29 Jun
2013
29 Jun
'13
12:04 a.m.
Great idea for a workshop for dancers, but I'm curious what the callers
approach to these types of dances are. Many of the dance weekend caliber
callers seem to take a very cavalier approach, often saying something like
"This dance has some unusual end effects, be ready and good luck" or
nothing at all. Sometimes this works out ok, sometimes not.
29 Jun
29 Jun
5:33 a.m.
My goal in the workshop would be to give people tools that they can use
to make sense of at least a large subset of dances with challenging end
effects by trying to come up with the smallest number of general
categories of end effects / coping skills possible, and avoiding having
to give specific instructions for that dance -- the first time you go
out wait out with the lady on the left, then wait out on the right
diagonal, and such as that. While I strongly doubt that I can cover
every possible type of end effect, I think that it should be possible to
cover some general categories of end effect and to give folks some
structure for dealing with them. I would really like to help the
dancers find the patterns so that they can better cope with end effects
when they come along...
I'm going to sit down with some of the things that folks have posted
this weekend and with my dance box and see what I can come up with.
Jack
On 6/28/2013 8:04 PM, Jim Hemphill wrote:
Great idea for a workshop for dancers, but I'm
curious what the callers
approach to these types of dances are. Many of the dance weekend caliber
callers seem to take a very cavalier approach, often saying something like
"This dance has some unusual end effects, be ready and good luck" or
nothing at all. Sometimes this works out ok, sometimes not.
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Callers(a)sharedweight.net
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7:37 a.m.
On Sat, 29 Jun 2013 01:33:45 -0400, Jack Mitchell wrote:
My goal in the workshop would be to give people tools
that they can
use to make sense of at least a large subset of dances with
challenging end effects by trying to come up with the smallest
number of general categories of end effects / coping skills
possible, and avoiding having to give specific instructions for
that dance -- the first time you go out wait out with the lady on
the left, then wait out on the right diagonal, and such as that.
While I strongly doubt that I can cover every possible type of end
effect, I think that it should be possible to cover some general
categories of end effect and to give folks some structure for
dealing with them. I would really like to help the dancers find
the patterns so that they can better cope with end effects when
they come along...
I've also started planning a workshop on End effects, and I totally
agree with what Jack is proposing - general rules rather than
specific advice for each dance. My first general rule is to stay
awake at the end and go where you are needed - assume that the people
who are still moving are in the right place and you're not.
A very common end effect which no-one has yet mentioned is that
standing out for one turn of the dance is enough to reboot many
people's operating systems - it's suddenly a totally unknown dance!
This is understandable in "Mr Beveridge's Maggot" where the ones and
twos do dramatically different moves, but not in most modern American
contras where the ones and twos do exactly the same thing.
On Fri, 28 Jun 2013 21:42:08 -0700 (PDT), Michael Fuerst wrote:
Dances with challenging end effects have such because
of the
interesting stuff within the dances. Dancers will not be
enlightened by the end effects.
I'll be doing some of Michael's dances in the session, since he
specialises in odd end effects, but I don't agree with what he says
above - I've danced at least one of his where I thought "This is
perfectly straightforward" and then got to the end and been totally
lost! I think dealing with end effects is a skill which needs to be
taught, just like contra corners.
I'll post a link to my notes when they're ready (though it may not be
this year) and ask for further comments.
Colin Hume
Email colin(a)colinhume.com Web site http://www.colinhume.com
8:40 a.m.
Hello Colin:
Which of my dances left you totally lost at the end ?
I think writing a dance that leaves Colin Hume lost at the end is
quite an achievement :-)
I will plead innocent to specializing in weird end effects--all the dances were written
without consideration of what the end effects might be.
Anyone now curious about my dances can receive an html document with all my dances by
sending me an email
Michael Fuerst 802 N Broadway Urbana IL 61801 217-239-5844
Links to photos of many of my drawings and paintings are at www.ArtComesFuerst.com
________________________________
From: Colin Hume <colin(a)colinhume.com>
To: "jamitch3(a)mindspring.comg.com, Caller's discussion list"
<callers(a)sharedweight.net>
Sent: Saturday, June 29, 2013 2:37 AM
Subject: Re: [Callers] End Effect Rules for callers
On Sat, 29 Jun 2013 01:33:45 -0400, Jack Mitchell wrote:
My goal in the workshop would be to give people tools
that they can
use to make sense of at least a large subset of dances with
challenging end effects by trying to come up with the smallest
number of general categories of end effects / coping skills
possible, and avoiding having to give specific instructions for
that dance -- the first time you go out wait out with the lady on
the left, then wait out on the right diagonal, and such as that.
