This section deals with the different aspects of voice heraldry.
When someone thinks of a herald, voice heralds are usually what they have in mind. They act as the voice of the crown, marshal, or event steward, which means they tend to be very well known amongst the populace. While a voice heralds role can be exciting, there are guidelines that govern what they do just as with the other aspects of heraldry.
There are three main types of voice heraldry that we will cover with this lesson. They are site heraldry, lyst heraldry, and court heraldry. There are a few things that are common to all three that every herald should be aware of.
Oyez. Loudly stating this word is a call to attention. It signals everyone nearby that they need to quiet, as something important is about to be communicated.
Projection. The most crucial skill for a voice herald to have is good projection. You need to be able to project your voice so that it can be heard clearly at a good distance, while not shouting, which can put strain on your vocal chords.
Discretion. As a voice herald of any type, you may be told things in confidence. It is very important that you maintain that trust, and not share the information with anyone you are not allowed to tell.
Be Prepared. Whenever you are doing voice heraldry, you should always have a supply of index cards and a writing implement with you.
Now let's look at each of the three types and the specific duties involved with each of them.
Site heraldry is where most people start when it comes to voice. The site herald is an event position, assisting the event steward with communicating information to the populace. They are responsible for regular announcements to inform the populace of the time, of upcoming activities, and of any changes to the event schedule. They also make announcements for other event positions and officers, such as any gentles who need to report to reservations. Sometimes the position also includes doing wake-up calls, but that is at the discretion of the event steward.
When taking on the role of site herald, you become responsible for all heraldry that takes place at the event. You are not responsible for doing all of it, but you do need to make sure it is covered. One of the first things you should do is confirm with the event steward if you will need to arrange for lyst heralds and a court herald. If they do not have the answer they will be able to direct you to the correct person to ask.
Depending on the event site, you may want to recruit people to assist you with making announcements. While a small site can be easily managed by one person, a larger site is best done with multiple people. You can assign duties by time or by area, depending on what will work best for your team.
Once on site, you want to make sure that you are familiar with all of the locations which will have activity. If radios are available, you should obtain one so that you can be available to the staff for extra announcements as needed. Friday night of an event usually has very minimal duties for a site herald. If there are any special activities planned you may need to make a round of announcements to let people know, but that should be all.
In the morning(s), if you will be doing wake-up calls there are a few things to know. You are going to want to 'cry' each of the campsite areas, as well as any cabins. You want to use a quieter-than-normal tone, as you don't want to jar people awake. It is strongly recommended that you be as polite as possible, unless you want a boot thrown at your head. It is also recommended to check with the kitchen to see if coffee is available before starting your calls. It can go a long way if you are able to say that there is coffee available or brewing in the feast hall when you wake people up.
When making announcements, whether they are wake-up calls or your normal course-of-the-day calls, there is a suggested order of information.
Say oyez three times. This gives people a chance to recognize what is being said and quiet.
Tell the time. People often don't have a timepiece readily available when they are at an event, so providing the current time is very helpful.
Tell about any upcoming activities or schedule changes. How frequently you are doing announcements will determine how far out you are mentioning activities. For example, if you are doing rounds every hour, then you only need to tell people what is happening in the current hour and the next hour. If you are doing rounds less frequently, then you will want to include more.
Repeat the time. Sometimes it takes people a little bit to tune in to what you are saying. By repeating the current time at the end of your announcements, it helps anyone who missed it the first time, and is also a subtle way of indicating the announcements are over.
Over the course of the event make sure to check in with the event steward to see if there is anything additional they need announced. This is where having index cards and a pen comes in handy, as you will have a way to note down anything they need.
The last duty of the site herald is usually to make a round at the end of the event to let people know what time the site is closing. The event steward may ask you to do this more than once, depending on how quickly people are packing up and departing.
The job of the lyst herald is to assist the marshal and lyst organizer by announcing upcoming bouts/pairings, and to sometimes announce victors. Depending on the style of the lyst, you may also be asked to announce combatants onto the field. When working as a lyst herald, you have to remember that the marshal is in charge at all times. Whatever they say, goes. They are in charge of making sure everyone is safe on the field, which includes you.
