Improvisational Poetry From The Basque Country introduces the Basque bertsolari to the English-speaking world and provides an understanding of an interesting cultural phenomenon - the artist in Basque society who is capable of improvising verse on any subject and spontaneously setting it to music. The phenomenon is at least several centuries old and runs the gamut from amateurish efforts to periodic national championship competitions. These competitions draw thousands of listeners and pack theatres while many thousands tune their radios to the broadcasts of the performances.