Contra Callers

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4403 discussions

Re: [Callers] Integrating Newcomers (Was "Calling debut")

by Suzanne Girardot

I happened to be the caller of our Thursday night dance (Seattle) the week after 9/11 occurred. I very specifically called a circle mixer, "Reconcilable Differences", to bring our community together, to see and appreciate each other across the circle, and to recognize what an important part of being together in a community is in such a scary time. It was very meaningful to me, and, I think, to all of the dancers who were there. When I call a circle mixer, I try to mention and emphasize the community aspect of the dance, and ask people to look at and recognize all of the wonderful people in the circle who are part of this community, which is what I think makes this kind of dancing so special. Suzanne -----Original Message----- >From: Richard Allen Fischer <richardallenfischer(a)verizon.net> >Sent: Jul 19, 2010 12:48 PM >To: Caller's discussion list <callers(a)sharedweight.net> >Subject: Re: [Callers] Integrating Newcomers (Was "Calling debut") > >At my home dance I usually call a circle mixer as the second dance of >the evening. I often use La Bastringue, and I generally teach it from >the floor and dance it. (Fun for me, and a useful way to connect with >the dancers.) I don't sense any grumbling or resistance. (But then >again I'm an insensitive guy...) > >Aside from other plusses, a mixer like La Bastringue gives us a >chance to dance all in one set (especially if one circle is possible) >and feel united in a different way than contras allow for. > >Richard > >On Jul 19, 2010, at 12:36 PM, Bronwyn Woods wrote: > >> As a dancer, I much prefer mixers to no-partner-swing dances. I >> haven't >> called either much, but in my experience as a dancer in various >> communities >> I have often seen mixers favorably received. In fact, I've been to >> a number >> of smaller dance weekends where mixers were welcomed as a way to >> see who was >> there, "scout" for partners, add variety to the evening, etc. In >> those >> situations, the idea of "forcing" beginners to integrate wasn't >> relevant. I >> think mixers at regularly scheduled dances can serve the same purpose. >> Maybe in communities with a lot of booking ahead for partners >> mixers might >> cause more of a stir. >> >> Another point: >> I (like many people) only dance with any particular partner once >> during the >> course of a normal length dance evening. If a no-partner-swing >> dance means >> I don't get to swing with a good/favorite partner, I feel gypped. >> However, >> I don't count a mixer as a dance with any particular partner so I >> get the >> benefit of lots of interaction with many dancers without feeling >> like I'm >> ignoring or missing out on dancing with my partner. >> >> That being said, I wouldn't totally discount dances without a >> partner swing. >> If the dance were unique or particularly interesting in some way I >> would >> consider it. But if there were a similar dance with a partner >> swing I would >> chose that one instead. >> >> -Bronwyn >> _______________________________________________ >> Callers mailing list >> Callers(a)sharedweight.net >> http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers > >_______________________________________________ >Callers mailing list >Callers(a)sharedweight.net >http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers

15 years, 3 months

NPR piece

by David.Millstone＠valley.net

If you missed it, here's a link to the story about young people and contra dance that aired tonight on National Public Radio. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128273050 I've asked Marika Partridge, the producer of the piece, if there's a way that we can listen to the longer version that she hoped would air. Instead, NPR did a lot of editing and ran a much shorter piece. I'll let the list know if there's a way we can hear-- with apologies to the late Paul Harvey-- The Rest of the Story. David Millstone (aka "the old-time caller") Lebanon, NH

15 years, 3 months

Re: [Callers] Integrating Newcomers (Was "Calling debut") (beth@hands4.com)

by Chrissy Fowler

I second Beth's comments in reply to the ideas introduced by Greg, esp the below excerpts. Also, as a dancer, I think mixers are simply FUN (and if they are a bit goofy or wild, all the better!) Chrissy Fowler Belfast ME Excerpts of email from Beth Parkes: > Wow. > I call mixers because it is the one and only time in an evening when the whole group is gathered together. Instead of "my little clique" it is "all of us are in this together" as a dancer and as a caller I enjoy that experience. > Any idea of needing to twist the arm of people to welcome newcomers has not entered into it. _________________________________________________________________ The New Busy is not the old busy. Search, chat and e-mail from your inbox. http://www.windowslive.com/campaign/thenewbusy?ocid=PID28326::T:WLMTAGL:ON:…

