8 Jan
2017
8 Jan
'17
3:01 a.m.
Hello all.
It's been a while since I've had enough folks at a house party to really
walk through a 4x4 dance, so I'm sending this out for comment: I'm trying
to increase my repertoire of accessible and entertaining 4x4s (my double
reverse progression 4x4, etc, not qualifying)
This one is in the "Midwestern Folklore" and "Will You Mary Me?"
tradition
of being two nearly identical halves.
Plow and Cross Stitch
by Luke Donforth
Contra/Four Facing Four
A1 -----------
(8) Lines of four, forward and back
(8) Women's Chain up & down to facing neighbor
A2 -----------
(8) 1/2 Hey up & down, women passing right shoulders
(8) Neighbor swing (end facing partner, Women's line of direction; men
opposite initial facing.)
B1 -----------
(8) Women's Chain up and down to partner, power turn to face trail buddy
couple
(8) 1/2 Hey across, women passing right shoulders
B2 -----------
(16) Partner balance and swing
It could go lines of four again in B1, then the chain and power turn, with
B2 being half hey and just a swing; but I figured try for the partner
balance and longer swing.
I'd appreciate hearing folks thoughts (too repetitive? too disorienting?
basically X's dance Y), as well as your own favorite 4x4s; and why. My
personal favorite is Rick Mohr's "Dance All Night", because you get a grand
right and left in a contra.
Take care,
--
Luke Donforth
Luke.Donforth(a)gmail.com <Luke.Donev(a)gmail.com>
8 Jan
8 Jan
3:21 a.m.
Hi Luke,
I like the theme. I've been playing a lot with 4F4 which include similar
types of action myself.
If I'm not mistaken, this power turn will only work for the couples
starting on the left end of the line/4. The others will be facing the wrong
way (out) if they power turn (interpreted as a courtesy turn 1+1/4).
-Don
On Sat, Jan 7, 2017 at 10:01 PM, Luke Donforth via Callers <
callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
B1 -----------
(8) Women's Chain up and down to partner, power turn to face trail buddy
couple
3:28 a.m.
Thanks for the follow up.
I meant power turn in the sense of "turn enough to face where you need to
face" which could be under (3/4) or over (1 1/4) or way over (1 3/4, 2 1/4,
etc) as desired between you and your partner.
On Sat, Jan 7, 2017 at 10:21 PM, Don Veino <sharedweight_net(a)veino.com>
wrote:
Hi Luke,
I like the theme. I've been playing a lot with 4F4 which include similar
types of action myself.
If I'm not mistaken, this power turn will only work for the couples
starting on the left end of the line/4. The others will be facing the wrong
way (out) if they power turn (interpreted as a courtesy turn 1+1/4).
-Don
On Sat, Jan 7, 2017 at 10:01 PM, Luke Donforth via Callers <
callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
--
Luke Donforth
Luke.Donforth(a)gmail.com <Luke.Donev(a)gmail.com>
B1 -----------
(8) Women's Chain up and down to partner, power turn to face trail buddy
couple
4:03 a.m.
Below is one of mine from a similar series - the one of those I've called
so far. I'm going to test the other [B1 variation] shown here next time I
get a chance.
On your other questions, Lynne Ackerson's Coconut Cream Pie is a fave as
it's interesting yet bulletproof with mixed crowds (and I use it so much, I
wrote another dance leveraged from it to have some variation - Boston Cream
Pie). I also share your fondness for Rick's dance so I swapped bits of Up
All Night to generate one to pair for an alternating dance - Insomniac's
Delight (Gents Left Star, Grand L & R, See Saw).
*Oceans 4 (DRAFT) - 4 Face 4 - Don Veino 20161204*
Note this dance never converts to a square formation. Tune suggestion:
Thomas Shrug's March.
A1
Give & Take (Up/Down), Gent take Neighbor Lady back and Swing
A2
(4,4) Pass the Ocean (Up/Down), Wave Balance Fwd/Back
[NOTE all Gents are on outside oval facing clockwise, Ladies are inside
facing CCW]
(8) Simultaneously:
Ladies in center (across) Half Hey (Ladies facing center start passing
Right)
*WHILE*
Gents Circulate 2 Places (wrap around ends) [I TEACH/CALL THIS AS AN ORBIT
1/2 to stay with more typical contra language for dancers]
[Form similar Ocean Waves aligned up/down with Right Hand to same G&T
Neighbor]
B1
Wave Balance Right (toward N) & Left, Neighbor Box the Gnat
[Not yet tested variation: Balance Fwd/Back, N Allemande Rt 1/2x]
Gents Allemande Left 1+1/2 (to P)
B2
Partner Balance & Swing, end facing progression
First called at the Monday Contras dance in Concord, MA on Dec. 19, 2016
8:11 a.m.
