It’s been interesting to read of the various approaches to dance library management. I have yet to put my working repertoire in digital form. I’ve shied away from cards for fear of losing one. As memory is one of my strengths, I rely primarily
on a master list of titles; for the dances I use most often, the title is enough for me to recall the sequence. I carry a letter-size book that was made for sales reps, with many clear pockets for displaying catalog sheets; I use them for the list of titles
and also for pages containing dances I haven’t memorized, with about 8 dances to a sheet.
Beth has a digital document with her dance routines formatted as they would be on cards. From this she can print a set of cards, or select an evening’s worth of dances, arrange them in order, and print them on a couple of letter-size pages;
she gives a copy to the band and keeps one for herself.
I’m a strong advocate of relying on memory as much as possible, and of training the memory a little at a time if it’s not one of your long suits. To me it’s important to avoid looking at the card while calling, even if you need it during
the walkthrough. While the music is playing, I need to focus my attention on the dancers; this means I need to know the dance so well that I’m not consciously thinking about it. The only exceptions are for workshops (or perhaps a single number in the middle
of a regular evening) where I level with the dancers that I’m learning this routine along with them.
Tony Parkes
Billerica, Mass.
New book! Square Dance Calling: An Old Art for a New Century
(to be published real soon)