Poetry anyone?

Are there any other people out there using Reaper to record audio versions of poetry, for CD distribution? With or without music in the back? Any particular issues with doing a great job of recording poetry readings? My wife and I are reading our poetry at an art opening at a gallery and we want to sell CDs. What would get people to buy them? [In particular, the people who are already willing to spend thousands on paintings.] By the way, another project I have on my list is to put up a website of audio stories for children. I can read lots of stories (from public domain) and then from my website, parents can subscribe to have a bedtime story read to their kids every night. The voice is a wonderful thing. And poems and stories are something like music. Only different.

Hmm, IMHO I think poetry is like music, and music is like poetry set to music. So, I would treat it the same way. After all, you can have a full song, just the music, just the vocals, just the words spoken, or just the words written. It all conveys emotion. Msore, you have some nice ideas - pursue them. I would hope however that the parents themselves would read their kids a bedtime story..one can dream right?! ; )

Yes, parents could read stories to their kids. And yes, poetry could be done in total isolation from the world. But strangely, parents don't. And strangely, arts other than poetry are getting sold right and left. Anybody out there listen to Harold Budd?

lessons 

My wife and I gave the poetry reading, which was well received by the few. I did complete a CD (17 poems with musical backing). I learned some things. JUST the voice in a mic can create some very strong low frequency bursts (like kick drum). I dealt with sibilance (toning it down but not removing it), but was surprised at the booms. It is very difficult to do the SAME things to a number of poems so that they present the SAME kind of voice in the same kind of audio space. As it turned out some of the tracks sound distant, some close, some sparky, some dull. Best to recite/record IN WHOLE poem-length recitations, but THEN divvy them up by stanza or couplet or line for ease of arrangement and manipulation. Trying to deal with a two minute long poem in an audio track is too hard, so it should be busted into parts. However, if you record it in pieces, the pieces will not share character or flow.

It's all sound either way. If the sound pleases you it may please others and you should make it available

poetry-music 

Here is one I put to music on my "The Greenland" CD (my first CD) About the place I live and it's effect on my etc. I do a few Poem put to music numbers. Cloudy Skies 1986 I went down to the bluff today To dance with the marram on a windy day Clouds came down off the hill Birds fly high never keep still The rivers down got no rain today It's been fine a couple of days No people on the road no people winding down Ain't nobody round till whitebait day When your born it's a love affair You can't touch it but you know it's there See the seasons change the light come and go A baby in the cradle in the rivers flow Running down the beach paddling down the wild water Climbing up the alps moving through the trees There ain't no fire there ain't no flame The heat of passion burns all the same Fly with the wind blow'n down the valley Howlin through the gorges playing out it's soul Blue forest falling down to the river almost Touching the water from the highland above Down from the snow grass the Kea comes a calling The Bellbirds a singing the Falcons in a dive The offshore winds a blowin' the big waves come crashing Your running free as the Tasman keeps on drumming You brought me down a waterfall Held me close and stopped me drowning You kissed me with a forest green Aotearoa under cloudy skies SEM

thanks 

And your recording of it is where?