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.
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
Hello all,
Linda Leslie's suggestion of gyre as a replacement for gypsy bubbled around
in my brain and a new (I think) dance percolated up. It has a twist that
isn't the gyre (which I consider just new nomenclature); women casting out
of the swing to travel from one minor set to another (similar to gent's
movement in Scoot by Tom Hinds).
I haven't gotten to test it with dancers yet, as I just finished running it
through with pegs on my desk; but I wanted to share it in support of a new
term.
A Gyre for Linda
by Luke Donforth
Contra/Becket-CCW
A1 -----------
(4) Pass through to an ocean wave (ladies left, catch right with partner)
(4) Balance the short Wavy line
(2) Walk forward
(3) Shadow gyre right 1/2
(3) Gents gyre left 1/2 in the middle
A2 -----------
(16) Neighbor gyre right and swing
B1 -----------
MEANWHILE FIGURE:
(8) Men allemande Left 1-1/2 WHILE women cast cw around whole set one
woman’s place
(8) 1/2 Hey, passing partner by right shoulder
B2 -----------
(16) Partner gyre right and swing at home
As for the other aspects that have been discussed:
I pronounce it with a softer g sound. For reasons unclear to me, gyre has
different accepted pronunciations; but (to my knowledge) gyration doesn't.
As for using the term (which I clearly support); it costs me nearly nothing
to switch and helps make the dance more accessible for some; both in
dropping a term some find offensive and making the name more descriptive of
the move. My job as a caller is to help share the joy of dancing, and if
this does that I'm in favor of it.
--
Luke Donforth
Luke.Donforth(a)gmail.com <Luke.Donev(a)gmail.com>
This discussion got me thinking about dances which have both a Gents RH chain and Ladies LH chain. I wasn't sure if any existed, so I wrote a few. I have no idea when I would ever call them, but it was a fun exercise :)
On a somewhat related note, I appear to have a thing for writing Becket dances, but I'm proud to say that none of these start with "Circle Left 3 places". In fact, they don't have any circles in them, so they can also help with the "dances without a circle left" campaign.
That's Not How We Do ItContra, BECKET, by Rona Wiener, Jan 2016
A1 (4) Balance the Ring (4) Gents Roll away P along set (8) Gents RIGHT HAND chain [To N] A2 (8) Gents [Gypsy] x1 (8) Neighbor Swing B1 (4) Balance the Ring (4) Ladies Roll away N along set (8) Ladies LEFT HAND chain [to P] B2 (8) On Right Diagonal Half a hey [Ladies lead by L] (8) Partner Swing
Slightly Less Wrong
Contra, BECKET, by Rona Wiener, Jan 2016
A1 (4) Balance the Ring (4) Spin R (as in Petronella), face NN (4) Balance the Ring (4) Spin R A2 (8) Star L x 1 [hands across, gents drop out] (8) Ladies LEFT HAND chain [to N] B1 (8) Star R x 1 [hands across, ladies drop out] (8) Gents RIGHT HAND chain [To P] B2 (4) Pass Through (12) Partner Swing
Double NegativeContra, BECKET, by Rona Wiener, Jan 2016
[Starts on side with P, Gents on R] A1 (8) Star R x 1 [hands across, ladies drop out] (8) Gents RIGHT HAND chain [To N] A2 (8) Star L x 1 [hands across, gents drop out] (8) Ladies LEFT HAND chain [to P] B1 (8) Half a hey [Ladies lead by L] (8) Partner Swing B2 (8) Right and Left Through (8) Pass Through, Single File Promenade along the set to NN
On Wednesday, January 20, 2016 10:17 PM, Alexandra Deis-Lauby via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
I think I just danced one in CDH which both chains. But I can't remember who was chaining when because I was swapping anyway. But if anyone else was there and remembers...
On Sun, Jan 17, 2016 at 7:11 PM, Ron Blechner via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
Anyone know any contras with gents chaining from right-hand position? I have four I wrote on the plane, and I don't think I've ever danced one. And considering the ro swapping I encounter at many of my gigs, maybe it's time I start calling them sometime.I know there's one by Gene Hubert where ladies chain, are rolled away with 1/2 sashay, and gents are right-hand chained from the right. Notes for that appreciated. I'd like dances where gents are doing a regular right hand chain.I'm not talking about "Gents chain", which is from the Left-hand side. For that matter, I want to make it clear that "gents chain" is named poorly. I called "gents, left-hand chain" the other night in Greenfield and it required less explanation than when I've called/taught it as "gents chain". But I digress.Thanks!
Ron Blechner
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I've agreed to an extremely last minute "Hoe Down" gig this Saturday for a
local church, where I'm promised 25-75 people of mixed ages. No dance
experience at all.
I've reset their expectation to a family/barn dance - no cowboy outfits on
the performers, no line dances. They asked for some squares - ok. If the
crowd is really that size, I'm all set. Have the material, live music with
a contra and squares, etc. fiddler & piano player. Good to go.
My nightmare is there's only 5 people that show, say: a toddler, a teen, 2
parents and a grandparent. I have a few things I might do with that small
number of inexperienced folks, but not enough to fill 2 (fun) hours.
Any ideas on what you'd do/use in that instance? I'm all ears!
I think that, if I decide to abandon gypsy, I will go with "ease about". I like the feel of it. An alternative would be "walkabout".
Sent via the Samsung Galaxy S™ III, an AT&T 4G LTE smartphone
<div>-------- Original message --------</div><div>From: Martha Wild via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> </div><div>Date:01/26/2016 10:17 PM (GMT-06:00) </div><div>To: Jonathan Sivier <jsivier(a)illinois.edu> </div><div>Cc: Callers(a)sharedweight.net </div><div>Subject: Re: [Callers] another new word idea </div><div>
</div>How about “mimsy” then - kind of like Jets and Rubies, it has a similar feel to the word it replaces.
Martha
> On Jan 25, 2016, at 3:53 PM, Jonathan Sivier via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
>
> That's what made me think of it. In some earlier message someone mentioned "Gyre" (probably a diminutive of gyrate) as a possibility. That led me to
>
> "Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
> Did gyre and gimble in the wabe"
>
> "Gimble" may, or may not, be a real word spelled that way, but Gimbal is and seemed like it might have potential.
>
> Jonathan
>
>
> On 1/25/2016 2:32 PM, Andrea Nettleton wrote:
>> I love this! And it has a playful kind of sound, despite its technical origin. :-) reminds me of jabberwocky somehow...
>> Andrea
>>
>> Sent from my iOnlypretendtomultitask
>>
>>> On Jan 25, 2016, at 11:26 AM, Jonathan Sivier via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
>>>
>>> I've been thinking about this as well. I'd like to propose "Gimbal" as a substitute for gypsy. You could even spell it "Gymbal" if you liked. ;-) This also has the same number of syllables and starts with the same letter as a bonus. A gimbal is a pivoted support that allows the rotation of an object about a single axis, so it also makes some sense with respect to the movement being named. It is sometimes used as a verb, as in the movement of rocket motors used for guidance, as well as being a noun.
>>>
>>> Jonathan
>>> -----
>>> Jonathan Sivier
>>> Caller of Contra, Square, English and Early American Dances
>>> jsivier AT illinois DOT edu
>>> Dance Page: http://www.sivier.me/dance_leader.html
>>> -----
>>> Q: How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?
>>> A: It depends on what dance you call!
>
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My father said it was a tool, maybe a type of drill? I can't remember, unfortunately.
Sarah
Sent from my Verizon 4G LTE Smartphone
------ Original message------From: Richard Fischer via Callers Date: Thu, Jan 28, 2016 1:34 PMTo: Andrea Nettleton;Cc: callers@lists.sharedweight.net;Subject:Re: [Callers] Walk around, ease around etc.
The Oxford English Dictionary gives both pronunciations for "gimbal" with the "soft" g first:
/ˈdʒɪmbəl/ /ˈɡɪmbəl/
I followed their etymology trail, and it seems to ultimately come from a word meaning "twin."
Richard
On Jan 27, 2016, at 6:30 PM, Andrea Nettleton via Callers wrote:
Thanks, Delia, for somehow understanding what I meant despite the spate of autocorrects and typos.
It is pronounced with a hard "g" as in gill, just to be clear.
Andrea
Sent from my iOnlypretendtomultitask
On Jan 27, 2016, at 3:10 PM, Delia Clark <deliaclark8(a)gmail.com> wrote:
I agree that a playful name would be a wonderful way to go for this very playful move. I like Gimbal for that reason. Just checking, it’s pronounced “gym-bal” right?
There was one other playful suggestion sometime in the past couple of weeks, in addition to gyre, but try as I might, I just can’t find it in the rich flow of email on this topic, so if someone wants to re-nominate it, with the goal of a rememberable and playful name in mind, please do. I know that indicates it’s not passing the rememberability test for me at the moment but, to be fair, I was just skimming on a work night when it flew by.
On Jan 27, 2016, at 5:57 PM, Andrea Nettleton via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
What I feel
Is missing from these expressions is twofold. One is memorability. We remember things better to which we attach emotions of some kind. A name people giggle or oo ah about is going to stick and be pleasurable each time they hear it. I love the name Mad Robin, as an example of a distinctive and whimsical name for a dance move, which could as easily be called a sideways do si do. The second is the sense of playful interaction that gypsy has always engendered. I don't want to restart the discussion of why that is, but I do want to keep that in the move, along with eye contact, rather than go to a dry workmanlike term. So nice of to have to invite play, but perhaps only need to mention that you look at your P, N, Sh, as you (new name) around them by the (R/L Sh). I think that was the appeal to me of the word Gimbal, which somehow revoked both rotation and play all in one. I hope I'm not alone in this desire, though I know we are often of very diverse opinions as a group.
Cheers,
Andrea
Sent from my iOnlypretendtomultitask
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Delia Clark
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Dear callers seeking alternatives to "gypsy":
My sister, Laura, suggested "compass" as an alternate term. I haven't used
it yet, but I think it could work well:
1. It has the same number of syllables as the word it's replacing,
plus distinct consonant sounds.
2. It's recognizable.
3. It makes thematic sense. Besides being an instrument that describes
circles, "compass" also used to mean "go around something in a circular
course."
Let me know how it goes if you try it!
Caroline
What I feel
Is missing from these expressions is twofold. One is memorability. We remember things better to which we attach emotions of some kind. A name people giggle or oo ah about is going to stick and be pleasurable each time they hear it. I love the name Mad Robin, as an example of a distinctive and whimsical name for a dance move, which could as easily be called a sideways do si do. The second is the sense of playful interaction that gypsy has always engendered. I don't want to restart the discussion of why that is, but I do want to keep that in the move, along with eye contact, rather than go to a dry workmanlike term. So nice of to have to invite play, but perhaps only need to mention that you look at your P, N, Sh, as you (new name) around them by the (R/L Sh). I think that was the appeal to me of the word Gimbal, which somehow revoked both rotation and play all in one. I hope I'm not alone in this desire, though I know we are often of very diverse opinions as a group.
Cheers,
Andrea
Sent from my iOnlypretendtomultitask
