13 May
2008
13 May
'08
8:15 a.m.
nicely put, tina! i couldn't agree more.
for my part, on the "isn't that interesting" front, i've noticed that
there are many callers in my circle who are (or have been) various sorts of
educator/teachers and/or are first-born children. both of these loose associations seem
pretty logical -- as has been pointed out, good calling involves good teaching while
managing groups of people, often of varying skill levels, effectively enough to ensure a
positive experience for the greatest number. and eldest children often have spent years
practicing orchestrating & leading, and are
"quite-comfortable-telling-others-what-to-do-next". as tina points out,
it's just an observation, sort of like observing that there are lots of
math/engineering professionals attending modern urban contradances.
ah, which brings me to another association - many callers are prone to observing, noticing
patterns and making guesses about why those patterns might be occurring. hah! :-)
chrissy fowler
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~http://www.belfastflyingshoes.org home 207-338-0979 cell
603-498-3506> > > Message: 2> Date: Sun, 11 May 2008 12:26:22 -0700 (PDT)>
From: Tina Fields <tfields8(a)yahoo.com>> Subject: Re: [Callers] Callers with
higher degrees> > Greg makes a very important point here. The 'elitism'>
factor really never occurred to me when asking this> question; it really came out of
surprised curiosity. Like> many of us, I'm just interested in weird phenomena.
There> aren't that many Ph.Ds/MDs/JDs etc. in the country, and> it's wild to
see how many wind up calling too. > > My dad was a brilliant square dance caller,
and he had a> junior-high education. I'm the first one in my family to> even get
through high school; the relatives were worried> that "that much education might
ruin yer girl." And I> could not agree with Greg more. As a college teacher,>
artist-in-residence with kids, and outdoor leader alike,> I've noticed that the
best teaching is really a form of> servant leadership or midwife education rather than
egoic> performance; that is, the 'guide on the side', not the> 'sage on
the stage.' This is, of course, exactly Greg's> point about good calling. >
> One of the reasons I find calling so compelling is the> challenge of making sure
everyone - band, dancers, sound> person, dance manager - all are having a good time,
feeling> confident, appreciated, and in sync; all the while not> screwing any of it
up myself. (As a newish caller, that> last bit is the tricky part.) Callers have to
focus> effectively on many parts at the same time to create one> cohesive, joyful
whole -- talk about a humbling meditation> practice! > > If I offended anyone
inadvertently, please take this as a> sincere apology. The question comes out of
curiosity, not> snobbishness.> > Tina> >
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13 May
13 May
10:12 a.m.
New subject: Callers With Higher Degrees
Observations about caller characteristics and commonalities also
relate to my left-handedness thread from a few weeks ago.
Joyce Miller
Grass Valley, CA
On May 13, 2008, at 5:15 AM, Chrissy Fowler wrote:
nicely put, tina! i couldn't agree more.
for my part, on the "isn't that interesting" front, i've noticed
that there are many callers in my circle who are (or have been)
various sorts of educator/teachers and/or are first-born children.
both of these loose associations seem pretty logical -- as has been
pointed out, good calling involves good teaching while managing
groups of people, often of varying skill levels, effectively enough
to ensure a positive experience for the greatest number. and
eldest children often have spent years practicing orchestrating &
leading, and are "quite-comfortable-telling-others-what-to-do-
next". as tina points out, it's just an observation, sort of like
observing that there are lots of math/engineering professionals
attending modern urban contradances.
ah, which brings me to another association - many callers are prone
to observing, noticing patterns and making guesses about why those
patterns might be occurring. hah! :-)
chrissy fowler
10:51 a.m.
New subject: Callers & Dancerss With Various Degrees
One of the things that I've often noticed about many of the dances that
I attend is the fact that we seem to be able to gather together people
with vastly different backgrounds and professions in one room to dance.
At one dance there are often a few with Ph.D or M.D. degrees. But there
are many more engineers, farmers, selectmen, foresters, factory workers,
retirees, students (at various levels), writers, electricians,
carpenters, teachers, sailors, nurses, boat builders, artists, and so
many others. I know of no other place where people with so many
different backgrounds get together so often to share something that they
all enjoy.
Rich.
