Contra Callers

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30 participants
4403 discussions

by Gregory

Hi Folks, I'm teaching a contra dance tonight for a special event. I wanted to double check my sources and came up short on one dance: Ellen's Green Jig. According to my memory, I tweaked this dance years ago to be proper/improper. However, the original I can no longer find. Furthermore, my notes say it was originally by Roy Dommett, the famed rocket scientist morris dancer. Does that make any sense? Does anyone know this dance or who devised it? Thanks! Greg [image] Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. This is filler text that changes the size of the messages I send - an added layer of security for detection and identification of encrypted information using metadata. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. This is filler text that changes the size of the messages I send - an added layer of security for detection and identification of encrypted information using metadata. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Sent with [Proton Mail](https://proton.me/) secure email.

1 year, 8 months

Suggestions for great recent contra compositions

by Gregory Frock

Dear Colleagues, I will be at NEFFA 2024 calling a session of "the best dances of 2010 and later". I have a pretty good list of nominees, but if anyone wants to add suggestions, or encourage selections of particular dances, I would love to hear them. I am looking for a good variety of geographic origin and work from both renown and lesser known choreographers. Thanks all! Greg

1 year, 8 months

New College Contra / 1st time with 50+ dancers!

by Robert Matson

Hi All, Please join us in celebrating a significant milestone for our college dance: more than 50 dancers this past Friday! Last school year we averaged around 20/dance. Last year's core dancers were seniors. This school year we have been averaging around 10/dance, but our core dancers are mostly freshman. (Yay!) Video clip from the dance: Dance: 'The Flircle." Ellen Hostetter calling. Band: Bobby Fjsh and the Magic River https://youtu.be/TGWzuIk2LTE (For videos, we've promised to obscure dancers' features in order to maintain privacy.) As some of you know, who have met us on-line or in-person, we started our dance from scratch, with all first-time dancers and a novice caller who hadn't done much contra. (That said, our novice caller is a professional educator and researcher whose formative art was ballet and tap). At last Friday's dance, about 80% were first-timers. The other 20% were beginner-level. To share, with the hope that some of you can benefit, we've identified several possible explanations for the high turnout. The primary new effort was that we hosted a pop-up art exhibit in the space, lasting for the 120-minutes for which we had the studio. Long story short, pursuant to our floating the idea in our regular announcement and inviting artists to pin-up, one of our core dancers volunteered to curate a show and spoke with her art professor who, in turn, liked the idea and gave the students credit if they participated. From that, a good 25-30 student artists came with work to pin-up -- or put down -- we had one sculpture -- who had never heard of contra, who may have never put a foot down on a beat, and had no intent of dancing. With encouragement, all but one (due to health issues) joined in for the whole dance. The student who curated has offered to continue creating exhibits and we plan to do this every time. (We dance 2x/month.) We think it was a rogue wave of sorts. Another student, it so happened, on the same eve, got a group of his friends to come, and several students from the outdoors club showed up. And then several of our usual dancers, who we hadn't seen for a while, showed up. And then one of our usual dancers was freaked out by the size of the crowd, she told us, and left. :-) Luckily, a reporter and photographer from the school newspaper also visited on the same eve! So, a wonderful tsunami of first timers. We look forward to seeing how many keep returning. Program: Circassian Circle The Flircle - Intermission, art show, hob-nobbing - Swing workshop Lucky 7 Mixer We did three walkthroughs of each dance and started 10 min. late due to distractions caused by hanging the art show. We dance Larks/Robins. All best, Rob - - - - - - - - - - - Robert Matson Cell: (917) 626-2675

1 year, 8 months

Workshop activities for helping dancers improve their skills?

by Emily Addison

Hi fellow contra callers :) I am wondering if any of you have little activities/exercises that you use to help dancers improve their knowledge/skills of contra dance? I know there's lots of opinions on whether this is even necessary or should be offered. However, I have a few situations where I've got dancers who are keen to improve their skills and I'd like to have various fun ways of doing so. I'd love to hear your ideas! One activity I remember from mannnnny years ago in Ottawa was led by Adina Gordon. She had us form up in contra lines and then she would say 1-2 (maybe 3?) figures. We weren't to dance the figure... instead, simply go to the spot where we would end up after the figure(s). I remember this as being a lot of fun and a great learning experience. I also remember from that same session something about sending some dancers out of the room and teaching the dance to others and then doing the dance. (I don't remember the details.) Thoughts? Any advice/ideas would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! Emily in Ottawa ON

1 year, 9 months

Practicing dances

by Mary Collins

Researching a discussion I had with a fellow organizer. As a caller, newbie, experienced, old hat experienced: 1. how often do you practice calling dances, esp new to you dances? 2. Do you practice to music? 3. How far in advance do you set and work through your program? Thanks for any and all input. Mary Collins Fanklinville/Olean NY

1 year, 9 months

Caller Directory - for your reference

by Luke Donforth

Hello folks, I haven't chimed in on this for a while, so I thought I'd mention again that there's a list of callers who have hung their shingle available as a google spreadsheet at http://tinyurl.com/hnb72wv If you know of a caller who wants to be on that list, they can submit information at https://goo.gl/forms/62beEKCKsyysepGk1 If you're a caller who wants to be off that list, or have information changed, reach out to me if you don't have your direct edit link anymore. Happy New Year. Luke

