6 Feb
2013
6 Feb
'13
2:23 p.m.
Hi Folks,
I was wondering if anyone had relatively 'easy on the brain' 'out of your
minor set' dances???
Here in Ottawa (Ontario), dancers aren't used to leaving their minor
set/partner to go dance with other. I'd like to try a few really great
dances with this feature but they need to have a high success rate for a
room of folks not used to this feature of some contras.
Any ideas and if so, why did you choose that dance????
Much thanks!
Emily Addison
6 Feb
6 Feb
2:40 p.m.
Here are two:
Another Nice Combination - Tom Hinds
A1 N B&S
A2 Circle L 3/4, pass partner -- shadow DsD 1x
B1 P B&S
B2 Ladies Chain, Left Hand Star
You're just barely out of your minor set, and it's generally the same
person. Also, if they miss it, they can just wander around somewhere
for 8 beats and then B&S their partner.
Becky's Brouhaha - Rhiannon (Giddens) Laffan
A1 N Bal and Box the Gnat, Pull by R, (Previous N) Allemande L
A2 (Current) N B&S
B1 Circle L 3/4, P Sw
B2 Ladies Chain, Left Hand Star
As far as the dance goes, similar reasoning to ANC. Also, the dance was
written as a birthday present for my wife by her best friend, so it has
a personal connection too. ;-)
On 2/6/2013 9:23 AM, Emily Addison wrote:
Hi Folks,
I was wondering if anyone had relatively 'easy on the brain' 'out of your
minor set' dances???
Here in Ottawa (Ontario), dancers aren't used to leaving their minor
set/partner to go dance with other. I'd like to try a few really great
dances with this feature but they need to have a high success rate for a
room of folks not used to this feature of some contras.
Any ideas and if so, why did you choose that dance????
Much thanks!
Emily Addison
_______________________________________________
Callers mailing list
Callers(a)sharedweight.net
http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
5:56 p.m.
You can start with dances where you see a next neighbor briefly but
return to your first neighbor:
Sneak Preview (Claudio Buchwald)
Poetry in Motion (Lisa Greenleaf)
Stripes and Solids (Lisa Greenleaf)
Mary Cay's Reel (David Kaynor)
Or dances where you see a shadow briefly but return to your partner:
Another Nice Combination (Tom Hinds)
Summer of '94 (Mike Richardson (Lisa Greenleaf variation))
Then you can be with your shadow for a while longer:
Chrysalis (Don Flaherty) - hey with your shadow, meet your partner
Balance to My Lou (Becky Hill) - one of the many from the petronella
with extra spin genre
Or with your next neighbor for a while longer:
Traveler's Welcome (Jim Kitch) - reasonably easy progressions forward
and backward and forward
Or see lots of neighbors:
Vote with Your Feet (Bob Isaacs) - becket, so it's not as confusing
for dancers out at the end
Yoyo Zhou
On Wed, Feb 6, 2013 at 6:40 AM, Jack Mitchell <jamitch3(a)mindspring.com> wrote:
Here are two:
Another Nice Combination - Tom Hinds
A1 N B&S
A2 Circle L 3/4, pass partner -- shadow DsD 1x
B1 P B&S
B2 Ladies Chain, Left Hand Star
You're just barely out of your minor set, and it's generally the same
person. Also, if they miss it, they can just wander around somewhere for 8
beats and then B&S their partner.
Becky's Brouhaha - Rhiannon (Giddens) Laffan
A1 N Bal and Box the Gnat, Pull by R, (Previous N) Allemande L
A2 (Current) N B&S
B1 Circle L 3/4, P Sw
B2 Ladies Chain, Left Hand Star
As far as the dance goes, similar reasoning to ANC. Also, the dance was
written as a birthday present for my wife by her best friend, so it has a
personal connection too. ;-)
On 2/6/2013 9:23 AM, Emily Addison wrote:
Hi Folks,
I was wondering if anyone had relatively 'easy on the brain' 'out of your
minor set' dances???
Here in Ottawa (Ontario), dancers aren't used to leaving their minor
set/partner to go dance with other. I'd like to try a few really great
dances with this feature but they need to have a high success rate for a
room of folks not used to this feature of some contras.
Any ideas and if so, why did you choose that dance????
Much thanks!
Emily Addison
_______________________________________________
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 
7:33 p.m.
For an easy one, I like Al's Advice by Paul Tyler. However, my favorite out of minor
set dance is Gene Hubert's Reunion. I can't ever dance that one enough!
