Bardsong and You

[Fluffy the Mad]

So, on playing my bard I notice a startling lack of feedback on music at times, so I was curious which people thought best. Should a player make their own music, either instrumental or with lyrics? Should they use musical details, or is that too technical? (By that I mean including things like bowing/fingering/tuning changes on strings, finger or reed movements on woodwinds, beats per minute, so on) Should a bard know their instrument well should they choose to use one, or know how to accurately describe changes in tone, vocal strength, and so on?

Is it okay to copy music from existing sources? Should credit always be given OOCly? Should it not matter? What about minor or major edits?

Do you hate those obnoxious bards, singing and ruining your current conversation? Let us know!


(Yes, I am aware that bards also have many other performing talents. I am asking here about song and instrumental activity)

Any commentary is welcome, and I would prefer no one seriously argue here. It's a 'to each their own' sort of topic, and I'd just like to get a handle on what people like best.

[Deleted]

Musicians of our world are not shy about covering other artists songs today, why would a bard not sing others songs? I say steal and adapt from what ever source you can. Sometimes I only describe something of the song rather than type out the lyrics, often playing only instrumental if a large crowd is around, so RP is less interrupted. It might be helpful to RP something about the song ending so others can tell when you are done.

That said, each player, perhaps differing for each situation, is free to do what ever they think is best. Perhaps you should not expect much reaction.

*sings* Its a long way to the top if you wanna rock and roll.

[StabbingNirvana]

I chose copied with credit given but mostly because I want to see Twisted Sister credited in game/in character.

[Fluffy the Mad]

Alright, seems pretty similar so far. Does anyone else have input, like the details used in describing instrumentals or vocals? Do you like to see just *Plays a soothing, simple melody* or things like the chord, strings, whether played pizzicato, decrescendos, so on?

[magocracy]

What I want to see is a bard being creative and engaging and entertaining.. I don't think there's any one way I want them to be, and think variety is a good thing, so one bard writing their own lyrics, another drawing on real middle age songs and sonnets, etc.. I think really the last thing I want to see is a consensus on this is how bards have to express their music.

I will say if you get into details that only other musicians would know, it's cool but keep in mind you're at risk of throwing out text walls that only you would understand. I'd say you have to gauge your audience (i.e. other members of the party) and see how receptive they are to that level of detail.

[bentusi16]

One of the interesting things about music before the widespread of printing (and even much later til you get industrial printing + super high literacy rates) is that TUNES are very popular.

Basically, if a tune is very popular, you'll hear that tune reused in different songs. Thats why americas national anthem is a british drinking song.

So I stuck with that and I'll steal tunes and then come up with new words. Did it all the time on Verin the Half-orc Bard.

And on Ed I did up roman catholic hymns from various languages and convert them to 'about tyr'. Again, it's more about the tune then the words.

[walkonair]

*waves*  I range all over the spectrum for this, and believe a lot of it comes down to the character and player choice

I'll do wordless music (describing that one is hard, sigh), vocals, instrumental, etc. I like some details, but I also know it's a text medium, and sometimes details take a long time to type and others haven't appreciated the RP dragging out (so the group I'm with can have an effect too).

For instruments, I picked ones I learned/play IRL for years (harp, piano, etc), because I wanted to be able to emote that way. But if I'm watching/listening to a bard who doesn't know about those pesky calluses that harpists can get, each to their own as you said!  I've seen some great RP of fiddling including finger-work too.

If posting on the forums, I try to credit a song. If assassinating a song in game, I tend not to; mainly because I've always assumed that is immersion breaking for others (totally my own assumption though!).  And people who can write their own music, my hat is doffed to you all.

I've seen some excellent bardsong emotes from another bard in game (am I allowed to fangirl that? ) and they've got nifty rhymes and all for curse song too!  I've got a quick slot for bardsong emote (not as detailed as I want) because I have finally accepted that no combat has time for me to type an emote on that.

One of my most favorite moments of playing a bard was being out with a group of IC friends, someone else joined us, and IC told my bard that she didn't have to sing her spells (which is perfectly correct!!). Three other characters immediately responded spontaneously and in unison "she always does that". I was soooo thrilled about it as it told me that I'd been consistent in my RP enough for other characters to have noticed & remembered. Still love you all for that guys!!!

I've never found bard performances ruin my conversation 
It's not much different from having a bunch of other conversations going on around me.
I enjoy the performances, even the "awful" ones (RP goodness, perform awfulness, hee)!

But I do want to know how you got the different text colour the other day -- I loved that 
(and apologies for leaving before you were done, I was falling asleep on my keyboard)

[gainreduction]

Dec 22, 2013 22:26:43 GMT -5 walkonair said:

*waves*  I range all over the spectrum for this, and believe a lot of it comes down to the character and player choice

I'll do wordless music (describing that one is hard, sigh), vocals, instrumental, etc. I like some details, but I also know it's a text medium, and sometimes details take a long time to type and others haven't appreciated the RP dragging out (so the group I'm with can have an effect too).

