Contra Callers

contracallers@lists.sharedweight.net

22 participants
4374 discussions

by JoLaine Jones-Pokorney

In researching the dances some of you suggested, I found this website: http://homepage.ntlworld.com/greenery/BarnDances/WholeSet.html Very helpful! JoLaine

13 years, 3 months

Re: [Callers] What makes a program varied, how important is that

by Brian Hamshar

Me too! Wow, what a great tool to keep in mind while planning out my programs. Brian Hamshar -----Original Message----- Date: Tuesday, March 27, 2012 10:53:42 am To: "shared weight" <callers(a)sharedweight.net> From: "Chrissy Fowler" <ktaadn_me(a)hotmail.com> Subject: Re: [Callers] What makes a program varied, how important is that wow, i love don's analogy! chrissy fowler belfast, me > ------------------------------ > > From: Donald Perley <donperley(a)gmail.com> > > I'll make an analogy between an evening of 12 dances and an essay of > 12 paragraphs. > > If a common word appears in every paragraph, I wouldn't notice. If > it's a less common word, or every paragraph begins with the same > word, or the same sentence appears in several paragraph, then I would. > > To me as a dancer, ladies chain or B&S I wouldn't notice as > repetitious. Something like rory o'more or mad robin I would. > > _______________________________________________ Callers mailing list Callers(a)sharedweight.net http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers

13 years, 3 months

What makes a program varied, how important is that

by Rickey Holt

Hi Callers, I have asked this question before and still I do not understand this. I suspect that it will take thinking about it several more times before I do. Here is my question. What makes a program varied and how important is that. Let me say that I am thinking of this in situations where most of the dancers are experienced. I have had programs like this before and someday mean to pay attention to this at dance evenings I have enjoyed. I have a program in mind which I list below, that I know has 7 dances with a ladies chains in it, six of them in a row. I know this because I am the proud and happy owner of Will Loving's program "The Caller's Companion". Yet the evening's program seems very varied to me. If the "hooks" or the mood of the dances, for instance, are sufficiently different is that what matters. In terms of variety versus too much repetition, how does this look to you. It does not strike me as a boring program at all. The proposed program is: Scout House Reel, Rod's Grits, MAD About Dancing, Ease About Mixer, A Question of Balance, Zombies of Sugar Hill, [BREAK], Roll Eleven, Laura's Zig Zag, Snowshoe, Shipping and Receiving, Fan in the Doorway, and Sleepwalking I am interested in your thoughts, Rickey Holt, Fremont, NH _______________________________________________ Callers mailing list Callers(a)sharedweight.net http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers

13 years, 3 months

Re: [Callers] What makes a program varied, how important is that

by Chrissy Fowler

wow, i love don's analogy! chrissy fowler belfast, me > ------------------------------ > > From: Donald Perley <donperley(a)gmail.com> > > I'll make an analogy between an evening of 12 dances and an essay of > 12 paragraphs. > > If a common word appears in every paragraph, I wouldn't notice. If > it's a less common word, or every paragraph begins with the same > word, or the same sentence appears in several paragraph, then I would. > > To me as a dancer, ladies chain or B&S I wouldn't notice as > repetitious. Something like rory o'more or mad robin I would. > >

13 years, 3 months

Low numbers - slow starts

by Alan Winston - SSRL Central Computing

Callers -- I called last weekend (St Patrick's Day, and a very rainy night) and the dance was very slow to get started. By about 10 minutes after the starting time we had something five or six couples, with two first-timers among them. I let the first two dances run normal length, consciously, because I wanted the first-timers to get the experience of getting the dance long enoug to get it and no longer need calling. I think I was successful in that goal, but I heard that the experienced dancers were pretty bored seeing the same faces over and over. (By the third dance more people had turned up and it wasn't so much of a problem.) How do y'all handle this kind of thing? -- Alan -- =============================================================================== Alan Winston --- WINSTON(a)SSRL.SLAC.STANFORD.EDU Disclaimer: I speak only for myself, not SLAC or SSRL Phone: 650/926-3056 Paper mail to: SSRL -- SLAC BIN 99, 2575 Sand Hill Rd, Menlo Park CA 94025 ==============================================================================

