Play Gordon Lightfoot
The Elora Poetry Centre, 7324 Wellington County Rd. 21
7 July 2024: time to be announced
Daniel Bratton’s birthday present to himself (donations to the players welcome)
Usual finger food and drinks
All welcome!
Sorry for the delay in posting this blog, but the Elora Poetry Centre & Gallery promised to create a space for people to ask Khashayar (Kess) Mohammadi questions about their performance for the 100 Thousand Poets for Change event on Sept. 30. Those in attendance may recall that it was a busy day, Kess’s reading being followed by Dr. Gerard Yun playing the shakuhachi and then Choir in Motion performing in the garden, so we did not have the opportunity for a Q & A.
Anyhow, we thought we’d belatedly start things off with a query by a member of the audience that Carol received the next day, hoping that others will feel free to join the discussion:
In “Moes’ Skin.2.” [from Me, You, then Snow], “My head cradled sunlight to its resting place. / Did you ever have a face?” . . . What? I don’t get it. ”
However, the next day, this friend of the Elora Poetry Centre added the following: “Within the context of that particular poem, it makes ‘sense’ since it follows the changing countenance of his friend.” Does anybody have anything to add? Was this your reading, too?
Those of you who have a copy of Me, You, then Snow might want to have a look at this poem on p. 4 for the larger poetic context. Also, since the original question was later followed by a declarative sentence, perhaps it’s not the best way to open the Q & A, but we’re hoping that, in spite of the time that has passed, there might be some general questions about Kess’s poetics, themes, etc. His poetry has wonderful depths that we’d love to explore. Then again, those of you with access to the above collection and/or The Ocean Dweller, Saeed Tavanaee Marvi’s poems translated from the Farsi by Kess, might have some specific questions about individual poems.
Please leave your questions here and we’ll direct them to Kess for a response. We will then get back to you on this forum.
It had been a very long three years since we had held a live event in Elora, and as enjoyable as the remote performances and panel discussion had been–even the wonderful co-sponsored live sound poetry event at Renison University College featuring bill bissett, Honey Novick, Wesley Rickert, and MLA Chernoff!–these had not been quite the same, removed from the natural setting of the Elora Poetry Centre & Gallery. We were therefore very excited when, on 8 July, Karen Houle (who delivered a memorable virtual reading from The Grand River Watershed: A Folk Ecology during the pandemic) inspired a large audience with readings from her Governor General’s Award-nominated book, accompanied by Tilly Kooyman playing Vaughan Williams on the clarinet–including Tilly’s own adaption of “The Lark Ascending”!
This was truly one of the most memorable events in the twelve-year existence of the Elora Poetry Centre, with an enthusiastic crowd spellbound by Karen’s passionate delivery of her poems, laced with fascinating narratives about their creation, and Tilly’s sensitive and beautifully complementary performance of “The Lark Ascending” as well as impressionistic melodies from Vaughan Williams’ “Six Studies in English Folk Song.”
Our thanks go to Mike Kruk for putting together the program, Max and Maureen McIntyre, Susan Thorning and Eric Oakley, and Janice Ferri for their financial contributions, the Elora & Fergus Arts Council for support, and Silk Purse Recording. The light buffet supper was supported by donations from Zehrs Fergus, Dar’s Country Market in Elora, and Angelino’s in Guelph, to say nothing of the generous, elegant contributions brought by friends of the Elora Poetry Centre.
Here are bios of Karen and Tilly:
Dr. Karen Houle is a recently retired Philosophy Professor at the University of Guelph. At this point in her life, she’s hellbent on using her immense caffeinated chaotic energy, her acquired social capital and her well-honed pragmatic attitude of “not giving a shit what people [think] anymore” to create and inspire joyful art and artful local socioecological post-humanist projects that are, as the poet Anna Bowen wrote, “tiny but everything”. Houle has 5 or maybe 6 of these projects bubbling on the proverbial stove at this very moment and would love to share the stove with others. No cooking experience necessary.
