War Music
Encyclopedia
War Music is both British poet Christopher Logue
's ongoing project to create a modernist poem based on Homer
's Iliad
, and the name of one volume of that project.
The project began in 1959. The first volume published was the Patrocleia. GBH and Paxmake up the rest of the core poem known as War Music, along with Kings and The Husbands. Since the publication of the War Music collection, Logue has also written two additional volumes, All Day Permanent Red and Cold Calls, the latter of which won the 2005 Whitbread Poetry Award
.
Logue's work has created controversy among classicists since Logue does not know Ancient Greek, and instead bases his work on other translations of the Iliad, notably Chapman
, Pope
, Lord Derby, A.T. Murray, and E.V. Rieu, according to the Author's Note to War Music.
The work features a modernist, Imagist style and forsakes most of Homer's notable stylistic features for a looser structure. It also alters the plot and characters in many minor points.
In June, 2001, Verse Theater Manhattan (VTM) presented a two-man production of "Kings," adapted and directed by James Milton. In September 2001, VTM opened a production of "War Music" featuring a cast of three women and also adapted and directed by Mr. Milton. The production, in Greenwich Village, closed down because of the 9/11 attack, but was revived and went on to play tours of both the Midwest and the United Kingdom. Review at: http://old.nationalreview.com/contributors/stuttaford032102.shtml
American playwright Lillian Groag was commissioned by the American Conservatory Theater
of San Francisco, California
to write a musical play based on the material. Groag directed and premiered the play, also called War Music, at the ACT in early 2009.
Christopher Logue
Christopher Logue, CBE is an English poet associated with the British Poetry Revival. He has also written for the theatre and cinema as well as acting in a number of films. His two screenplays are Savage Messiah and The End of Arthur's Marriage...
's ongoing project to create a modernist poem based on Homer
Homer
In the Western classical tradition Homer , is the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, and is revered as the greatest ancient Greek epic poet. These epics lie at the beginning of the Western canon of literature, and have had an enormous influence on the history of literature.When he lived is...
's Iliad
Iliad
The Iliad is an epic poem in dactylic hexameters, traditionally attributed to Homer. Set during the Trojan War, the ten-year siege of the city of Troy by a coalition of Greek states, it tells of the battles and events during the weeks of a quarrel between King Agamemnon and the warrior Achilles...
, and the name of one volume of that project.
The project began in 1959. The first volume published was the Patrocleia. GBH and Paxmake up the rest of the core poem known as War Music, along with Kings and The Husbands. Since the publication of the War Music collection, Logue has also written two additional volumes, All Day Permanent Red and Cold Calls, the latter of which won the 2005 Whitbread Poetry Award
2005 Whitbread Awards
-Children's Book:Winner:*Kate Thompson, The New PolicemanShortlist:*Frank Cottrell Boyce, Framed*Geraldine McCaughrean, The White Darkness*Hilary McKay, Permanent Rose-First Novel:Winner:*Tash Aw, The Harmony Silk FactoryShortlist:...
.
Logue's work has created controversy among classicists since Logue does not know Ancient Greek, and instead bases his work on other translations of the Iliad, notably Chapman
George Chapman
George Chapman was an English dramatist, translator, and poet. He was a classical scholar, and his work shows the influence of Stoicism. Chapman has been identified as the Rival Poet of Shakespeare's Sonnets by William Minto, and as an anticipator of the Metaphysical Poets...
, Pope
Alexander Pope
Alexander Pope was an 18th-century English poet, best known for his satirical verse and for his translation of Homer. He is the third-most frequently quoted writer in The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations, after Shakespeare and Tennyson...
, Lord Derby, A.T. Murray, and E.V. Rieu, according to the Author's Note to War Music.
The work features a modernist, Imagist style and forsakes most of Homer's notable stylistic features for a looser structure. It also alters the plot and characters in many minor points.
In June, 2001, Verse Theater Manhattan (VTM) presented a two-man production of "Kings," adapted and directed by James Milton. In September 2001, VTM opened a production of "War Music" featuring a cast of three women and also adapted and directed by Mr. Milton. The production, in Greenwich Village, closed down because of the 9/11 attack, but was revived and went on to play tours of both the Midwest and the United Kingdom. Review at: http://old.nationalreview.com/contributors/stuttaford032102.shtml
American playwright Lillian Groag was commissioned by the American Conservatory Theater
American Conservatory Theater
American Conservatory Theater is a large non-profit theater company in San Francisco, California, that offers both classical and contemporary theater productions. A.C.T. was founded in 1965 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in conjunction with the Pittsburgh Playhouse and Carnegie Tech by theatre and...
of San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
to write a musical play based on the material. Groag directed and premiered the play, also called War Music, at the ACT in early 2009.