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Singing Bones — Arts
Singing Bones

Singing Bones is a podcast that looks at the origin of fairy tales, the bare bones of stories. Follow the your favourite tales from their beginnings, discover new tales you’ve never heard, and re-discover stories you thought you knew.

Latest Episodes:

Illustration by Kay Nielsen — The Red Shoes Jul 20, 2017

Illustration by Kay Nielsen

Hans Christian Andersen's classic and violent tale is looked at through the lens of the man who wrote it, and the 1948 film which changed the way we see it today. From Denmark to dance via the Devil we explore the iconic red footwear.
Music by Kai Engel. To learn more about him and his wonderful music please check out http://www.kai-engel.com/
Read the tale
Previous Episodes

Illustration by Kay Neilsen — Rapunzel Jun 08, 2017

Illustration by Kay Neilsen

This week we look at the tale of the girl with the impossibly long hair, from it's ancient roots to the court of Louis XIV and the fascinating woman who recorded the version of the tale we know. Featuring Rapunzel expert Kate Forsyth author of the books Bitter Greens and The Re-birth of Rapunzel: A mythic biography.
Music is by Kai Engel
Learn more about Kate Forsyth and her books here
Read Terri Windling's amazing essay on Rapunzel here
Read the tales

Illustration by Jennie Harbour — The Wild Swans Dec 08, 2016

Illustration by Jennie Harbour

The story of a girl who saves her brothers from a curse that turns them into swans is older than you think. Swan have been symbols of royalty, purity, and love in many cultures. Here we trace the stories of people who transform from swans to humans from Ireland to Japan, Norway to Russia.
Find out about Clare's show West of The Moon at blueroom.org.au/events/west-of-the-moon/
Read The Tales

Illustration by Edward Gorey — Rumpelstiltskin Nov 16, 2016

Illustration by Edward Gorey

Rumpelstiltskin is a story about spinning and names. We look at the traditions in making of yarn in fairy tales and how the history of the textile trade is woven into an older story of breaking a bargain with a devil, or a goblin, a man that has no name but who can fix any problem in the world.
Read The stories Watch The Story (coming soon)

Asbjørnsen and Moe Aug 29, 2016

Episode fourteen is about the Norwegian fairy tale collectors Asbjørnsen and Moe. Famous for their rigour, their poetry, and their expression of their national culture.
Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Moe recorded tales such as The Three Billy Goats Gruff, East of The Sun West of The Moon, The Princess on The Glass Hill, as well as many others filled with trolls, hulder, and Ash-Lads.
The two men were best friends and lived extraordinary lives and deserve to be as well known worldwide as The Brothers Grimm, Charles Perrault, and Andrew Lang.
Additional research from Simon Hughes, whose translations can be read at norwegianfolktales.blogspot.com
Music by Kai Engel, find his music at www.kai-engel.com
If you want to support Singing Bones please head to singingbonespodcast.com/support
Read "Popular Tales From the Norse" Learn more

Asbjørnsen and Moe Aug 29, 2016

Episode fourteen is about the Norwegian fairy tale collectors Asbjørnsen and Moe. Famous for their rigour, their poetry, and their expression of their national culture.
Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Moe recorded tales such as The Three Billy Goats Gruff, East of The Sun West of The Moon, The Princess on The Glass Hill, as well as many others filled with trolls, hulder, and Ash-Lads.
The two men were best friends and lived extraordinary lives and deserve to be as well known worldwide as The Brothers Grimm, Charles Perrault, and Andrew Lang.
Additional research from Simon Hughes, whose translations can be read at norwegianfolktales.blogspot.com
Music by Kai Engel, find his music at www.kai-engel.com
If you want to support Singing Bones please head to singingbonespodcast.com/support
Read "Popular Tales From the Norse" Learn more

Illustration by Ida Rentoul Outhwaite — The Little Mermaid Part 2 Aug 08, 2016

Illustration by Ida Rentoul Outhwaite

The Little Mermaid is a famously dark and melancholy fairy tale. This week we look at the stories that inspired Hans Christian Andersen stories of sirens, of Undine, and Eastern European rusalka and the scary watermen known as Vodnik.
We also talk to two real mermaids about what it is like to really be a mermaid! With Mermaid Jessica Pearl and Mermaid Amelia we look at modern mermaid culture and the pros and cons of Disney romanticism.
Music this episode by Kai Engel
Find The Perth Mermaids here:
www.facebook.com/perthmermaids
www.facebook.com/mermaidamelia
www.facebook.com/mermaidjessicapearl
read mermaid stories here

Illustration by Jennie Harbour — The Little Mermaid Part 1 Jul 21, 2016

Illustration by Jennie Harbour

Part one of two traces the history of The Little Mermaid, from Ancient Goddesses of love and fertility to folk stories of love and marriage, slavery and gender politics.
This episode focuses on selkies, finfolk, and Sea Kings, with an interview with Finn O'Branagáin, talking about the power of these stories. Next week we look at sirens, rusalka, and talk to some real live mermaids.
To read more about Finn O'Branagáin's play click HERE
Music by Kai Engel, Moody Alien ,and Antonin Dvorak
Mermaid Illustrations Mermaid stories

Illustration by Walter Crane — Ali Baba and 1001 Nights Jul 07, 2016

Illustration by Walter Crane

To tell the history of Alibaba is to tell the story of the "Arabian Nights" stories. From a 14th Century Syrian text called 1001 Nights the European world fell in love with Middle Eastern wonder stories.
AliBaba has long captured imaginations worldwide, with its themes of family, goodness and treasure. But where did it arrive from? Is it Arabic, Greek, or possibly completely composed by a European in love with the city of Baghdad.
Music by ¡para!helion
To read a translation of 1001 Night from the original Arabic I recommend this version by Hussain Haddawy
Read The Tales Image Gallery

