Chris King of St. Louis-based Poetry Scores is an avid reader of poetry that "speaks to him," and Nobel Prize Laureate Wole Soyinka's words in "Ever-Ready Bank Accounts" spoke volumes.
Each year, Poetry Scores, under the creative direction of King, a Granite City native and co-founder of the group, chooses a poem to translate to a variety of media.
Poetry Score's newest project is the interpretation of "Ever-Ready Bank Accounts" by Soyinka, a Nigerian writer, poet and playwright, who was awarded the 1986 Nobel Prize in Literature, the first African-born winner in that category.
"Wole Soyinka has an intense, direct way of writing," King said. "His style is exciting, and he's a very 'real' and approachable man."
King became familiar with Soyinka's life and works in 1996 while writing an essay for The Nation magazine in New York about Soyinka's then-new book, "Open Sore of a Continent." The editor told King to review the book in the context of the man's entire career. King proceeded to read everything by Soyinka available in the United States.
And King later worked with Soyinka's son, Ola, on a project for a field recording collective, Hoobellatoo, which involved producing Nigerian rebel radio for Radio Kudirat.
When King more recently stumbled upon "Ever-Ready Bank Accounts" again in the "Poems of bread and earth" section of Soyinka's 1972 volume, "Shuttle in the Crypt," he knew it was perfect for Poetry Scores. Soyinka wrote the poem during nearly two years of solitary confinement as a political prisoner in a Nigerian jail during the country's civil war. Soyinka currently is a professor at Obafemi Awolowo University in Ile-Ife, Osun State, Nigeria, and Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, and a fellow at the Black Mountain Institute at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, an international center for creative writers and scholars, which he helped establish.
Soyinka said when he writes, he never has a primary or secondary message.
"I take a mordant look at the huge gap between what one longs to do for the less privileged, and one's material capacity to do so," he said. "Self-mockery is part of it.
"Certainly, thoughts in solitary confinement fed on that mix of introspection and outer reality," Soyinka said.
Although a person enters into "solitary" while writing, Soyinka said choice is essential to creativity.
"You feel trapped and shackled mentally and creatively when 'solitary' is not from choice," he said.
As for Poetry Scores putting his poem to music and interpreting it visually with art, Soyinka said it's "marvelous.
"It's a very special celebration of creative collaboration," he said.
The score for Soyinka's poem is being composed by the Turkish three-piece orchestra, bicycle day, as the next step in the Poetry Scores artistic exploration.
"We are delighted to work with these adventurous musicians," King said. "Poetry Scores has good relationships in the Istanbul arts community and have declared a 'sister city' relationship with Istanbul."
Onur Karagoz, who is a vocalist and plays electronics and synthesizers for bicycle day, said the group's music is considered free improvisation or experimental. Other members are Alican Okan on computer, Rhodes and synthesizers, and Berke Can Ozcan on drums.
"We try to push the boundaries, to expand the definitions of any genre, but we're inspired by many styles," Karagoz said.
"Wole Soyinka wrote this poem during solitary confinement in a prison in Nigeria, where poverty is so visible," he said. "To us, the poem says, 'Embrace mankind. Embrace mankind. Embrace mankind.'"
With the score in the works, King now is inviting artists to add their own translation of a line, stanza or portion of "Ever-Ready Bank Accounts" to visually display the poem in poetic order at Soulard's Mad Art Gallery. Most pieces will be for sale, with proceeds to be divided among the venue, the artist and Poetry Scores.
Of the 50 artists needed, 23 are committed so far. Metro East native artists include Dr. Andrew Dykeman, Dan Cross, Noah Kirby and Amy VanDonsel. Robert Powell of Portfolio Gallery is participating for the first time. Artist Andrew Torch was asked to guest co-curate the exhibit "because of his fierce personal vigilance on issues of poverty, which is what this poem is about," King said.
Many of the artists participate time and again in the art invitationals. King said they always are thrilled to see people come back, and each year, a few new artists join in, as well.
"There are no limitations on medium," King said. "We always have different types of paintings, sculptures, whatever the artist wants to do."
The final step in the Poetry Scores process will be the production of a silent movie accompanied by the musical CD and spoken word. The entire process evolves during the course of two or three years. Several poem projects may be in process at different stages at any given time.
Poetry Scores is a Missouri nonprofit arts organization. The first poem scored was "Crossing America" by Leo Connellan, poet laureate of Connecticut. A recent movie production by the group comes from the poem, "Go South for Animal Index," by Stefene Russell, dealing with testing of the atomic bomb, based on her own experience as a "downwinder" in Salt Lake City.
Other poems that have had the Poetry Scores touch are "Blind Cat Black" by Turkish poet Ece Ayhan, "Incantata" by Irish Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Paul Muldoon, "Jack Ruby's America" by Missouri's second poet laureate David Clewell, and "The Sydney Highrise Variations" by Australian poet Les Murray.
The art invitational for "Ever-Ready Bank Accounts" is scheduled for 7 to 10 p.m. Friday, May 18, at Mad Art Gallery, 2727 S. 12th St. in the Soulard neighborhood in St. Louis.
http://www.thetelegraph.com/articles/scores-67989-soyinka-group.html
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