Continued from part 1.

So what can you expect if you are a wizard rock act that has been invited to a filk con, or you want to go see The Blibbering Humdingers—who happen to be filkers, wizard rockers, and SCA bards—at a nearby filk con? Note that all of these are broad trends; you will find plenty of exceptions.

First is that filkers tend to skew older. This is mostly an effect of having been around longer, but also because the filk community at times weren’t that successful in recruiting younger people. (I also readily admit that you can find geezers obsessed with their lawns within filk. Thankfully I haven’t run into them myself yet.)

Second is instruments and musical style. Filk has its origin in folk, and a lot of the early period of filk saw filkers congregate wherever they could find a spot, often having to relocate at a moment’s notice as hotel security complained about the noise. As an old hand at filk told me: filk is at its best in the nooks and crannies of fandom. Filkers wanted instruments that could be moved easily. You can still find drum sets and electric guitars, but they are not common. Playback and rap is very scarce, though it has started to appear. Live performances are highly valued.

Third is that filkers tend to sit down and listen, not stand up and dance. But you will be hard-pressed to find an audience who listens more intently, and lyrical content is very important within filk, due to its dual roots in folk music and literature. Also because of the parodies. We’ll get to those later.

Fourth is that filkers historically weren’t organised into bands. You can find some, but memberships tends to be diffuse, and it is more usual that the frontperson is presented by their name and simply brings their musician friends up on stage. A solo concert at a filk con often ends up with half a dozen people performing together. This is shifting, as more bands are starting to appear, partly through imports from geek rock, but still the most common type of band within filk is the married (for some values of married) duo.

Fifth is that filk cons are not organised on the lines of a concert or a music festival, but evolved out of the sf con culture of the 60’s and 70’s, before the rise of the commercial cons. Everyone attending is a member, and is a part in making the event a success. Everyone, including the concom and staff, pay their own membership fees—the only exception is the guests of honour who usually get reimbursed for travel, hotel, and reasonable living expenses during the con. This is partly shifting, but it’s the basic approach.

But I think the most important piece in filk culture is the circle. Now, song and music circles are not unique to filk, but they hold a special place in the filk community. Filk places a lot of value on live performance and that everyone gets a voice, and both are expressed through the circle. The circle is a shared space with no separation between performer and audience. They traditionally start in the evening, and can continue until morning. For any wizard rockers who find themselves in a filk circle, my advice would be to go with the flow and sing the songs you know and like that fits within the mood or theme of the circle. And if you don’t want to play, you can always make requests.

That’s enough for today, stay tuned for part 3, which will dive into the styles, themes, and topics of filk. And we’ll finally get to Harry Potter, because yes, there is Harry Potter-themed filk.