Saying "thank you" sincerely and joyfully is a really good, important
thing. I'm glad you did it at a dance that obviously meant a lot to you!
Keith Tuxhorn
Austin, TX
On Sun, Apr 26, 2015 at 6:27 PM, Amy Larkin via Callers <
callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
> This is great! I believe people actually enjoy themselves more when they
> remember to show appreciation.
> Amy Larkin
> On Apr 26, 2015 4:12 PM, "Amy Wimmer via Callers" <
> callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
>
>> I called a dance last night in the town where I grew up (Bellingham, WA).
>> It's always great to go back and see people with whom I learned to dance.
>> Calling there makes me a little nervous, though, because I didn't start
>> calling until I left there about 11 years ago.
>>
>> Anyway, keeping in mind the recent discussion about clapping for the
>> band, I did my utmost to make sure last night's band was well appreciated.
>> They are a really good home-town band, and very fun to work with, so I
>> didn't feel a need to fake it.
>>
>> After the first dance there was a smattering of applause, so I said, "It
>> is customary to applaud the band after each set." This sort of stopped them
>> in their tracks and they responded well. The band was grinning at me. I
>> then said, "I have also heard that bands perform better when they know they
>> are being appreciated." This brought even more applause. I said they were
>> dancing to the playing of "Northern Contraband" and I'd introduce the
>> individual members later.
>>
>> During the evening I smiled broadly at the band members, they responded
>> with the same; I applauded at the ends of each dance, while looking and
>> smiling at them; I whooped when it was appropriate (they threw in some
>> really cool stuff, off the cuff) and the dancers joined in. All-in-all the
>> band was very well-received and appreciated, they responded well to the
>> attention, and the dancers were consistently appreciative the rest of the
>> evening. I introduced the individual band members twice - once in the first
>> half and once in the second. It helps that I know them and didn't have to
>> read their names. I mentioned the sound person a few times, too. Everyone
>> was smiling and happy. It was good.
>>
>> I hope I can spread the joy at other gigs.
>>
>> -Amy
>>
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>>
>>
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>
I usually warn bands that I tend to run dances just a little shorter
than other callers. My habit is about 5-and-a-bit dances an hour, 12
minutes (give or take) from the start of teaching one to the start of
teaching the next, but that definitely varies. Size, energy, chattiness
and skill level of the crowd make a huge difference, symmetry (or not)
of the dance, the music (does it fit the dance really well? Is it just
a smokin' tune that should run a little longer? Is it really fast, so
the dancers will poop out earlier?), even the floor condition can affect
how long I'll run. I have a really hard time estimating when I'm
halfway through a dance, and much prefer to give bands 3-and-out, though
I frequently flex on that if they've got another tune in the wings, as
Ryan mentions below.
Reading the responses from other callers tells me that my 12-minute
timing sense isn't far off from other folks, but it may be that here in
the Bay Area I run a little shorter than average. Seems like the bands
are always changing tunes right when my spidey-sense tells me it's time
for "last 3".
Kalia Kliban
Sebastopol, CA
On 4/27/2015 2:20 PM, Ryan Smith via Callers wrote:
> There's a band I work with on a pretty regular basis that usually
> follows my lead, but will occasionally ask "For this set, can we choose
> when to go out?" I trust them not to run it too long, and letting them
> choose when they go out gives them a lot of control over the musical
> experience, which ultimately seems to work well for the dancing
> experience. I'll sometimes signal a band when they're not ready to go
> out yet, and I'm usually willing to be negotiated up from 3 more times
> to 5. More than that, and we're starting to wear out the dancers.
>
> I think it's worth mentioning that if you know from the outset that you
> are going to want to run a dance longer or shorter than your average,
> for whatever reason, that if you communicate that to the band in advance
> it will help make sure that you're not cutting them off just as they
> wind up or leaving them sitting on a tune that they really didn't mean
> to play that long. I know some bands that like to be signaled when you
> get to the middle of the dance, and will even ask to be signaled a
> little early for certain sets of tunes.
