[Callers] Blues for contra dancing

On Oct 18, 2015, at 4:01 PM, via Callers &lt;callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net&gt; wrote: Send Callers mailing list submissions to callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit http://lists.sharedweight.net/listinfo.cgi/callers-sharedweight.net or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to callers-request(a)lists.sharedweight.net You can reach the person managing the list at callers-owner(a)lists.sharedweight.net When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific than "Re: Contents of Callers digest..." Today's Topics: 1. Re: Dances For Short Line (Louie.cromartie via Callers) 2. Re: Dances For Short Line (Linda Leslie via Callers) 3. Musical styles for a Barn Dance question (Leslie Gotfrit via Callers) 4. Re: Musical styles for a Barn Dance question (John Rogers via Callers) 5. Re: Musical styles for a Barn Dance question (JD Erskine iDance via Callers) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Message: 1 Date: Sat, 17 Oct 2015 16:32:15 -0400 From: "Louie.cromartie via Callers" &lt;callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net&gt; To: Martha Wild &lt;mawild(a)sbcglobal.net&gt; Cc: sharedweight &lt;callers(a)sharedweight.net&gt; Subject: Re: [Callers] Dances For Short Line Message-ID: &lt;C99FE837-4B91-4DDB-8469-645083D7DAB5(a)gmail.com&gt; Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Just curious. Robert doesn't recall writing (or calling) a dance called Saint Louis Cruise. Perhaps it was created by someone else. -Louie (not a saint) Send Callers mailing list submissions to callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit http://lists.sharedweight.net/listinfo.cgi/callers-sharedweight.net or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to callers-request(a)lists.sharedweight.net You can reach the person managing the list at callers-owner(a)lists.sharedweight.net When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific than "Re: Contents of Callers digest..." Today's Topics: 1. Re: Dances For Short Line (Louie.cromartie via Callers) 2. Re: Dances For Short Line (Linda Leslie via Callers) 3. Musical styles for a Barn Dance question (Leslie Gotfrit via Callers) 4. Re: Musical styles for a Barn Dance question (John Rogers via Callers) 5. Re: Musical styles for a Barn Dance question (JD Erskine iDance via Callers) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Message: 1 Date: Sat, 17 Oct 2015 16:32:15 -0400 From: "Louie.cromartie via Callers" &lt;callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net&gt; To: Martha Wild &lt;mawild(a)sbcglobal.net&gt; Cc: sharedweight &lt;callers(a)sharedweight.net&gt; Subject: Re: [Callers] Dances For Short Line Message-ID: &lt;C99FE837-4B91-4DDB-8469-645083D7DAB5(a)gmail.com&gt; Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Just curious. Robert doesn't recall writing (or calling) a dance called Saint Louis Cruise. Perhaps it was created by someone else. -Louie (not a saint) ------------------------------ Message: 2 Date: Sat, 17 Oct 2015 17:12:51 -0400 From: Linda Leslie via Callers &lt;callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net&gt; To: "Louie.cromartie" &lt;louie.cromartie(a)gmail.com&gt; Cc: sharedweight &lt;callers(a)sharedweight.net&gt; Subject: Re: [Callers] Dances For Short Line Message-ID: &lt;F564544E-28C1-4939-8285-71308A7036B1(a)comcast.net&gt; Content-Type: text/plain; charset=windows-1252 I believe it was written by Roger Diggle?. Linda ------------------------------ Message: 3 Date: Sat, 17 Oct 2015 21:02:33 -0600 From: Leslie Gotfrit via Callers &lt;callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net&gt; To: callers(a)sharedweight.net Subject: [Callers] Musical styles for a Barn Dance question Message-ID: &lt;00563DE5-85B3-4272-810C-6A2CC08B86F8(a)me.com&gt; Content-Type: text/plain; charset=windows-1252 I?ve been asked to call a one hour set in a rural heritage hall for a party for about 130 folks. There will be two sets at the end of the evening with a Blues Band. Yep, its a bit odd, but the organizer wants to bring all his various friends together and thought, rightly, that having someone organize some dancing would help that along. Has anyone ever called a community dance (circle mixers, scatter sets, longways, maybe a square) to a blues band? The band seems willing to work with me. Any suggestions about what to say to them so that I