Author Archives: ambenson

Musical Joke about Oboes

Piece of Folklore:

“How do you get two oboes to play in tune?… to kill one of them.”

Context:

I collected this piece of folklore from my informant in an interview while at the informant’s house. The informant, my brother, was told this joke by his high school band teacher. My informant went to high school in California. He said that he can’t remember if he or anyone else actually laughed at this joke, but they at least smiled. My informant also told me that one of the reasons the joke was funny (and why he remembers it) was because it wasn’t what was expected to come out of a Christian high school teacher’s mouth.

Thoughts/Analysis:

This joke would most likely be unique to music folk groups especially ones that specialize in classical music where oboes are more common. Oboes are notoriously hard instruments to play in tune especially for beginners, so this joke which may seem vulgar or extreme to people outside of a music folk group could probably get a laugh from people who understand, and who possibly have heard, what oboes sound like out of tune.

Annotation:

For another version of this joke see http://uscfolklorearc.wpenginepowered.com/?p=11158

Children’s Game: Running Bases

Main Piece:

The following was transcribed from an interview between the informant and the interviewer.

“We played a game called running bases. You have to have baseball gloves and a ball. And so you would probably stand like the length of a house or two houses usually the length of two houses and you throw the ball back and forth. And so there’s like 2 catchers on the ball and there’s the person that’s running in between the two points where the two people are. And they would have to run to the other person before you could throw the ball to them or you’re out. Now, of course, nobody can run faster than somebody can throw a ball so you would try to have it, what you would do is, you wait until somebody missed and they have to go retrieve the ball. And then while they’re retrieving the ball then you’re running back and forth and you’re running the base  back and forth until you know you don’t wanna get caught when they go get the ball and then throw it to the other side because if you’re not on the base then you out.”

Context:

I collected this piece of folklore in an over-the-phone interview. The informant, my uncle, is an African American who grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. He was taught by his friends, and he used to play this game all throughout his childhood.

My Thoughts:

This game is knock off version of baseball where there are only two bases. It’s kind of like monkey in the middle and baseball combined since you only have three people playing with two base men and a runner in the middle. This game is also a cheaper version of baseball. It doesn’t require as many resources as an actual baseball game like a bat. It is also more convenient since it only requires three people and can be played in a neighborhood as opposed to on a baseball field. So, this game might be more popular among people that don’t have quick access to a baseball field.

Children’s Games: Paper Football

Nationality: African American
Age: 58
Performance Date: April 22, 2020
Primary Language: English

Main Piece:

The following was transcribed from an interview between the informant and the interviewer.

“We used to play this football game when I was a kid. So, we took a piece of paper, and we folded it up to where it was like this triangular football. And we played it on a table and the table was the field. And you would hit the piece of paper, and I think you had four times, just like four downs in a football game. And if because it’s triangular, if one edge of the little football, was hanging over the table, that was a score.

And if you didn’t get it to hang over, you could kick a field goal. And what the other person would do is they would make like a goal out of their hands. They would take their two thumbs and put ‘em together and then hold their hands up and that would be the goal post. So, you put your two thumbs together to make the goal post and then you would like prop the little piece of triangular paper up, and then take your finger and like thump it through. And depending on where you were on the table it would be a long field goal or a short field goal. So you would do that and if it goes in between the goal, then you would get three points.”

Context:

I collected this piece of folklore in an over-the-phone interview. The informant, my uncle, is an African American who grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. He used to play this game all throughout his childhood, and he was taught this game by his friends.

My Thoughts:

This game is meant to be a really cheap version of the popular American game. Not only is it cheap, but it also requires no physical skill, strength, or agility in the same way that actual football does. So, this game is an easily accessible game for people of all economic backgrounds and various physical abilities to play. Since all it requires is a piece of paper, at least two people, and a table, this game was and is an easy way to pass time without a financial or physical barriers.

Narrative: The Girl Who Ate Candy Before She Played Her Instrument

Nationality: African American
Age: 21
Performance Date: April 21, 2020
Primary Language: English

Main Piece:

The following was transcribed from an interview between the informant and the interviewer.

“My band teacher when I was in middle school, or elementary, told us a story about a clarinet player who ate candy before she played everyday. And then one day, after the weekend, she opened her clarinet box, and it was full of ants.”

Context:

I collected this piece of folklore during an interview with my informant. My informant, my brother, grew up in California where he went to school. My informant told me that he believed his music teacher when he told this story.

My Thoughts:

My informant explained that this story was used to discourage kids from eating, or at least eating without rinsing their mouth, before playing. The topic of eating before playing is a common one in the music community, so anyone in a music group that plays an instrument that goes in their mouth would be familiar with being taught or told the dangers of eating before playing. In fact, other music teachers have told similar stories to their students to discourage them from eating.

Children’s Game: Cars

Nationality: African American
Age: 58
Performance Date: April 22, 2020
Primary Language: English

Main Piece:

The following is transcribed from an interview between the informant and the interviewer. “A” refers to the informant and “B” the interviewer.

A: “We used to play a lot of games when were kids. Did [my sister] tell you about the game with the cars?”

B: “No.”

A: “What we would do is we would sit on the porch, and there were a lot of kids in our neighborhood and we all grew up together. So, like, as your sitting on the porch the next car that comes down the street would be your car. Okay, so it might be a nice car. It might be a clunker, you know? So you didn’t really want it to be a clunker, but yeah. And you couldn’t like back out of it. So if it’s your turn, the next car would be yours. So, we would all do that until we all had a car. For that day, you had a nice car if it was a nice car. If it was a piece of crap then you had a piece of crap for that day.”

Context:

I collected this piece of folklore in an over-the-phone interview. The informant, my uncle, used to play this game when he was a kid growing up in Cleveland, Ohio. He and his neighborhood friends would play this game while they were in elementary school, and then they grew out of it. He is African American.

My Thoughts:

This game shows how kids fantasized about a certain right of passage, driving and owning a car. In this game, kids got to experiment with how their lives may be when they grow older and what kind of car they may have as a symbol of success. If a kid got a nice car, then he could boast about the kind of car he has with the money and accomplishments that could probably come with it. A “clunker” would be like a projection of an unsuccessful future. This game was ultimately an outlet for kids to think about their future and a way to showcase how cars are connected to one’s success.