Jeff
_____
Jeffrey Spero
Web: www.syncopaths.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/syncopaths
CDBaby: www.cdbaby.com/Artist/Syncopaths
Contemporary California Celtic music
On Feb 6, 2013, at 9:56 AM, Yoyo Zhou wrote:
You can start with dances where you see a next
neighbor briefly but
return to your first neighbor:
Sneak Preview (Claudio Buchwald)
Poetry in Motion (Lisa Greenleaf)
Stripes and Solids (Lisa Greenleaf)
Mary Cay's Reel (David Kaynor)
Or dances where you see a shadow briefly but return to your partner:
Another Nice Combination (Tom Hinds)
Summer of '94 (Mike Richardson (Lisa Greenleaf variation))
Then you can be with your shadow for a while longer:
Chrysalis (Don Flaherty) - hey with your shadow, meet your partner
Balance to My Lou (Becky Hill) - one of the many from the petronella
with extra spin genre
Or with your next neighbor for a while longer:
Traveler's Welcome (Jim Kitch) - reasonably easy progressions forward
and backward and forward
Or see lots of neighbors:
Vote with Your Feet (Bob Isaacs) - becket, so it's not as confusing
for dancers out at the end
Yoyo Zhou
On Wed, Feb 6, 2013 at 6:40 AM, Jack Mitchell <jamitch3(a)mindspring.com> wrote:
Here are two:
Another Nice Combination - Tom Hinds
A1 N B&S
A2 Circle L 3/4, pass partner -- shadow DsD 1x
B1 P B&S
B2 Ladies Chain, Left Hand Star
You're just barely out of your minor set, and it's generally the same
person. Also, if they miss it, they can just wander around somewhere for 8
beats and then B&S their partner.
Becky's Brouhaha - Rhiannon (Giddens) Laffan
A1 N Bal and Box the Gnat, Pull by R, (Previous N) Allemande L
A2 (Current) N B&S
B1 Circle L 3/4, P Sw
B2 Ladies Chain, Left Hand Star
As far as the dance goes, similar reasoning to ANC. Also, the dance was
written as a birthday present for my wife by her best friend, so it has a
personal connection too. ;-)
On 2/6/2013 9:23 AM, Emily Addison wrote:
_______________________________________________
Callers mailing list
Callers(a)sharedweight.net
http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
Hi Folks,
I was wondering if anyone had relatively 'easy on the brain' 'out of your
minor set' dances???
Here in Ottawa (Ontario), dancers aren't used to leaving their minor
set/partner to go dance with other. I'd like to try a few really great
dances with this feature but they need to have a high success rate for a
room of folks not used to this feature of some contras.
Any ideas and if so, why did you choose that dance????
Much thanks!
Emily Addison
_______________________________________________
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 
7:54 p.m.
On Feb 6, 2013, at 9:56 AM, Yoyo Zhou wrote, describing a variety of
dances with out-of-minor-set interactions ranging from the easiest
("dances where you see a next neighbor briefly but return to your
first neighbor") to somewhat more difficult:
...
Or see lots of neighbors:
Vote with Your Feet (Bob Isaacs) - becket, so it's not as confusing
for dancers out at the end
Yoyo Zhou
Yoyo, I'm curious why you think a dance being in Becket formation
would make the end effects less confusing (either for dances with
out-on-minor-set interactions in general or for "Vote with Your Feet"
in particular) than in a duple improper dance of otherwise similar
complexity.
I'd never thought of such a thing, and my first reactions is to be
mildly skeptical for various reasons, starting with the fact that
many dances can be set as either Becket or improper depending on
where in the sequence you start the A1 music. But you seem to be
pretty thoughtful about this stuff, so rather than going on in a
skeptical vein, I think I'll learn more by asking you to explain
in more detail what you had in mind.
Thanks.
--Jim
8:33 p.m.
On Wed, Feb 6, 2013 at 11:54 AM, James Saxe <jim.saxe(a)gmail.com> wrote:
Yoyo, I'm curious why you think a dance being in
Becket formation
would make the end effects less confusing (either for dances with
out-on-minor-set interactions in general or for "Vote with Your Feet"
in particular) than in a duple improper dance of otherwise similar
complexity.
Perhaps it's not the becketness per se that makes it more forgiving to
couples out at the ends, but how much time they have to figure out
what to do next.
There's a detail I observed when teaching Steve Zakon-Anderson's 3-33
to a small crowd of beginners. Dancers progress in B2 and then
immediately in A1 a couple is out at the top. I saw some people
flummoxed by the choices available,
(a) turn to face their partner and balance and pull by as neighbor #1,
(b) trade places to wait improper (at the top) and wait for neighbor #2.
