Contra Callers April 2011

contracallers@lists.sharedweight.net

34 participants
22 discussions

by Rickey

Hi, I am wondering if you have any dances for low numbers of dancers (perhaps 6 or less), when most or all of the dancers are beginners and adults. I am also wondering if you have any dances (presumably different dances), that do not require choosing a partner and are good openers for beginner adults. Thanks as always to all, Rickey Holt.

1 year, 4 months

Re: [Callers] Festival Applications

by robertgolder＠comcast.net

I can only speak with reference to calling at NEFFA, as I have never applied to DownEast. As some of you may know that Linda Leslie is NEFFA's program chair, I will note that the program chair does not select performers for contra sessions. Regarding NEFFA 2007, the following notice is now posted at http://neffa.org/perf_app.html - The Program Committee is not prepared to take your application at this time, since it is too late to apply for this year's NEFFA Festival. Please note that the application to perform is always available during the month of September, with a deadline in October. If you'd like to get an e-mail notice of application availability, send a blank e-mail to NEFFA_Performers-subscribe(a)yahoogroups.com So you can note on your calendar that September is a good time to check the NEFFA web site, and also arrange for a notice to pop up in your e-mail. The NEFFA application invites you to come up with a briefly-described theme for your session, with a title of 20 characters or less. IMO, use your own judgment as to how important the theme is. If you are offering a concept that's really meaningful to you, don't be afraid to describe it. If what you really want to do is just call some hot contras, then IMO I wouldn't go overboard on the theme. Unlike Northwest Folklife, callers and bands apply SEPARATELY to the New England Folk Festival. And I believe that this is a very good thing for beginning callers who hope to have a chance at getting onstage. This mix-and-match policy gives a fresh perspective for experienced performers, and can be an eye-opening experience for newcomers who may get to work with seasoned veterans. I will never forget calling at NEFFA with Northern Spy, a band that has worked with caller David Millstone for 25 years. And where was David during this session? Out on the floor, happily dancing to the music of his own band. NEFFA's selection process made that wonderful hour possible for me. For what it's worth, the first year I successfully applied I asked for a "Festival Orchestra" slot, which means that instead of calling a themed, hour-long session I called two dances in the Main Hall with the assembled orchestra and then got off the stage as the next Festival Orchestra caller had a turn. IMO, the key here (as well as in submitting a session proposal) is to choose dances that you know by heart, can teach well, fully believe in, and love to share with a crowd. You don't want to have second thoughts as you approach the microphone. If you're wondering why performer applications are required so far in advance of a festival, note that NEFFA may have 1700 performers, many of whom perform in multiple sessions (perhaps performing alone, and with a participatory dance group, and also with a concert performance group!). You can't doublebook a performer (or larger groups to which she may belong), you have to give her time to move from one venue to another, plus a bunch of other scheduling etceteras that would drive me loony to contemplate further. How scheduling was done in the days before computers is beyond me. -- Robert Jon Golder 164 Maxfield St New Bedford, MA 02740 (508) 999-2486

3 years, 11 months

Recruiting new dancers

by Luke Donev

The post on walk-throughs for new dancers got me thinking about recruiting new dancers. This straddles dance caller and dance organizer, but I'd like to hear people's responses. I'm curious about people's experiences recruiting new dancers. I've seen several dances that do a lower cost for first time dancers to try to lower the barrier for entry. Has any group tried doing a coupon for a discount when they come back a second time? I feel like the venues for dances are usually such that folks don't randomly wander in. If folks show up for a first time, they've decided to come (or were brought). Does knowing there is a discount for first timers help make them come? When there is a discount, how often do the first timers know that coming in? I'm pondering the scenario where you charge full price for the first time, when they've committed to coming out, and then give them a coupon to come back at a discount price their second time. I know a lot of people who tried contra once and were hooked, and I've seen people who try for a little bit and then never come back. Is it worth trying to up the likelihood of a second experience, at what fractional cost for the first? Or should the focus be on that first experience, and making the barriers for entry as low as possible? If a group has the resources, then it can just say that the first two dances are cheaper, but I feel like giving someone a reminder, business card sized, with the website to check for more information, is a nice way of having them think about the dance at least once more. Do callers doing one night gigs announce local dance options if they know them? Or do you only talk about it with the folks who come up and ask? Presumably if a caller has been brought in, the organizer of the party knows the folks at the party and the local dance scene. Is it on the caller or the organizer to spread information about other chances to dance? And do you broadcast wide, or focus on the folks who seem really in to it. I think culturally, at a societal level, we've lost the sense that we can dance after our 20s at things besides weddings, which is a real shame. -- Luke Donev http://www.lukedonev.com Luke.Donev(a)gmail.com

