I’m tickled that so many of you are participating in this discussion. After reading posts from eight people at once (I get this list in digest form), I realize that we’re getting close to that age-old (and probably unanswerable) question, “What is tradition/what is folk?”

 

Before we go on, let me assure you that I have no intention of trying to create a new form of square dancing, or even codifying an existing form. I would hate to see a rigid structure grow up around the points I’m making in my book. (I would hate even more to be given lip service while something grew up that was radically different from what I have in mind, as happened with Lloyd Shaw & modern SD and with Larry Jennings and “zesty contras”.) My aim is to document the type of dancing and calling that I see emerging across the continent, and to offer some suggestions for making one’s calling as effective as possible and some technical help in doing so.

 

My favorite name so far is “neo-traditional,” which Jim Saxe included in a list of possibilities and was also suggested to me in a private communication. The names I’ve heard used by dancers and callers in the “real world” (i.e. offline) are “fast squares” and “Southern squares,” both of which I dislike – “fast squares” because “fast” is a relative term and may scare some folks into staying away, “Southern squares” because it’s inaccurate when used to describe grid-type (modern New England & transitional Western) squares done to Southern music, which is how I’ve been hearing it used. There’s already something called “Southern squares”; let’s not confuse things.

 

If I do start using a name, whether “neo-trad” or something else, I don’t expect everyone in the square & contra dance world to adopt it – though they’re welcome to. But I’ve often thought it would be handy to have such a name for my own use, so that I can define my terms when I write for publication.

 

Incidentally, I welcome input as I put my square book together. What would you like to see in a book on calling squares? (As envisioned, it will probably have a short section on dance philosophy, history, and ethics; a medium-length section on technique; and a fairly large collection of actual dances, with call charts showing the actual wording and timing I use. I don’t plan to hold back any trade secrets; given my age and the lucky breaks I’ve had, I feel it’s time to start paying it forward.)

 

Tony Parkes

Billerica, Mass.