IST-4: Planning for NSBT May 2015 “Translating Biblical Discourse to be Sung”

Bible Translation Beyond Print: Training for Translating, Performing and Evaluating Sung Biblical Discourse

Objectives 1.to introduce course participants—and the Bible translation agencies that they represent—to current critical interdisciplinary research of the relationship of music and language, and 2.to recommended “better practices” for bringing that research to bear on contemporary practice and production of Bible translations “beyond print,” i.e., translations designed to be aptly performed in song.

Preparatory Assignment Each participant is strongly encouraged to bring 1.field recordings of at least 2 traditional songs from the receptor language of one Bible translation project, 2.text transcriptions of those recordings (including a vernacular transcription, a word-for-word gloss, and a free translation), and 3.a very brief ethnographic description of the socio-cultural context of that recording.

Monday 1. Lecture (15 min) - Music and Language: Building a Shared Vocabulary Objective: To introduce the semiotic and intersemiotic nature of music and language Preparatory Reading: Feld, Steven and Aaron A. Fox, “Music and Language,” in Annual Review of Anthropology, 23; Austin, Texas: Department of Anthropology, The University of Texas at Austin, p

Monday 2. Lecture (30 min) – Piercean Semiotics of Song Objective: To describe the semiotic and intersemiotic nature of ‘text, tune, and context’ in sung verbal performance. Preparatory Reading: Turino, Thomas, “Signs of Imagination, Identity, and Experience: A Peircean Theory for Music.” Ethnomusicology 43, p

Tuesday 3. Lecture (90 min) – Semiotics of “Poetically Organized Discourse” (“POD”) Objective: To describe the semiotic and intersemiotic nature of ‘Poetically Organized Discourse’ (POD), i.e., “song” Preparatory Reading: Banti, Giorgio and Francesco Gianattasio “Poetry.” In A Companion to Linguistic Anthropology, edited by Alessandro Duranti, Malden, MA: Blackwell Pub., 290– 319.

Wednesday 4. Lecture (90 min) – Translating Biblical Texts to be Sung Objective: to introduce the complementary processes of (1) identifying distinctive features of “poetically organized discourse” (POD) of a receptor language and (2) prescribing the inclusion of some of those features in biblical texts translated to be sung. Preparatory Reading: (1) Fitzgerald, Danny, “Translating Poetically Organized Discourse to be Sung: a Case Study.” Paper presented at the 2011 Bible Translation Conference, Graduate Institute of Applied Linguistics and SIL International, Dallas, TX, October; and (2) Fitzgerald, Danny, “Translating Psalms to be Sung: Encoding the Poetic Line,” Paper presented at the Bible Translation Conference, co-sponsored by the Graduate School of Applied Linguistics, SIL International, and the Nida Institute for Biblical Scholarship, Dallas, Texas, October.

Wednesday 5. Lab (90 min) - Integrating Scripture Enagagement and Translation… in Translation Training and Production: Engaging Translated Scriptures in Song Objective: to propose, discuss, and critique innovative ways to integrate “’Scripture Engagement’ through song” in your agency’s translation training and productions. Preparatory Reading: Fitzgerald, Dan, “Oral Verbal Arts: ‘Transcribe the Verbal Texts of a Recorded Event,’ ‘Make a Preliminary Musico-Poetic Analysis of a Song,’ and ‘Compare the Rhythmic Devices of Three or More Songs’” in Creating Local Arts Together,” by Brian Schrag, edited by James R. Krabill. Pasedena: CA, William Carey Library.

Wednesday 6. Lab (90 min) - Integrating Scripture Enagagement and Translation… in Translation Checking: Checking Scriptures that are Translated to be Sung. Objective: to propose, discuss, and critique innovative ways to integrate “Scripture engagement through song” in your agency’s translation checking. Preparatory Reading: Fitzgerald, Dan and Brian Schrag, “But is it any good? The role of criticism in Christian song composition and performance,” Global Forum on Arts and Christian Faith, Vol 2, No 1,