Kappy Laning and I have organized a new all-ECD weekend at Timber Ridge
camp, May 23-25 (Memorial Day weekend), 2015. Scott Higgs, Gaye Fifer, Tom
Spilsbury calling. Eight fine local musicians. The camp is so eager to make
this a success that they have lowered their price to us. NINETY Dollars,
all inclusive -- we start at 2 pm on Saturday afternoon (so no fighting the
Friday holiday weekend traffic) through Monday afternoon, all means included
(and we'll celebrate CDSS's 100th anniversary with a grand tea on Sunday).
I'd be happy to provide more information. If you already dance ECD, or
have always wanted to try it -- the cost is trifling!!
Website is AnEnglishTrifle.org.
April Blum
Yeesh. This sounds like a recipe for a difficult evening, unless it's
one of those very rare bands where the musicians are really watching
what's happening on the floor.
Do you have the option of not working with this band in the future?
Kalia
On 4/27/2015 1:58 PM, Donald Perley via Callers wrote:
> Just a guess.. they have arrangements for each set and feel miffed if
> they get cut short without getting through each variation.
>
> On Mon, Apr 27, 2015 at 4:52 PM, Amy Wimmer via Callers
> <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
>
>>
>> I have an oddity coming up: a band for which I am calling has asked to
>> take the lead on when to end the dances. I figure one evening of that
>> can't hurt, if it keeps the band happy. I will take notes. The leader
>> of this band has control issues and knows what's best for everyone.
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>
There's a band I work with on a pretty regular basis that usually follows
my lead, but will occasionally ask "For this set, can we choose when to go
out?" I trust them not to run it too long, and letting them choose when
they go out gives them a lot of control over the musical experience, which
ultimately seems to work well for the dancing experience. I'll sometimes
signal a band when they're not ready to go out yet, and I'm usually willing
to be negotiated up from 3 more times to 5. More than that, and we're
starting to wear out the dancers.
I think it's worth mentioning that if you know from the outset that you are
going to want to run a dance longer or shorter than your average, for
whatever reason, that if you communicate that to the band in advance it
will help make sure that you're not cutting them off just as they wind up
or leaving them sitting on a tune that they really didn't mean to play that
long. I know some bands that like to be signaled when you get to the
middle of the dance, and will even ask to be signaled a little early for
certain sets of tunes.
Part of the reason for using a stopwatch (vs. a timer) is that it doesn't
tell you how much longer to run the dance. It just tells you how long you
have run the dance, making it easy to be responsive to the music and the
dance and the dancers and the weather and all the other environmental
factors that come into play.
On Mon, Apr 27, 2015 at 4:58 PM, Donald Perley via Callers <
callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
> Just a guess.. they have arrangements for each set and feel miffed if
> they get cut short without getting through each variation.
>
> On Mon, Apr 27, 2015 at 4:52 PM, Amy Wimmer via Callers
> <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
>
> >
> > I have an oddity coming up: a band for which I am calling has asked to
> > take the lead on when to end the dances. I figure one evening of that
> > can't hurt, if it keeps the band happy. I will take notes. The leader
> > of this band has control issues and knows what's best for everyone.
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> http://lists.sharedweight.net/listinfo.cgi/callers-sharedweight.net
>
My mileage varies considerably in numbers of dances I get through in
an evening. The biggest factors are 1) number of beginners, 2)
chattiness/inattention of dancers, 3) flexibility of band, 4) length
of break.
I have tried to pay attention to specific couples and track them in a
dance, but ALWAYS get confused. Were they twos and now are ones? That
just doesn't work for me. Nor does counting iterations of a dance, for
the same reasons others have mentioned. I use a watch or clock and
even then I forget what time they started. I mostly go by feel.