12 years, 6 months

Re: [Callers] easy ONS dances where partner is kept? - report

by Tina Fields

Becky Nankivell said, <snip> Depending on the event, the length scheduled, and the<BR>crowd, you could conceivably announce and establish at the start that<BR>there will be short sets of ~2-3 dances with breaks between, so they<BR>know that they'll have the breaks coming. >snip> That makes so much sense! Of course folks are more likely to fully stick around & participate when they know roughly what's coming - in this case, the breaks. It's the same with any kind of teaching. I'll do that in future. Thank you. Tina

12 years, 12 months

Re: [Callers] easy ONS dances where partner is kept? - report

by Becky Nankivell

Concerning letting 'em sit or not -- I'd say that depends on the event. If it's billed as a dance event, then, counter-intuitively, I'd let them socialize more frequently because the socializing is really the point under it all, and the dancing is an excuse. They will have dancing in mind. Depending on the event, the length scheduled, and the crowd, you could conceivably announce and establish at the start that there will be short sets of ~2-3 dances with breaks between, so they know that they'll have the breaks coming. Even more than a couple of dances in a row will be stretch for folks who have come because of social obligation, rather than a particular enthusiasm for dancing. :-) If it's a wedding reception with some dancing, yes, do it all at once, because there are lots of other things to be accomplished. In the end throw away any expectations of the kind of continuous dancing you have at a regularly scheduled evening. ~ Becky Nankivell Tucson, Ariz. and Long Beach, Calif. Tina wrote: David M. then brought up the shrewd strategy of not letting ONS dancers sit down (meaning they might stay away forever). Again, I agree - I've experienced that too, and am totally on board with the plan to continually "dance for 45 minutes before they cut the cake". Yet in this case, even though I held that intent (albeit with two planned halves as the organizers wanted 1.5 hours of dancing), a couple of times the dads bolted for the cool drinks in the kitchen as soon as a dance stopped! So I just let it go with their flow, then called them back for another dance after a little while when their faces seemed less red again. :-> And they came. Their daughters did need to earn their badges, after all. Given that behavior, would you do something different? If so, what? Beth, also thanks for the tip about Marian Rose's books. Tina

12 years, 12 months

Re: [Callers] easy ONS dances where partner is kept? - report

by Tina Fields

Beth said, >>>"I "teach" people to listen to me during the first dance. I start with a big >>>circle. I teach the group the following: Walk to the left, walk to the right, >>>go into the center 3 steps, come back and do-si-do. After that I start the >>>music and call hash of those. I also add promenade on the fly during the >>>dancing. I once had a caller say to me "I would never patronize a group by >>>teaching them circle left and circle right." But he didn't really get the >>>point: I'm not teaching circle left and circle right. The purpose of the first >>>dance of the evening is to teach them to listen to the caller.  Since the >>>dance is hashed, they never know what is coming and they must listen. Saying >>>"listen" doesn't work, you teach them to listen with your voice. Making them >>>listen is the key. If you get them on board at the beginning the evening >>>everything else will go well."<<<<SNIP more good stuff >>> Yes, I agree completely - and that's what I did. By saying I began with a "hash circle dance" I meant something very similar to your method: we did circle L, R, into the middle w/ a shout, do-si-dos w/N & P, plus allemande and swing, with variations. And they were into it. But still, a few dances later, once the dancers had been walked through a dance and also done it a couple of times to the music, one line got off & it was clear that they weren't hearing my prompts (due to sound glitches), or weren't heeding them if they did hear them. Their excitement fed their cheerful chattering, so that was overall an okay thing - after all, who wants a deathly silent barn dance? (Yeah, Beth, I'm with you about the 'tude!) So I didn't know what to do besides keep calling and go over there to physically prompt some big group moves like "head gent leads gents single file around the line of ladies now" as well, which I did. Their being off, plus talking a lot, plus the sound weakness is what made me think that it would have been a good idea, when I taught the next one, to overtly mention the importance of continuing to listen to the caller. (I don't know, though, as I didn't think of that till the dance was over.) Would you do something else in this case? Writing this after musing over your commentary, I think now maybe I should have initially hash-called more over the music in real time. I did it fully w/o music and a couple of times through with, but didn't do it long up to tempo, so maybe some of the dancers got the idea that once the music started, they were on their own. Hm. Thoughts, ideas, more strategies welcome. These little things can really affect a dance! David M. then brought up the shrewd strategy of not letting ONS dancers sit down (meaning they might stay away forever). Again, I agree - I've experienced that too, and am totally on board with the plan to continually "dance for 45 minutes before they cut the cake". Yet in this case, even though I held that intent (albeit with two planned halves as the organizers wanted 1.5 hours of dancing), a couple of times the dads bolted for the cool drinks in the kitchen as soon as a dance stopped! So I just let it go with their flow, then called them back for another dance after a little while when their faces seemed less red again. :-> And they came. Their daughters did need to earn their badges, after all. Given that behavior, would you do something different? If so, what? Beth, also thanks for the tip about Marian Rose's books. Tina

