We continue our review of kingdom-level competition prep (from yesterday’s Round 1 analysis). On to Round 2, and how I arrived at “Ode to Birka” as my performance piece. (Note: I am categorizing this as an A&S Journey entry, because the focus of this round ended up being contrafacts of Thomas Campion pieces examined in this series. Before I found the right one, “My love hath vowed”, I made attempts with “Now winter nights enlarge” and “I care not for these ladies”, which will be detailed below.)
Author: Drake Oranwood
Drake Oranwood (Eric Schrager) is a singer, songwriter, producer, lutenist, and medieval enthusiast who brings modern sensibilities to original songs set long ago and far away.
As promised, it is time to break down this year’s Queen & Crown’s Bardic Championship as I prepared for and experienced it. I’m going to do one post for each round–not because this was the year I was selected, but because the work that went into each round dovetails with the A&S Journey posts I have been making since last June. We will start with the first round, where I presented John Dowland’s “Clear or cloudy”.
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Queen’s Bard of the East
A quest has been completed. Saturday was the East Kingdom Queen and Crown’s Bardic Championship, in the Shire of Caer Adamant (Wilmington DE). Her Majesty Margarita ultimately selected me to be the new Queen’s Champion of Bardic for the next year. My friend Grim the Skald, a returning champion, was chosen as Crown’s Bard.
I will be posting my usual post-game analysis in the next few days, and videos of performances from the three rounds. But for now, I want to just let it sink in, and offer gratitude to some of the many people who made this day unforgettable:
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Sorry about the radio silence
Hi friends,
Yes, it’s the last weeks leading up to the East Kingdom Bardic Championships, which will be held a week from Saturday in Delaware. Yes. I’m competing this year. (You know that our glorious Queen Margarita is a bard, right?)
I am following my wife’s advice and “keeping my powder dry” while I work on my competition pieces. I will, as is my custom, do a deep dive share on my preparation process (some of which has already been discussed at some length on this blog)…but I have learned that some element of surprise is invaluable in competitive performance, so I have gone rather quiet since the holidays.
I promise you this…I am preparing the absolutely “Drake-est” competition entries I have ever undertaken. And I will share the results for every round I make it through.
I’m planning to have a blast, and I hope to see you there.
Couldn’t resist.
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Campion: My love hath vowed
This week, our A&S journey returns to Campion, for a piece I have been looking forward to re-examining: “My love hath vowed”. This piece, and the way I was introduced to it, marked a turning point in my relationship with Elizabethan songs, as we’ll discuss in coming weeks, so I have saved it for the end of this particular Campion cycle. This is the first Elizabethan piece I encountered that tells a woman’s story from a woman’s perspective, something Campion did more than any of his contemporaries. While I can play and sing this piece with the original lyrics, this video of it, in a modern setting, was the one that made me fall in love with it (notwithstanding they omitted the fourth verse).
I’ve had a heavy focus on advancing my ability to play Dowland’s “Clear or cloudy” the last several weeks. The song, I’m happy to say, has come along nicely in a relatively short time. (Video below.) It’s worth discussing the components involved in advancing a challenging piece.
In a previous post, I made a reference to “deliberate practice” (a term I first encountered in Malcom Gladwell’s Outliers), but today let’s focus in on how what that looks like for this situation. Quoting an excellent article on the topic: “Deliberate practice refers to a special type of practice that is purposeful and systematic. While regular practice might include mindless repetitions, deliberate practice requires focused attention and is conducted with the specific goal of improving performance.”
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Fall Crown Tourney 2019
Saturday was my first Crown Tourney in a while. I had missed serving as a list herald, which is as combat-adjacent as I get using my particular skillset (i.e., my voice). It was a busy event, albeit a cold one (thank you, Suba, for the loan of your pink gloves partway through the event, for which I received many fashion compliments!).
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New demo recording: Masters of the Game
As a little surprise for Alison Wodehalle and the shire of Hartshorn-dale, my friends and I have thrown together a quick demo recording of “Masters of the Game” for your listening, and for people who want to be able to learn the song.
I got some brief studio time a few weeks ago with a couple of friends: Donal Artur of the Silver Band, who provided guitar and vocals, and Melodia Beaupel, who sang vocals as well. I thought this would be a fun way to finish out the commission. Please enjoy.
As promised, we resume our examination of Thomas Campion’s work. “I care not for these ladies” is probably one of Campion’s best known songs, capturing his keen eye social mores and the sexual politics of his day, and his delight in being comically naughty (often at the expense of women, and in ways that are concerning).
Nature of work: Song (or “air”) for one to two voices (Cantus/melody and Bassus/bass) and lute, lyrics in English
Historic source: Thomas Campion, (A Book of Ayres for Lute, Bass Viol and Voice, 1601)
Drake Oranwood 