I prepare 10-11 dances for a 2 1/2 hour dance (our regular dance),
usually getting 9-10 done, and 12-13 for a 3 hour dance, usually doing
at least 12. I have had to pull out more once in a while.
I have an oddity coming up: a band for which I am calling has asked to
take the lead on when to end the dances. I figure one evening of that
can't hurt, if it keeps the band happy. I will take notes. The leader
of this band has control issues and knows what's best for everyone.
Generally I plan for 15 minutes from start to start of each dance and
if I get in more, that's great.
-Amy
> On Apr 26, 2015, at 5:54 PM, Maia McCormick via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
>
> Just polling the masses here--how long do you generally run your dances (in times through the dance, time take, couples going up and back, etc.)? How many dances do you generally manage to fit into a 3-hour contra evening? I've heard different wisdom from different folks and am curious to add some more data points!
>
> Cheers,
> Maia
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I usually get 10 to 12 dances in a 3 hour evening with break. The difference seems to come down to how much time I spend teaching, since actual dance time is fairly constant.
Lines at our dance run 8 to 14 couples, so spotting a couple works well -- down and maybe a little way back. I watch the clock more to hit the break and end of evening at the right time, not for time spent dancing.
At the end of some evenings, I have 5 to 8 experienced couples and dances run much shorter - no walk through required and dancers get tired/bored quickly. In the extreme case, 6 dances in the last 50 minutes.
For variety, I called a "small plates" contra dance one evening - easy dances with short or no walk through, and iterations limited to 8 to 10 times through. That was well received by dancers, though the band (despite the warning) had to adjust their thinking after the first dance.
Tim KleinKnoxville, TN
From: Lenore Frigo via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net>
To: Maia McCormick <maia.mcc(a)gmail.com>
Cc: "callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net" <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net>
Sent: Monday, April 27, 2015 3:06 PM
Subject: Re: [Callers] Dance length/dances per evening
I also use a stopwatch. As a new caller, I find it difficult to use any of the other methods because they require me to calculate and/or REMEMBER one more bit of information and my brain is already quite fully engaged. When I started out calling guest calling just 1-2 dances per night, I was fine tracking tune changes, but calling all night long, it all blurs together too much.
I don't use the stop watch to tell me when to stop the dance, but it's the perfect way to answer the question "Just how long has this dance been going on?". I usually aim to wrap it up in about 8-9 minutes, but it all depends on all those situational factors that people have already mentioned.
-Lenore
On Sun, Apr 26, 2015 at 5:54 PM, Maia McCormick via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
Just polling the masses here--how long do you generally run your dances (in times through the dance, time take, couples going up and back, etc.)? How many dances do you generally manage to fit into a 3-hour contra evening? I've heard different wisdom from different folks and am curious to add some more data points!
Cheers,Maia
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On 4/22/2015 7:08 PM, Erik Hoffman via Callers wrote:
> Hi All,
>
> There are several places where almost no applause occurs after a dance. In some communities, when I've been subjected to that experience, I've asked, "were we off tonight?" The reply usually is something like, "no, the dance was fine (or even great), we just head for our next partner..." I know sometimes it's just the night. Sometimes, though, it's the community's habit. I spoke with a renowned musician the other day, who will no longer play for a certain series. One of the reasons: lack of applause -- lack of that palpable sense of appreciation.
>
> I think dancers don't often know that applause really makes the band and caller feel better. If they feel better they play better. And, as a dancer, applause usually makes me feel better, too. Any ideas on how to encourage applause? Or, if you're in one of those communities where applause is minimal, does it bother you?
I had that experience a while back at one of our local contras, when I
was calling with a really hot band. We'd finish a dance, get a few
claps and then just crickets. It was really depressing and upsetting.
The dances were going ok, the music was smoking and then... nothing.
I've just looked back into my dance log and the comment I wrote later
that night was "I don’t know what was up, but it felt bad-weird from the
stage." Applause really does make a difference.
