PennSound Daily

We've recently added a new talk by the inimitable American poet and scholar, Robert Duncan — "The Adventure of Whitman's Line" was recorded by Bob Perelman in San Francisco on February 18, 1979. The lecture runs more than two hours long and is presented in three segments. This new recording nicely complements another recent addition, the 1983 lecture, "Another Look at Imagism," which came to us courtesy of Rachel Blau DuPlessis and also runs for two hours.

These latest recordings supplement an already-impressive group of Duncan lectures — covering topics as diverse as Shakespeare, H.D., Ezra Pound and physics — which are but a small portion of the overall contents of our Robert Duncan author page, launched this past February. Duncan's effortless (and tireless) genius is on full display here, with hours upon hours of readings from the Vancouver and Berkeley Poetry Conferences, the Poetry Center at the San Francisco State University, SUNY Buffalo and the University of British Columbia, among others. Click on the title above to start exploring this vast collection, which spans four decades — from the late-50s into the mid-80s.

Yesterday, we added five exciting new episodes (#21-25) of the poetry podcast series, Ceptuetics Radio, broadcast on WNYU and hosted by Kareem Estefan.

The new programs begin with the powerful one-two punch of Caroline Bergvall and Brian Kim Stefans. Bergvall reads a new Chaucer tale, along with excerpts from 2005's Fig, and discusses intertextuality, writing and performance, and governmental limitations on creative practice. Stefans (who will be sorely missed here in Philadelphia) shares selections from 2007's Kluge: A Meditation, and speaks about conceptual and ambient poetics, as well as the influences of musical pioneers such as John Cage and Alvin Lucier. The musical focus continues in episode 24, featuring experimental duo Matmos, whose latest album, The Rose Has Teeth in the Mouth of a Beast, was inspired by, and pays tribute to, sources as diverse as William S. Burroughs, Ludwig Wittgenstein and Valerie Solanas. You'll also find programs showcasing the work of David Buuck and Eddie Hopely, both of whom share interesting insights on the role of collaboration in poetry.

Of course, you'll also want to check out the series' first twenty episodes, which include fascinating conversations with the likes of Rob Fitterman, Anne Tardos, Kenny Goldsmith, Bruce Andrews, Rodrigo Toscano, Anselm Berrigan and Chris Funkhouser, among many others. Click on the title above to start listening.