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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (March 31, 2018)
SIUSLAW NEWS ❚ SATURDAY, MARCH 31, 2018 Poetry from 1A The April 4 concert will fea- ture a unique pairing of music and poetry performed by Chris Lee and Colleen O’Brien enti- tled PoetryMusic. The duo describes their per- formance as “Poetry set to music, music composed to poetry and poetry as a catalyst for free improvisation.” The two musicians have been performing together for decades and have developed a unique approach to presenting their combination of music and speech. Lee plays the vibes and O’Brien plays the cello, a com- bination that produces a mix of musical progressions and aural soundscapes. The music is then mixed with the recitation of poems and writings during the song. Lee said the process of creat- ing the pieces PoetryMusic per- forms has been going on for a long while — since 1980 — and continues to this day. “We were originally inspired by the great musician Steve Swallow, who did an album set to the poems of Robert Creeley. We really enjoyed that work and started composing poetry Special series with music,” Lee said. “Over the years we collected these pieces and in 2014 we decided we would set up a tour, prima- rily performing in libraries. We found there was a great response to the work and we ended up touring and staying on the road for 14 months.” Spencer said that the Portland-based group “mixes great music with the spoken word.” “PoetryMusic has performed at the Siuslaw Public Library before and they are very much back by popular demand,” she said. “I love the mix of the improvisational feel of jazz with the very focused and pre- cise language of poetry.” Wikipedia describes poetry as an art form that predates lit- eracy. The earliest forms of poetry were likely sung or chanted and utilized as a way to share oral histories, genealogy and law. Some of the earliest surviv- ing examples of poetry exist in the form of tablets carved in stone, which would have been recited or performed as hymns or songs as early as the second millennia B.C. Many ancient written works such as the Vedas (1700-1200 from 1A The amendment was attached to a spending bill for the Center for Disease Control (CDC) that forbade the organization from using funds to “advocate or promote gun control.” An often-cited claim is that the Dickey Amendment bans all research regarding gun violence, but this is not true, according to a February 2018 article by The Atlantic. But at the same time, the spending bill stripped any CDC funding for such research. The NRA had pushed for the amendment, stating it was politically motivated, and the agency may have had cause to believe this. The NRA focused on a statement by CDC National Center for Injury Prevention and Control then- B.C.) and the Odyssey (800- 675 B.C.) were origi- nally written in a poetic form to assist individuals in ancient civiliza- tions in memoriza- tion and oral trans- mission. China also has a long history of embracing and promoting poetry MARK BRENNAN/SIUSLAW NEWS by producing and distributing the The National Audubon Society considers the Siuslaw River Estuary as “Classic of an “Important Bird Area.” It also declared 2018 “the year of the bird.” Poetry,” which offerings. She invites anyone included 305 entries dating read.” Another avenue for people interested in the genre to stop in from the 11th to seventh cen- interested in expanding their on the first Tuesday of each turies B.C. While poetry has many fans, poetic experience can be found month. “Everyone is welcome — some readers have trouble find- at the monthly poetry readings ing a poet whose’s work res- at Florence Regional Arts poets, writers and performers onates with them. Spencer also Alliance (FRAA) Art Center, will be sharing their work,” has advice to address that prob- 120 Maple St. in Historic Old Mesman said. “We support all Town Florence. the arts and that includes the lit- lem. Florence Big Wave Poetry is erary arts. We also support the “If you think you don’t like poetry, I think former Poet hosting the First Tuesday Open efforts of all types of written Laureate Billy Collins is the Mic Night on April 3 from 6:30 word authors, so this is a great perfect place to start; anyone to 8:30 p.m. The event draws opportunity to share your work who wrote a poem called ‘The performers from the communi- and get to know other authors and poets.” trouble with Poetry’ is probably ty and from FRAA members. Caroline Mesman, FRAA Paul Klippel coordinates going to be fun to read,” she said. “And, if you want to read board member, has been poetry events for FRAA and he a great Oregon poet, William involved in the creation and sees the current high level of Stafford is definitely worth a presentation of FRAA’s poetic interest in poetry as a way to spokesman Mark Rosenberg who stated, “We need to revolutionize the way we look at