Kalia
I also use a stopwatch. As a new caller, I find it difficult to use any of
the other methods because they require me to calculate and/or REMEMBER one
more bit of information and my brain is already quite fully engaged. When I
started out calling guest calling just 1-2 dances per night, I was fine
tracking tune changes, but calling all night long, it all blurs together
too much.
I don't use the stop watch to tell me when to stop the dance, but it's the
perfect way to answer the question "Just how long has this dance been going
on?". I usually aim to wrap it up in about 8-9 minutes, but it all depends
on all those situational factors that people have already mentioned.
-Lenore
On Sun, Apr 26, 2015 at 5:54 PM, Maia McCormick via Callers <
callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
> Just polling the masses here--how long do you generally run your dances
> (in times through the dance, time take, couples going up and back, etc.)?
> How many dances do you generally manage to fit into a 3-hour contra
> evening? I've heard different wisdom from different folks and am curious to
> add some more data points!
>
> Cheers,
> Maia
>
> _______________________________________________
> Callers mailing list
> Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net
> http://lists.sharedweight.net/listinfo.cgi/callers-sharedweight.net
>
>
Generally, I expect to call 9-12 dances in a regular evening
contra/community dance venue. With 10-11 being the greatest majority of
the gigs.
I usually prepare a program with 10-11 dances, but of course once the
evening begins, things can change, sometimes quite radically.
The length of each dance -- really depends on the choreography of that
dance and the crowd and the music and the time of night (and a few other
judgements as well). The first and second dances can be slightly longer
than normal to reinforce the moves and help get newcomers adjusted to
the progression and responding to the calls. Or they can be shorter than
normal to accommodate the flow of new folks as they walk into the hall.
And then there is the music, which I consider greatly as part of my
judgements. If a band is in a groove, I'll want to continue their flow
and thus continue the dance for a couple of extra times. Also, the
common use of three tunes (rather than two or one) for a dance makes it
a real judgement call, since sometimes a band may play the first tune
longer than normal, so my choice is to cut off the third tune earlier
than the band may like or allow the dance to go a bit longer. Of course,
that also depends on a lot, including the actually tune being played and
what the band is doing with it and the nature of the dancers.
Conversely, if an old-time band plays one tune for each dance, I'll
usually make those dances a bit shorter, especially for a firm contra
crowd where the dancers may get bored with one tune that has no changes
in texture or modulation.
Woody
------------------------------------------------------------------------
On 4/26/2015 9:31 PM, Jack Mitchell via Callers wrote:
> For me, it really depends on the size and energy level of the dance.
> For a larger dance with lots of energy, I will run around 15 min per
> slot...so 3-4 minutes to get a new partner, 3-4 min to walk thru and 8
> or so minutes to dance (around 16 times through the tune). Square and
> mixers run shorter frequently, doing a square and a mixer means that I
> get an extra dance in overall.
>
> Smaller dances, or dances where some of the dancers have problems with
> stamena, I tend to run shorter -- frequently more like 10 minute
> slots. Have gotten 10-12 dances in a 2.5 hr (including break) dance.
> Have a friend who called 14 dances in a 2 hour dance because the band
> was an old time band and was just playing one tune per dance, the same
> way every time through, so she just ran all the dances much shorter.
>
> My goal is generally to get people down the hall and partway back
> during the dance for a single progression dance. YMMV
>
> Jack Mitchell
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> On Sun, Apr 26, 2015 at 5:54 PM -0700, "Maia McCormick via Callers"
> <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net
> <mailto:callers@lists.sharedweight.net>> wrote:
>
> Just polling the masses here--how long do you generally run your
> dances (in times through the dance, time take, couples going up
> and back, etc.)? How many dances do you generally manage to fit
> into a 3-hour contra evening? I've heard different wisdom from
> different folks and am curious to add some more data points!
>
> Cheers,
> Maia
>
