According to wikipedia a bard was a "professional poet, employed by a patron, such as a monarch or nobleman, to commemorate the patron's ancestors and to praise the patron's own activities." It was different than just a singer or poet but in modern times it is often used to mean any "epic author/singer/narrator". I've always personally thought a bard was anyone who performed songs, recited poems, and told epic tales for the amusement of others. I guess my view was tainted by D&D.
In these modern times we don't really have bards. Those that sing and perform songs are musicians, poetry is written and read by poets, stories are written by authors and story telling is largely limited to the librarian who recites children's stories to little ones a few times a week. Any one of these people might be called bard but none quite fit the bill.
Being that I'm about to start panhandling I was considering things I could do, performances specifically, to earn some money. One idea that came up was reciting monologues from 'the Bard' himself, Shakespeare. Long story short, this lead to the idea of becoming a wandering bard. I had images in my mind of sitting on a street side plucking out a simple tune on my lap harp while I told tragic love tales to a few odd ones who stopped to listen. And yet I could not imagine that actually working. And so I began to wonder; What is a modern bard?
If you could imagine a bard in these modern times what comes to mind? And I'm not talking about those few musicians who still sing songs of great myths. Get creative with it. I want to see what the imaginations of PF can come up with =)
In these modern times we don't really have bards. Those that sing and perform songs are musicians, poetry is written and read by poets, stories are written by authors and story telling is largely limited to the librarian who recites children's stories to little ones a few times a week. Any one of these people might be called bard but none quite fit the bill.
Being that I'm about to start panhandling I was considering things I could do, performances specifically, to earn some money. One idea that came up was reciting monologues from 'the Bard' himself, Shakespeare. Long story short, this lead to the idea of becoming a wandering bard. I had images in my mind of sitting on a street side plucking out a simple tune on my lap harp while I told tragic love tales to a few odd ones who stopped to listen. And yet I could not imagine that actually working. And so I began to wonder; What is a modern bard?
If you could imagine a bard in these modern times what comes to mind? And I'm not talking about those few musicians who still sing songs of great myths. Get creative with it. I want to see what the imaginations of PF can come up with =)
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