[Callers] Music for DuQuoin Races

Hello Delia All the moves take relatively short amounts of time to complete,  and the first half has several balances on the odd phrases, and the B part starts with a short swing on an odd phrase. So either 1) bouncy jigs played at average or a bit faster than average speed (my personal preference), or 2) reels played a bit faster than average, and which have **well defined eight count phrases**  (so dancers can tell when to stop the swing). Tunes played more slowly than average will not  likely work well. The tune Irish Washerwoman will work really well.   Mac, who calls the dance quite often, lives in the St Louis area, where bands tend to play fast driving tunes and few  jigs, so his preference and experience might be 2) I'm sure he will correct me on this if needed. In either case, the caller should vigilant throughout the dance, ready to  prompt the dancers as needed to end the swing and start the the first circle. I once called DuQuion Races at an open calling weekend, where often the bands and callers do not coordinate dances with tunes. The band played a tune where only the 16 count phrases were clear.   The ends of the odd 8 count phrases were not.  First time through the dance I unwittingly let the partners swing for 16 beats. I had the presence of mind to recover by calling the rest of the dance with the music 8 counts ahead of the dance.     Michael Fuerst      802 N Broadway      Urbana IL 61801       217-239-5844 ________________________________ From: Delia Clark &lt;deliaclark8(a)gmail.com&gt; To: Caller's discussion list &lt;callers(a)sharedweight.net&gt; Sent: Saturday, December 1, 2012 7:20 PM Subject: Re: [Callers] Fw: What is the best contra dance(s) ever written? Catching up, Michael, What kind of music do you feel works best / doesn't work with DuQuoin Races? Delia On Nov 30, 2012, at 5:22 PM, Michael Fuerst wrote: <>:<>:<>:<>:<>:<>:<>:<>:<> Delia Clark PO Box 45 Taftsville, VT 05073 802-457-2075 deliaclark8(a)gmail.com _______________________________________________ Callers mailing list Callers(a)sharedweight.net http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers