
Theoretically we an give separate meanings to poetry and music and then talk about how they may give entirely new meanings when incorporated together. I've been a fan of music over half of my life;there was once a time when I didn't give poetry or poets much thought. I ignored reading poetry but I wrote it essentially in song lyrics and I've written a few of those over the years, though you'll catch me dead before you catch me singing. With poetry something strange happened that changed my attitude entirely.
One day in the cafeteria as I was eating my veggie burger with no cheese shortly after having sipped my bubble tea, he[the poet] then suddenly grabbed the podium and took over the cafeteria; loudly, with enigmatic, yet crystal clear messages of inspiration, defeat, disdain, victory, will, corruption, drive, spite, lying, cheating, virtue, beauty, stereotypes, atrocities and other issues that pertain to dynamics of life and it's circumstances. If this guy had not been a poet, he'd likely otherwise sang the blues.
For me playing the blues has a poetic effect
The most interesting aspect of his poetry was that he'd interact with the audience, ask them a question, wait for their answer. Then he'd poetically spout the smoothest flowing poetry, almost like music because it was so rhythmic and melodic when he spoke, yet I never understood exactly what he meant altogether because I wasn't aware of what his poetry meant to him. That's impossible [to understand], but he left an impression through his poetics and flowed as well as I've ever heard anyone flow with vocal rhythm, timing and diction. . The power behind the message would have been lost had it not been him speaking, for lack of a better term, those words so concisely and directly. If it was speaking, it was delivered like a great speaker, though the only part I really remember is that he wanted to be a writer, but his teacher told him that he couldn't write. I suppose"write" is a matter of subjectivity. He wrote alright-- that or he had a really good memory. I can still hear him bellowing the sounds of words through my skeleton etching vibrations into my memory. He seemed to be striving for perfectionism and failing. But he had a talent for poetry similar to Hopkins who, coincidentally, had tendencies towards perfectionism.
Speaking of "normal", it wasn't always the case I appreciated rhymes, rhythms, melodies, tones, inflections associated with poetry. I've been a musician for 18 yeaes. And over the past few years I had the privilege of working with some, in my opinion, rather talented poets. Some of the rappers "emcees" and poets influenced my appreciation towards something that once irritated my ears. What was once noise was now a form of joy. I felt similar about appreciating hip-hop ("poetry" synced to with music)to Hopkins' feelings about spring time when I started to hear the poetry in music.
Playing bass with poetic vocalist, Zack Owens Percussion: Fon Walter/John Straun
(note: this is not a video.)
Spring
"What is this juice and all this joy?
A strain of the earth's sweet being in the beginning
In Eden garden. --Have, get, before it cloy,
Before it cloud, Christ, lord, and sour with sinning, 1
As I conveniently and shamelessly interpret my meaning of Hopkins, his poem serves dual purposes, which remind me also of how a new interest opened doors for me. I then found myself playing with a few free style emcees well-versed in poetry. By comparing hip hop we're able to tie music and poetry together in order to understand the separate realities. According to Susanne Langer, "Speech and music have essentially different functions, despite their oft-remarked union in son. Their original relationship lies mch deeper than any such union and can be seen only when their respective natures are understood."2
In midst of zoning in my own mind's theoretical chimes of words and rhymes that filled the empty spaces between the measures of my ears, became melodic and rhythmic tempos making me shake my feet. So how does this relate to the DB, Ben? (eh, Dr. Bump?) Well, the links aren't working so I'll post some poetry I'm familiar with, though nearly sophisticated in style as Hopkins of course.
Having opened my mind up to poetry changed me into something I once was not. It took a lot of courage to let go of my masculine perception of myself and let go of the sissified notion that I got when I read poetry by Robert Frost and his poem about having courage to change when he "waxed poetic" in this poem.