could call La Bastringue or Galopede, for example, and it would work? Any suggestions for youtube links for a caller calling to something other than the usual trad tune? I could bring in a fiddler and ask the band to back the fiddler up. Any advice on doing it that way? Is this so ridiculous that you?re all doubled over laughing? People will be there not because they are blues lovers so much as their buddy is throwing a party. In any case, I?d be grateful for advice Leslie Gotfrit ------------------------------ Message: 4 Date: Sun, 18 Oct 2015 00:24:52 -0700 From: John Rogers via Callers &lt;callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net&gt; To: Leslie Gotfrit &lt;lgotfrit(a)me.com&gt; Cc: &quot;callers(a)sharedweight.net&quot; &lt;callers(a)sharedweight.net&gt; Subject: Re: [Callers] Musical styles for a Barn Dance question Message-ID: &lt;65CF175B-3ADF-4823-9D15-A42D75F21167(a)icloud.com&gt; Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8 With the right cooperation from the band it could work out just fine. I've called contras to all sorts of music, including Romanian folksongs. But, you do need to talk with them about the fact that every tune needs to be 32 bars and of uniform tempo. (And the tempo should be an appropriate one.) The AABB structure that we are used to is nice, but you can probably cope with ABCD if that is what they will play. It will help if you can get a recording of them playing, so you can get used to timing your calls. Sent from my iPhone ------------------------------ Message: 5 Date: Sun, 18 Oct 2015 01:12:55 -0700 From: JD Erskine iDance via Callers &lt;callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net&gt; To: callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net Subject: Re: [Callers] Musical styles for a Barn Dance question Message-ID: &lt;56235487.2060704(a)shaw.ca&gt; Content-Type: text/plain; charset=windows-1252; format=flowed On 2015-10-17 2002, Leslie Gotfrit via Callers wrote: snip Try it. Maybe. <grin> I worked a Contra series dance with my first (advertised as such) old time band tonight. The No Jigs thing initially felt a bit unsettling, however the musicianship and music was great. No medleys, which I'm fine with, and a bit of joint effort looking for variety had it work out well. I'd mentioned all the basic parameters and communications points prior to the event and tonight we went over them before the intro session this series hosts. This past summer I worked with my first Bluegrass band. I'd been concerned a bit with that as well. A "Contra", really a barn dance/ONS on "grass" (beaten down by the sheep for a few years), worked out well. I covered off the points John Rogers made about tempo, length with both of them. Also starts and endings, who to talk to about what, how to speed up/slow down (if possible.) All the usual things. A few weeks ago I attended a free, intro night of MWSD. The point I took away from that was that someone could really use any music if it met the basic criteria. There were Beatles tunes/songs, pop "standards" and such. Not much in the way of tune as many of us might generally expect or appreciate. A number of callers I've experienced have offered the old saw that a dancers need for rhythm might just as easily be met by a drum stick attached to a car wiper as a band. If the band is not an established one, or don't have a recording, some practises/time with several of them playing prior to the event might prove useful. It might also be a chance to introduce some of the key points. A friend was working with a "Celtic" band a winter ago and had to work mostly on -- endurance, even tempo, how to start and end. Doing so seemed to suck up quite a bit of energy and take several sessions. So, it appears it is also good to know when to bail on an idea in some fashion if it appears bleak. For any of these one may require more lead time/contact time that might be expected. Cheers, John -- J.D. Erskine Victoria, BC Island Dance - Folk & Country Vancouver Island & BC islands dance info - site & mail list http://members.shaw.ca/island.dance/ ------------------------------ Subject: Digest Footer _______________________________________________ Callers mailing list Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net http://lists.sharedweight.net/listinfo.cgi/callers-sharedweight.net ------------------------------ End of Callers Digest, Vol 18, Issue 11 ***************************************