12 Jan
2023
12 Jan
'23
1:23 p.m.
"Isaac, try Staples:" - Joe
Yeah, that
was a part of the deep dive I went on. The biggest hangup there is that I use 55mmx90mm
(about 2.25x3.5) index cards for my dances today, so I'd have to buy a set of 3x5in
cards and find a way to chop them in half. My makerspace has a sheet metal brake and a
cold saw, which are both almost certainly overkill, but I don't know that I could use
a track/band/jig saw on index cards without losing a finger....
"Note that for edge-notched cards, you need a
fairly sturdy card stock" - Michael
Yeah, and then you get into another
nefarious detail - Mead makes a set of 3x5in cards with the highest coil density (4 holes
per inch!), but the cards are *perforated *at the bound edge. With care, I imagine they
would last for a good while, but eventually the cards designed to detatch from their
hole-punched edges will do just that.
"make custom cards in a laser-cutter" -
Michael
While I could probably fuss with laser power to make this work, I imagine
it's a fine, fine line between "enough to punch a hole through X cards" and
"thank god we have a vent hood".
"where do you live that you're calling 30-40
dances a year?" - Keith
Eh, in the Northwest pre-pandemic I usually averaged
around 3 dances a month. If you're in a major metro area and there are enough other
outlying cities in a 3-4hr radius it's pretty easy to self-promote yourself into that
volume of gigs. Organizers are usually happy to have one fewer booking to chase down.
Isaac
On Thu, Jan 12, 2023, at 10:03 AM, Woody Lane via Contra Callers wrote:
Hi Joe,
Like Diane, I categorize my cards based on the signature move. Also, to some extent,
difficulty, although that is a moving target based on the type of venue, the crowd, and
other unforeseen situations.
FWIW, here's what I use:
Easy contras
Basic Improper - 1
Basic Improper - 2
(where 1 = solid main contras, 2 = slightly more advanced)
Becket -1
Becket -2
w/heys (these are full heys, duple minor sets)
w/petronella
w/box circulate
w/mad robin
w/bicycle chain
w/contra corners
Multiple progressions (2x, 3x, etc).
4x4 dances
Advanced contras (truly advanced, dance camp level)
Novelty contras (mixer contras, etc.)
Triplets
Odd formations
Circle dances
Mixers
Very, Very easy dances (e.g., for ONS and wedding gigs)
Reserve contras (i.e., "back pocket" dances to use when something fails, like
"Roll In The Hey")
Also, I put a colored marker on cards for dances that lend themselves to No-Walk-Thru
situations (these can be in any of 5 or 6 different categories). Sometimes I need to
identify these quickly, on-the-fly during a gig.
If a dance falls into two or more categories, I sometimes put a piece of paper in one
category with a cross-reference to that dance. Frankly, I don't like to do this --
it's too complicated, especially as so many dances today that contain two or more
signature moves.
Frankly, I don't want to get too detailed in my classifications (e.g. bouncy,
mesmerizing, etc.) because those characteristics can be so fluid -- based on the band, the
music, the crowd, the time of night, etc. And sometimes selecting a dance against the
grain can be the highlight of an evening. That's part of the artistry as a caller.
With experience, gut feeling and instinct are essential to the creative process of
selecting dances.
Woody
--
Woody Lane
Caller, Percussive Dancer
Roseburg, Oregon
http://www.woodylanecaller.com
cell: 541-556-0054
On 1/11/2023 2:16 AM, Diane Silver via Contra Callers wrote:
This might be one of the 100 replies you were
trying to avoid, rather than the summary you are looking for, but here's what I do:
I categorize my dances by "signature move" -- hey for four dances,
down-the-halls, petronella dances, stars, roll-aways, wavy lines (subdivided into short
waves, long waves, rory o'mores, & box-circulates), alemandes-&-pull-bys,
contra corners, etc., plus sections for squares, 4x4s, triplets, chestnuts, and novelty
dances. I also have a section for "just basics", which in my mind have no
signature move -- i.e., glossary dances. For me, the point is that I don't want to do
too many hey (or petronella, or down-the-hall, or, whatever) dances in an evening, and I
don't want to do two in a row. But basic moves are in every dance, so I'm not
worried about that, so I don't have a category for moves like chains, long lines
forward & back, or circles. I do have a section for alemandes and pull-bys, but I
don't include every single dance that has an alemande in it. Good lord. It only
includes dances in which those are the *signature *of a dance - e.g., a series of
alemandes, such as a swing-through in the A and then again in the B. (This is why I group
them with pull-bys, such as square-throughs or grand-right-&-lefts -- similar feel for
which I wouldn't want to do 2 in a row, or too many in an evening). If a dance has 2
signature moves (e.g., a down-the-hall, and then a hey), I file it in one section only,
and then I have a "see-also" card in the other section that lists additional
dances with that move and where to find them.
Then, on each card, I make notes about the feel (flowy or bouncy; linear or circular),
and about the mood (sweet, romantic, lilting, driving, playful, goofy, restful,
super-high-energy, etc.), and when I'm programming I make sure I have good variety for
those criteria. I also check that I don't have too many in a row with the same
starting move or ending move (i.e., avoid* for the 5th time in a row, balance and swing
your neighbor*). I also try to vary Becket vs. improper formation, and depending on the
crowd, contras vs squares or triplets or 4-face-4s. But I don't categorize according
to all those criteria because for me, they are secondary. As I'm putting together the
program, FIRST I'm considering the signature move, so that's how I want to
search.
I once tried doing a database with these various criteria so I could search, e.g., for a
hey dance that was also Becket and also goofy, but I never used it. I really just
preferred to pull out the cards for the signature move I wanted and then just peruse them
to narrow it down and pick one.
Hope this helps.
Diane
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Diane Silver
828 298-7084
diane(a)diane-silver.com
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