guns, like what we did with cigarettes. … It used to be that smoking was a glamour symbol — cool, sexy, macho. Now it is dirty, deadly and banned.” To have a governmental scientist enter the gun debate with a precon- ceived bias would be considered unethical by many in the scientific community and goes to show why gun rights advocates would be wary of this, particularly in light of Rosenberg’s statements. Since then, multiple organizations such as the American Public Health Association and American Medical Association have been calling gun violence a public health problem, and many more have petitioned for a lifting of the Dickey Amendment, including Dickey himself. In 2012, CHARM TRAIL Start Collecting Yours Today he coauthored a Washington Post op- ed with Rosenberg, calling for more governmental research. “I wish I had not been so reac- tionary,” Dickey told reporters. The reason scientists want more robust and regulated research on the issue of guns involves the role of the CDC. The agency studies a multitude of issues surrounding unnatural death, including drownings, accidental falls, car crashes and suicides. Thus far, the CDC has not made regulations to ban automobiles, swimming pools and steep stairs. This is not to say that the CDC would act as a final word on the sub- ject of gun violence, and that it would always provide correct information. Science is an ongoing conversation, with studies building on one another until a majority of peer-reviewed research comes to a consensus. Follow the Charm Trail through Oregon’s Coastal Playground Make a personalized keepsake from your travels to Florence Fun weekend activity for families! Great for visitors who want a keepsake of their time in Florence! Pick up your bracelet and signature charm at a Trailhead for $5. Then visit Charm Trail locations around Florence to add charms for $2 each to complete your bracelet. Trailheads: Siuslaw News • Florence Area Chamber of Commerce Driftwood Shores • BeauxArts Fine Art Materials & Gallery or Periwinkle Station re Flo nce Oreg o n Charm Trail OR EG O N’ S COA GRO STAL PLAY U ND fl orencecharmtrail.com But to reach a consensus, multiple studies have to be done. For that to happen, all hands need to be on deck. It would be a misconception to believe that banning research would lead to gun control. Many of the independent studies thus far point to the opposite in certain circum- stances. To understand that research, it is important to look at what guns actually are. “Assault weapons” Before the Florence March for Our Lives began, one demonstrator spoke about what types of guns they wanted to ban. “I don’t want to take away the gun of a hunter, but I don’t think anybody needs a semi-automatic machine gun,” she said. “I don’t think that’s neces- sary. Those guns are used for war- fare. They’re made to kill. They’re 9 A share ideas and concerns. “Our biggest desire as a poetry group is to connect with young people. It’s always a challenge to reach across the generations and interest the younger people and get them to participate,” he said. “Our Tuesday open mic has been very popular and continues to draw a younger crowd that is interested in writing and per- forming their original work.” Klippel also wants people to know there are ongoing poetry groups that meet in the area on a regular basis. “There is a group meeting weekly at Shorewood, on Wednesdays from 3 to 5 p.m., and a bi-monthly workshop at the Coast village Clubhouse, on the second Tuesday of the month,” he said. The growing popularity and interest in the spoken word is encouraging to Klippel. “Poetry is a way to look back and to look ahead in a way that is more temporal and more thoughtful. It puts people in touch with their inner self and what really matters to them.” For more information on National Poetry Month events, visit siuslawlibrary.info. not made to aim accurately. They’re just made to kill as many people as possible, and I don’t think that’s some- thing that should be owned by the average person.” The demonstrator was speaking off the cuff and stated there would be oth- ers better suited to speak on the issue. However, the same phrasing they used to describe the guns was echoed by many others at the protest — “machine guns,” “assault weapons” and “semi- automatic” were terms that were used interchangeably. By misusing terms, gun reform advocates can find themselves inad- vertently calling for either unnecessary action, when some types of guns are already prohibited, or advocating a ban on the majority of weapons in the United States. See SPECIAL SERIES 10A 2018 Reader Survey The Siuslaw News is requesting your feedback to help improve our local community newspaper. You can visit https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/977FTXVto complete the survey or drop off your completed survey at our offi ce or mail it to the Siuslaw News, P.O. 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