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The Life of a Bard by Dreamflower	7 Review(s)
PIppinfan1988	Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 1/4/2006
This is great! I loved the duet!! Oh, my--and when I read the lyrics to the first song, I could just imagine Pippin (or any kid his age) enamoured with the life of a bard; fancying himself a free hobbit, coming and going as he pleases. It would break my heart to see young Pippin shivering in the cold night when the "honeymoon" wore off and found how lonely being penniless and homeless is. I also like the mutual respect these musicians have for one another. I am looking forward to more! :-) Pippinfan Author Reply: Yes, that song was the one that inspired the tale. When Marigold and I were evacuating from Hurricane Ivan, I was driving my truck, and she was following me with her mom in my husband's. I put in a rather old cassette of SCA songs which I had not listened to in a few years, and when that song was sung, I could just imagine Pippin, sitting in an inn, keeping time with it, listening to it, and captivated by the picture it presented. That was the beginning of this story, and I was so pleased when the songwriter gave me permission to quote her song in the story. And Menelcar recognizes true talent when he sees it, and so does Pippin.

Gryffinjack	Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 10/21/2005
Marvelous use of the songs in this story to advance the plot - it's like the old Broadway musicals. Songs are used too infrequently in art these days and our society suffers from it. We are missing something - the joy that the average common man can create through his own voice and playing. In this instance, it's easy to see how young Pippin is seduced by the bard's song of a life free of all routine and responsibility. Being constantly reminded that you are going to be Thain one day and must act accordingly cannot hold a candle to the life of the bard that Menelcar wove into the song, not for tweenage Pippin who is fighting his father and the acceptance of the responsibility that being an adult brings with it. That song of the trees does indeed remind me of Frodo - sad, but gently and quietly full of beauty and tranquility. How delightful that Menelcar and Pippin both knew the words to the same song and were able to sing an unexpected duet! Yep, that mind of Pippin's is whirling with ideas of becoming an apprentice to his newfound friend. The hobbits truly are amazing, the way they are giving Menelcar a chance and making him feel welcome. Author Reply: I love the way JRRT uses song. It always puzzles me the people who say "Oh, I always skip the songs and poems," because they do have an importance to the plot. And they are not out of place (except for one--I always thought Boromir's funeral song was a bit OTT, since they really needed to get after the Orcs, LOL!) The other thing is, that in a pre-recording technology society, the only way to have music is to make it oneself, or pay someone to play it. I was listening to the SCA tape last year, as we fled Hurricane Ivan, and when that song came on, I just flashed on a image of a young Pippin listening to it, enraptured by the thought. I started plotting the story out in my head then and there. I thought of Frodo when I read that one. This is definitely giving Pip ideas all right! Well, this is pre-Ruffians, so they've not really learned to be fearful of Men yet.

Lindelea	Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/27/2004
Pippin's been seduced! (The life of a Bard indeed...) Author Reply: 8-D Looks that way. But he's done his share of charming Menelcar, as well.

Budgielover	Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/25/2004
Oh, I see where this is going with our impressionable young lad... ;) I always loved in Tolkien's writing how the hobbits were so free with song. That is hard to write in our fanfiction - we are no longer a muscial society where singing is socially acceptable. More's the pity. Fics that include the hobbits singing are rare, and I've never read one that dealt so much with music before. I'll be interested to see where you take our lad in this. Author Reply: Oh yes, as impressionable as they come, especially without his cousins around to temper his enthusiasm. I do wish more fanfics would make use of the way JRRT wove song into his stories. I've heard some people who complain about the way the characters in Middle-earth burst into song at the drop of a hat. But it's not unrealistic. In a world without canned music, all you got was what you made yourself, or someone made for you in person. Someone said that we live in a world where our lives have a soundtrack, but a little bit has been lost, I think, now that music from others is so easily available. I love to include singing in my fics, and often do, although this one has a lot more than most. Only natural, I suppose, considering the plot.

GamgeeFest	Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/25/2004
Oh-uh. Pippin's getting ideas. I can just see him now, sitting on a stool, fiddle in hand, a mug of ale nearby. Gives me kind of an espresso club feel. ;) How fun that the bard knew one of Bilbo's songs. Though having been in Dale, he would have undoubtedly heard a couple. He was surprised when Pippin joined in though. Author Reply: Yes, Pippin is getting ideas--as though he ever needs help in that department! Cute image--thanks! 8-D The bard knows a few of Bilbo's songs, and yes, Pip did indeed surprise him!

SharonB	Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/25/2004
Yes, they did get to do a duet. So, is Bilbo's story the one Meneclar is in search of? He hit up with the right hobbit to find out if so. The songs were nice. Must go put on some LORT DVD's to add to this mood. ;-) Author Reply: It looks that way, doesn't it? Oh yes. We came home from going out to supper tonight and put in RoTK; got to listen to Pippin sing again. sigh

RogerGamgee	Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/25/2004
When I read these lyrics, I started wondering if your muse was working overtime creating these beautiful songs! I loved the final song duet between Pippin and Menelcar...I only wish I could have heard it instead of just reading the words. It's interesting to see how much Pippin craves a life free from responsibility - wandering about earning his living through song. But I'm not sure if he realizes at this point (since this IS prior to the Quest) just how difficult that sort of life can be. Anyone who has been involved in the music business could probably tell you it isn't all it's cracked up to be. Beautifully written....looking forward to the next installment. Author Reply: Oh I Wish!!! But except for "Nob o' the Lea" all the songs are by someone else. The first one in this chapter was by a fellow SCAdian, on a tape I've had for about eight years. I was listening to it as I was driving away from Ivan, and imagined Pippin listening to it. (I gave her the credit in the chapter footnote.) Most of the others are quotations from JRRT, who IMHO, is one of the great poets of our century, and underestimated at that. Pippin at this time is only an adolescent, and a life free from responsibility sounds mighty appealing. Of course he has no idea of how hard it will be, and Menelcar is fairly happy-go-lucky, so he doesn't mind many of the hardships that would probably NOT appeal to a hobbit, such as sleeping outdoors in all kinds of weather, missing meals, and going perhaps days without any audience at all.

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