At the time of armor inspection, you want to report to the marshal and lyst organizer to let them know you are there and will be heralding for them. Check to see if there are any special things that need to be announced or that you need to be aware of. Having index cards and a pen is very helpful in this role, as they are a commonly forgotten item. You may need to loan them out to the lyst organizer if they don't have any. Once the lyst starts, you will be announcing the next three bouts before each one starts. There is a specific order to use for these announcements.
Take the field. This is used for the combatants in the next bout. This lets them know that they should proceed to the lyst field immediately.
Make ready. This is used for the combatants in the following bout. This tells them that they should be putting on any last pieces of gear such as their helmet or gauntlets, and making their way towards the lyst field.
Armor up. This phrase is used for the combatants in the third upcoming bout. This tells them to make sure they have all of their armor on (minus the last-minute pieces) and that everything they will need is to hand.
The above order is used most commonly for armored combat. When heralding for a rapier combat lyst, you will sometimes switch announcement 2 and 3. Armor for rapier combat is often quicker to put on and take off, so it often makes sense to say 'Take the field', 'Armor up', then 'Make ready'.
The role of court herald is probably the most well known. The court herald acts as the voice of their nobles, whether it be the King and Queen, Prince and Princess, or Baron and Baroness. They act as the emcee, directing the populace when to rise or sit, calling gentles into court, reading awards, and otherwise directing the flow of events during court.
In Trimaris, the deputy in charge of court (and crown lyst) heraldry is the Caravel Herald. They are the default herald for the crown, unless the crown has asked someone special to fulfill those duties. The Caravel Herald is also responsible for heralding crown lyst as well as the procession for the entrants. While heralding Kingdom court is their job, that doesn't mean that they attend every event the crown will be at. Other voice heralds are often requested to fill in when the crown is travelling to local events, so it is always good to be prepared and knowledgeable about what is required.
If you are acting as court herald, there are several tasks that you need to be aware of.
Attending court business. The first task of being the court herald is to attend court business. This is where the items that will be done in court are discussed and an order is decided upon. It is very important that you have index cards with you for this, so that you can create a court card for each item of business. The nobles will ask you to put the cards into a recommended order, or will simply do so themselves. Once the order is decided upon, it is very important that you keep the cards in that order, even after court is completed. This is also the time in which discretion plays a large part. By attending court business, you are privy to awards before they are given out. No matter how tempting it might be, you cannot share that information with anyone who wasn't there.
Heralding the nobles into court. When it is time for court to start, you need to herald the nobles in. Be sure to confirm with them what titles they are using, how their names should be pronounced, and if they would like simple or flowery descriptions. As the court herald you should be at the front of the procession so that everyone can clearly hear you. After making courtesy to the thrones, you should proceed directly to your spot behind them so that you are ready to begin. Once all seated nobles are at their thrones, you can ask the presiding nobles if the populace may sit.
Announcing business. This task is the meat of the job. First and foremost, you must open court. This is what makes the court valid. Once it has been opened, you can show the nobles the first court card then proceed as directed. After each piece of business is completed, you should mark the card and/or move it to back of the cards. It is critical to keep the court cards in order, so that they reflect the precise order in which each piece of business occurred. Remember to project clearly so that everyone attending court can here you. Once all business has been completed, and the nobles give the okay, you will need to close court. You do not need to process out with the nobles, but can instead collect your items and move on to your next task. Make sure to keep your court cards and stow them in a way that they don't become lost or get out of order.
The court report. Your final task as court herald is to file a report of everything that took place. There is form on the Kingdom website that you fill out and submit. The report is sent to all relevant officers, and a copy should be sent back to you. This report is why your court cards must be kept in order. You need to list the awards given during the court in the actual order that they occurred. Precedence is determined in part by who received a particular award first. For example, a person who received the award of arms in 2005 has precedence over someone who received it in 2006. The Sextant Herald will place listings into the Order of Precedence in the exact order that they are listed on the report. For this reason you must make sure to keep your court cards in order so that you can fill out the report correctly and the Order of Precedence can be updated accurately.