While I strongly doubt that I can cover every possible type of end
effect, I think that it should be possible to cover some general
categories of end effect and to give folks some structure for
dealing with them. I would really like to help the dancers find
the patterns so that they can better cope with end effects when
they come along...
I've also started planning a workshop on End effects, and I totally
agree with what Jack is proposing - general rules rather than
specific advice for each dance. My first general rule is to stay
awake at the end and go where you are needed - assume that the people
who are still moving are in the right place and you're not.
A very common end effect which no-one has yet mentioned is that
standing out for one turn of the dance is enough to reboot many
people's operating systems - it's suddenly a totally unknown dance!
This is understandable in "Mr Beveridge's Maggot" where the ones and
twos do dramatically different moves, but not in most modern American
contras where the ones and twos do exactly the same thing.
On Fri, 28 Jun 2013 21:42:08 -0700 (PDT), Michael Fuerst wrote:
Dances with challenging end effects have such because
of the
interesting stuff within the dances. Dancers will not be
enlightened by the end effects.
I'll be doing some of Michael's dances in the session, since he
specialises in odd end effects, but I don't agree with what he says
above - I've danced at least one of his where I thought "This is
perfectly straightforward" and then got to the end and been totally
lost! I think dealing with end effects is a skill which needs to be
taught, just like contra corners.
I'll post a link to my notes when they're ready (though it may not be
this year) and ask for further comments.
Colin Hume
Email colin(a)colinhume.com Web site http://www.colinhume.com
_______________________________________________
Callers mailing list
Callers(a)sharedweight.net
http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
3:40 p.m.
For some dancers, the joy of a dance may be in figuring out the end
effects for themselves. There are great *aha* moments that are
possible when dancers see for themselves how the dance "works".
Perhaps your workshop, Jack, might put this idea to use.....what about
presenting dances, and then having the dancers come up with the rules?
I have a feeling that this would lead to lively discussion and the
potential for dancers to develop insights that are long-term.
Linda
On Jun 29, 2013, at 1:33 AM, Jack Mitchell wrote:
My goal in the workshop would be to give people tools
that they can
use to make sense of at least a large subset of dances with
challenging end effects by trying to come up with the smallest
number of general categories of end effects / coping skills
possible, and avoiding having to give specific instructions for that
dance -- the first time you go out wait out with the lady on the
left, then wait out on the right diagonal, and such as that. While
I strongly doubt that I can cover every possible type of end effect,
I think that it should be possible to cover some general categories
of end effect and to give folks some structure for dealing with
them. I would really like to help the dancers find the patterns so
that they can better cope with end effects when they come along...
I'm going to sit down with some of the things that folks have posted
this weekend and with my dance box and see what I can come up with.
Jack
On 6/28/2013 8:04 PM, Jim Hemphill wrote:
Great idea for a workshop for dancers, but
I'm curious what the
callers
approach to these types of dances are. Many of the dance weekend
caliber
callers seem to take a very cavalier approach, often saying
something like
"This dance has some unusual end effects, be ready and good luck" or
nothing at all. Sometimes this works out ok, sometimes not.
_______________________________________________
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 
2:12 p.m.
Jim Hemphill wrote:
Many of the dance weekend caliber callers seem to take
a very cavalier
approach
While it is true that “dance weekend caliber callers” often have little
opportunity to deal with some of the challenges inherent in our open public
contra dances, many of them have great potential and some are almost as
good as our local callers. I think we should book them for our local
events on occasion. This is how they improve. Someday they will learn how
to integrate first-timers into the hall and become serviceable callers at
our open public dances. (Smile)
- Greg McKenzie
3954
days inactive
3954
days old
contracallers@lists.sharedweight.net
5 comments
6 participants
participants (6)
-
Colin Hume -
Greg McKenzie -
Jack Mitchell -
Jim Hemphill -
Linda Leslie -
Michael Fuerst