Recording Keats Poems and Letters

[Malia]

OK, couldn't help myself! Here's another audio file. This time, I've recorded one of the short notes written from Keats to Fanny Brawne early in his last illness. Compared to most of his letters to her, it is relatively calm and happy

To Fanny Brawne February, 1820: [url=http://url] http://85.117.136.8/00232584

[Saturn]

I don't have a cool accent like Stephen! But, I tried my best

I've never thought of my accent as cool before.

Your reading was absolutely beautiful Malia - you have a wonderful accent and such beautiful phrasing and expression - my own poor efforts have been put to shame.

Excellent work

I hope you wil do some more for us when you can

[Malia]

Thanks Stephen--and I'm so glad you were able to open the files! I feel a sense of triumph knowing I can now create and upload those darned things! (Took me long enough to figure it out.)

Anyway, I too was using my "posh voice" hehe--but I love to read aloud and it's so fun to have a forum where we can all share our readings like this.

I can't wait to hear more people's recordings. Hopefully, there will be more!

[MonroeDoctrine]

If only I had an audio recording and school people on how to read Keats! Although I haven't heard you folks so I can't judge you but I can say that most readings I've seen have destroyed the poems!

[Malia]

I agree, MonroeDoctrine. I owned an audio tape series of Keats's poems read by a relatively young guy (which I thought was great as most of the recordings I've listened to were done by really OLD guys--in their 70's or something and that in itself kind of does a disservice as Keats was so *young* when he wrote the poems--it would be neat to hear a young person reading them). Anyway, this guy--Douglas Hodge--was OK, but every reading sounded the same. He put the same emphasis on every poem--read with this kind of rushed impetuous energy. It seemed to me that he hadn't really analyzed Keats's poetry enough ahead of time to recite the poetry with emphasis and accents that told the *story* of the poem or revealed some kind of belief or conclusion he'd made while reading the work.

But I think we Keatsians can do a good service by reading Keats aloud, ourselves You don't need to be a trained actor to do it--I think what's important is having an idea of what you think the poem is telling you as you read--that helps with emphasis--and of course a great love for the work, itself.

[Credo Buffa]

Just to let you all know, I did a recording of "A Song About Myself", just for something a bit light and fun that wouldn't feel so daunting to read (in addition to loathing the sound of my own voice, I always get tongue-tied when I try to read aloud). However, my laptop is being stupid and won't let me use my wav conversion tool on for my minidisc (I use a minidisc recorder when I make music recordings, so I just did the same thing here), so it's trapped in SonicStage right now I might have to get my desktop computer up and running before I'm able to rescue it.

I just thought I'd let you know that I'm not a total bum and I am trying to get a reading on here!

[Malia]

Hey there! I'm glad you're trying to upload a recording. I'm curious to hear other people's readings! I'll send up a prayer to the computer gods that you get your glitch worked out and have the file up and ready for us to listen to soon.

[Credo Buffa]

I'll send up a prayer to the computer gods that you get your glitch worked out and have the file up and ready for us to listen to soon.

ha ha, thanks. Though I'm not convinced that the computer gods listen to our humble prayers too terribly often. . .

[Saturn]

The computer gods are capricious in the extreme

Looking forward to hearing your work everyone.

Keep it up my friends - this is the most alive this site has been for well over a year at least

[Credo Buffa]

Alrighty, so I managed to get a wma version of my string quartet/flute composition I mentioned before based on "Ode to a Nightingale". Here's the link at YouSendIt:

http://s39.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=3ME2SBW19PBQH041DOLMRE2RR4

Significantly smaller than the last file

Let me know if it doesn't work. Like I said, it's not my most mature composition, and I'd like to eventually rework it and make significant improvements, but for now, it is what it is, I guess. Hope it's not a complete waste of your time

[Despondence]

Wow - you composed that?
I don't know what to say..."impressive" just doesn't cover it. I am humbled, and ashamed that ever I thought myself a musician. If this is not your "most mature composition", I would certainly like to hear the rest! Methinks thou hast a most luminous future ahed of you

(Btw, you should definitely upload that to SoundClick if you didn't already, I'm sure it would do well there!)

[Credo Buffa]

Thanks, Despondence

That was one of the first "big" works I composed. I started it when I was only a little sophomore in college, before I formally started studying composition, and finished it about a year later as a final project. At the time I firmly defended it's general awesomeness against any criticism I received from my profs, but I've since learned a lot more about what makes a really good and effective composition, and there are definitely some things lacking.

However, I have such a sentimental attachment to the piece that I'm determined to not dismiss it in the midst of my tighter stuff, so I still had it performed on my senior recital (the very recording you have), and someday hope to fix some of what's wrong with it and really make it into something!

Aside from the piece itself, though, my understanding of "Ode to a Nightingale" has changed since its composition as well, and I'd like to reflect those changes. How well do you think the piece, as it is anyway, matches the mood of the poem? I'm curious to hear from people who are familiar with it instead of people who have only been able to look at the composition by itself rather than a piece based on another work.

I am humbled, and ashamed that ever I thought myself a musician.

No need to feel that way. . . I know lots of amazing musicians who couldn't write a halfway passable piece of original music to save their lives

[Despondence]

However, I have such a sentimental attachment to the piece that I'm determined to not dismiss it in the midst of my tighter stuff, so I still had it performed on my senior recital (the very recording you have), and someday hope to fix some of what's wrong with it and really make it into something!

Looking forward to the remix then

Aside from the piece itself, though, my understanding of "Ode to a Nightingale" has changed since its composition as well, and I'd like to reflect those changes. How well do you think the piece, as it is anyway, matches the mood of the poem?

Admirably. The "mood" of the poem is probably a very personal thing, but your sonic interpretation is very close to my own, almost like looking at a picture that I recognized ("yeah, that's the Nightingale all right!"). I actually composed a trivial little ditty for guitar on the same Ode, many years ago While nowhere near as accomplished or deliberated as yours, my version also had a slowly moving and ethereal air, with only hinted-at dissonances. I based it entirely on the "Darkling I listen" stanza though, not the whole poem, but still, it jibes pretty well with your interpretation. Mine was totally anachronistic though, as I recorded it with my Stratocaster.. !

[Saturn]

Credo - a truly wonderful piece of music there

I too am ashamed to claim to be a musician

I know little about the technical side of music but I know what I like and this really moved me to tears but then music does that to me, and poetry.

Reading the poem along with it, it fits perfectly.

The next stage perhaps is to read the poem with the music accompanying it somehow. Obviously the music is much longer than the poem but perhpas an edited version could be played below the reading of the poem.

Now I'm going to have to try and work out a little piece of music to go along with one of the poems myself.

Oh and Despondence, don't knock the Strat

[Malia]

Alrighty, so I managed to get a wma version of my string quartet/flute composition I mentioned before based on "Ode to a Nightingale". Here's the link at YouSendIt:

http://s39.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=3ME2SBW19PBQH041DOLMRE2RR4

Credo Buffa, try as I might I can't get this file to open and I really wanted to hear your composition.
Is there any way you can upload it to yousendit as an MP3 file? My computer doesn't recognize this one--even when I try to import it to iTunes.