ASL Interpretation of Ween’s “Piss Up A Rope” at Lockn’ 2016
When interpreting highly complicated lyrics like Phish’s “Reba” or Ween’s “Piss up a Rope,” showing the story becomes the focus, but during songs with limited lyrics, such as “Harry Hood” and “You Enjoy Myself,” Klipstein considers that to be “the beauty of interpreting Phish, sometimes there’s plenty of time to dance. With songs like those I interpret the words more word for word.”
In ASL, one sentence of English can take five sentences to interpret. For example, “Dark Star” doesn’t translate well—you have to talk about a star collapsing into a supernova, two concepts that lend a great deal to visually description. The exact words don’t translate the same way, and with a lot of deaf concert goers, English may not be their first language. “They benefit from cultural mediation” and as interpreters unpack a concept with visual description, they do so not word for word but meaning for meaning.
Meghan Shannon, who was one of the first to Hearing Undergraduate students to graduate from Gallaudet University (for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing) in 2003, was immersed in deaf culture from around the world that brought a deeper experiential understanding and respect from a hearing perspective. Meghan signs using the lyric-focused, on-rhythm ASL usually called Contact ASL, as opposed to ASL-concept focus where the English lyrics are secondary to creating visual ASL concepts.
Most interpreters fluidly move through this spectrum depending on the speed, complexity and content of the song. Shannon sticks with Contact ASL partially because deaf fans and clients know the lyrics and some sign along to the songs—“In order to be as fully connected to the larger experience, when the hearing audience is chanting the chorus, often the Deaf music lovers want to be able to the same thing in real time.” Sometimes lyrics have double meaning or go by too fast, and a switch needs to be made, adjusting mid-song in a fluid manner and relying on the intent behind the lyrics.
Not all interpreters are the same
Without a degree of expression based on the knowledge of the intricacies of the music they are signing, interpreters can come off as the equivalent of a “class instructor who speaks in a monotonous voice with a plain face gets boring and shows no emotions” as deaf fan Brian Gunsberg puts it. “They can be terrible if they don’t express the music correctly.” But the instructor who says things with emotion and enthusiasm can make the experience more entertaining. A prime example of adding emotion and enthusiasm can be found from Ween’s Lockn’ set in 2016, when Sharyn Newcombe Klipstein signed the song with a huge response from the video that appears above.
When it comes to Phish, the lack of a setlist can be challenging. While all the song lyrics are printed out in a book for the interpreters to reference, debut songs and first time covers lead to some improvisation of their own. “We are always thrown curve balls. It’s also why it’s important to have a team interpreter because if I don’t know the song, maybe he does or he can catch things that I’m missing,” said Klipstein.
Phish interpreters like Donnie and Sharyn are typically more well versed in the music, but sometimes a venue will hire someone who doesn’t know the music very well and there can be a lag between song and the signing. An example Gunsberg offers is “Bathtub Gin” – everyone has to sing “And we love to take a bath” together, not with a five second delay, for the full effect, which is the purpose of ASL interpreters at concerts – leaving as minimal a gap between deaf and those with neurotypical hearing throughout the show.
Some venues like Dick’s Sporting Goods Park will accommodate deaf fans with an interpreter stationed at the rail with a small area cordoned off for deaf fans to dance and watch the interpreter and band equally. Other venues like Madison Square Garden do not accommodate as well, relegating deaf fans to the 300 section with interpreters projected onto monitors from a remote studio booth, and not always hiring the right people, but both venues meet the ADA’s requirement for a reasonable accommodation. Some venues will give interpreters working passes or in ear monitors with a direct link to vocals. “The stories, the spirits, the words and the audience participation piece – all of that is really dependent on interpreters,” states Gibbons. As a first for a band, Styx recently brought their music direct to deaf fans. By connecting hearing aids and an app from Apple, deaf fans were able to tune into the soundboard of Holmdel, NJ show on August 22.
Gibbons cites the deaf crowd at Dead and Phish shows as family and some of the strongest bonds he has. Being there for the music first and foremost is part of the bond, but also Deaf fans having a struggle in fighting for access at shows and for an interpreter, preferably who knows the music. This struggle, alongside the music, builds this bond stronger over time.
Touring bands are different because they do not travel with an interpreter, as some national acts will do. Never having the same show twice and a distinct vibe is a draw to deaf fans, also known as “Deafheads” who have been going to shows for the past 30 years. They let venues know they don’t want an interpreter from the local pool, but rather someone who knows the lyrics. Arranging a proper setup and familiar product that works for fans has led to Donnie’s repeat business, as well as for Sharyn and Meghan.
During a show, Gibbons and other interpreters are fans sharing the experience with other fans. “The awesome part of my job is looking at the audience. I don’t look at the band very much. When the audience is jamming, I’m jamming. If everyone is dancing, I’m dancing. If the crowd is mellow, I’m mellow. Through osmosis, I absorb the energy of the crowd and that drives me in my interpretations. There is a correlation between crowd energy and interpretive performance.” Still, Gibbons can be stumped (“’Crosseyed and Painless’ is a bitch”) and despite signing some songs 10 times, he still works on them. If Sharyn knows the lyrics and wants to take the lead, she goes for it. For the 12/31/13 “Garden Party,” Sharyn jumped in, and given the propensity for Phish’s unique covers, she can handle Jim Croce, BB King, anything blues and rock n roll. If “Eminence Front” were ever to be performed by Phish, Donnie knows it and the lyrics can get pulled up as fast as possible.
“And if it’s ’2001,’ I’ll get down off my riser and enjoy myself.”
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