December 14 - Christopher Parkening; Spike Jones (The Musical Birthday Series)

Christopher Parkening (14 December 1947) is a classical guitarist who abruptly retired from performance at about thirty to pursue teaching and non-musical interests.

A double dactyl is a biographically inspired humorous poem with very strict structural rules.   

Here are links to two definitions for those who are curious.  The first from the  

Poetry Foundation is clearer but less accurate than the second, from Wikipedia.  Take 

your pick.  The classic statement is the book Jiggery-Pokery:  A Compendium of 

Double Dactyls by Anthony Hecht and John Hollander (New York, 1967).

A Double Dactyl for C. P.

Higgledy-piggledy,

Christopher Parkening,

Now a Professor of

Music, and there-

By he’s proven his

Employability,

Pepperdine U, if you

Want to know where.

♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪

Spike Jones (14 December 1911 – May 1, 1965) was an American big band leader specializing in comic and novelty arrangements.

Spiked

When arranging a ballad

    Spike Jones

    Used telephones

    And slide trombones

    And comic moans

    And ghastly groans

    And megaphones

    And overtones

    And hollow stones

    And breaking glass

    And blaring brass

    And escaping gas,

    And a braying ass,

    In a crass

And noisy sonic salad.

    

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