'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community

Subject: 'Catter Honored by SF Community
From: Gorgeous Gary
Date: 24 May 12 - 10:09 PM

Been meaning to post this for a couple of weeks. Not 100% sure if it's an above or below the line item...I presume it'll get moved if need be.

Anyway, as the FSGW folks here know, and the non-DC-area Mudcatters who've gotten to know me at the Getaway know, I actually do most of my singing (and songwriting) within the science-fiction community. Which is to say, as part of the filk community.

Every April, we head up to Toronto for an all-filk-music convention call FilKONtario. It's one of our favorite conventions of the year. About 18 years ago, FilKONtario created a Filk Hall of Fame to honor folks who have made significant contributions to the filk community, both as performers and as convention organizers, sound crew, and other community-building fans.

Last month, they inducted me as one of three new members.

Whatever folks out there think about filk as music, there's something about being honored by your peers that's a big deal, whatever the community doing the honoring is. And this means a **whole** lot to me and naturally I'm absolutely delighted.

For the curious, there are three posts in my LiveJournal that detail the whole wonderful weekend.

Anyway, thought my friends here would find this interesting. Hope to see some of y'all at the Washington Folk Festival in a couple of weeks, and the rest of you at the Getaway!

-- Gary

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by SF Community
From: Neil D
Date: 24 May 12 - 11:38 PM

It is a big deal. Congratulations!

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by SF Community
From: katlaughing
Date: 24 May 12 - 11:45 PM

I agree! Wonderful and congratulations!!

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: Joe Offer
Date: 25 May 12 - 03:25 PM

Congratulations, Gary. I've enjoyed a number of your songs. I changed "SF" to "Science Fiction" in the thread title, to avoid confusion with San Francisco. "SF" has only one meaning here in Northern California - it's The City.
(The with a capital "T" - or so they say)

But anyhow, congratulations.

-Joe-

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: Highlandman
Date: 25 May 12 - 04:05 PM

Congratulations, Gary!
Joe, if there's a question more loaded than "what is folk," it's "what is SF" in the speculative fiction community!
Cheers and more congrats
-Glenn

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 25 May 12 - 04:28 PM

Wonderful! Congratulations!

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: Lonesome EJ
Date: 25 May 12 - 04:29 PM

Congrats, Gary!

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: MMario
Date: 25 May 12 - 04:56 PM

WOW!!!!

But what caught my eye was "I celebrated my induction by bidding an insane amount for the right to appear as a member of Charlie Gale's band in andpuff's third Gale Girls novel"

The big question - did you get it? Didja?   Didja?

MMario

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: Crowhugger
Date: 25 May 12 - 05:06 PM

Congratulations!!

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: GUEST,.gargoyle
Date: 25 May 12 - 07:59 PM

Well DONE... GG

A tradition in the annual 2600 HOPE conference....

Nice jazz piece immortalizing those who live "After Midnight ".

Sincerely,
Gargoyle

For the LafKat 's edification

http://www.nightsong.com/filk/twippledop/

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: Janie
Date: 25 May 12 - 08:45 PM

When I saw the thread my guess was it was regarding you, GG. I'm not surprised at all to learn of this.

Just during our annual encounters at the Getaway I've watched in awe as you have grown and developed as a musician, each year getting better and better.

Congratulations!

Janie

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: gnu
Date: 25 May 12 - 08:50 PM

Well, well, well. Keewlll dude! I doff my cap to tou!

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: gnu
Date: 25 May 12 - 08:55 PM

And to *Y*ou. Drat my yptos!

Seriously, that is way kewell. Made me smile dude.

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: GUEST,Shimrod
Date: 26 May 12 - 08:49 AM

Congratulations to Gary!

But as a life-long SF fan and a folk enthusiast, living in the UK, I've never been too sure what 'filk' actually is (SF and folk songs seems to be a bit of an unlikely combination to me). I should say that I've never been to a SF convention and don't, for that matter, go to many folk festivals.

I just thought I'd mention, in passing, that my current favourite SF author is Walter Jon Williams (http://www.walterjonwilliams.net/). Highly recommended.

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: Rapparee
Date: 26 May 12 - 09:08 AM

First Kendall gets nominated for a Grammy and now you get an international honor. WOW!!!

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: GUEST,John Foxen
Date: 26 May 12 - 10:45 AM

Congratulations to GG.
Re Shimrod's comment: I think we have a healthy tradition of filk in the UK. For example there's Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger's The Space Girl's Song and Bob Pegg's Star Child. Bernie Parry's Davy was inspired by Edgar Pangborn's SF novel of that name and Heather Wood's The Hedgehog Song was inspired by fragments in Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels.

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: deepdoc1
Date: 26 May 12 - 02:07 PM

It would be great to catch you and Spider Robinson up at Callahan's Saloon some night. Good music, good Irish coffee, and a talking dog. It doesn't get much better.

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: Nigel Parsons
Date: 27 May 12 - 11:21 AM

Congratulations from another recovering Filker!

For Shimrod: The next annual Filk Convention will be Quarter Tone To be held in Grantham 1-3 Feb 2013.
The name 'Quarter Tone' follows the convention (sorry about that) of naming the British filk con with reference both to music & to the anniversary of the first UK filk con. So 'quarter tone' is half a semitone (music) and the 25th convention (quarter of a 'ton')
Some of the earlier ones (as listed in a previous thread):

The first 'Contabile' was a one off pun on convention/cantabile. Thereafter they managed to also work in the number of the convention.
2, Con2bile
3, Treble
4, Fourplay
5, Pentatonic
6, VI braphone
7, Transept
8, Obliterate/ Obliter8
9, Harmon IX
10, Decadence
11, XI lophone
12, Didgeri douze!
13, Conthirteena

Cheers, and once more, CONGRATULATIONS! (yes, I know that's shouting)

Nigel

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: Gorgeous Gary
Date: 02 Jun 12 - 10:36 PM

Thanks all! Would have gotten back here sooner but I went off to a convention for the Memorial Day weekend (big surprise there), then was felled by a bad cold probably picked up *at* the convention.

Joe: I tried to write out "science fiction" but ran out of characters in the box. Obviously you have superpowers us mere Mudcat mortals don't. *grin*

MMario: I did in fact get it. (The author, BTW, is Tanya Huff)

Shimrod: There are as many debates over "what is filk" as there are over "what is folk". I accept the fairly standard definition of filk as "the folk music of the science fiction community" -- those songs that capture the culture, traditions, myths and legends of science fiction and fantasy fans, our modern world, and the imagined worlds of the books and media we enjoy.

BTW, I've read a bunch of Williams, with "Metropolitan" and "City on Fire" as my favorites.

-- Gary

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: Bat Goddess
Date: 03 Jun 12 - 10:22 AM

Congratulations, Gary! It IS a big deal!

Linn

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: GUEST,999
Date: 03 Jun 12 - 11:48 AM

Wonderful to hear this, GG. Best wishes to you.

Subject: RE: 'Catter Honored by Science Fiction Community
From: YorkshireYankee
Date: 03 Jun 12 - 07:54 PM

Lovely write-up... you sound like a great (as well as talented) guy. Congrats!