Where to from here ...

[manfredvijars]

Historically there was more memorising done than reading. The itinerant workers/swaggies were for the most part illiterate and tramped from job to job. They would camp beside some water (generally) and there was a campfire protocol that they followed. An individual fire was considered their 'home'. A communal fire was constructed that everyone was required to attend. It was there that everyone was required to present something - poem, story, song.

I've been trying to unearth the article in an old R.M. Williams "Outback" magazine. The article went on to say that many 'swagmen' would be seen practicing their pieces while on the road - even Shakespear. When I locate the article I'll share it

There are many protagonists in our craft from "meticulous writers" to "ridiculous reciters". ALL are valid. In modern days I'd have to say that no-one gave (modern) 'Bush Poetry' a greater shot in the arm than Murray Hartin with "Turbulance". Like it or loath it, what's popular will inject life (and hopefully longetivity) into our Passion. Popular (professional) performance poetry gets BUMS ON SEATS! People pay to see good ORIGINAL performances.

Unfortunatly the performance competitions that we've come to rely on for so long appear to be on the wane. No 2011 ABPA Australian Performance competition, no Queensland one either. We look around and ask, "Where are the kids?" It was also asked "Where are the Women?" Are we a dying breed and is our Culture dying with us?

Well I think it's time to stop scratching around in the ashes of past campfires. Sadly, for many of the illiterate swagmen, their poetic treasures died with them. It's a rapidly changing world now with many fads having the use-by-date of a butterfly. Rhyming Bush Poetry is our Culture - NOT a fad. We need to switch on the (battery powered) Coleman to see where we're going or we too will rise without trace.

Sorry about the rant ...

[Bob Pacey]

Takes a little bit of effort from all of us Manfred. Recite to the kids at every opportunity. I have a couple of poems that I drag out whenever kids are in the audience. Had a young fella about 14 who sat at the rear of the crowd on Sunday and waited until everyone else was gone and I was having an amber ale to sneak over and check out my stuff.

Pounced on him quickly and he is interested, showed him the ABPA mags and forms and told him about the web site.If we keep at it it will show results. Remember like us not all the kids want to enter comps.

If I get through to one it's worth it. My own grandson who is now 13 was very interested a couple of years back but now GIRLS are a bit more interesting ? Why is that ?

Cheers Mate

Bob

[Zondrae]

G'day all,

Every time I perform "Stolen Years" I sell books. So it is not all swagmen, horses, sheep and the outback that people enjoy. If there were more opportunities to perform, I'd be there. I have already performed at a local RSL club. As has already been voiced, performing to Festival audiences is preaching to the faithful. How do we get across to other audiences?

I am about to start reciting at a nursing home.. not much future converts there.. oh but wait - the staff. Also I will ask if they will spread the news to families of inmates that we (IBP) will be giving a show and invite them along. I'll even make up a bit of a generic flyer to hand out or stick up. Also I will make myself go looking for oportunities to 'get up'. There must be many community activities, festivals (other than folk) where we can offer our services. I will go to the council offices today and find out! Naturally there is no money in this, but we have to get the 'fire' back somehow.

I'll get back to you.

[Neville Briggs]

Good points that you raised Manfred. Good question, where to from here. very good question.

I don't think that the real division is between reading v reciting, or even rhymingverse v other stuff.
I think it is between whether we are going to do bush poetry as an art form or bush poetry as another commodity in entertainment consumerism.

I doubt that bush poetry can stay the distance in consumerism, your examples of the redundent comps seems to show that. Consumerism is only interested in the momentary buzz. We watch on the TV, news items of thousands of people and their homes being being swept away in a disaster and then we switch to a comical advertisment about home renovations for a few seconds. A news item about a vicious murder, then an ad about buying a new car. Consumers don't dwell on anything for too long, it just has be entertaining and forever new or they switch off.
If the bush poetry entertainment event looks much the same as it did last time, and the time before that, well..no matter how entertaining or professional ...I suspect it will be ho hum from the consumers...what's next.
I think art is more enduring and it's following more sustainable. That's just a guess, I could be wrong.

You made a good point about moving forward. I think bush poetry can thrive as an art as long as we don't do it in such a way that gives the impression that nothing has changed.
The world has changed and our art will be irrelevent if it doesn't or is unable to encounter those changes.

So how do we manage that. Where do we go from here.
I'm still thinking

[Vic Jefferies]

It seems to me we wont be going far if we don't encourage some new blood who may also bring with them some new perspectives on "bush poetry." Wonder how we could encourage more people to participate at poetry events?
Must be some way of getting them started?
Together with Peter Mace I have been co-ordinating the Gosford Bush Poets for nearly the last six years and we meet once a month. We started with eight people and now average about fifty people each meeting. Our largest audience was over one hundred. We often have between twenty to twenty five poets present their work. We welcome all forms of poetry and everyone and anyone is welcome to recite and or read their own or their favourite poems.
There is no competitions, no restriction on reading or style and everyone is made feel welcome and appreciated.
Somewhere in that mix we have found a successful method of attracting people, keeping people and encouraging people to become involved in bush poetry.
A number of those who have attended have then gone on to attend other poetry events and festivals and we see this as being beneficial to the movement as a whole.
Now I would suggest that if we had run the monthly meetings on a competition basis we would have ceased to exist years ago. Similarly if we insisted that everyone had to recite and not have been allowed to read, we would have folded quicker. If the evenings were dominated by an individual or small clique we would have met the same fate and if people were not made to feel welcome and appreciated they simply would not have continued to come back.

[Neville Briggs]

I agree with your approach Vic.

Our little group operates much the same but we get a few newies here and there and others drift off. We never seem to make a net increase. Maybe the pub venue is the key, one of the few places in our culture where a variety of ordinary people gather to meet and can informally communicate person to person. Marty seems to do well in the local hotel.

[warooa]

the audience is predominantly people over the age of 55 , that in itself speaks volumes for where we are and where we are going.
MArty

So . . in a nutshell - our audience is an expanding demographic (in more ways than one ) as the oldies outnumber the youth, they'll build more caravan parks to filled will old farts and there won't be a highway you can travel on in all of Australia where you won't be stuck behind a line of cars behind a Jayco pop top being tugged along at 85kmh. But every poets brekky and festival will have a healthy roll up of dicky knees and false hips all appreciative of the bush poetry on offer.

So don't panic - that other smaller insignificant minority group (the yoof) will wonder what they're missing out on and soon jump on board. As an entertainment medium performance bush poetry is unique - and every single one of us would have heard from folk who've experienced a quality performance for the first time words similar to "gee I didn't realise I'd enjoy that so much/how good that was". We know we dispense a quality entertainment product, so while I may sound too apathetic to some, let's just do what we do - do it well, and the results will take care of themselves.

Marty

[Bob Pacey]

Marty powerful words and I reckon close to the mark.

This is exactly the reason why i spend so much of my time or expend so many of my brain cells in memorising poems. I have lost count of the times where after a performance members of the audience have come up for a chat and say Wow thats great how I'm amazed at how you remember all that. It is all part of the WOW factor. This happened even last night where a couple sat at the back and slowly became involved in the performance and you guessed it they were the first to come up after and have a chat. Never heard bush poetry performed but I bet next time they see a show advertised they will be there boots and all.

Oh by the way re my previous post about my grandson. I met his new girlfriend yesterday and guess what she writes POETRY
Karma is a funny thing is it not.

Bob

[Neville Briggs]

let's just do what we do - do it well, and the results will take care of themselves.

Words of wisdom Marty. And the operative words " do it well " . Which takes a lot of hard slog, I'm not talking about memorising, but about putting in the hard yards to educate ourselves on what is good quality bush poetry.

( I'm still working on it, by the time I'm about 95 I might start to get the idea )

[Bob Pacey]

Better get on it nev not long left then.

Got called an old fart the other day.

Well I'd rather be an old fart then never been a fart at all.

Sorry Slim.

Bob