Neither of these is hard, but not knowing what to do can throw in that
instant can throw off even seasoned dancers.
By contrast, in Vote with Your Feet, the dancers progress in the A
section, so the couple out at the top has all of the B section to wait
improper for neighbors to come at them. Even if they end with a swing
in B2, there is only one way to end that swing.
Nonetheless, I agree that this belongs in the more challenging end of
the range of things you can do to leave the minor set.
Yoyo Zhou
2:43 p.m.
I have a lot of success with Another Nice Combination by Tom Hinds.
The original starts with a gypsy and swing, but I find a Balance &
swing more to my liking. Because your shadow is the person outside of
the minor set, it is a great way to have folks experience the
movement, but to see the same person.
Here's the dance:
Another Nice Combination
Tom Hinds
Type: Contra
Formation: Duple-Improper
Level: Easy
A1 -----------
Neighbor gypsy & swing (or Balance & swing)
A2 -----------
Circle left three-quarters (face partner)
Pass through up and down
Do si do shadow
B1 -----------
Partner Balance & Swing
B2 -----------
Ladies chain
Star left once*
Notes: *When out at the ends, change places right away to be ready for
your shadow!
Another useful one, great for newer dancers:
New Year's Day
by Paul Balliet
Contra/Improper/Easy
A1 -----------
Long lines forward and back
Gents do si do once
A2 -----------
Ladies allemande left once and a half
Partner Swing
B1 -----------
Circle left three-quarters, pass through
Next (future) neighbor gypsy right once
B2 -----------
Original (present) neighbor Balance and Swing
Good luck!
Linda
Feb 6, 2013, at 9:23 AM, Emily Addison wrote:
Hi Folks,
I was wondering if anyone had relatively 'easy on the brain' 'out of
your
minor set' dances???
Here in Ottawa (Ontario), dancers aren't used to leaving their minor
set/partner to go dance with other. I'd like to try a few really
great
dances with this feature but they need to have a high success rate
for a
room of folks not used to this feature of some contras.
Any ideas and if so, why did you choose that dance????
Much thanks!
Emily Addison
_______________________________________________
Callers mailing list
Callers(a)sharedweight.net
http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
2:52 p.m.
Here are a few that I think are easy.
"Another Nice Combination" by Tom Hinds is an easy Shadow dance
"Mark Ward's Reel" by Sue Rosen - easy shadow interaction right back to
partner
"Meg's a Dancing Fool" by Seth Tepfer - same
"The Judge" by Bob Isaacs (diagonal chain to shadow)
There are some "big set" dances as well that I think are easy:
"Fairport Harbor" by Paul Balliet - the only trick is getting everyone
to promenade
"Salute to Larry Jennings" by Ted Sannella and Larry Jennings
Hope this helps!
/Andy Shore
http://andyshore.com/
On Wed, Feb 6, 2013 at 9:23 AM, Emily Addison <emilyladdison(a)gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Folks,
I was wondering if anyone had relatively 'easy on the brain' 'out of your
minor set' dances???
Here in Ottawa (Ontario), dancers aren't used to leaving their minor
set/partner to go dance with other. I'd like to try a few really great
dances with this feature but they need to have a high success rate for a
room of folks not used to this feature of some contras.
Any ideas and if so, why did you choose that dance????
Much thanks!
Emily Addison
_______________________________________________
Callers mailing list
Callers(a)sharedweight.net
http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
--
/Andy Shore
http://andyshore.com/
best email - andyshore(a)gmail.com
3:31 p.m.
The easiest of such dances have dancers do-s--do new neighbors as the last part of B2.
Excellent exampes are Small Potatoes by Jim Kitch and Simplicity Swing by Becky Hill
(http://www.dancerhapsody.com/handouts/danceseasycall.pdf)
Then comes dances where an out of foursome do-si-do occur somewhere else in the dance, one
of the earliest examples (and a very good example) being Al's Advice by Paul Tyler:
1. Almd R N 1+1/2
2. Left shoulder dsd next N
3. With orig Ns: cir L 3/4
4. Sw pt
5. Long lines: fwd & bk
6. 1/2 W ch
7. Bal pt (across); pull past pt by R hd; pull past N by L hd!
8. Bal pt (across); pull past pt by R hd; pull past N by L hd!
Alternative for 7&8:
Bal pt; four changes of gd R & L around minor set, st pt R hd
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
6:34 p.m.
We always have about 15% first-timers at our open, public dances. Recently
a caller announced that dancers had the option of switching contra dance
lines while "out" at the top or bottom....Then s/he called several dances
featuring "out of minor set" interactions. Not good. It is particularly
confusing if your "shadow" moves to another set and the newcomers have to
deal with a "new" shadow.
