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SHORTER CHAUCER TALES (2006)
These four pieces by Caroline
Bergvall use the rich and entertaining setting of Chaucer’s
medieval pilgrimage of The Canterbury Tales for pointed or humourous
commentaries on aspects of today’s
corruptions, pleasures, and blindspots. The texts are written
in a mix of languages and feast on a weird and ill-assorted Euro-lingo:
contemporary English co-exists with French, Middle English, some
lost Latin, some altogether untraceable words, while direct quotes
from Chaucer interrupt the BBC and other sources.
1. Party on: "The Host’s Tale": MP3, 5’06”
2.
Banned in Poland: "The Summer Tale (deus hic, 1)": MP3,
2’52; text published
in Jacket #31 (Oct. 06)
3. The Pope addresses women: "The Franker
Tale (deus hic, 2)": MP3,
5’41” ; text published in
Jacket #32; see also note
on text, from same issue.
4. Love song: "The
Not Tale (funeral)": MP3,
1’32”
This recording: London, 22 Sept 2006.
These four pieces are the first four of an ongoing journey and other pieces are in preparation.
The
Summer Tale, printed text, Jacket #31 (Oct. 06)
Studio 111 & KWH recording & interview at the University of Pennsylvania, April 6, 2005
Kelly Writers House Reading:
1. Cogs and Fats from Goan Atom (6:45)
2. More Pets (1:51)
3. Flèsh (4:06)
4. Figs 1-4 from 8 Figs (6:45)
5. Gong (3:22)
Studio 111 interview with Penn students (41:15)
Appearing on Ceptuetics Radio, hosted by Kareem Estefan, June 4, 2008 (30:52): MP3
Reading of Ambient Fish for Frequency Audio Journal (2004 Issue) (2:52)
Reading at the Bowery Poetry Club, Nov. 9, 2002
About Face (10:17) (2004)
Text of part of the poem at
Electronic Poetry Review and BEPC;
working draft of poem at How(ever)
This text started as a performance for the Liminal Institute Festival in
Berlin in 1999. I had just had a painful tooth pulled out and could read neither
very clearly nor very fast. Tape players with German and English conversations
on the text were circulated among the audience. It took 45 minutes to perform
the materials. For its 2nd showing at Bard College, I speeded up the tapes,
transcribed the snaps of half-heard materials, and integrated these to the performing
voice. The reading presented here took place in 2002 at the 2nd Anderson festival,
Devon UK, curated by Nicholas Johnson. By now, it took 10 minutes to read.
Via (10:00)
(48 Dante Variations) is a compiled list of translations into English of Dante's opening lines. As archived in the British Library up until May 2000. 700 years after the date set for the start of the journey into Hell. The Journey was timed to start and end in 1300. And Dante's 35th year or so-called point of mid-life. Recorded and composed with Ciáran Maher (Summer 2000). The full text has been featured in CHAIN's "Transluccinacion" issue (Autumn 2003).
from Romantic Circles Web:
Bergvall reading Percy Bysshe Shelley's "Mont
Blanc" (Accompanied with music by Mario Diaz de Leon, "Pervaded
with that Ceaseless Motion")
Bergvall's
Unaccompanied Reading of Section V | Poem
Text | Bergvall's
Commentary on the Poem | About
Caroline Bergvall | About
the Musical Composer | Download
MP3
These sound recordings are being made available for noncommercial and educational
use only.
All rights to this recorded material belong to the author. © 2004 Caroline
Bergvall.
Studio 111 conversation © 2005 Caroline Bergvall/Charles
Bernstein.
Used with permission of Caroline Bergvall. Distributed by PennSound.