Cole Swensen - Interview In The Continental Review

www.thecontinentalreview.com

Poet Cole Swensen received her B.A. and M.A. from San Francisco State University and a Ph. D. in Comparative Literature from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Her books include Goest (Alice James Books, 2004); Such Rich Hour (2001); Oh (2000); Try (1999), which won the Iowa Poetry Prize; Noon (1997), which won the New American Poetry Series Award; Numen (1995); Park (1991); New Math (1988), which won the National Poetry Series competition; and It's Alive, She Says. Her translations of contemporary French poetry include Art Poetic (1999, by Olivier Cadiot), Natural Gaits (1995, by Pierre Alferi), Past Travels (1994, by Olivier Cadiot), and Interrmittances II (1994, by Jean Tortel). Her work as a poet and a translator has appeared in many journals and anthologies. She is a Contributing Editor for American Letters and Commentary and for Shiny, and is the translation editor for How2. Cole Swensen currently teaches at the University of Iowa.

Poet Jennifer K. Dick is the author of Fluorescence (Univ. of Georgia Press, Contemporary Poetry Series winner 2004) and Retina/Rétine (Estepa Editions 2005). Her work appears, or is forthcoming, in The Colorado Review, Aufgabe, The Canary, Mipoesias.com, among others.

Interview filmed by Nicholas Manning, editor of The Continental Review, in Paris, in July 2007.

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• Cole
• Swensen
• Jennifer
• Dick
• Nicholas
• Manning
• Poet
• Poetry
• Poem
• Ghosts
• Language
• Olson
• Howe
• Art
• Painting
• Paris

[CocteauTwinsAddict]

OMG how could only 102 people have watched Cole? Great poet, great translator. Never heard her voice before...love the voice...sort of a modulated Sally Kellerman gender-twist. She has a pianist's hands. Very photogenic poet...so time for an APR cover..."as a kindness to the world"...cute...

[Metaphysics24]

the 102 views is just for the cut-down 10 minute YouTube version. the full Google Video cut has a lot more... (see the TCR website)

and keep on with the fab comments Cocteau! they're hilarious

[PoetryETrain]

Thank you, very informative, :)

[jetelejure]

To Metaphysics24: Have just looked at your channel and now see that you're probably the producer of this video. I just want to say there was no criticism intended in my comment. It just came to mind as I was writing. There is obviously no law dictating that shots of Paris roofs must be accompanied by French music. Thanks again, and best wishes...

[jetelejure]

For those of you who are interested, the music that opens this clip is "Ich wandte mich und sahe" by Brahms, the second part of his "Four Serious Songs, Op 121. I think it was written for a male voice, but this version is lovely. Still, don't know why they chose a German piece for shots of Paris when there are so many great French piano & voice works. Duparc's Elegie would have been perfect... Thanks for the video.