- Greg McKenzie
******************
On Wed, Feb 6, 2013 at 6:23 AM, Emily Addison <emilyladdison(a)gmail.com>wrote;wrote:
Hi Folks,
I was wondering if anyone had relatively 'easy on the brain' 'out of your
minor set' dances???
Here in Ottawa (Ontario), dancers aren't used to leaving their minor
set/partner to go dance with other. I'd like to try a few really great
dances with this feature but they need to have a high success rate for a
room of folks not used to this feature of some contras.
Any ideas and if so, why did you choose that dance????
Much thanks!
Emily Addison
_______________________________________________
Callers mailing list
Callers(a)sharedweight.net
http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
11:51 p.m.
On 2/6/2013 6:23 AM, Emily Addison wrote:
Hi Folks,
I was wondering if anyone had relatively 'easy on the brain' 'out of your
minor set' dances???
One that I've been using a fair bit is Moon and Stars Contra. I don't
know who wrote it, so if anyone out there does, please tell me.
Moon and Stars
duple improper
A1 1-4 Balance the ring and California twirl your P to face old Ns
5-8 With those olds Ns, LH star once around
A2 1-8 Come back to current Ns for balance and swing
B1 1-4 Men allemande 1-1/2
5-8 P swing
B2 1-4 Circle L 3/4 and pass through
5-8 New N dosido into a ring of 4
As some other folks have noted, it's a good idea to introduce the
dancers to all the characters in the sequence before you start moving.
You've got your current Ns in the circle with you, look over your
shoulder for your old Ns, and look past your current Ns for the next Ns.
In this dance it's good for the folks who go out at the end in the B2
to turn as a cpl right away. They're needed just 8 bars later. I've
had beginner dancers get confused by that, and am now trying to be more
mindful of letting them know how soon they need to be ready to come back
into the pattern.
Again, let me know if you know who wrote this dance!
Kalia
7 Feb
7 Feb
1:03 a.m.
The dance is actually Moon and Star Contra and it is by Don Flaherty.
Michael Barraclough
www.michaelbarraclough.com
On Wed, 2013-02-06 at 15:51 -0800, Kalia Kliban wrote:
On 2/6/2013 6:23 AM, Emily Addison wrote:
Hi Folks,
I was wondering if anyone had relatively 'easy on the brain' 'out of your
minor set' dances???
One that I've been using a fair bit is Moon and Stars Contra. I don't
know who wrote it, so if anyone out there does, please tell me.
Moon and Stars
duple improper
A1 1-4 Balance the ring and California twirl your P to face old Ns
5-8 With those olds Ns, LH star once around
A2 1-8 Come back to current Ns for balance and swing
B1 1-4 Men allemande 1-1/2
5-8 P swing
B2 1-4 Circle L 3/4 and pass through
5-8 New N dosido into a ring of 4
As some other folks have noted, it's a good idea to introduce the
dancers to all the characters in the sequence before you start moving.
You've got your current Ns in the circle with you, look over your
shoulder for your old Ns, and look past your current Ns for the next Ns.
In this dance it's good for the folks who go out at the end in the B2
to turn as a cpl right away. They're needed just 8 bars later. I've
had beginner dancers get confused by that, and am now trying to be more
mindful of letting them know how soon they need to be ready to come back
into the pattern.
Again, let me know if you know who wrote this dance!
Kalia
_______________________________________________
Callers mailing list
Callers(a)sharedweight.net
http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers 
8:11 a.m.
On Wed, 06 Feb 2013 15:51:59 -0800, Kalia Kliban wrote:
In this dance it's good for the folks who go out
at the end in the
B2 to turn as a cpl right away. They're needed just 8 bars later.
In many contras the golden rules are "Keep doing the dance at the end"
and "Treat your partner as a neighbour at the end". So while the
others are doing Balance the ring and California twirl the ends do
Balance (using both hands) and California twirl. Then it's not an
extra different thing to remember; it's the same move but modified for
one couple. Similarly if the move is Allemande left your neighbour
one and a half, the ends do the move with their partner.
Colin Hume
Email colin(a)colinhume.com Web site http://www.colinhume.com
4342
days inactive
4343
days old
contracallers@lists.sharedweight.net
12 comments
12 participants
participants (12)
-
Andy Shore -
Colin Hume -
Emily Addison -
Greg McKenzie -
Jack Mitchell -
James Saxe -
Jeffrey Spero -
Kalia Kliban -
Linda Leslie -
Michael Barraclough -
Michael Fuerst -
Yoyo Zhou