CALLING ALL BARDS

The  Bard of Armagh Finals on 19 November 2010 promises to be another  evening of uproarious laughter as the competitors unleash their compositions of humorous verse to an appreciative audience. 

The art of poetry is the oldest and most illustrious art form in Ireland. From an oral tradition of two thousand years and a vast written tradition up to the present day, the poet occupies a special place in the hearts and souls of the people and is respected as in no other country.

      Over fifteen years ago the Bard of Armagh Festival was formed to revive one aspect of this tradition, that of humorous verse and satire. The Committee quickly discovered that the art of versification  was very much alive to the extent  that in a mere few years several hundred bards from all over Ireland had submitted their work and a full scale revival was under way.

      Not only that, but the response of the people was as remarkable as the revival and the annual Bard of Armagh competition every November  quickly became a guaranteed sell out.

      The Bard competition has helped to create many household names and epic verses which are recited in almost every townland.  The majority of these had  no previous experience and simply decided to “give it a go” and discovered they had first class talents of composition and delivery. The Committee are absolutely certain that there are hundred more bards out there, male and female, young and old, who just need a bit of encouragement to get out the pen and the paper and start becoming famous.  

       The themes for the poems are the ups and downs of everyday life, the eccentricities and oddnesses, from the flea whose bite backfired when it got poisoned by the human blood, to the man from Draperstown who almost flew, to the Corinthians writing back to St Paul after almost 2000 years.  There is scope for satire and humour in every sheugh, field, townland and street in the country and every sheugh, field, townland and street has its potential bard.

      Every year the Festival in Armagh city ensures that we have a fantastic laugh at ourselves in an event that is genuine, honest and home grown. Every year new and established bards throw up a variety of superb poems and deliver their work before an audience of 1000. (It could be 3000 if there was a hall big enough.)

      The committee are asking that would be bards start getting down to business in preparation for next November’s event. The hardest part is deciding to have a go and writing the first line, but the common experience is that people always surprise themselves with their abilities. It’s only when the work is complete after lots of trial and error that they realise the ancient art is very much alive and ticking away inside.

       No other event in Ireland has so stirred the creative talents of the people as the Bard of Armagh. The majority of the poems continue to surprise the committee with the quality of content and structure, and some of the rhyming schemes are of the highest calibre.

     “All we can say to would be bards is- start composing! Give yourself a deadline for completion of the work and send it to us. This time next year you could be a household name and move proudly among the poets and sages of the land”.