15 years, 3 months

Calling debut

by Marguerite Durant

Hello everyone, Thanks to Bob Isaacs, I'm calling my first full evening this weekend at Swingin' Tern in New Jersey. It's my home dance so I have a good idea of the dancers' ability, but it will be hot and humid. I plan on running dances shorter with longer water breaks. Here's the preliminary program, with alternate dances I'm comfortable with listed at the bottom. Please give me feedback! SWINGIN TERN JULY 17, 2010 SPRING FEVER Tony Parkes dup imp A1 8 Long lines 8Neighbor swing A2 8 Gents alle L 1 ½ 8 Partner swing B1 8 Circle L 8 Star L B2 8 Partner promenade across 8 Ladies chain to neighbor BUTTER Gene Hubert Becket A1 8 L diagonal circle L ¾ 8 Neighbor swing A2 8 Long lines 8 Ladies chain to partner B1 16 Hey (LR, NL, GR, PL LR, NL, GR) B2 4, 12 Partner balance, swing Joe DePaolo, guest caller THE NICE COMBINATION Gene Hubert dup imp A1 4, 12 Neighbor balance, swing A2 8 Down the hall, turn as couples 8 Up the hall, bend line B1 6 Circle L ¾ 10 Partner swing B2 8 Ladies chain to neighbor 8 Star L FRIDAY NIGHT FEVER Tony Parkes dup imp A1 4, 12 Neighbor balance, swing A2 8 Gents alle L 1 ½ 8 Partner swing B1 8 Partner promenade across 8 Ladies chain to neighbor, give R to partner B2 4, 4 Square through two: partner balance, pull by R, Neighbor pull by L 4, 4 Partner balance, pull by R, Neighbor pull by L THE EYES HAVE IT Becky Hill Becket L A1 8 Circle L, slide L 8 Ladies chain across to new neighbor A2 8 Mad Robin: Ladies in front, gents in front 8 Half hey (LR, PL, GR) B1 4, 12 Neighbor balance, swing B2 8 Gents alle L 1 ½ 8 Partner swing ELLEN'S YARNS Rick Mohr Becket A1 8 R&L through 8 L hand star A2 8 Ladies chain on R diagonal* 8 Ladies chain across to shadow B1 4,4 Balance ring, Petronella 4,4 Balance ring, Petronella, find partner B2 4,12 Partner balance, swing - - - - - - - - - GOOD FRIDAY Kirston Koths dup imp, wave 4 Ladies L in middle, NR A1 4,4 Balance R, L, slide R 4,4 Balance L, R, slide L A2 2,2 Neighbor alle R ½, gents pull by L 12 Partner swing B1 8 Long lines 8 R&L through B2 8 Circle L ¾, pass through 8 New neighbor do si do 1 ¼ to new waves PEDAL PUSHERS Bob Dalsemer dup imp A1 8 Gents alle L 1 ½, scoop up partner 4, 4 Star promenade, butterfly whirl A2 8 Ladies gypsy (do si do) 8 Partner swing, join hands in a ring B1 4,4 Balance ring, pass through across, individually turn R 8 Single file promenade 3 places clockwise, ladies following neighbor B2 4,12 Gents turn back; neighbor balance, swing SARA'S JOURNEY Gene Hubert dup imp A1 4,4 Neighbor balance, box the gnat, gents pull by L 8 Partner swing A2 8 Circle L 8 Partner do si do B1 4,4 Partner balance, box the gnat, ladies pull by L 8 Neighbor swing B2 8 R&L through 8 Star L POETRY IN MOTION Lisa Greenleaf dup imp A1 8 Star R 8 Neighbor 1 alle R 1 ½ A2 8 N2 gypsy L 8 N1 swing B1 8 Partner give and take to gents' side 8 Partner swing B2 8 Ladies chain to N1 8 Star L HEARTBEAT CONTRA Don Flaherty dup imp A1 4,4 Balance ring, Petronella 4,4 Balance, Petronella A2 4,12 Balance, neighbor swing B1 8 Ladies alle R 1 ½ (gypsy) 8 Partner swing B2 8 Circle L ¾ 4,4 Balance, California twirl ALTERNATES: CENTRIFUGAL HEY LANNY'S BACK SCOUT HOUSE REEL DELPHINIUMS AND DAISIES STAR TREK THE BABY ROSE MARY CAY'S REEL AL'S SAFEWAY PRODUCE

15 years, 3 months

Dare To Be Square, 2011

by David.Millstone＠valley.net

Mark your calendars: November 18-20, 2011 (yes, more than a year from now) "Dare to Be Square" Dance Weekend Callers: Bob Dalsemer, Larry Edelman, Phil Jamison, Bill Litchman, Jim Mayo & Tony Parkes John C. Campbell Folk School Brasstown, North Carolina This special dance weekend, co-sponsored by the Country Dance and Song Society, is devoted to traditional square dancing from Appalachia, New England, the American southwest and beyond with six of the best callers from across the country. All dancing will be to wonderful live music provided by Steve Hickman, John Devine, Sam Bartlett and Claudio Buchwald. Space is limited to about 60 dancers. Previous contra or traditional square dance experience is highly recommended. This will be the first Dare To Be Square event in the eastern states in many years; recent ones have taken place in the Pacific Northwest. Registration won't be possible until late this year, but you might want to set aside those dates if you think you'd like to attend.

