Filk "Elitism"

I've seen this issue crop up many times at filk conventions over the years. I've been on both ends of the situation...as the filker vainly hoping to see Grizelda appear, and Grizelda in the private room filk. I can see valid points on both sides.

Cautions for those who think Grizelda is an elitist filk snob

If Grizelda is an official guest, then you're right to feel angry.

If she's paying her way, however, that's a different story. She is under no obligation to attend the open filks if she would rather hang out with her friends in a hotel room. Remember that Grizelda may have paid a hefty airfare or driven for hours specifically to hang out with these friends. I can sympathize with the disappointment factor, of course...this has happened to me before as well, waiting all night for a certain filker to show up, but he/she never did.

As for friendships...this is an issue that really pushes my buttons. It is -impossible- for everyone to be equally good friends with everyone else. Certain people are drawn more closely together because of a wide variety reasons, from geography to similar musical tastes to outlooks on life to simple circumstance.

Sometimes these friends only see each other at filk conventions, which makes it natural for them to want to spend extra time in an environment where they can have a real conversation. Sometimes the friendship is also a musical one (often likely, considering the circumstances :-)).

Unfortunately some people interpret this as talented performers wanting only to play with other talented performers, snubbing everyone else.

What's sad about this is that this kind of attitude creates a vicious circle. Suppose Grizelda hears that the angry fan has been spreading rumours about her being an EFS (Elitist Filk Snob). Grizelda will be even less motivated to satisfy the angry fan. Who on earth wants to be bullied into doing something they normally enjoy doing voluntarily? In fact, Grizelda may herself become more and more disillusioned with the filking community and eventually withdraw from filking completely.

After reading this article, one filker from the Dandelion Report message boards suggested another reason why subgroups of filkers might congregate: "An excellent and tactful essay on filk elitism. An additional comment might be that the longer you hang around filking, the more people you know and the harder it is to take the time from catching up with old friends to meet new ones. It is noticeable that the 'clumps' of friends who hang around together are often people who entered filking around the same time. And I think it happens more now because the filk community has grown so much."

Cautions for Grizelda-types

If you're a guest of the concom, then you -are- obligated to be as accessible as possible to general attendees. If you're a GoH, for instance, you should consider the con a working convention. You are there mainly to entertain people, not to enjoy yourself (though if the latter happens as well, all the better :-)).

If you're not a guest, then your time is your own. You have the right to spend the entire convention in a private room filk, if you choose. But if you do, then you risk missing out on the fun and bonding in open filk as well as performances you may have really enjoyed.

Plus, remember that the filking community is very much "give and take" in nature. People will notice if you prefer to spend all your time with your close pals, and no time in the open filks. Perhaps you don't care, and that's fine, too. But be aware of the consequences.

You should also think hard about the contributions of the filk community to your own personal situation, the people who planned the convention, who possibly helped you meet the filker friends you have now, who encouraged and supported you when you were a newbie filker and didn't know anyone, and those who bought your recordings and attended your concerts. Is there any way you can "give back" to the community?

I'm not saying you need to spend every waking moment serving the community, but would it hurt to spend some of your time in the open filk, listening to others as well as sharing your own music, encouraging newcomers? Who knows...you might end up having so much fun that you won't want to leave. :-)

Final comments

And finally, a word about talent attracting talent. Apart from the context of friendships, talent does tend to attract talent to some extent. A chess player with 20 years' experience is likely to get more satisfaction out of playing with an opponent of a similar skill level. This -doesn't- mean that the chess player dislikes playing those with less experience, or consider them less "worthy" of his or her company. It also doesn't mean that the experienced chess player doesn't get a different kind of satisfaction out of playing with a new or less experienced chess player, especially if there is some other bond between them.

Also, similar musical tastes attract each other. I'll use Urban Tapestry as an example. All three of us have wildly different musical tastes, but we all get enormous satisfaction out of our musical partnership mainly because of the friendship between us. Each of us also has a different type of musical bond with other people. Allison and Paul Kwinn do great folky stuff together, for example. Jodi and Don Neill enjoy jazz improv. And I have my harp pals. :-) It doesn't mean that Paul and Don are snubbing me when they go off to do folky or jazz stuff with Allison and Jodi.

As for private room filks...I -do- sometimes feel a twinge of jealousy when I hear about a great room filk that's going on to which I haven't been invited. But I never resent the participants (for all the reasons I've listed above), and focus on doing something proactive that I can get just as much enjoyment out of, like approaching someone I've always wanted to get to know better and having a coffee, finding a fun filk circle, or encouraging a new filker.

And I always try, as do Allison and Jodi, to balance my personal time at a convention between private and public gatherings. I still get accused of being an EFS sometimes anyway (sometimes just for attending Open Filk Circle #1 instead of Open Filk Circle #2), but I'm realizing (especially after my experience with Inkspot) that it's impossible to please everyone. So rather than trying -and failing- to keep everyone happy and ending up resentful and unhappy myself, I just focus on having a good time at the convention. Since having a good time usually involves spending time at the open filk, this has worked out pretty well. :-)