Chrissy Fowler remarked on 5/13/2008 8:15 AM:
nicely put, tina! i couldn't agree more.
for my part, on the "isn't that interesting" front, i've noticed that
there are many callers in my circle who are (or have been) various sorts of
educator/teachers and/or are first-born children. both of these loose associations seem
pretty logical -- as has been pointed out, good calling involves good teaching while
managing groups of people, often of varying skill levels, effectively enough to ensure a
positive experience for the greatest number. and eldest children often have spent years
practicing orchestrating & leading, and are
"quite-comfortable-telling-others-what-to-do-next". as tina points out,
it's just an observation, sort of like observing that there are lots of
math/engineering professionals attending modern urban contradances.
ah, which brings me to another association - many callers are prone to observing,
noticing patterns and making guesses about why those patterns might be occurring. hah!
:-)
chrissy fowler
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~http://www.belfastflyingshoes.org home 207-338-0979 cell
603-498-3506> > > Message: 2> Date: Sun, 11 May 2008 12:26:22 -0700 (PDT)>
From: Tina Fields <tfields8(a)yahoo.com>> Subject: Re: [Callers] Callers with
higher degrees> > Greg makes a very important point here. The 'elitism'>
factor really never occurred to me when asking this> question; it really came out of
surprised curiosity. Like> many of us, I'm just interested in weird phenomena.
There> aren't that many Ph.Ds/MDs/JDs etc. in the country, and> it's wild to
see how many wind up calling too. > > My dad was a brilliant square dance caller,
and he had a> junior-high education. I'm the first one in my family to> even get
through high school; the relatives were worried> that "that much education might
ruin yer girl." And I> could not agree with Greg more. As a college teacher,>
artist-in-residence with kids, and outdoor leader alike,> I've noticed that the
best teaching is really a form of> servant
leadership or midwife education rather than egoic> performance; that is, the
'guide on the side', not the> 'sage on the stage.' This is, of course,
exactly Greg's> point about good calling. > > One of the reasons I find
calling so compelling is the> challenge of making sure everyone - band, dancers,
sound> person, dance manager - all are having a good time, feeling> confident,
appreciated, and in sync; all the while not> screwing any of it up myself. (As a newish
caller, that> last bit is the tricky part.) Callers have to focus> effectively on
many parts at the same time to create one> cohesive, joyful whole -- talk about a
humbling meditation> practice! > > If I offended anyone inadvertently, please
take this as a> sincere apology. The question comes out of curiosity, not>
snobbishness.> > Tina> >
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10:53 p.m.
New subject: Callers & Dancers With Various Degrees
Rich wrote:
One of the things that I've often noticed about
many of the dances
that I attend is the fact that we seem to be able to gather together
people with vastly different backgrounds and professions in one room
to dance. At one dance there are often a few with Ph.D or M.D.
degrees. But there are many more engineers, farmers, selectmen,
foresters, factory workers, retirees, students (at various levels),
writers, electricians, carpenters, teachers, sailors, nurses, boat
builders, artists, and so many others. I know of no other place
where people with so many different backgrounds get together so
often to share something that they all enjoy.
Well said! I think a central reason for this is because the
tradition of contra dance allows people of widely varying dance skill
levels to participate successfully and enjoyably. Unlike so many
other shared activities one does not have to be a dance enthusiast to
participate in this form of joyful social celebration. The presence
of such a diverse group of people adds to the excitement and
satisfaction of all of the participants. A contra dance is truly a
"melting pot" that creates a structure to make this kind of intense
social contact both safe and fun for anyone who cares to participate.
Greg McKenzie
*********
Rich.
Chrissy Fowler remarked on 5/13/2008 8:15 AM:
nicely put, tina! i couldn't agree more.
for my part, on the "isn't that interesting" front, i've noticed
that there are many callers in my circle who are (or have been)
various sorts of educator/teachers and/or are first-born
children. both of these loose associations seem pretty logical --
as has been pointed out, good calling involves good teaching while
managing groups of people, often of varying skill levels,
effectively enough to ensure a positive experience for the greatest
number. and eldest children often have spent years practicing
orchestrating & leading, and are
"quite-comfortable-telling-others-what-to-do-next". as tina points
out, it's just an observation, sort of like observing that there
are lots of math/engineering professionals attending modern urban
contradances.