All of Houle’s projects fall under the umbrella of “The Art of Soil Collective” ART + SOIL + COLLECTIVE (where “collective” does not mean just humans in a bunch, doing human-stuff for humans). In the best of all possible worlds – which is a refrain we say in academic Philosophy all the time, but really, what we should say is: In the best possible state of the one & only world and life we have –– these efforts will combine & make good use of their solid and varied political and ethical principles, their many acquired and diverse practical skills and, most of all, the unruly passions that rule Houle including: food security, grandmothering wisdoms, plant philosophy, ecology, bush knowledge, environmental protection, organic farming, wordsmithing, crafting stuff from stuff, soil remediation, biodiversity, chopping wood, seed saving, pollinator support, composting, mental health gymnastics, bio-cultural diversity and lake swimming.
Tilly Kooyman is an active solo, chamber and orchestral musician, with interests in contemporary music, interdisciplinary works and acoustic ecology. An advocate for Canadian music, Tilly has premiered many new works by Canadian composers at the World Bass Clarinet Convention in the Netherlands, the International Bohlen-Pierce Symposium in Boston, ClarinetFest in Vancouver, NUMUS Concerts and the Open Ears Festival in Kitchener-Waterloo. The most significant influence in Tilly’s life has been the over three decades of collaboration with celebrated Canadian composer R. Murray Schafer on his Patria Cycle, a series of monumental works often staged in unique settings.
Tilly’s education includes a Master of Music degree from the University of Western Ontario, an Associateship from the Royal Conservatory of Music, and advanced studies at the Banff Centre School of Fine Arts. A former student of James Campbell and Robert Riseling, Tilly has also studied ‘Deep Listening’ with Pauline Oliveros and free improvisation with Casey Sokol.
Jeremy Luke Hill’s chapbook Poetry of Thought, published by The Elora Poetry Centre’s Interludes imprint. The cost is $20 CAN plus shipping. Orders can be placed with the Elora Poetry Centre.
Boxer, Asa. Field Notes of the Undead. Chapbook. Elora: The Elora Poetry Centre & Gallery, 2018. $20.
Boxer, Asa. Friar Biard’s Primer to the New World. Illustrator James Hillis. Victoria, BC: Frog Hollow Press, 2013. Hand-numbered copy #102 of a limited edition of 150. $25.
Boxer, Asa. The Mechanical Bird. Montreal: Véhicule Press (Signal Edition), 2007. Includes Boxer’s poem cycle entitled “The Workshop,” winner of first prize in the 2004 CBC/enRoute poetry competition. $16.
Boxer, Asa. Skullduggery. Montreal: Véhicule Press (Signal Edition), 2011. $18.
Boxer, Asa, and David-Antoine Williams. Etymologies. Victoria, BC: Frog Hollow Press, 2013. Sold out.
Bratton, Daniel L. Thirty-Two Short Views of Mazo de la Roche. Toronto: ECW Press, 1996. $14.95.
Chernoff, MLA. Squelch Procedures. Guelph: Gordon Hill Press, 2021. $20.
Crossman, Rae. One Ruby-throated Moment. Broadside. Elora: The Elora Poetry Centre & Gallery, 2023. Limited numbered edition of 50. $10.
Henderson, Brian. Nerve Language. Toronto: Pedlar Press, 2007. $20.
Henderson, Brian. [Or]. Vancouver: Talon Books, 2014. $18.95.
Henderson, Brian. Sharawadji. London, ON: Brick Books, 2011. $19.
Henderson, Brian. Unidentified Poetic Object. London, ON: Brick Books, 2019. $20.
Hill, Jeremy Luke. Poetry of Thought. Chapbook. Elora: The Elora Poetry Center & Gallery/Interludes, 2019. $20.
Houle, Karen. The Grand River Watershed: A Folk Ecology. Kentville, NS: Gaspereau Press, 2019. $19.95.
Loose, Gerry. An Oakwoods Almanac. Bristol: Shearsman Books, 2015. Contact the Elora Poetry Centre for price.
Loose, Gerry. Printed on Water: New & Selected Poems. Exeter: Shearsman Books, 2007. Contact the Elora Poetry Centre for the price.
Loose, Gerry. that person himself. Exeter: Shearsman Books, 2009. Contact the Elora Poetry Centre for the price.
McNie, Movern. Fish What You Lure. Chapbook. Guelph: Vocamus Offcuts, n.d. $15.
Mohannadi, Khashayar, and Saeed Tavanaee Marvi. WJD and The Ocean Dweller, trans. Mohammadi Khashayar. Guelph: Gordon Hill Press, 2022. $20.
Prager, Jerry. Echoes from the Timbers. Chapbook. Elora: The Elora Poetry Centre & Gallery. 2016. Sold out.
David J. KnightDavid J. Knight was born in Guelph and went to John F. Ross highschool. He holds a BA in Fine Art (University of Guelph 1987), an MA in Archaeology (University of Southampton, UK 2002), and an MPhil in Archaeology (University of Southampton, UK 2010). He has extensive experience in field and academic archaeology in the UK and Europe, on sites in Belgium, France, Guernsey, Syria, Italy and England. In 2008 David was celebrated as a University of Guelph Campus Author for his historical biography, King Lucius of Britain. Upon returning to his hometown David has engaged with Guelph’s material and intangible heritage, publishing two books through Publication Studio Guelph: Sound Guelph, a history of alternative music in Guelph from the late 1970s to 2000; and an edition of John Galt’s novel, The Omen. David is also a trans-media artist and continues to produce visual and audio works.
David is the General Editor of Vocamus Editions, an imprint of Vocamus Press that promotes the literary heritage of Guelph, Ontario, Canada by publishing new editions of books written by Guelph authors or edited by Guelph scholars.
Guelph Versifiers of the 19th Century, his collection of Guelph poets and poetry before the year 1900 is available from Vocamus Editions.
Taken from https://vocamuspress.wordpress.com/david-j-knight/
http://www.authorsden.com/visit/author.asp?authorid=81984
http://www.theontarion.com/2014/05/in-conversation-with-david-j-knight/
Those of you who attended Micheal Basinski’s performance here in the fall of 2015 will realise how honoured we feel that The Poetry Collection, Capen Hall, University at Buffalo, has mounted a sizable part of our Cid Corman collection, which will remain open until 18 January 2017. For those who have not visited the Poetry Collection, and who have time to spend a day in Buffalo, below are a few extracts from the Collection’s website. If considering a day trip, the Knox-Albright gallery is not far away.
The Poetry Collection is only twenty minutes from the border if you take the Lewiston Bridge. Please contact us if you want guidance for a simple route.
When the Poetry Collection began in 1937, its original mission was to collect first editions of poetry written in English and English translation published since 1900. Today, the collection houses over 140,000 titles of Anglophone poetry including 6,600 broadsides as well as an extensive selection of little magazines, anthologies, criticism, reference books, ephemera and audio recordings, making it the largest poetry library of its kind in North America.
Throughout the 20th century, “little magazines”—magazines usually noncommercial in nature and often committed to certain literary ideals—have been a primary organ for the dissemination of poetry and for the formation of literary communities across the aesthetic and political spectra.
The Poetry Collection maintains a comprehensive selection of over 9,000 titles of past and current little magazines, literary journals, university reviews, newspapers and other poetry periodicals, and is particularly strong in its holdings of independent publications.
Soon after establishing the Poetry Collection, Charles Abbott made a concerted effort to begin collecting the working manuscripts and letters of contemporary poets, soliciting donations from hundreds of writers such as Ezra Pound, Marianne Moore and Wallace Stevens and establishing a tradition of acquiring others. These form the foundation of the Contemporary Manuscripts Collection, which contains tens of thousands of pages of manuscripts and correspondence from hundreds of American, British, Irish, Canadian and Australian authors. Additionally, there are more than 150 named collections, including the world’s largest and most distinguished archive of James Joyce manuscripts as well as major selections of papers from Robert Graves, Theodore Enslin, Robert Duncan, John Logan, Helen Adam, John Montague, Clark Coolidge, Michael Palmer, William Carlos Williams, Basil Bunting, Dylan Thomas, Jonathan Williams and Wyndham Lewis. The collection also holds the archives of several important small presses and magazines.
Also featured in the Poetry Collection are the personal libraries of writers such as Helen Adam, Basil Bunting, Robert Duncan, James Joyce and John Logan; artworks by Constantin Brancusi, Jess (Collins), Wyndham Lewis, E. E. Cummings and many others; and substantial collections of mail art, visual and concrete poetry, photographs and zines.
The Elora Poetry Centre & Gallery 