[Callers] Brain Dead - Need Suggestions

[jim saxe]

On Aug 29, 2019, at 9:22 PM, K Panton via Callers <callers at lists.sharedweight.net> wrote (re teaching about the relation of dance figures to the music):

> As it happens, I'm calling a regular contra evening in a few weeks and I'm going to experiment, right off the top of the beginner session, by playing a tune (i.e. start music, then say "welcome")
> 
> ...
> have the dancers listen for phrasing and then (repeating) in a big circle holding hands:
> 
> L/R 8
> 
> F/B 8
> 
> L4/R12 
> 
> F2/B2/R4
> 
> L OR R 6/2 the other way. 
> 
> i.e. introduce them to a few ways of slicing up a musical phrase in ways they will encounter with contra figures.
> ...

I think that phrase divisions like the last three--"L4/R12", "F2/B2/R4", and "L OR R 6/2 the other way") are unusual for contra dancing and also  lot to expect new dancers to deal with, especially if you want them to memorize a sequence of several different such things (as distinguished from one repeated over and over).  Yeah, the timing of "F2/B2/R4" is similar to the common sequence of a balance followed by a Petronella twirl, but I think dancers generally deal with that by first learning to think of the balance as a single chunk rather than as "F2/B2".

I've sometimes started a new dancers' session by getting people into a circle and leading the following sequence, directing the actions by body English while singing _a capella_, something like this (with capitalized syllables indicating downbeats, and "-" indicating a downbeat with no lyric):

Circle Left (8 beats): MARy HAD a LITtle CAT, LITtle CAT, LITtle CAT.
Circle Right (8): MARy HAD a LITtle CAT.  it ATE a BALL of YARN -.
Forward (4): and WHEN the LITtle KITtens CAME,
Back (4): KITtens CAME, KITtens CAME,
Forward (4): WHEN the LITtle KITtens CAME,
Back (4): they ALL had SWEATers ON -.

Then I talk a little how the moves of each dance fit particular bits of the tune, like lines in a song.  Lots of other tunes and lyrics (e.g., "Yankee Doodle") could be used for this sort of exercise or the band or a single fiddler might be enlisted to provide instrumental music.

I haven't come up with a well-developed script for further incorporating music into a pre-dance intro session, but I'll mention a few other ideas that I've had, some of which I've tried out from time to time.  I'd be interested in hearing from anyone who routinely incorporates music (live or recorded) or singing into such sessions or into their teaching at one-time events such as the one Richard Hopkins described in the message that started this thread.

I've had various concerns about some of the ideas I describe below:  How long will this take, and is it the best use of the available time?  Will this feel too much like drilling or like haranguing/criticizing dancers about styling (for any of which people may have limited patience) and not enough like the fun party people came for?  Is this appropriate for a pre-dance intro, or should it be left for later, when the new dancers are mixed with a larger number of experienced dancers?  Will attempting to teach something about styling set up a situation where those who "get it" may become impatient with those who don't? Etc, etc.  These concerns are part of what has kept me from developing a more extensive routine for incorporating music into a pre-dance intro or into the teaching at a ONS.  They're also part of the reason I'm eager to learn about other callers' ideas and experiences.  Anyway, with those caveats, here are some ideas:

Rather than ask new dancers to do unusual things like L4/R12, I think it could be more useful to try to get them doing common thing well.

For example, after leading the sequence described above

     Cir L (8); Cir R (8); F&B (8); F&B (8)

one might ask dancers to repeat that sequence a few times to music.  Besides giving practice with phrasing, this could be a way of teaching the idea of dances following a repeating pattern--in this case, one that's only half as long as a standard contra and also less varied than a typical contemporary contra, and thus less of a strain on new dancers' memories.

You might use this or any similarly simple sequence as an opportunity to demonstrate "the special step we use in this kind of dancing", namely a simple brisk walking step, one step to the downbeat.  If you have appropriate musical examples available, you could demonstrate taking one step to the downbeat even when the tune is very notey and some people may be inclined to take lots of quick little steps.

After a just few rounds of the preceding sequence, most folks are likely to have it memorized.  If it seems appropriate, the caller might show how to use the last couple beats of the music for Circle Left to slow down and turn around, ready to start the Circle Right on the first beat of the next chunk of the tune.  Similarly, the caller might teach how to dance each half of Forward & Back as "step; step; step; CLOSE", ending ready to change direction on the next beat.  Then have them do the whole routine a few more times to music.  It may be helpful to call at least the first round with long calls (e.g., "and CIRcle RIGHT the OTHer way BACK" on beats 5-8 vs. just "and BACK" on beat 8) to allow ample reaction time.

The point of the previous exercise was to help put across the general idea of using a particular chunk of music not just to dance a particular figure, but to dance that figure _and be ready to start the next figure_.  Later on, the caller could remind dancers about using the last beat or two of a phrase to prepare for a reversal of direction in connection with the circles and/or stars in a dance such as "Haste to the Wedding" or "Jefferson's Reel".  (However, I think that the caller should be prepared to see dancers lose phrase awareness any time they they have to deal with other cognitive loads, such as remembering what figure is next or figuring out how to arrange their arms for a courtesy turn.)

After teaching how to swing--and how to end a swing-oyou could modify the 16-bar sample routine above into a very simple circle mixer

     Cir L (8); Cir R (8); F&B (8); Corner Swing (8)

where the corner swing causes dancers to switch places, so that they each acquire a new partner (the one they swing) and a new corner.  This offers a new timing challenge that may be too much to expect of some newbies, namely finishing the swing in correct position just in time to start circling left.

One might compose other short routines (perhaps of only 8 or 16 bars) to use while teaching other figures, such as allemandes and chains, but I don't have a particular ones in mind.  (Also, at an ONS, many callers would not even use a chain or a right and left through.)

That's it for now.  Again, I welcome anyone's ideas about putting any of this stuff across effectively, efficiently, cheerfully, and without having it seem like a lot of tedious drill.

--Jim