This project is now complete! All audio files can be found on our catalog page: https://librivox.org/the-south-by-langston-hughes/
Volunteers outside the USA: Langston Hughes died in 1967. This person's work may still be protected by copyright in countries where copyright duration is determined by the author's death date. In Europe this is 70 years; in Canada it is 50 years; and in Australia it is 70 years for authors who died after 1955.
Each fortnight a poem is chosen to be recorded by as many LibriVox volunteers as possible!LibriVox volunteers bring you -- recordings of The South by Langston Hughes.
This was the Fortnightly Poetry project for June 19, 2022.
------
This poem, with its strong imagery, presents a darker facet of the South than is generally displayed in "nice" poetry.
(Summary by TriciaG)
This fortnight's poem can be found here.
New to recording? Please see our Newbie Guide to Recording for further instructions. A quick guide to our required technical settings can be found here. When you post your file, please tell the BC what name you would like to use in our catalog.
LibriVox recording settings: mono (1 channel), 44100 Hz sample rate, 128 kbps constant bit rate MP3. See the Tech Specs
Begin your reading with the abbreviated LibriVox disclaimer:
Leave 0.5 to 1 second of silence at the beginning.
Then read the poem:The South by Langston Hughes, read for librivox.org by [your name].
[Add, if you wish, date, and/or your location.]
At the end of your reading, leave a space and then say:The lazy, laughing South
With blood on its mouth.
The sunny-faced South,
....Beast-strong,
....Idiot-brained.
The child-minded South
Scratching in the dead fire’s ashes
For a Negro’s bones.
....Cotton and the moon,
....Warmth, earth, warmth,
....The sky, the sun, the stars,
....The magnolia-scented South.
Beautiful, like a woman,
Seductive as a dark-eyed whore,
....Passionate, cruel,
....Honey-lipped, syphilitic—
....That is the South.
And I, who am black, would love her
But she spits in my face.
And I, who am black,
Would give her many rare gifts
But she turns her back upon me.
....So now I seek the North—
....The cold-faced North,
....For she, they say,
....Is a kinder mistress,
And in her house my children
May escape the spell of the South.
Leave 5 seconds of silence at the end.End of poem. This recording is in the public domain.
Filename: thesouth_hughes_your initials in lowercase_128kb.mp3 (e.g. thesouth_hughes_klh_128kb.mp3)
Upload to the LibriVox Uploader: https://librivox.org/login/uploader
(If you have trouble reading the image above, please contact an admin)
MC to select: TriciaG
Copy and paste the file link generated by the uploader into a new post in this thread along with the file duration (mm:ss). Watch this thread for prooflistening notes.
When you post your link, please include your name as you would like it credited on the catalog page and any URL by which you would like it accompanied. (Note: This is only necessary if you have not done so for another project.)
Check back in a day or so for any feedback regarding your reading.
Deadline: Please submit your recording by 0600 GMT Sunday, July 3rd (12:00 AM CST)
Please don't download or listen to files belonging to projects in process unless you are the BC or PL. Our servers are not set up to handle the greater volume of traffic. Please wait until the project has been completed. Thanks!
Magic Window:
BC Admin
Project Code: D18vYycn
And remember, anyone can suggest a poem or coordinate an upcoming Fortnightly Poetry project! If you'd like to suggest a poem or coordinate a future project, please visit this thread.
If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask! Just post in this thread.
