Claudia Rankine on the T.S. Eliot Prize

Claudia Rankine discusses the T.S. Eliot Prize, which will be announced tomorrow.

Here is a my poem "Kiss/Hierarchy" making its debut as a Jazz piece as it is set to the song "Angel Eyes" by Gene Ammons and recited by Cory Bihr, whose voice could must likely seduce an angel. Listen on to hear the flm noirish, night-clubby mood of this version. Jazz and poems do intermingle well...
Kiss Hierarchy--A Jazz Version

I had had the pleasure of one of my poems, "Kiss/Hierarchy" being selected by Chuck Sher to be a part of his CD compilation: "Poetry + Jazz: A Musical Marriage," which was recently released by the Sher Music Company. My poem (originally written in the solitude of my study) has been set to amazing Jazz music by Gene Ammons and recited by the overly-talented Cory Bihr. It's somewhat other-worldly to see a work of yours transformed by another artist and medium. All the film noir, smokey-throated undertones of my poem are brought to life in this wonderful rendition. There are other "magical" marriages between poetry and jazz on this CD as well. Stephen Dunn makes an appearance, Rainer Maira Rilke (his poetry, that is), and other poets and musicians. To buy a copy of this CD or listen to a few sample tracks, follow this link: http://www.shermusic.com/1883217822.php

Now that I am Creative Writing Classes Program Director at Gemini Ink, a nonprofit literary organization in San Antonio, TX, one of the perks is that I come in contact with some exquisitely talented writers at times. I recently conducted a Proust Questionnaire with the daring and innovative contemporary poet, Khadijah Queen, and a sampling of her mind's preferences and wanderings is an interesting imaginative jaunt. Read on to see what this poet fears, hates, loves and why she mentioned Honeycomb cereal and Prince in one interview: A Proust Questionnaire with Khadijah Queen

This is just a little announcement that I will be teaching an online poetry workshop starting this Monday (April 6th, 2015) through The Rooster Moans, an online poetry cooperative that offers affordable, high quality and professionally-run workshops (www.poetrycoop.com). Writers of all levels are welcome. This will be a month-long, intensive workshop focused on poetry influenced by the world of film and and only one seat remains open! Weekly prompts and lectures will be posted and many opportunities will be provided to flex those poetic muscles.

You need not be a film expert to discover how the world of the movies can become a rich source for poetry making of all different kinds. We will discuss how the atmosphere of film—that unique mingling of sound, photography, writing and acting—creates an especially apt springboard for poems. Workshop participants will explore the difference between writing “about” the movies (their plot and characters) and writing “from” the world of the movies (letting a film’s atmosphere feed the imagery, texture, “logic” and sound-play in a poem). A range of film genres will be sampled and explored so as to encourage participants to engage with film-watching and their poetry writing in new and stimulating ways. Detailed feedback will be offered on all the poems participants write. Feel free to check out this workshop yourself through the link that follows or to share this information with anyone who you feel may be interested: Poetry and Film Workshop

As a recent contributor to the literary journal, 32Poems, I had the opportunity to comment on a fellow poet's piece in that same issue (Vol. 12.2). I had the pleasure of spending some time with Cecily Parks' playful, smart and original "Aubade with Bicycle."

An aubade is a love poem and a song or lament for the morning. Parks is able to weave deftly (and with some humor) all three aspects of the aubade into her taut, musically rich poem. I loved being able to dive more deeply into her piece. My "marginalia" on her poem and the poem itself follow. I hope you enjoy this poetic "ride":http://www.32poems.com/32-poems-blogroll.

Also, you may take a peek at my own poem, "Lost Earring," published in the same issue of 32Poems: "Lost Earring."

One of my poems, "Lost Earring," published recently in the journal 32Poems, is the focus of a smart, playful and thought-provoking commentary, written by fellow poet, Hannah Stephenson. This gloss of my poem is the feature post on the 32Poems Blog this week. Read on to enjoy Hannah's explorations of that most mischievous of conjunctions "and".  Also partake of my prose poem's meditation on coordinating conjunctions, earrings (lost or otherwise), Rothko and oddly-shaped Spanish cheeses: "Poet's Math"