1 Dec
2010
1 Dec
'10
8:41 p.m.
The prompt "hands four from the top" should always be said, I would
never assume, nor do the dances I call on a regular basis make that
assumption. The instruction.. Cross over when at the foot of the set..
I leave out of my walkthroughs.. and they have always figured it out.
On occasion when calling in a new venue and I see dancers
automatically lining up improper.. I call hand six, it keeps them
focused. I call many proper dances (chestnuts) in any given night
keeping the dancers connected to the music the dance and our shared
history.
Don Primrose / Nelson NH
On 12/1/10, Ric Goldman <timelord(a)rgoldman.org> wrote:
I always include "Hands 4 from the top, actives
cross over if you haven't
already" if that's what I want for configuration (and I
try to use varied configurations where possible).
FWIW, this is NOT ingrained behavior for first-timers, and surprisingly a
number of experienced dancers don't do it unless prompted.
Unfortunately, for those who DO do this on autopilot, it reinforces the "I
can keep chatting - I don't have to listen to the caller
yet" attitude that can make it a bit longer to start things.
That said, I try to vary the intro instruction, a la, "take hands in a group
of 4, facing up or down the line - gents, make sure
your partner is on your right." It's just different enough that some people
wake up who might now otherwise.
With a particular noisy group, I may start with "ok, and now the 2nd figure
is" and wait for someone to ask for me to restart from
the beginning. :-)
I'd been curious what others' experiences have been.
Thanx, Ric Goldman
-----Original Message-----
From: callers-bounces(a)sharedweight.net
[mailto:callers-bounces@sharedweight.net] On Behalf Of Richard Fischer
Sent: Wednesday, December 01, 2010 4:56 PM
To: widmermt(a)yahoo.com; Caller's discussion list
Subject: Re: [Callers] Telling couples to switch at the end
of a contra set
And a related question: when will callers stop saying "Hands
four from the top, number ones cross over"--in
acknowledgement that improper formation is the default for
modern contras? I'm curious how many callers have already
stopped saying that. Or to put the question another way, in
how many dance communities do dancers line up inproper and
not expect a reminder to "cross over" and be in improper formation?
Richard
On Dec 1, 2010, at 7:37 PM, Mark Widmer wrote:
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Hey, I was wondering what other callers thought
about the
following:
often, during the walkthrough of the 1st contra
dance of
the evening,
the caller explains that dancers should trade
places with their
partner whenever they reach the end of the set
However, I never do this, and have never had a problem as a
result --
the experienced dancers in the set, apparently,
are able to get the
new dancers to do this, and nobody has ever complained to me that I
didn't instruct dancers to switch
I have wondered what others thought about this -- my own
thinking is why take time
to explain something when it isn't
necessary?
Regards,
Mark Widmer / central NJ
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