This page is intended to loosely codify how we operate. This is a living document, so it's not done yet. # What is a Sun Salon? In addition to being a poetry and improvised music collective, a Sun Salon is a kind of process or event. To create a Sun Salon, please read the recipe below. At the center of any Sun Salon is an expressive arc consisting of a continuous flow of reception and expression. The poems are akin to the genetic material for this expressive arc. ## Ingredients - ≥1 poem - Personnel (must be ≥3) - ≥1 poet - ≥1 musician - ≥0 audience N.b. It is preferable to maximize personnel so long as the expressive arc is preserved. See notes below for more info. ## Directions 1. Write the poem and practice reciting it in advance - You may draft brief notes on the general tenor of the music to be improvised - These notes should not exceed three bullet points consisting of no more than one sentence each. - Performance notes should be as succinct as possible - [Short prayer pierces heaven](https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/The_Cloud_of_Unknowing), which is among you. 2. Assemble personnel in one space 3. Attend to all logistical affairs - If you have an audience, declaim the location of the exits - Confirm the poem - Confirm the readiness of the ensemble 4. Express gratitude 5. Begin listening in earnest 6. Begin 7. End when the time is ripe 8. Repeat ad libitum # Notes on Community ## Skill While there are many accomplished artists in Sun Salon's ranks, it's not about how "good" a musician you are or your eloquence as a poet. Remember, the essential element of a Sun Salon is the expressive arc. While facility with a given expressive apparatus (instrument, words, etc.) can be helpful for strengthening the expressive arc, this does not go along with any kind of mechanical standard for performance. # Diversity Outside the sphere of corporate jargon, diversity confers a kaleidoscopic character to any Sun Salon. This means that a wide variety of subjectivities incorporate into the expressive arc in both its receptive and expressive aspects. While any subject that listens deeply and expresses benevolently is a desirable addition to a Sun Salon, a set of subjects that listen and express from more orthogonal angles is even more desirable. This is the reason that Sun Salons trend towards having "too many musicians." --- # Notes on Performance ## Deep listening In this context, deep listening means you are open to another's expression, and have released the brakes on your spirit. This is mission-critical for maintaining the expressive arc. If you do not listen deeply, the arc will be empty of substance. ## Make everyone sound good It is your job to place everyone involved in a Sun Salon in the best possible light. This serves to grease the tracks of the expressive arc and makes it vibrate. This also requires that the expressive aspect of the expressive arc must be benevolent in intention. ## Make no mistakes You will inevitably play something unintended. You have the choice to either transform this into a problem or an opportunity. Try to pursue the latter. ## Notes for Poets ### Sun Salon is terrifying For a poet, a Sun Salon can be a terrifying prospect. Poetry performance on its own bares the self and constitutes a vulnerable act. This vulnerability is compounded by the improvised nature of the music. An expression of anguish may find itself accompanied by an airy bossa nova, and your jokes may drown in a sea of dissonance. In other words your poem can and will get caught in the whitewater of musical expressions that you did not anticipate, much less intend. On the other hand, a Sun Salon invites you to examine your work and (by extension) yourself in a beautiful and kaleidoscopic light. You will find new angles, at times ones you could not have previously conceived of. Though terrifying and risky, this is one way to get rich. ### Listening requires being heard If you do not make yourself heard, others will struggle to listen and the expressive arc will weaken. Don't shy away from loudness and drama!