Contra Callers September 2016

contracallers@lists.sharedweight.net

1 participants
28 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.

2 years

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

4 years, 6 months

A new(?) dance, written with a gyre

by Luke Donforth via Callers

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>

6 years, 8 months

new (?) dance - with a shadow swing

by Luke Donforth via Callers

Hello all, I know the list has had big debates about shadow swings in the past. If you don't like 'em, you can pitch this. This dance was written for someone who wanted a shadow swing, and is something I might call at a shadow-themed festival session. As shadow swings go, I like the idea of swingus interuptus going from shadow to partner. To my knowledge, it's a new composition. Haven't gotten to test it yet. But I present it for comment and/or collection. Becket, cw A1 Circle L 3/4 Neighbor Swing A2 Promenade across with neighbor Left Diagonal Ladies chain (to shadow) B1 women start 1/2 hey straight across by Right shoulder Women Do Si Do 1x B2 Shadow swing Partner swing (no slide required, circle with couple straight across)

8 years, 2 months

Fwd: Boys and Girls

by Donna Hunt via Callers

Not sure if this reply from Betsy Gotta went through on the list. I'm reprinting it here for her. Read below Donna -----Original Message----- From: Betsy Gotta <ugottadance(a)optonline.net> To: 'Donna Hunt' <dhuntdancer(a)aol.com>; jeremy.m.child <jeremy.m.child(a)gmail.com> Cc: Callers <Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> Sent: Thu, Sep 29, 2016 6:28 pm Subject: RE: [Callers] Boys and Girls Hi All, Donna shared the information string with me, since I am one of the callers for Independence Squares, the club in Phila that she mentioned. In addition to calling and teaching for Independence Squares in Phila, I also call and teach for the gay/lesbian square dance club in New York City. Both groups accept gender specific terms and use the method of identifying dancers by raising a hand and saying “Boy/Girl” when the choreography makes it important for the dancers to know with whom they need to work. Personally, when calling, I have a sense of who often dances which part and that helps me keep track of where the dancers of different roles are positioned. Another help is for me to call “Boys or Girls u-turn back (turn around) which allows me to see where they are. I have the freedom to do this because I am calling MWSD with flexible choreography. As a long time caller, I have always preferred the terms Gent and Lady, because to me they are roles that people adopt more than men/women and boy/girl. Lead/Follow is not useful in MWSD because the term “Lead” means the dancer in front, and not person dancing the “man’s” role. Betsy Gotta From: Donna Hunt [mailto:dhuntdancer@aol.com] Sent: Wednesday, September 28, 2016 11:42 AM To: jeremy.m.child(a)gmail.com Cc: Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net Subject: Re: [Callers] Boys and Girls When there's a role specific move called ie, "Boys trade from a wave" the dancers in that role say "Boy" (or "Girl" if it's "girl" specific). The dancers only say it loud enough for their set to hear, the dancers don't yell it loud enough for the callers to hear. The callers usually make a note of who the couples are prior to starting the tip so they have a record of who is in which position. If they are teaching and need clarification they will ask the "boys" or "girls" to identify with a raised hand. Our dancers don't try to identify who they are supposed to be dancing with, they dance to the definition of the call and dance with whomever is coming at them. Sometimes during class this becomes very interesting especially if someone boldly moves in the wrong direction and does a move with the wrong person. Occasionally dancers become confused and can be heard muttering, "Oh, yeah I'm supposed to be a (insert role here)." Our group has dancers and classes from Mainstream up to C2. Check it out: http://www.independencesquares.org/ Donna Hunt -----Original Message----- From: Jeremy Child <jeremy.m.child(a)gmail.com> To: Donna Hunt <dhuntdancer(a)aol.com> Cc: callers <Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> Sent: Wed, Sep 28, 2016 2:35 am Subject: Re: [Callers] Boys and Girls Thanks Donna. How do the dancers know who's dancing boy and who girl? Sometimes they need to, or do the callers avoid any calls requiring this knowledge (e.g. boys trade from a wave)? Jeremy On 28 September 2016 at 01:58, Donna Hunt <dhuntdancer(a)aol.com> wrote: Here in Philadelphia the MSW group (Independence Squares) is an LGBT and straight group and we dance to the calls of girl/boy and are free to dance whichever role we wish without any identifying "sashes". Our callers are fantastic at remembering who the couples/boys/girls are during any square. Donna Hunt -----Original Message----- From: Jeremy Child via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> To: Callers <Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> Sent: Tue, Sep 27, 2016 2:47 pm Subject: [Callers] Boys and Girls Hi This is for the MWSD callers amongst you. There has been much discussion on this group about the terms used for the two roles in contra dance. I do not propose to resurrect that here, I mention it to emphasise that many feel the terms used to be important, and that we should be moving away from any gender connotation in them. MWSD uses Ladies, Gents, Men, Women, Girls, Boys - all highly gendered. Is it time we changed these? If so, how? In theory with Callerlab it will be easier, but I suspect they would strongly resist such a change, since the "maleness" and "femaleness" of the roles (e.g. skirt work) is such a fundamental part of what MWSD is. Thoughts? (Apologies to those to whom this is all gibberish) Jeremy Child www.barndancecaller.net www.genderfreedance.net _______________________________________________ Callers mailing list Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net http://lists.sharedweight.net/listinfo.cgi/callers-sharedweight.net

