George Oppen

Photo © Michael West

Page edited by Richard Swigg

1. The Image of the Engine (3:58): MP3
2. Song (0:58): MP3
3. From a Photograph (0:48): MP3
4. Undertaking in New Jersey (1:17): MP3
5. Solution (0:57): MP3
6. Chartres (0:38): MP3
7. The Source (0:33): MP3
8. Daedalus: The Dirge (0:38): MP3
9. Poem on the Elders (0:48): MP3
10. Population (0:50): MP3
11. Survival Infantry (0:53): MP3
12. Tourist Eye: Section Four (1:25): MP3
13. Resort (0:43): MP3
14. Flight (0:55): MP3
Complete Reading (20:30): MP3

• Complete Recording (28:50): MP3
• Reading A Narrative, White, Thus/Hides the, The evening, The lights, paving-- , The Mast, Closed Car, This Land, She lies hip high, Her Ankles are Watches, Psalm, Guest Room, Of This All Things, The Forms of Love, Penobcost, The Mayan Ground, The People the People, Street, Giovanni's Rape of the Sabine Women, and Leviathan.


• Outtakes (courtesy of Richard Swigg):


• "Four Poems about Poetry" (an early version of "Five Poems about Poetry" — includes what is now Part 1 [The Gesture], Part 2 [The Little Hole], Part 4 [Parousia] and Part 5 [From Virgil]) (2:30): MP3


• To CT (0:39): MP3

• Complete Recording (34:06): MP3

1. Being Numerous (22:53): MP3
2. Parenthesis (0:22): MP3
3. Historic Pun (1:19): MP3
4. Epigram (0:44): MP3
5. Ballad (1:24): MP3
6. Power the Enchanted World (2:03): MP3
7. Route (11:13): MP3
Complete Reading (41:02): MP3

(This recording was originally made available to the Slought Foundation by Fred Wah. PennSound publication made with thanks to Slought and with the permission of Fred Wah and the Oppen Estate)

• Complete Recording (47:02): MP3
• Introduction by Armand Schwerner, and reading from various poems including Of Being Numerous

Reading at SUNY-Buffalo, February 17, 1967 - a Wednesdays @ 4 Plus event

1. Of Being Numerous (19:47): MP3
2. A Preface (0:31): MP3
3. Historic Pun (1:06): MP3
4. Epigram (0:39): MP3
5. Ballad (1:12): MP3
6. Power, The Enchanted World (1:47): MP3
7. Route (6:15): MP3

• Complete Recording (31:25): MP3

1. Route (13:30): MP3
2. Of Being Numerous (23:27): MP3

1. Introduction (2:36): MP3
2. Song, The Winds of Downhill (0:46): MP3
3. From a Phrase of Simone Weil's and Some Words of Hegel's (1:17): MP3
4. The Speech at Soli (2:17): MP3

From Some San Francisco Poems
5. Section 2: A Morality Play: Preface (1:48): MP3
6. Section 3 (2:08): MP3
7. Section 4: Anniversary Poem (1:20): MP3
8. Section 5: Translucent Mechanics (0:54): MP3
9. Section 6 (1:00): MP3
10. Section 7 (0:55): MP3
11. Section 8: The Taste (0:58): MP3
12. Section 9: The Impossible Poem (0:56): MP3
13. Section 10: But So As By Fire (0:56): MP3


14. Of Hours (2:42): MP3
15. Inlet (0:48): MP3
16. The Occurrences (1:05): MP3
17. West (1:37): MP3
18. Animula (1:25): MP3
19. The Hegelian Bell (0:55): MP3
20. Exodus (1:40): MP3

Complete Recording (28:37): MP3

Reading at the Poetry Center at the San Francisco State University: February 22, 1973

1. "To Begin Again..." (4:53): MP3
2. Anniversary Poem (2:27): MP3
3. "Silver as the Needle's Eye..." (2:58): MP3
4. Leave Her the Cot (4:00): MP3
Complete Reading (14:38): MP3
Original recording by the Poetry Center at San Francisco State University. PennSound publication made with thanks to the Poetry Center at San Francisco State University for their archival work.

• Complete Recording (41:34): MP3
• Selections from The Book of Job and a Draft of a Poem to Praise the Paths of Living, From a Phrase of Simone Weil's, West, Of Hours, Route, and Ballad.