I wrote this one (after some discussions with Chris Page about disorientation at the
finish of an earlier version), and it works pretty well.
Diving Ducks Redux 4 face 4
A1 Lines forward and back
Dip and dive around the square*
A2 Continue the dip and dive
Women chain up and down the set
B1 Across the set, women allemande right 1 1/2 times^
Swing neighbor
B2 Men star left 1/2 way
Swing partner
*On the dip and dive, facing up and down, the couple on the right dives, and the couple on
the left arches with the people they are facing. After the first dip and dive all face
across the set and if you dove you arch and vv.
Continue the dip and dive back to place. It is easier to think of it as if you are just
dipping and diving around a circle, not straight up and down and straight across.
^ The allemande is always done by the women in the same line.
FBL/DIP//CHW/ARW/SWN/STLM/SWP/
On Jan 7, 2017, at 8:03 PM, Don Veino via Callers
<callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
Below is one of mine from a similar series - the one of those I've called so far.
I'm going to test the other [B1 variation] shown here next time I get a chance.
On your other questions, Lynne Ackerson's Coconut Cream Pie is a fave as it's
interesting yet bulletproof with mixed crowds (and I use it so much, I wrote another dance
leveraged from it to have some variation - Boston Cream Pie). I also share your fondness
for Rick's dance so I swapped bits of Up All Night to generate one to pair for an
alternating dance - Insomniac's Delight (Gents Left Star, Grand L & R, See Saw).
Oceans 4 (DRAFT) - 4 Face 4 - Don Veino 20161204
Note this dance never converts to a square formation. Tune suggestion: Thomas Shrug's
March.
A1
Give & Take (Up/Down), Gent take Neighbor Lady back and Swing
A2
(4,4) Pass the Ocean (Up/Down), Wave Balance Fwd/Back
[NOTE all Gents are on outside oval facing clockwise, Ladies are inside facing CCW]
(8) Simultaneously:
Ladies in center (across) Half Hey (Ladies facing center start passing Right)
*WHILE*
Gents Circulate 2 Places (wrap around ends) [I TEACH/CALL THIS AS AN ORBIT 1/2 to stay
with more typical contra language for dancers]
[Form similar Ocean Waves aligned up/down with Right Hand to same G&T Neighbor]
B1
Wave Balance Right (toward N) & Left, Neighbor Box the Gnat
[Not yet tested variation: Balance Fwd/Back, N Allemande Rt 1/2x]
Gents Allemande Left 1+1/2 (to P)
B2
Partner Balance & Swing, end facing progression
First called at the Monday Contras dance in Concord, MA on Dec. 19, 2016
_______________________________________________
Callers mailing list
Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net
http://lists.sharedweight.net/listinfo.cgi/callers-sharedweight.net
9:08 a.m.
On Sun, 8 Jan 2017 00:11:36 -0800, Martha Wild via Callers wrote:
A1 Lines forward and back
Dip and dive around the square*
A2 Continue the dip and dive
Women chain up and down the set
I'd prefer the ladies' chain after the forward and back. That means the dip and
dive fits into A2 instead of being the second
half of A1 and the first half of A2. It also means you get to do the dip and dive with a
different person each time instead of
with your partner every time - I don't know whether Americans would consider this a
good thing or a bad thing.
Colin Hume
Email colin(a)colinhume.com Web site http://colinhume.com
17 Jan
17 Jan
4:18 a.m.
BTW, here's the referenced Boston Cream Pie.
-Don
*Boston Cream Pie - 4F4 - Don Veino* (B2 riff off Lynne Ackerson's Coconut
Creme Pie)
A1
LLFB
Center 4 Star Right 1x
A2
Partner Allemande Left 1+1/2x
(new) Center 4 Start Right 1x
B1
Partner Balance & Swing
B2
Current Ring/8 Balance, California Twirl (to facing prior Neighbors)
LH Gent Tow Your Line (in an arc, over left shoulder) to face new Line/4
On Sat, Jan 7, 2017 at 11:03 PM, Don Veino <sharedweight_net(a)veino.com>
wrote:
[snip]
On your other questions, Lynne Ackerson's Coconut Cream Pie is a fave as
it's interesting yet bulletproof with mixed crowds (and I use it so much, I
wrote another dance leveraged from it to have some variation - Boston Cream
Pie). [/snip]
8 Jan
8 Jan
1:24 p.m.
Andrea kindly pointed out that half hey where you're about to pass by the
left into a swing isn't the smoothest transition (without a balance);
something I missed.
I see a couple ways of shifting that, like replacing the chain with a women
allemande left 1.5; which is unfortunately their "non-standard" hand for
that. Another way to avoid a left shoulder to swing would be ditch the
lines of four and go straight into chain to facing neighbor then half hey,
with a balance and swing neighbor in A2.