13 years, 3 months

Re: [Callers] Low numbers - slow starts

by John Sweeney

I see how many people are there when it is time to start and choose a dance with a contra feel that works for that number: A square like Kimmswick Express (by Gene Hubert) A four couple Becket dance like Still Waiting on the Corner (by Gary Roodman) A circle mixer like Avery One Dance (by William Watson/Tiffany Tabbert) A six-couple dance like Hexitation (by Tom Hinds) Any of Ted Sanella's Triplets With the right music these all have most of the elements of a contra dance. But definitely keep the number of repetitions low so that people don't get bored and so that you can start another dance quickly with all the new people that have turned up while you were doing the first dance. Circle Mixers are good because experienced late arrivals can join in. Happy dancing, John John Sweeney, Dancer, England john(a)modernjive.com 01233 625 362 & 07802 940 574 http://www.contrafusion.co.uk for Dancing in Kent

13 years, 3 months

Re: [Callers] Low numbers - slow starts

by JohnFreem＠aol.com

It's important for the band, caller, and hosts to be ready when the clock chimes the appointed hour. If one or two couples are present, then do couples dances. If three or more are present, then you can do a triplet or a simple cotra dance. Many squares can easily be adapted to three or five couples. John B. Freeman, SFTPOCTJ

13 years, 3 months

UK Tours in 2013

by John Sweeney

Hi, I am just starting to plan our monthly contra dance series for 2013. If you know of anyone who is planning to come to the UK in 2013 to play or call please could you contact me at info(a)contrafusion.co.uk? Thanks. Happy dancing, John John Sweeney, Dancer, England john(a)modernjive.com 01233 625 362 & 07802 940 574 http://www.contrafusion.co.uk for Dancing in Kent

13 years, 3 months

number of contra dancers?

by David.Millstone＠valley.net

[Duplicate posting to trad-dance-callers and SharedWeight lists] A friend recently wrote me, "I am trying to pin down an unpindownable number: namely the number of people in the world who regularly contradance. Any idea of this number, or anyone who might steer me to it?" I'm wondering if anyone on this list has tackled this question, has developed even a crude methodology, and would be willing to share what you came up with. As for "the world," with the exception of the folks in Denmark and in England, I think we're really talking about the US and Canada in terms of any significant numbers. I can ask friends ub Denmark for their estimates. The annual country dance festival in Prague brings together several hundred dance enthusiasts from central Europe, though their definition of "regular" is certainly different from someone in the Boston or SF Bay or DC areas. David Millstone

13 years, 3 months

Re: [Callers] Contra / MWSD parallels?

