It's called the 'folk process'. Michael Barraclough PS: Colin, do you call Portsmouth the way Cecil Sharp published it (and if so, why?) On 1 August 2024 16:52:56 Colin Hume via Contra Callers <contracallers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:

On Thu, 1 Aug 2024 14:35:39 +0100, John Sweeney via Contra Callers wrote: OK, then why don't callers call it the way Larry intended it? Colin Hume

On Thu, 1 Aug 2024 08:06:03 -0400, Rick Mohr via Contra Callers wrote: I seem to have learnt Give & Take differently from most people. I asked Sue Rosen, who said: But in the book "Give-and-Take it doesn't mention the half shoulder-waist position or the resisting, and therefore people aren't doing it. They go forward in lines, or just with inside hands joined, and the men draw the women back to their side of the set with no resistance, just like part of a poussette. Colin Hume

One way I like to teach no/loose thumbs is with the line "you are a delicate rose, not a Venus flytrap," after explaining why it can be dangerous and uncomfortable to have grippy-thumbs. It always gets a chuckle, and I think makes the point more memorable. My friend Tess Dawkins came up with that line, btw. It's one of my favorites to pull out 😊 On Wed, Jul 17, 2024, 17:25 Julian Blechner via Contra Callers < contracallers(a)lists.sharedweight.net&gt; wrote:

(Late to the game, having just stumbled back bleary-eyed from a week at Pinewoods, but still excited to weigh in!) The list of style points one can (effectively) offer from the mic/while calling and not in an on-the-floor lesson context is somewhat limited, alas. I don't have a super regular rotation of style tips that I give while calling (i.e. not during the lesson), but some ones I find myself coming back to are-- From the mic: - when balancing forward and back, reminding folks not to wrench shoulders. "Remembering that everyone has different length arms, and without dislocating anyone's shoulders, balance forward and back." - direction of balance in a box circulate, i.e. right+forward and left+back (as opposed to just right / left or forward / back) - direction of a turn alone, i.e. that it's customary to turn facing the person on the side with you - stretching long lines up/down the hall to avoid gaps/crunching/spreading out the sets too much; noting when particular dances should be kept tighter or more spacious During a demo: - I often find it's worth it to demo a pousette into a swing, and in particular letting go of inside hands / robin swinging left arm up so lark can catch their shoulder blade. (This one is explainable without the demo/from the mic, tho) - Which way to turn and face on the side during a square through: "pull by your partner and consider your neighbor next to you. If you want to turn and face them, there's an easy way (demo turning directly to face) and a hard way (demo turning the wrong way around to face). You want to turn the easy way." - How to catch and swing out of a petronella spin or similar: a) by convention the lark is doing the catching/is the anchor point, so if they need to omit a spin to do that accurately then they probably should. b) robins should lift up left arm to avoid elbowing the lark. c) larks can hint their position to the robins with a touch, esp. on the shoulder blade, before robin is done spinning Writing this up now, I'm noticing that most of my style tips are choreo-specific. I haven't yet found a good way to effectively explain e.g. how to give weight in a swing from the mic (and I'm not sure I would even attempt it--though that's another conversation). I want to work in the mechanics of offering/declining flourishes but I'm still figuring out how best to do that. (It feels like I need a particularly relevant bit of choreography as an excuse, unless the spinning on the floor is particularly egregious.) I haven't thought about this in a particularly systematic way but uh, here's what I've done in the past, hope any of this is helpful! I'm enjoying reading people's thoughts!! If others chime in though, I'd sure appreciate if you clarified which style tips you give in the lesson and which you give during the dance itself--either while on stage or in a quick demo. (I thiiink this was the subject of the original question?) I can give style tips in a lesson context all day long, and am more curious about ones that can be delivered effectively during the dance itself. Cheers, Maia -- Maia McCormick (she/her) 917.279.8194 On Mon, Jul 22, 2024 at 10:34 AM Rich Dempsey via Contra Callers < contracallers(a)lists.sharedweight.net&gt; wrote:

At every style workshop—even if it’s 3 minutes in the middle of an evening dance—I like to say, “You can’t fix others, but you can take care of yourself.” Then a reminder of the importance of “I” statements: I need more support, I’m uncomfortable with this hold—can we figure something out together?, I need more space, etc. Lisa Greenleaf