For instruments, I picked ones I learned/play IRL for years (harp, piano, etc), because I wanted to be able to emote that way. But if I'm watching/listening to a bard who doesn't know about those pesky calluses that harpists can get, each to their own as you said!  I've seen some great RP of fiddling including finger-work too.

If posting on the forums, I try to credit a song. If assassinating a song in game, I tend not to; mainly because I've always assumed that is immersion breaking for others (totally my own assumption though!).  And people who can write their own music, my hat is doffed to you all.

I've seen some excellent bardsong emotes from another bard in game (am I allowed to fangirl that? ) and they've got nifty rhymes and all for curse song too!  I've got a quick slot for bardsong emote (not as detailed as I want) because I have finally accepted that no combat has time for me to type an emote on that.

One of my most favorite moments of playing a bard was being out with a group of IC friends, someone else joined us, and IC told my bard that she didn't have to sing her spells (which is perfectly correct!!). Three other characters immediately responded spontaneously and in unison "she always does that". I was soooo thrilled about it as it told me that I'd been consistent in my RP enough for other characters to have noticed & remembered. Still love you all for that guys!!!

I've never found bard performances ruin my conversation 
It's not much different from having a bunch of other conversations going on around me.
I enjoy the performances, even the "awful" ones (RP goodness, perform awfulness, hee)!

But I do want to know how you got the different text colour the other day -- I loved that 
(and apologies for leaving before you were done, I was falling asleep on my keyboard)

Hear hear, I sing sometimes when Shard performs a bard song. If I'm caught up in the battle, I do not.

[gainreduction]

Dec 22, 2013 22:14:45 GMT -5 bentusi16 said:

One of the interesting things about music before the widespread of printing (and even much later til you get industrial printing + super high literacy rates) is that TUNES are very popular.

Basically, if a tune is very popular, you'll hear that tune reused in different songs. Thats why americas national anthem is a british drinking song.

So I stuck with that and I'll steal tunes and then come up with new words. Did it all the time on Verin the Half-orc Bard.

And on Ed I did up roman catholic hymns from various languages and convert them to 'about tyr'. Again, it's more about the tune then the words.

I'm totally in agreement with that! Shard has sung a song at least 4 times, do see him perform it publically on the 28th!

[TrueBlueOriginal]

I sing Kira's bardsong and cursesong. I try to have different songs for some of the monsters she fights the most, but I still don't have one for worgs.

As for her actual performances, as well as performances I've done on previous bards, I try to do a mix of her own material, including a song/dance routine (Calim's Sands) she attributes as "traditional, with my own choreography," and various published things. In addition to her own material, Kira sings some of the stuff that I've seen in FRC books, like Wind by the Fireside and Elminster's Jest, and as a bard I think it's appropriate that those songs get passed around an re-used. It's not like anyone would know them if bards don't sing them after all, they can't just tune into FRC-radio. Then I'll occasionally use something that's actually more modern, like one of Kira's favorite songs is the song Sway, and I like to have her perform it.

According to Wikipedia:

"Sway" is the English version of "¿Quién será?", a 1953 mambo song by Mexican composer Luis Demetrio. The most famous English version is that of Dean Martin recorded in 1954. English lyrics are by Norman Gimbel. Since then the song has been recorded and remixed by many artists (see discography below).

Originals
1953 – Pablo Beltrán Y Su Orchestra (in Spanish)
1954 – Dean Martin, on Capitol Records, catalog number 2818, US 15, UK 6

English and spanish versions
"¿Quién será?" and "Sway" have been recorded dozens of times by many artists over the decades. This is merely a select list of popular recordings, not a comprehensive listing.
1954 – Eileen Barton, on Coral Records, catalog number 61185, backed with "When Mama Calls"
1959 – Rosemary Clooney and Perez Prado, from A Touch of Tabasco
1960 – Bobby Rydell, Capitol Recording Studios, NYC
1961 – Ben E. King, from Spanish Harlem
1963 – Cliff Richard, from When In Spain
1963 – Julie London, from Latin in a Satin Mood
1997 – Brent Spiner, from the soundtrack of the movie Out to Sea
1998 – Anita Kelsey, from the movie Dark City
1999 – Shaft, titled "(Mucho Mambo) Sway"
2003 – Michael Bublé, from his self-titled album Michael Bublé
2003 – Peter Cincotti, from his self-titled album Peter Cincotti
2004 – Arielle Dombasle, from her 2004 album Amor Amor
2006 – Claire Johnston, lead singer of Mango Groove. from her album Africa Blue. [16]
2007 – Puppini Sisters, Betcha Bottom Dollar
2007 – Jennifer Lopez
2009 – Haifa Wehbe, a Lebanese pop star
2010 – Paul Byrom of Celtic Thunder, Irish folk gan roup
2011 – Hooshmand Aghili, Iranian Singer
2011 – Donald Braswell II, on his 2011 album, Unchained.
2011 – 1950 & The Chu Chi Girls ft Hayley Jo, The Chu Chi sway

I first saw it being sung (or lip-synched?) by Jennifer Connelly's character in the movie Dark City and I've liked it ever since.