15 years, 3 months

Southeast Dance Leadership Conference Oct 1-3

by Joy Greenwolfe

Just passing along another reminder that the website for the Southeastern Dance Leadership Conference is up and running. Lots of great topics and opportunities to learn, discuss, and network. http://rivertone.org/index.php Southeast Dance Leadership Conference Organizing Tools for Vibrant Dance Communities October 1-3, 2010 Haw River State Park, North Carolina Joy Greenwolfe Durham, NC

15 years, 3 months

more SquareBall videos

by David.Millstone＠VALLEY.NET

I just posted clips from the evening dance at the Montpelier SquareBall, with Will Mentor and Nils Fredland calling: http://vimeo.com/13388634 This is another sampler, with short clips showing figures from give dances: First Night Quadrille Just Because Little Sisters Take Three Swings Virginia Reel Square Enjoy. David Millstone Lebanon, NH

15 years, 3 months

Re: [Callers] trad NH squares - videos

by Becky Nankivell

David, thanks for sharing all of these, and the previous batch (and upcoming!)! ~ Becky Nankivell Tucson, AZ & Long Beach, CA On Mon, Jul 12, 2010 at 9:00 AM, <callers-request(a)sharedweight.net> wrote: > Send Callers mailing list submissions to > callers(a)sharedweight.net > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > callers-request(a)sharedweight.net > > You can reach the person managing the list at > callers-owner(a)sharedweight.net > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of Callers digest..." > > > Today's Topics: > > 1. trad NH squares - videos (David Millstone) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: 12 Jul 2010 09:55:30 -0400 > From: David.Millstone(a)valley.net (David Millstone) > To: trad-dance-callers(a)yahoogroups.com, callers(a)sharedweight.net > Subject: [Callers] trad NH squares - videos > Message-ID: <132921109(a)retriever.VALLEY.NET> > Content-Type: text/plain > > Lester Bradley calls a very traditional square dance program in central New > Hampshire. (Lester was one of the dance callers selected to represent New > Hampshire at the 1999 Smithsonian Folklife Festival in DC.) > > Here are five videos of traditional singing squares from Lester's monthly dance > in Wentworth, NH. The files are lower-quality than some others I've posted; I > tried out a different compression algorithm to speed up the process. > > My goal in posting all this material is to encourage callers to include more > squares in their repertoire. The squares are part of our rich country dance > heritage and they add variety to an evening's program. For callers unfamiliar > with this material, seeing some of the dances may make it easier for you to > think about calling them. > > David Millstone > Lebanon, NH > > Here's the latest batch: > > Red River Valley > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMhOllPhq5w > This one also has shots of the various musicians playing with Lester; those > shots come about halfway through the video. > > Forward Six and Back > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wPM7ncM4Yg > > Comin' Round the Mountain > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tyR3J-5ydM > > Oh Johnny (big circle mixer) > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWRGauYCPwY > > Listen to the Mockingbird > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FsdiBIvRLVc > > > ------------------------------ > > _______________________________________________ > Callers mailing list > Callers(a)sharedweight.net > http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers > > > End of Callers Digest, Vol 71, Issue 9 > ************************************** >

15 years, 3 months

trad NH squares - videos

by David.Millstone＠valley.net

Lester Bradley calls a very traditional square dance program in central New Hampshire. (Lester was one of the dance callers selected to represent New Hampshire at the 1999 Smithsonian Folklife Festival in DC.) Here are five videos of traditional singing squares from Lester's monthly dance in Wentworth, NH. The files are lower-quality than some others I've posted; I tried out a different compression algorithm to speed up the process. My goal in posting all this material is to encourage callers to include more squares in their repertoire. The squares are part of our rich country dance heritage and they add variety to an evening's program. For callers unfamiliar with this material, seeing some of the dances may make it easier for you to think about calling them. David Millstone Lebanon, NH Here's the latest batch: Red River Valley http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMhOllPhq5w This one also has shots of the various musicians playing with Lester; those shots come about halfway through the video. Forward Six and Back http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wPM7ncM4Yg Comin' Round the Mountain http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tyR3J-5ydM Oh Johnny (big circle mixer) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWRGauYCPwY Listen to the Mockingbird http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FsdiBIvRLVc

15 years, 3 months

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