Illustration by Sheilah Beckett — Twelve Dancing Princesses Jun 12, 2016

Illustration by Sheilah Beckett

The Twelve Dancing Princesses or The Shoes That Were Danced To Pieces, are stories of fairy kidnapping and possession. In this episode we look at the stories of the fey, the she, elves, devils, peri, and all sorts of wicked spirits that wisk young maidens and lads away to their magic kingdoms where they do nothing but dance. From Iceland to India the stories of fairy kidnappings and those that rescue them talk to us about sin, sleep, and dance.
Music by Christy-Lynn
and Ed Harris
Read The Dancing Princess Stories Dancing Princess Gallery

Illustration by Divica Landrova — Little Red Riding Hood May 25, 2016

Illustration by Divica Landrova

Cover of "Lil' Red Ridin' Hood" by The Brooke
To read more about werewolves look here and here.
To read Jack Zipes find his book here.
Read The tale Little Red Gallery

Illustration by Winslow Hollow — Bluebeard May 12, 2016

Illustration by Winslow Hollow

"Be bold, be bold, but not too bold."

Bluebeard is one of the most gruesome and dark stories of the fairy tale cannon. Before true crime or horror stories people told the story of the serial killer with the un-naturally blue beard, and the many wives he murdered.
Before we had the term serial killer we called repeat killers Bluebeards', and the real men from history who inspired the tale are considered some of the most vicious in history. In this episode we look at Bluebeard and it's cousin stories of Mr. Fox, and The Devil Who Married Three sisters, and examine the histories of the three men thought to have inspired the story. One a king of France, another a King of England, and Barron who was a companion to Joan of Arc.
Harp music by OMNIA
Other music from the Opera "Bluebeard's Castle" by Béla Bartók
Read Bluebeard and similar tales Bluebeard Gallery

The statue of the brothers in Kassel — The Brothers Grimm and Sisters Wild Apr 22, 2016

The statue of the brothers in Kassel

The Brother's Grimm are synonyms with fairy tales. Yet most people do not know how they collected their tales, or more importantly who they collected them from.
Born in a time of war and shifting borders and fearing a loss of national identity the brothers sought to record all fairy tales in German. Their sources were mostly young women, sisters who shared the Grimm's passion for folktales and yet they were not credited as the brothers were, Matt Damon did not play them in a movie.
This week we are looking at the lives of The Brothers Grimm and the women who they collected their stories from. For in order to understand the history of fairy tales, we must understand the tale tellers.
Grimm brothers reading list

Paper cut illustration by Clare Testoni — The Singing Bone Mar 23, 2016

Paper cut illustration by Clare Testoni

The Singing Bone is one of the oldest folk tales and is often considered a bridging point between folk tales and ghost stories. With origins going back 2200 years to China and Africa it continues to live in folk and country songs. Telling the sad tale of brothers and sisters killing each other, and only the dead siblings enchanted bones telling the truth of their fate.
Read and listen to the tales here Singing Bones Gallery

Illustration by Jennie Harbour — The Sleeping Beauty Mar 10, 2016

Illustration by Jennie Harbour

Sleeping Beauty is one of the darkest and most erotically charged tales and this weeks episode is not suitable for those that simply want to hear the picture book story. From origins in Icelandic and French folklore through to the forgotten second act of Perrault and Basile's versions of Sleeping Beauty you have to be brave to court the princess asleep in the woods. It's a dark and thorny path.
Read The tales Sleeping Beauty Gallery

Jack and The Beanstalk Feb 24, 2016

Giants are our fears and foes made large, Jack and The Beanstalk comes from a history of the small against the strong. It is what remains of a lost tradition of boys own adventure tales. In this episode we follow our fears from Goliath, to Norwegian independence, through to British colonialism and freudian psychoanalysis.
Read more about Jeffrey Jay Fowler and his upcoming work.
Music by Dave Depper and Will Bangs
Read the stories Gallery of Giants

Illustration by Jennie Harbour for My Book of Favourite Fairy Tales , 1921 — Snow White Feb 11, 2016

Illustration by Jennie Harbour for My Book of Favourite Fairy Tales, 1921

Snow White is one of the best known tales, how and why did it become so? In Episode three we look at poisoned Baronesses, Persephone and Hades, pantomime, and early cinema. Looking at the dark story of jealousy and blossoming beauty.
Music for this episode by the wonderful Musk Ox.
Read Snow White and Similar tales Snow White Gallery
Snow White silent film (1916)

Henry Marsh, wood engraving, f rom the Riverside Magazine for Young People, Volume II, January 1868 — The Pied Piper Jan 28, 2016
In episode two we look into the only fairytale that does not start 'once upon a time' but rather 'in 1284'. The mystery of what happened to the children of Hamlin has fascinated Johann Goethe, Robert Browning, and troubled the minds of historians for hundreds of years. We look at the historical background of The Pied Piper of Hamlin and how a true event became bound up with a tale of rats, pipers, and magic mountains to be the tale we know today.

Henry Marsh, wood engraving, from the Riverside Magazine for Young People, Volume II, January 1868

Music by Kevin Kastning and Carl Clements, Lisa Germano, Miriam Fried (violin) Jonathan Biss (piano)
Read the tales

Illustration by John Batten for European Folk and Fairy Tales, New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1916 — Beauty and The Beast Jan 18, 2016

Illustration by John Batten for European Folk and Fairy Tales, New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1916

In our first episode I unlock the history of Beauty and The Beast, from Roman myth through to modern tale the Animal Bridegroom has fascinated and repulsed us for over a thousand years. For who could ever love a beast?....
Music from the album Woodfall by Musk Ox
read the original tale Beauty and The Beast Gallery

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