The Courage To Be New
I hear the world reciting
The mistakes of ancient men,
The brutality and fighting
They will never have again
Heartbroken and disabled
In body and in mind,
They renew talk of the fabled
Federation of Mankind
But they're blessed with the acumen
To suspect the human trait
Was not the basest human
That made them militate
They will tell you more as soon as
You tell them what to do
With their ever breaking newness
And their courage to be new 3
The poetry that I remember the most is the poetry that I've heard or played. My acquired taste of listening to and reading poetry spoken along with music effects me as Hopkins poeticizes,"strikes like lightning to hear him sing"4
I haven't been playing much music lately though if I had the time I'd be playing quite a bit because of the relaxing effect that it has on me. Poetry seems to have a similar effect. And both music and poetry serve as effective means of expression, however determining the meaning of expressiveness is impossible. Further, grammar in music is considered to be harmony in contrast to poetry where words still hold meaning that some argue can be understood without inflecton. Though music can take one through an emotional experience it is fallible to think it a means of language. In Philosophy in a New Key Susanne Langer explores this connection, "Logically, music has not the characteristic properties of language--separable terms with fixed connotations, and syntactical rules for deriving complex connotations without any loss to the constituent element". 5
Her argument is, "apart from a few onomatopoetic themes that have become conventional-the cuckoo, the bugle=calls, and possibly the church-bell--music has no literal meaning".6
I take issue with this notion, because it assumes that language is absolute in precision, much less how accurate a degree our words define our feelings. To a certain degree poetry has the same limitations regarding interpretation because of the difficulty in accurately assessing the feelings implied as well as what degree they are implicated through the poem or song.
An easy argument can be made that as the ages change the emotions entailed within the art of those ages change as well. For example, derivatives of the music associated with previous eras will remain. Music, like poetry, will adapt its senses to the era, thus its meanings of feelings as well as its means and methods of expressing those feelings. Human history suggests that in recent years societies and eras often dictate the appropriateness of expressing feelings, as well as govern the degree of expression. History will also tell us that music has been audited to suit the beliefs to the era in which it originated. As these measures have restricted music, I do disagree critics who offer music incapable of being translated.
The restrictive measures placed on music throughout translate into... a safely made assumption that some musicians felt restricted. Being a musician myself, I speak existentially when I say the musician in me is easier expressed than my "inner-poet".
Masculinity (or the notion upholding it) as Robert Frost poeticizes about makes difficult the expressing of emotions. A large part of this is due the the fear of being misinterpreted. Frost's poem addresses the issue of being misunderstood for having feelings that words cannot describe.
THE FEAR OF MAN
As a girl no one gallantly attends
Sets forth for home at midnight from a friend's--
She tries to make it in one catch of breath,
And this is not because she thinks of death.
The city seems in-toppling from a height,
But she can trust it not to fall tonight.
(It will be taken down before it falls.)
There scarcely is light in all its walls,
Except beside a safe inside a bank
(For which assurance Mammon is to thank).
But there are little streetlights she should trust,
So jewel-steady in the wind and dust
Her fear is being spoken by the rude
And having her exposure misconstrued
May I in my brief bolt across the scene
Not be misunderstood in what I mean.7
Perhaps before we venture reading too heavily into the ambiguous sometimes meanings buried the artists' subconscious, we should read another of Frost's poems.
Beyond Words
That row of icicles along the gutter
Feels ike my armory of hate;
And you, you . . . you, you utter. . . .
You wait! 8
As a general rule I don't worry about which method, if any, a person chooses to express their feelings. Whether it be music or poetry or even a mixture of both, I am grateful to have the freedoms to express my feelings.
Mary Shelly's Frankenstein didn't have it so easy, "I felt emotions of gentleness and pleasure, that had long appeared dead, revive within me. Half surprised by the novelties of these sensations, I allowed myself to be borne away by them, and forgetting my solitude and deformity. dared to be happy".9
I would dare to say that "happy" would entail different realities for most when asked.
Now, excuse me while I climb out of this allegory hole I've dug. I've got Easter eggs to hunt. . .
[1] Hopkins letter to his brother
[2]Langer Susanne, KPhilosophy in a New Key(New York: The New American Library, Inc.,1951), 93
[3] Frost Robert, "The Courage to be New". The Poetry of Robert Frost (Canada: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Ltd., 1963), 387
[4] Hopkins "Spring"
[5]Langer Suzanne, K, Philosophy in a New Key (New York: The New American Library, Inc.,1951), 197
[6]Langer, Suzanne, K, Philosophy in a New Key (New york: The New American LIbrary, Inc.,1951), 194
[7]Frost Robert, "The Fear of Man". The Poetry of Robert Frost (Canada: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Ltd., 1963), 386
[8] Frost Robert, "Beyond Words". The Poetry of Robert Frost (Canada: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Ltd., 1963) 393
[9]Shelly Mary, Frankenstein, (Ontario: The New American Library, Inc.,1965)134
[10]http://x8b.xanga.com/84ba744b7643272059547/b48502334.jpg
[11]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66w7a1U1f-M
[12]http://www.cartoonstock.com/lowres/rro0098l.jpg
[13]photo: me, fon walters, zack owens
[14]http://www.cjfe.org/images/expressyourself.jpg
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