Burns night

[Raphael]

I have seen many of you have attended Burns night Supper in the recent weeks and I wonder what does that mean to you. Is this just a social event for you or are you doing it to celebrate the poet's life and his influence on Scotland.

I am not going to lie and say that I go to the annual supper because of Burns. I go to the dinner because it is an annual social event and it is also a fund raiser. Although I doubt that I will continue my involvement in the future years as I no longer believe in that fund raiser any more. I also don't read poetry because I don't understand them.

[Macman]

I'd have to be honest and say that I, along with probably most of the attendees, think of it more as a Scottish celebration event rather than a celebration of the man and his poetry. It is also the major annual fund raiser for our pipe band. I get my haggis fix as well!

[macwilkin]

As a Burns purist, it makes me sad to see a Burns Supper become a de facto Scottish Night that only pays lip service to the man and his work -- which by the way, his collection of songs and his work as a proto-ethnomusicologist is just as significant as his own works.

While Burns may be difficult to understand at first, with a little bit of study, it becomes very clear that the sentiment behind the words is still relevant today.

T.

[Jack Daw]

Most years, the speaker selected for the "Immortal Memory" for our Burns Supper has been from Scotland and the topic has been the typical American-Scottish relations, etc. This year, we had a Houstonian from an affiliated Burns Appreciation Club. He chose to sing excerpts from the bard's poetry that had been set to music. It was excellent!

[macwilkin]

Most years, the speaker selected for the "Immortal Memory" for our Burns Supper has been from Scotland and the topic has been the typical American-Scottish relations, etc. This year, we had a Houstonian from an affiliated Burns Appreciation Club. He chose to sing excerpts from the bard's poetry that had been set to music. It was excellent!

T.

[Panache]

I enjoy Burns' Night for a variety of reasons.

It is often formal event, and frankly there are far too few of these nowadays.

It is a de facto celebration of Scottish culture with a chance to enjoy wonderful Scottish attire, cuisine, drink, verse, and and music

It is a chance to gather in good fellowship and share in a common bond

AND

Considering how very few adults give though to any sort of poetry, It is wonderful that at least once a year people take the time to recite, read, think about, and appreciate poetry.

Robert Burns was a very complex and interesting guy. In his short life he certainly made a huge impact and became a symbol of Scottish Identity. I may not be a Burns' purist but each Burns' Night Supper I learn and appreciate a little more about his work.

As for the language issue...

Raphael, somethings are worth the effort!

Cheers

Jamie :ootd:

[Chas]

As far as I understand, the life and works of Burns used to be celebrated on the anniversary of his death, 21st of July. This year I went to a Burns Supper on the 25th, but many societies hold theirs on the nearest Friday or Saturday evening. If one is just going to celebrate the life of Burns that can be done on any day of the year. It doesn't really matter if the day falls on his birthday or not.

For me it's the social event. I don't have enough occasions to go kilted, so every one counts. I will be going to Burns Night II in Dumfries in March. There will be good food and good friends and there will be Burns.

Regards

Chas

[macwilkin]

As far as I understand, the life and works of Burns used to be celebrated on the anniversary of his death, 21st of July. This year I went to a Burns Supper on the 25th, but many societies hold theirs on the nearest Friday or Saturday evening. If one is just going to celebrate the life of Burns that can be done on any day of the year. It doesn't really matter if the day falls on his birthday or not.

For me it's the social event. I don't have enough occasions to go kilted, so every one counts. I will be going to Burns Night II in Dumfries in March. There will be good food and good friends and there will be Burns.

Regards

Chas

According to the noted Burnsian the late Hugh Douglas, the celebration of Burns's works was held on the 21st of July, but at some point, gatherings switched to the date of his birth. One of the first was held by the sergeant's mess of the Argyll Militia in 1801, which marched to the "auld clay biggin" with a band to honour the memory of Burns -- ironically, Burns' home had been turned into an ale-house, which proved most convenient for the attendees!

T.

[Semiomniscient]

I have seen many of you have attended Burns night Supper in the recent weeks and I wonder what does that mean to you. Is this just a social event for you or are you doing it to celebrate the poet's life and his influence on Scotland.

I am not going to lie and say that I go to the annual supper because of Burns. I go to the dinner because it is an annual social event and it is also a fund raiser. Although I doubt that I will continue my involvement in the future years as I no longer believe in that fund raiser any more. I also don't read poetry because I don't understand them.

As a teacher of the English language, and one of Scottish ancestry, I must say that I actually like Burns--but I do enjoy the general Scottishness of the event. I should say that I like Burns' poetry rather... I find him as a man to be pretty base--but I'm a moralist prude I suppose. (I was disappointed when he was dubbed the "greatest Scot of all time".) Nevertheless, he was a poetic genius and I love the lyrics and verses he wrote. I LOVE giving the Address to the Haggis every year and I've tried my best to make it different and more exciting every year that I've done it.

I'm afraid at our Burns Night, there is not enough of his poetry recited--the past two years my father and I tend to be the only ones who've done anything actually honoring the Bard with reference to his works. But at least it's a heck of a lot more interesting than the St. Andrew's Dinner that's given every year. That's a total snooze fest and I have only gone when I was specifically invited to receive some sort of award/scholarship. But I digress...
Burns isn't that hard to understand for me, but I enjoy translating languages and I have a degree in English. So I'm not the typical person. But I think someone mentioned that people these days don't stop long enough to read and enjoy poetry... Burns Night is a good night to do that, but the problem is that so often, the readers stumble desperately over the language and haven't a clue as to what they're saying. A lot of it is about performance... tell them what the poem is saying and then recite the poem with gusto and panache!

[macwilkin]

As a teacher of the English language, and one of Scottish ancestry, I must say that I actually like Burns--but I do enjoy the general Scottishness of the event. I should say that I like Burns' poetry rather... I find him as a man to be pretty base--but I'm a moralist prude I suppose. (I was disappointed when he was dubbed the "greatest Scot of all time".)

People obsess far too much about the bawdy works of Burns, INMHO. Burns was most deserving of that title, at least in my viewpoint, because of the very fact that he is celebrated the world over some 250 years after his death, and for the fact that Burns was so important in collecting the folk songs and music of Scotland at a time when it was quite unfashionable to be "Scottish".

In that regard, he is very similar to fellow folklorists such as Alan Lomax, Vance Randolph and Hamish Henderson, and deserving of the honour. Even his collection of the bawdy stuff, The Merry Muses of Caledonia, is important in that regard -- and besides, it's just darn fun to read at a gents-only Burns Supper.

Of course, being a Pisskie, I do not have the Calvinist hang-ups that James has. Just kidding, James! :mrgreen:

T.