(urth) Re: urth-urth.net Digest, Vol 10, Issue 12

[Sarah Dorrance-Minch]

--- Joe Smulkstis <jismulkstis at nyc.rr.com> wrote:

> However, I have no bloody idea what a "filk"
> actually is.  Can some kind
> or condescending soul define it for me?

It's either original folk music written about science
fiction/fantasy/horror topics, including books and
movies of those genres, sometimes written by the
authors as a sort of supplement to their own work -
some of the better examples include Ursula LeGuin's
"anthropological collection" soundtrack to her _Always
Coming Home_ novel, and the poetic songs penned by
J.R.R. Tolkein for his Middle Earth work...

(Mercedes Lackey has done this for her Valdemar books,
and this filk is probably better known than my two
examples)

OR

it's spoof lyrics written to pre-existing tunes. They
can be related to speculative fiction, also, but it's
not mandatory. (I'm sure you have heard of Weird Al
Yankovic.)

If you like folk music of the Pete
Seegur/Leadbelly/Arlo Guthrie variety, you could do
worse than to try some Leslie Fish. She writes both
original left-wing protest lyrics and speculative
fiction fandom/SCA subculture stuff, and even if you
don't agree with her personal stance (I do, but that's
another kettle of fish. as it were...) her talent is
obvious. She plays guitar well. I relly do think she's
the successor to Guthrie (Arlo? Woody? No idea. She's
good, anyway.)

"Filk" is a term that came from a misprint of the word
"folk" - many, many, many cons ago.



Midori/Sarah

Ah, love couldst thou and I conspire/ To grasp this sorry scheme of things entire/ Would we not break it all to bits, and then/ Remold it nearer to the heart's desire - Omar Khayyam

Reach me a gentian, give me a torch
let me guide myself with the blue, forked torch of this flower
down the darker and darker stairs, where blue is darkened on blueness.
 - D.H. Lawrence, "Bavarian Gentians"