I usually attribute it as a "popular classic" when Kira sings it.  I don't take credit for anything I didn't create as one of my character's original works, but I don't know the original artist of every song I sing either, so I think it's OK to say "here's a song I heard."  

[TrueBlueOriginal]

The big thing for me is that the song seems appropriate to the setting. If it talks about things that don't exist in Faerun then the song is right out of consideration.

[Leviathan]

Dec 23, 2013 18:36:54 GMT -5 TrueBlueOriginal said:

The big thing for me is that the song seems appropriate to the setting. If it talks about things that don't exist in Faerun then the song is right out of consideration.

I want my Faerun music to be about bitches and hoes. The thug life is always appropriate for the setting. Ask the illmateri, the struggle is real.

[mandene]

Dec 23, 2013 18:34:57 GMT -5 TrueBlueOriginal said:

I sing Kira's bardsong and cursesong. I try to have different songs for some of the monsters she fights the most, but I still don't have one for worgs.

As someone who's got to experience those a few times - I think it's a nice touch. The rp of the dance and the short songs is just enough to not be distracting from the actual battle.

[Pedantry INC]

in battle i have hotkeyed emotes for mirrirs bardsongs, which i rp similar to 'war cries' or 'calls of the hunt' as mirrir refers to them, which are more a chant than singing.

though mirrir rarely sings, when she does I tend to emote her tone and the feeling of the song, noting changes as the lyrics go on. I'm not a good songwriter so typically I take existing songs and change them to suit the fr setting.

[minsafedistance]

Sometimes a RL song that you copy is just so perefect for a situation that it empowers the readers to 'hear' what the music is that bard is playing

I always appreciate that original lyrics or in this case what it is really in game is poetry that no everyone has time for but when done right will just blow you away

the last type which I really like is the Filk or parady of an existing song where an existing song has its words changed to reflect either the FRC theme or the right situation

My 'bard' typically copies existing songs just so I have time to actually play in game and songs are a big patr of what what she is and where she has come from.

(See Jennifer/ Jen in the Adventure registry section for my examples from there - or her ingame bio

[Kiyohime 🐍]

Last night I dreamt of a bard who sang only Fleetwood Mac songs. For real.

[Fluffy the Mad]

Glad to see all the opinions. I usually try to write things on my own, but it comes out pretty badly- though, practice has helped me get a little better. It's really hard to come up with lyrics on the spot, at least ones that make sense and follow the previous lines/stanzas.

I've always felt that actually RPing out the motions on instruments is helpful, particularly since it's much more clear what the sound is if a string player goes from pizzicato to feather bowing to flat-out staccato, or a woodwind/brass player decides to project or use a mute. I am, however, an irrepressible instrumentalist at heart, so I may want to tone down the detail there from time to time. Most players probably don't care if my bard shifts to third position on the A string or not.

As to crediting songs, on the rare occasion that I'll borrow one, I try to give credit to the original artist, but I can lay off that in the future. If someone wants to know, they can always ask.

[walkonair]

Jan 21, 2014 23:47:44 GMT -5 Fluffy the Mad said:

Glad to see all the opinions. I usually try to write things on my own, but it comes out pretty badly- though, practice has helped me get a little better. It's really hard to come up with lyrics on the spot, at least ones that make sense and follow the previous lines/stanzas.

I've always felt that actually RPing out the motions on instruments is helpful, particularly since it's much more clear what the sound is if a string player goes from pizzicato to feather bowing to flat-out staccato, or a woodwind/brass player decides to project or use a mute. I am, however, an irrepressible instrumentalist at heart, so I may want to tone down the detail there from time to time. Most players probably don't care if my bard shifts to third position on the A string or not.

As to crediting songs, on the rare occasion that I'll borrow one, I try to give credit to the original artist, but I can lay off that in the future. If someone wants to know, they can always ask.

I am very impressed by any and all who write their own songs/poems/lyrics.

I love the details -- the bow fingering, the rise and fall in music, the plucking of strings.
One of the reasons my bard plays the harp/piano/etc and not the violin is that I play the harp/piano/etc and not the violin, and so I can know some of those pesky details!
I try and balance my emoting of that with actually getting my typing out. Faster typers do not have as much of a problem!

So for the record, if I'm your audience, detail away! I'll be revelling in it and imagining the music in my head!