8 years, 2 months

Boys and Girls

by Jeremy Child via Callers

Hi This is for the MWSD callers amongst you. There has been much discussion on this group about the terms used for the two roles in contra dance. I do not propose to resurrect that here, I mention it to emphasise that many feel the terms used to be important, and that we should be moving away from any gender connotation in them. MWSD uses Ladies, Gents, Men, Women, Girls, Boys - all highly gendered. Is it time we changed these? If so, how? In theory with Callerlab it will be easier, but I suspect they would strongly resist such a change, since the "maleness" and "femaleness" of the roles (e.g. skirt work) is such a fundamental part of what MWSD is. Thoughts? (Apologies to those to whom this is all gibberish) Jeremy Child www.barndancecaller.net www.genderfreedance.net

8 years, 2 months

Yet another "Anyone seen this dance?"

by Ric Goldman - Letsdance via Callers

Hi folks, I was thinking about dances for tonites gig and this sequence came together in my heard. I figure someone mustve come up with it before me. Anyone recognize it? A1 Circle L 1x Nbr swing, end facing down A2 Down hall, turn alone Come back, bend line B1 Balance ring, petronella Ptnr swing B2 Circle L ¾ Balance ring, California Twirl Thanx, Ric Goldman

8 years, 2 months

Re: [Callers] Dance Variety

by via Callers

Rich, I avoid many of the pit falls by not calling an "all modern" program (though I do not know to what venue, dance crowd you call for.) I like to mix in older unequal dances, Proper, Chestnuts, Classics Shadracks Delight Chorus Jig Nantucket Sleighride Becket Reel to name a few. (Lately I have become bored with dances that feel the same, Partner swing, Neighbor Swing, Chain, Hay) Check out some of the older tried and trues, You may be surprised! Gale Wood

8 years, 3 months

Fwd: dance caller desperately needed, please! - Vermont, Oct 8

by Ron Blechner via Callers

Forwarding with permission, since I am unavailable that weekend - any caller available and interested in southwest VT dance - sounds like a barn dance, family-friendly, etc - can reach out directly to Cynthia Larson, email included below. ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: "Cynthia Larson" <cynthial(a)myfairpoint.net> Date: Sep 19, 2016 1:54 PM Subject: dance caller desperately needed, please! ... our annual family-style contra/ square dance on Sat, Oct 8. We have 2 musicians, but could flex if you have your own. Our usual caller is out of town that day! We roast a steer, make cider, and have a charity auction that day on the farm. Please let me know if this is possible, and if not, please give me ideas! We pay our musicians. We usually dance from 7-10. > We are in Wells, VT, SW Rutland county. > Thank You! > Cynthia Larson > www.larsonfarmvt.com

8 years, 3 months

Re: [Callers] Fw: Does this dance exist? Calling Joy Greenwolfe - Calling Joy Greenwolfe

by Dan Black via Callers

Joy, I agree with you. The picture from our Callers Workshop at Pinewoods is on my computer at work. My pics are my screensaver, so I see the gang often. Good hearing from you. See ya, Dan Black -------------------------------------------- On Sun, 9/18/16, Joy Greenwolfe <joy2the(a)mindspring.com> wrote: Subject: Re: [Callers] Fw: Does this dance exist? Calling Joy Greenwolfe - Calling Joy Greenwolfe To: "Dan Black" <blackjunier(a)yahoo.com> Cc: callers(a)sharedweight.net Date: Sunday, September 18, 2016, 6:33 PM Dan, Your dance has a similar sequence in the A part of my dance Gypsy Chase, but yours looks like a difference dance to me. Mine looks like this: Gypsy Chase Joy Greenwolfe, March 2006Improper A1 Long lines forward and back (8) Gents Allemande L 1.5 (8)A2 Gents pick up partner, Star Promenade, Butterfly Whirl (4,4) Ladies lead 1/2 a Hey (LR, NL, GR, P) (8)B1 Partner Balance & Swing (16) (Ladies’ original side)B2 Gypsy Chase - Ladies gypsy by the R shoulder x1 while Gents fall in behind Neighbor to chase her half way to the other side. Neighbor Swing (8) Gypsy Chase Revisited is in Becket with the partner and neighbor interaction reversed. Hope this helps~Joy Greenwolfe On Sep 18, 2016, at 4:54 PM, Dan Black via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote: I was informed by the sage that is Chris Page, that the dance below is very similar to Joy Greenwolfe's dance "The Gypsy Chase", Joy could you confirm and share your dance? Thanks, Dan Black --- On Thu, 9/15/16, Dan Black via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote: From: Dan Black via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> Subject: [Callers] Does this dance exist? To: "Caller's Discussion List" <callers(a)sharedweight.net> Date: Thursday, September 15, 2016, 7:18 PM Hey Gang, Been a member for a while but I haven't posted in a few years. Does any one know if this dance below has been credited already? Alyssa’s Gift becket by Dan Black A1. 8,8 Slice on Left Diagonal, Gents allemande Left 1-1/2 A2. 8,8 Star Promenade Neigh, 1/2 Hey, (LR, NL, GR) B1. 4,12 Neigh Bal & Swing B2. 4,12 Give & Take to the Ladies side, Part Swing Thanks all, See ya on the floor soon. Dan Black -----Inline Attachment Follows----- _______________________________________________ Callers mailing list Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net http://lists.sharedweight.net/listinfo.cgi/callers-sharedweight.net _______________________________________________ Callers mailing list Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net http://lists.sharedweight.net/listinfo.cgi/callers-sharedweight.net

8 years, 3 months

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Contra Callers September 2016