12 years, 12 months

Re: [Callers] easy ONS dances where partner is kept? - report

by David.Millstone＠valley.net

I'll just add one thing to Beth's comments: She said, "Short teachers are important" and she cited Tony saying, "Keep them moving." Part of the "keep them moving" idea, in my mind, is to follow one dance immediately with another. Don't let 'em sit down. They just finished a dance and applauded the band... get 'em lined up /squared up / circled up right away while the energy is there. I learned from Dudley when booking wedding gigs to insist on 45 minutes of dancing before the cake is cut... after that, who knows if you'll be able to gather up enough for the dancing to resume. David Millstone

12 years, 12 months

Re: [Callers] easy ONS dances where partner is kept? - report

by Tina Fields

"Let us know how it goes!" Alan Winston requested, after so many of you kindly expounded on your favorite ONS dances that are not mixers. So here's the report: The "Me and My Cowboy" Girl Scout father-daughter dance was unlike anything else I'd ever called before. The hall was packed with 130 parent-child couples wearing nominal cowboy gear (bandanas, cowboy hats/boots, checked shirts). It was decked out like old west movies, with hay bales, cow horns, and a "Wanted!" booth where you could stick your face in for a photo. (That was great - our fiddler, Jon Berger, looked like a rabbi on the lam.) The band was one I've worked with numerous times before - fiddle, piano, & horns. It was so wonderful to be able to provide employment for my friends! Our planned sound man couldn't make it, but he loaned us the equipment anyway. I transported it and our pianist set it up & ran it, having been a professional sound engineer for 6 yrs in times past. The participants were really into it. I felt touched by the sight of these dads gleefully dancing with their daughters. What a blessing in these girls' life. And they earned a badge! (I want a dancing badge now, don't you?) I opened with a little hash circle dance which I led from the floor, to get them out there and teach them the basic moves. The program then went: 1. Circassian Circle (altered to be a Sicilian keeper) 2. Sicilian Circle of Fun 3. Weaver Jig (longways set) 4. I Want to Be Near You (singing square) 5. White Mt Reel (longways set) Break (had a few brief ones already too) 1. Sasha! (scatter mixer) 2. Four Around Four (longways set) 3. Le Brandy (longways set with a goofy component) I had originally planned to also include Galopede, Do Si Three, and/or Virginia Reel in the second half. The program wound up being shortened and simplified, as (1) they needed more short breaks than I'd anticipated, and (2) problems ensued: my mic sound left something to be desired, plus (3) the dancers, excited, kept talking through the teaching and dancing both, which made it rough to move the dance forward and to keep them together. For example, one of the longways sets lost the sequence of moves, and even though I kept calling, they wouldn't do what I said; they just floundered around making up a new one. They had fun and likely never even knew they were screwing up, but I felt somewhat frustrated by my inability to get them back on track. In hindsight, I wish I'd simply made the overt point that it's very important to still listen to the caller after the dance begins. That's my biggest takeaway for future ONS gig improvement. They really might not have known to do that. Ultimately, the evening was a success. The girls and their dads all had fun. The Girl Scouts organizers were happy with us, and to show it, they gave us a very sweet tip - each of the envelopes containing our pay were taped to boxes of Thin Mints!

12 years, 12 months

Re: [Callers] FInding a Source for Dutch Crossing

by David.Millstone＠VALLEY.NET

The original Dutch Crossing was written by Ernst van Brakel and was first published in Colin Hume's "Dances with a Difference 3." The dance was originally set to a tune "The Merry Lads of Ayr" from the RSCDS book #1, but then Colin Hume composed a tune for it. That version of dance has directions on Colin's website here: http://www.colinhume.com/inst6.htm#DutchCrossing You can find Joseph Pimentel's variation, "Yankee Dutch Crossing," in his Cardinal Collection book, which is available from CDSS. In most camp settings, callers set aside an hour or so for a Dutch Crossing Workshop. At one camp, I had already taught many dancers Rod's Quad #2 (Rod Linnell), another 8-couple dance, and th other caller who taught Dutch Crossing felt that it went much more quickly because people had experienced the other one first. David Millstone Lebanon, NH

13 years

FInding a Source for Dutch Crossing

by Sarah Ziegi

Hello all, I'm new to the listserve- I'm a caller from Syracuse, NY and was wondering if anyone out there could help me out. I've been meaning to learn to call Dutch Crossing for a while now, and an upcoming dance weekend that I'll be at is hoping to include it in their program. I've danced it and watched videos of it and I have a pretty good idea how I'm going to teach it, but I was wondering where to find a hard copy source for the dance. I found one online by Colin Hume that seems to be the English version, which I guess is the original? Is the version typically taught at contra weekends Joseph Pimentel's Yankee Dutch Crossing? Is there a website or a book out there that has a written form of the dance? Thanks for any help, Sarah VanNorstrand

13 years

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Contra Callers April 2011