ah, which brings me to another association - many callers are prone
to observing, noticing patterns and making guesses about why those
patterns might be occurring. hah! :-)
chrissy fowler
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~http://www.belfastflyingshoes.org home
207-338-0979 cell 603-498-3506> > > Message: 2> Date: Sun, 11 May
2008 12:26:22 -0700 (PDT)> From: Tina Fields <tfields8(a)yahoo.com>>
Subject: Re: [Callers] Callers with higher degrees> > Greg makes a
very important point here. The 'elitism'> factor really never
occurred to me when asking this> question; it really came out of
surprised curiosity. Like> many of us, I'm just interested in weird
phenomena. There> aren't that many Ph.Ds/MDs/JDs etc. in the
country, and> it's wild to see how many wind up calling too. > > My
dad was a brilliant square dance caller, and he had a> junior-high
education. I'm the first one in my family to> even get through high
school; the relatives were worried> that "that much education might
ruin yer girl." And I> could not agree with Greg more. As a college
teacher,> artist-in-residence with kids, and outdoor leader alike,>
I've noticed that the best teaching is really a form of> servan
t
leadership or midwife education rather than
egoic> performance;
that is, the 'guide on the side', not the> 'sage on the stage.'
This is, of course, exactly Greg's> point about good calling. > >
One of the reasons I find calling so compelling is the> challenge
of making sure everyone - band, dancers, sound> person, dance
manager - all are having a good time, feeling> confident,
appreciated, and in sync; all the while not> screwing any of it up
myself. (As a newish caller, that> last bit is the tricky part.)
Callers have to focus> effectively on many parts at the same time
to create one> cohesive, joyful whole -- talk about a humbling
meditation> practice! > > If I offended anyone inadvertently,
please take this as a> sincere apology. The question comes out of
curiosity, not> snobbishness.> > Tina> >
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11:18 a.m.
New subject: Callers Digest, Vol 45, Issue 15
chrissy fowler wrote;ah, which brings me to another association - many callers are prone
to observing, noticing patterns and making guesses about why those patterns might be
occurring. hah! :-) To All;
You can count me in on that. For many years in a previous life I was an active tournament
chess player, eventually reaching a master rating. All successful chess players use
pattern recognition skills each time they play to evaluate their position, compare it to
other positions, and decide which course of action to pursue among many choices. I was
fortunate to develop these skills early on, and use these skills in several walks of life
since. They have been particularly helpful to me in evaluating and writing dances.
There are several similarities between solving a chess problem and figuring out the best
possible dance;
1. Both use the number 64 as a boundary - the same number of squares on a chessboard is
the same number of beats in a dance.
2. If you think of each chess move as a tick on a clock, both are four-dimensional art
forms.
3. When the "pieces" flow together, the whole becomes greater than the sum of
the parts. Very often the beauty of chess is to find ways where two or more weaker pieces
can work together to defeat a more powerful force. In a dance, I look for combinations of
figures or a particular order of figures to give us something new, whether it be to set up
a swing, a different progression, or the sheer fun of good flow.
4. There is a give-and-take between opposing forces. You may not think of neighbors as
opponents, but it does require an effort for each partnership to progress. Of course,
unlike chess, those dancing opponents generally do so with a helping hand and a smile.
5. In chess, if you don't find the best move, your opponent can find a way to take
advantage. Even if neither of you do, it's possible another master will study the
game, find the best continuation, and prepare an unpleasant surprise for you. If a dance
isn't the best, the dancers very often will let you know (sometimes loudly). Even if
they don't, another choreographer may find the best path, rending your effort as a
footnote. Both disciplines use the folk process to ensure only the best efforts are
rewarded.
There are some differences;
1. In chess, only one piece moves at a time; in a dance most or all of the dancers move
all the time (at least the ones I try to write).
2. In chess, once captured, pieces leave the battlefield; dancers rarely leave the set
unless they are dizzy newcomers.
3. If the "pieces" at a dance smile back, you're having a good gig; if the
chess pieces smile back, you're either hung over and/or having a very bad tournament.
It would be interesting to hear if others have applied pattern recognition learned from
other fields towards calling and dance writing -
Bob Isaacs
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participants (5)
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Bob Isaacs -
Chrissy Fowler -
Greg McKenzie -
Joyce Miller -
Richard Hart