A helpful one that's often passed over in beginner lessons is for the lark to take a step to the right at the beginning of a robins chain, as the robin is leaving. It puts you in a better position to start the courtesy turn and finish it on time. Alex On Thu, Jul 18, 2024, 10:31 PM Jeff Kaufman via Contra Callers < contracallers(a)lists.sharedweight.net&gt; wrote:

Hi Harris, Julian and others have already given you some great points. I never talk about weight. I refer to it as connection. See https://contrafusion.co.uk/Contra.html#connection for more information. Thumbs: I have often thought of putting a sign on the door saying, “Leave your thumbs here – you don’t need them for the dance!”. Ask the dancers to make a Wrist-Lock Star – tell them to put their thumbs on top so that they can’t grip. Ask the dancers to hold hands in a circle – give them permission to tell their partners or neighbours if they are gripping with their thumbs. Swings: See https://contrafusion.co.uk/Contra.html#swinging for lots of hints and tips. Tell the dancers to get in a Ballroom-Hold ready for a Swing. Then ask them to relax! It is amazing how much just this one concept can improve a Swing. Tell the dancers to get in a Ballroom-Hold ready for a Swing. Give them permission to tell their partner where they are feeling pressure. There are lots of common faults: ladies pressing on the back. Men gripping too tightly. Hanging, clamping, gripping, leaning, etc. During a Swing you never get time to mention it, even if you dared. Most people don’t realise that they are causing their partner discomfort. Giving them permission to share information can really help. Allemandes: See https://contrafusion.co.uk/Allemande.html for some great tips and quotes from the callers on this list. The Allemande 1.5 times is the worst-performed move in contra dancing in my experience. Explain to the dancers that, although it may look like arm-wrestling, it is not! In fact, if your hand moves towards your body you lose! Just connect. Focus then on moving your feet quickly to get around. Increase the tension as little as possible to counteract centrifugal force and to keep the hands exactly half way between you. Timing: Circle three-quarters and Pass Through. The Circle is six steps, leaving the last two for the Pass Through. Lots of people think they have to use up all the music in the Circle then Pass Through at the beginning of the next phrase, arriving late for the next move. Down the Hall and Dixie Twirl or California Twirl: You only take four steps down the hall. I hope that helps. Happy dancing, John John Sweeney, Dancer, England john(a)modernjive.com 01233 625 362 & 07802 940 574 http://www.contrafusion.co.uk for Dancing in Kent

I'd love to hear some specifics of how people word these messages to the dancers! - Julian's note about No/loose thumbs - I've described this as pretending you have hands like a Lego minifig, just a sort of gentle curve to the hand to allow for reliable connection that be easily escaped, not sure how others talk about it and whether the Lego analogy has any unintended bad consequences. - Joe, can you elaborate on "how to make a butterfly whirl... [not] a backward, stumbling mess"? I think that's something my dance community could work on as a whole :) Abbie she/her Tucson, AZ On Wed, Jul 17, 2024 at 3:46 PM Joe Harrington via Contra Callers < contracallers(a)lists.sharedweight.net&gt; wrote:

Good hand placement on swings No/loose thumbs Flourishes are optional How to accept or decline a basic Twirl Looking at the other dancer even if no eye contact Opportunities for eye contact - especially in dances where you can connect and one role follows the other without contact Looping wide where appropriate (hey for four, other various examples where one role has momentum and can flow into another move) Good shared weight, especially for beginner crowds End effects, as relevant and not intuitive from the choreo How to properly do a pushback in a ricochet hey Spinning the correct way in a petro spin How a courtesy turn is two people moving as a unit, not one person scooping the other around 1 step per beat of music, forwards usually - (newbs love to side shuffle on swings, ya know?) When a move has extra time to fill, or arrive early, etc Asking people who sat out to dance A swing should be smooth, not skipping Optional swings (like the Shadow thread, or a same role alle R in the middle, sometimes) After walking through a few connected moves, conveying how to flow them together Prolly more, but, I'll stop here. :) In dance, Julian Blechner He/him Western Mass On Wed, Jul 17, 2024, 4:24 PM Harris Lapiroff via Contra Callers < contracallers(a)lists.sharedweight.net&gt; wrote: