I wish I had been there with you to hear Creeley. I was reading
on the same program that he was. (I will not vouch for my own
reading.) He, honestly, was terrible. But, perhaps I am being
unfair to him and should allow him an off night?
Tom
>Although I'm not a great fan of Heaney & am a great fan of Creeley, I
>must disagree about both, at least in terms of my experience. The time
>I've heard Heaney read I enjoyed his presence & his reading, but have
>to add that most of the audience were also in a worshipping mode. The
>one time I heard Creeley read, to an audience of about a thousand, he
>turned that huge crowd into a couple of people across a small table in
>someone's living room, & presented a sense of intimacy that was
>amazing. Indeed, that is one of the greatest readings I have ever
>attended, & I have attended a lot.
>
>I do agree that it helps if you know some of the poet's work, even if
>not the poems s/he is reading that day.
>
>Doug
>On 6-Mar-05, at 5:46 AM, Thomas Fallon wrote:
>
>>If I am hearing a poem for the first time, I have a difficult time
>>understanding it as it is read by the poet. It is there and then
>>gone. The spoken word does fly. I do not have the necessary
>>time to think about the poem which has some depth of thought
>>so I lose the poem completely.
>>
>>Most poets I've heard, including Seamus Heaney and Robert
>>Creeley, do not read well. I don't really care if they do, but
>>think they should educate themselves for their readers' sake.
>>You expect poor readers at open mikes, but not on the
>>international level.
>>
>>The two best poets I've heard introduced each poem well and
>>read only short poems which did not have great depth of thought.
>>They were not poems lacking in quality, however, and the poets'
>>reading did enhance the poems.
>>
>>I have only enjoyed reading myself with a group with whom I am
>>familiar. I do not mean close friends. I have definitely benefited
>>from all my readings with the changes because of the changes
>>I have made to the poems, even as I read.
>>
>>Tom
>>
>>>Thanks Alison.
>>>
>>>The poetry reading is beginning to strike me as a very strange art
>>>form.
>>> For years I didn't enjoy them but I went anyway. Then I heard Alan
>>>Dugan. Now I'm interested but mostly more to see the
>>>behavior/approach
>>>of the poet. Generally I can't really follow/hear the poetry that
>>>well.
>>> It's a very strange art form: the poet is almost a sacred relic of
>>>the
>>>poetry. That's the only excuse. Mercifully it's short. Also: the
>>>poetry audience is unusual in that it's very heavy on poets, sometimes
>>>exclusively
>>>so. Sometimes readings give me time to think. Yet I love doing them
>>>myself. Still I think they're hard enough to enjoy. I'm actually
>>>quite
>>>afraid of the audience when I'm attending a reading, but not when I'm
>>>reading myself.
>>>
>>>Mairead
>>>
>>>>>> [log in to unmask] 03/05/05 7:20 PM >>>
>>>On 6/3/05 3:08 AM, "Mairead Byrne" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Bob Perelman & Mairead Byrne read in Mike Gizzi & Mike Magee's
>>>DownCity
>>>> Series at Tazza, Westminster Street, on Tuesday March 8th at 7pm.
>>>>
>>>> The Poetry Reading -- I mean what *is* that about???
>>>
>>>Have fun, Mairead - would love to be there.
>>>
>>>And what _is_ it about? Any ideas?
>>>
>>>Best
>>>
>>>A
>>>
>>>
>>>Alison Croggon
>>>
>>>Blog: http://theatrenotes.blogspot.com
>>>Editor, Masthead: http://masthead.net.au
>>>Home page: http://alisoncroggon.com
>>
>>
>>--
>>Visit the Maine Poetry website for classic and contemporary
>>Maine poets, poems, books, etc. - http://www.mainepoetry.com
>>
>
>
>Douglas Barbour
>Department of English
>University of Alberta
>Edmonton Alberta T6G 2E5 Canada
>(780) 436 3320
>http://www.ualberta.ca/~dbarbour/dbhome.htm
>
>care to be more
>precise about whatever
>it is you are
>saying, I said
>
> Bill Manhire
--
Visit the Maine Poetry website for classic and contemporary
Maine poets, poems, books, etc. - http://www.mainepoetry.com
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