• Of Being Numerous (21:51): MP3

Reading at the University of East Anglia, Norwich, England, July 5, 1973

1. Anniversary Poem (1:37): MP3
2. Of Hours (2:14): MP3
3. Of Being Numerous (5:39): MP3
4. Forms of Love (0:51): MP3
5. Song, the Winds of Downhill (2:28): MP3
6. Discussion with Eric Homberger (17:04):
Complete reading (29:57): mp3

(Thanks to Rachel Blau DuPlessis for providing this recording)

1. Five Poems about Poetry (3:09): MP3
2. The Forms of Love (0:47): MP3
3. The Book of Job and Draft of a Poem to Praise the Paths of Living (6:18): MP3
4. Myth of the Blaze (2:16): MP3
5. Confession (0:52): MP3
6. The Little Pin: Fragment (1:39): MP3
7. Guest Room (2:42): MP3
8. Exodus (0:38): MP3

Reading from Primitive (1978), La Peña Cultural Center, Berkeley, December 11, 1968

1. A Political Poem (0:39): MP3
2. Disasters (1:53): MP3
3. The Poem (0:55): MP3
4. To Make Much (1:16): MP3
5. Waking Who Knows (0:19): MP3
6. If It All Went Up in Smoke (0:38): MP3
7. The Tongues (0:20): MP3
8. Populist (1:54): MP3
9. Gold on Oak Leaves (0:44): MP3
10. The Natural (0:22): MP3
11. Strange are the Products (0:49): MP3
12. Til Other Voices Wake Us (1:41): MP3

From Selected Readings, 1979 recording

1. Of Being Numerous (Sec. 1-22) (10:30): MP3
2. Historic Pun (1:06): MP3
3. Ballad (1:18): MP3
4. From a Phrase of Simone Weil's and Some Words of Hegel's (0:58): MP3
5. The Occurrences (1:01): MP3
6. Animula (1:03): MP3
7. West (1:34): MP3
8. Song, Winds of Downhill (0:32): MP3
9. A Morality Play: Preface (1:30): MP3
10. The Translucent Mechanics (0:52): MP3
11. Silver As... (0:56): MP3
12. O Withering Seas... (0:51): MP3
13. The Taste (0:56): MP3
14. The Impossible Poem (0:50): MP3
15. But So As By Fire (0:53): MP3
16. Exodus (0:42): MP3
17. Latitude, Longitude (0:33): MP3
18. The Speech at Soli (1:18): MP3
19. Primitive (13:27): MP3

Poems Formerly (and Incorrectly) Attributed to the Poetry Center at the San Francisco State University
(Location and Date Unknown)

1. Disaster (3:35): MP3
   
2. The Dream (0:28): MP3
   
3. "Strange are the Products of Draftsmanship..." (1:16): MP3
4. Song, the Winds of Downhill (2:34): MP3
5. And Their Winter and Night in Disguise (4:17): MP3
6. "Wives, Husbands being killed..." (2:37): MP3
7. Transparent Mechanics (2:10): MP3
8. But So As By Fire (1:27): MP3
9. Route (13:36): MP3
10. From a Phrase of Simon Weil's (1:20): MP3
11. The Speech at Soli (2:20): MP3
12. A Morality Play (1:56): MP3
13. And Their Winter and Night in Disguise (6:28): MP3
14. The Taste (1:02): MP3
15. The Impossible Poem (1:57): MP3
16. The Book of Hours (2:51): MP3
17. Inland (0:50): MP3
18. The Occurrences (1:09): MP3
19. West (1:43): MP3
20. Animula (1:33): MP3
21. The Hegelian Bell (0:58): MP3
22. Exodus (0:59): MP3
23. Psalm (0:50): MP3
24. Stranger's Child (0:22): MP3
25. A Narrative (0:49): MP3
26. Leviathan (1:03): MP3
27. Of Being Numerous (9:33): MP3
Complete Recording (1:33:33): MP3

• Complete Recording (4:16): MP3

PoemTalk Podcast #3, discussing Oppen's "Ballad," Kelly Writers House, February 2, 2008

Also of Interest:

• A Celebration of George Oppen's 100th Birthday at the Kelly Writers House, April 7, 2008
• The Shape of Disclosure: George Oppen Centennial Symposium at Poets House, New York City, April 8, 2008
• Norman Finkelstein and Harvey Shapiro discuss the objectivists, including Oppen

George Oppen on PennSound Daily

• September 30, 2009: "George Oppen: Nine new recordings added"
• June 22, 2009: "Two New PennSound Podcasts: Dan Saxon and George Oppen"
• June 27, 2008: "George Oppen: Corrected Readings from SFSU"
• April 10, 2008: "UPenn's George Oppen Centennial Celebration Now Online"
• April 4, 2008: "George Oppen Centennial Celebration, Monday 4/7"
• February 5, 2008: "George Oppen's Ballad"
• December 12, 2007: "George Oppen: 3 New Recordings"

The work of George Oppen is available in two editions:

Complete Poems, ed. Michael Davidson (New York: New Directions, 2002)
Selected Poems, ed. Robert Creeley (New York: New Directions, 2003)

These sound recordings are being made available for noncommercial and educational use only. All rights to this recorded material belong to Linda Oppen for the Estate of George Oppen. © 2004-2008 Linda Oppen. Used with permission of Linda Oppen. Distributed by PennSound.