My sense is that accessible 4x4s really benefit from the lines of 4 to
establish the set every time. Do folks have 4x4s that succeed smoothly
without that?
Thank you all for sharing thoughts and dances.
Revised version, with allemande:
A1 -----------
(8) Lines of four, forward and back
(8) Women left allemande 1.5x (with one on slight left in facing couple)
A2 -----------
(8) 1/2 Hey up & down, women passing right shoulders
(8) Neighbor swing (end facing partner, Women's line of direction; men
opposite initial facing.)
B1 -----------
(8) Women's Chain up and down to partner, power turn to face trail buddy
couple
(8) 1/2 Hey across, women passing right shoulders
B2 -----------
(16) Partner balance and swing
On Sat, Jan 7, 2017 at 10:01 PM, Luke Donforth <luke.donev(a)gmail.com> wrote:
Hello all.
It's been a while since I've had enough folks at a house party to really
walk through a 4x4 dance, so I'm sending this out for comment: I'm trying
to increase my repertoire of accessible and entertaining 4x4s (my double
reverse progression 4x4, etc, not qualifying)
This one is in the "Midwestern Folklore" and "Will You Mary Me?"
tradition
of being two nearly identical halves.
Plow and Cross Stitch
by Luke Donforth
Contra/Four Facing Four
A1 -----------
(8) Lines of four, forward and back
(8) Women's Chain up & down to facing neighbor
A2 -----------
(8) 1/2 Hey up & down, women passing right shoulders
(8) Neighbor swing (end facing partner, Women's line of direction; men
opposite initial facing.)
B1 -----------
(8) Women's Chain up and down to partner, power turn to face trail buddy
couple
(8) 1/2 Hey across, women passing right shoulders
B2 -----------
(16) Partner balance and swing
It could go lines of four again in B1, then the chain and power turn, with
B2 being half hey and just a swing; but I figured try for the partner
balance and longer swing.
I'd appreciate hearing folks thoughts (too repetitive? too disorienting?
basically X's dance Y), as well as your own favorite 4x4s; and why. My
personal favorite is Rick Mohr's "Dance All Night", because you get a
grand
right and left in a contra.
Take care,
--
Luke Donforth
Luke.Donforth(a)gmail.com <Luke.Donev(a)gmail.com>
--
Luke Donforth
Luke.Donforth(a)gmail.com <Luke.Donev(a)gmail.com>
7:45 p.m.
Here is the one that you inspired, Luke:
*Luke, Your Not My Father* 4X4 by Bob Green
A1 Long lines forward and back
Swing your corner
A2 Sides face, Grand square (no reverse)
B1 With the one you swung, balance and box the Gnat and Pull by right,
Pull by left, pul by right
B2 Balance and Swing your partner(end facing original direction -new corner)
http://dancevideos.childgrove.org/contra/contra-modern/491-luke-you-re-not-…
Bob Green
bobgreen(a)swbell.net
St. Louis
On Sat, Jan 7, 2017 at 9:01 PM, Luke Donforth via Callers <
callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
Hello all.
It's been a while since I've had enough folks at a house party to really
walk through a 4x4 dance, so I'm sending this out for comment: I'm trying
to increase my repertoire of accessible and entertaining 4x4s (my double
reverse progression 4x4, etc, not qualifying)
This one is in the "Midwestern Folklore" and "Will You Mary Me?"
tradition
of being two nearly identical halves.
Plow and Cross Stitch
by Luke Donforth
Contra/Four Facing Four
A1 -----------
(8) Lines of four, forward and back
(8) Women's Chain up & down to facing neighbor
A2 -----------
(8) 1/2 Hey up & down, women passing right shoulders
(8) Neighbor swing (end facing partner, Women's line of direction; men
opposite initial facing.)
B1 -----------
(8) Women's Chain up and down to partner, power turn to face trail buddy
couple
(8) 1/2 Hey across, women passing right shoulders
B2 -----------
(16) Partner balance and swing
It could go lines of four again in B1, then the chain and power turn, with
B2 being half hey and just a swing; but I figured try for the partner
balance and longer swing.
I'd appreciate hearing folks thoughts (too repetitive? too disorienting?
basically X's dance Y), as well as your own favorite 4x4s; and why. My
personal favorite is Rick Mohr's "Dance All Night", because you get a
grand
right and left in a contra.
Take care,
--
Luke Donforth
Luke.Donforth(a)gmail.com <Luke.Donev(a)gmail.com>
_______________________________________________
Callers mailing list
Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net
http://lists.sharedweight.net/listinfo.cgi/callers-sharedweight.net
2656
days inactive
2665
days old
contracallers@lists.sharedweight.net
8 comments
5 participants
participants (5)
-
Bob Green via Callers -
Colin Hume via Callers
-
Don Veino via Callers
-
Luke Donforth via Callers
-
Martha Wild via Callers