by David.Millstone＠valley.net

Dear friends and colleagues, I sent along Don Coffey's comments in the hope that they might stimulate some thoughtful discussion, and that it has. I was not trying to reopen the contras vs. squares debate; similar groups have been ripped apart by strong rhetoric on all sides of that divide. Nor am I suggesting that contras-only is the problem, though I am a fervent believer myself of including some other formations in an evening's program, with even an occasional taste of a dance from a different culture. Dave is correct that the contemporary contra dance scene continues to have a strong connection to live music, which MWSD lost for a variety of reasons. And yes, at the moment, the contra wave is a strong one. So, too, was the MWSD wave in its time, and yet it foundered. Is there anything in that example from which we can learn? > For the square dancers, standardizing dance moves led to lessons on how to do >particular moves and a less inclusory dance space. [snip] Moreover, unlike the >square dance club community, we have a vibrant live music tradition that is showing >no signs of erosion. I suggest that there are some similar developments in the contemporary contra movement as it has changed in recent decades. Here are a few data points to consider. I'm taking as my reference point the dance programs when I started in the early 1970s. This was the previous time of great expansion for contras, starting with the young people who turned out in droves at Dudley Laufman dances throughout New England. * There were no events billed as "experienced dances" or "for experienced dancers only." I suspect that many of you see these in your dance community today. The square dance boom started with an activity that had been open to all, and gradually developed into levels/programs (Basic/Mainstream/Plus/Advanced/Challenge) as some dancers wanted more mental challenge than an open community dance could provide. * There were no dance medleys. Many callers today pride themselves on including a medley as part of their programs, and we certainly see folks flocking to medleys at events such as NEFFA. * Folks danced to traditional tunes. Today, with contra jam bands, there are some who enjoy dancing contra-style figures to music that doesn't have the traditional AABB structure and, in some cases, they're dancing more to a beat than to a melody; this is similar to some of the changes in MWSD. And with the appeal of techno contras to a small but growing subset, folks may be dancing to popular recorded music, not to live bands, echoing another development in MWSD. In some cases, the music does not follow the traditional 32-bar structure so there is not the melodic hook to tell folks what to do. * There were no classes for beginners/newcomers. Traditional squares also had no classes; people just showed up for the dance. Modern square dancing introduced the notion of attending a series of classes to learn basic figures. This started out, decades ago, as six lessons and now in many locations is 36 weeks. Many contra series went from no lessons, to perhaps a ten-minute introduction, and now many series offer beginners' workshops of half an hour, 45 minutes, or even an hour. * The "basic figures" that one would meet in an evening was much smaller, so the learning curve wasn't as steep. Off the top of my head, I came up with this list of figures that one can now meet on a contra dance floor that weren't in common contra dance usage 40 years ago: box the gnat California twirl circulate cross to a wave (aka "pass the ocean") gents' chain gypsy half figure eight hey for four hey for three (with one couple acting as a unit) ricochet hey lady round two, gent cut thru Mad Robin orbit Petronella twirls (only seen in the eponymous dance) Rory O'More waves (ditto) ricochet hey rollaway rollaway with a half sashay slide left square thru swat the flea swing thru weave the line zig zag (Amazing that we young folks back in the day managed to have a great time dancing without these figures!) Compare these phrases to commands such as "circle left" or "forward and back" or "left hand turn." Yes, contras back then had their share of jargon that is still with us-- "balance and swing," "ladies chain," "right and left thru," etc. My point is that there are more figures now that dancers are expected to know, and the words themselves don't make clear what one does. Compare them with the vocabulary that MWSD created, phrases that in and of themselves don't tell dancers where to go: "Load the Boat," "Ferris Wheel," "Relay the Deucy," etc. In addition, the only Becket formation dance was the Becket Reel, aka Bucksaw Reel. There wasn't much happening on the diagonals, and virtually all dances had folks staying within their minor set, whether it was duple minor or triple minor. That's part of what made Bucksaw so distinctive and exciting-- wow! Left diagonal! Let me be very clear. At most of the events I call at regular dance series, I program mostly contras. (Heck, I've called entire programs with nothing but duple improper and Becket formation contras!) I am not saying that each of these items bulleted above is in itself A Bad Thing. I have called at experienced dances and have organized my own "for experienced dancers" events. I'll be calling in at least one of the NEFFA medley sessions, as I do most years. I have offered beginner workshops, though it's certainly not my preference. I have called entire evenings using recorded music; my iPod is loaded with great tunes. And all those figures I listed? Every one of those can be found on dance cards that I use. I love the contra scene even as there are some changes about which I am less sanguine. SharedWeight is a group of callers talking to one another. I take it as a given that we are all interested in keeping the dance traditions alive and healthy, though we may have different ideas of how that can best be done. As callers, I think it's worth pondering these developments and keeping the MWSD experience in mind. David Millstone

13 years, 3 months

Jump to page:

2025

2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

Contra Callers