1 year, 9 months

EDS 1921-1989 + Stepping/Footwork Tutorial

by John Sweeney

Hi all, Two recent items that might interest you: 1) Dances from English Dance & Song 1921 - 1989 http://contrafusion.co.uk/DanceFromEDS.html This is an article that I wrote for the EFDSS, published in EDS December 2023, looking at the dances that were published in that period and how dancing in England evolved in the 20th century 2) Stepping & Footwork for Country Dance & English Ceilidh http://contrafusion.co.uk/Stepping.html Following a recent discussion on stepping I produced this tutorial covering lots of different steps that I teach. Feedback, suggestions, improvements, errors and omissions most welcome. Happy dancing, John John Sweeney, Dancer, England john(a)modernjive.com 01233 625 362 & 07802 940 574 http://www.contrafusion.co.uk for Dancing in Kent

1 year, 10 months

A Hand to the Band!

by David Smukler

The following is from David Millstone, who is not a list member, but asked me to share it. David Smukler Syracuse, NY ---- I'm happy to announce the release of A Hand to the Band! [see url at the end of this message], a celebration of dance musicians over the last half century. This project, centered on an interactive map, looks at groups who played for square dances or contra dances, who were among the early such musicians in a given community, and who made a recording. For each band, you'll find information about the musicians and instruments, the release date of their first album (cassette, LP, or CD), the cover image, an instrumental track from that album, and comments about the band, usually from one of the group's members. At the moment, there are more than 275 groups represented in the collection. When you first open the site, the map displays all of the bands. However, you can also narrow your focus by geography and by chronology, so if you're interested in bands from the upper Midwest who recorded between 1980 and 1985, that's easy to arrange. There's also a robust search engine that lets you look for particular musicians or bands. The technical wizardry that makes this possible was provided by Andrew Frock, a young programmer who grew up in the dance world. Without his expertise, all of the information I gathered would be sitting on my desktop computer. He was a fantastic collaborator, and he is sharing the tech underpinnings of the site via GitHub. I started this project from a New England perspective, thinking I knew all the early New England bands. (Surprise! I didn't.) Naively (and arrogantly) I thought there might be a handful of bands elsewhere around the country who had also recorded early on. (Surprise! There were far more than a handful.) In short, compiling the information for this project gave me a deep appreciation for the many musicians around the country who lifted dancers' feet over the decades. From the beginning, I was interested in musicians playing for square dances and for contra dances. When I started dancing, in the early 1970s, both forms would turn up on an evening's program, and I continue to enjoy both styles of country dance. This eclectic approach in this project means that there is a wide variety of musical styles represented here, tunes from northern New England as well as southern Appalachia. Enough! Enjoy the site and please tell others about it. Let us know [using the email ContraSquareMap at gmail dot com] if we need to make corrections or additions. David Millstone https://ahandfortheband.org/ davidmillstone7(a)gmail.com

1 year, 11 months

A Hand to the Band!

by David Smukler

I’m sharing the following on behalf of David Millstone, who is not currently a list member. David Smukler Syracuse, NY ==================== I'm happy to announce the release of A Hand to the Band!, a celebration of dance musicians over the last half century. This project, centered on an interactive map, looks at groups who played for square dances or contra dances, who were among the early such musicians in a given community, and who made a recording. For each band, you'll find information about the musicians and instruments, the release date of their first album (cassette, LP, or CD), the cover image, an instrumental track from that album, and comments about the band, usually from one of the group's members. At the moment, there are more than 275 groups represented in the collection. When you first open the site, the map displays all of the bands. However, you can also narrow your focus by geography and by chronology, so if you're interested in bands from the upper Midwest who recorded between 1980 and 1985, that's easy to arrange. There's also a robust search engine that lets you look for particular musicians or bands. The technical wizardry that makes this possible was provided by Andrew Frock, a young programmer who grew up in the dance world. Without his expertise, all of the information I gathered would be sitting on my desktop computer. He was a fantastic collaborator, and he is sharing the tech underpinnings of the site via GitHub. I started this project from a New England perspective, thinking I knew all the early New England bands. (Surprise! I didn't.) Naively (and arrogantly) I thought there might be a handful of bands elsewhere around the country who had also recorded early on. (Surprise! There were far more than a handful.) In short, compiling the information for this project gave me a deep appreciation for the many musicians around the country who lifted dancers' feet over the decades. From the beginning, I was interested in musicians playing for square dances and for contra dances. When I started dancing, in the early 1970s, both forms would turn up on an evening's program, and I continue to enjoy both styles of country dance. This eclectic approach in this project means that there is a wide variety of musical styles represented here, tunes from northern New England as well as southern Appalachia. Enough! Enjoy the site and please tell others about it. Let us know if we need to make corrections or additions. David Millstone https://ahandfortheband.org/ davidmillstone7(a)gmail.com ContraSquareMap(a)gmail.com

1 year, 11 months

Favorite One Night Stand Dances

by Erik Hoffman

I'd love to collect a few more whole set dances for one night stands. I have done my version of the Virginia Reel, of course. Some Running Set figures (though not in a big circle, but, "find another couple and circle left), Sasha, the Broom Dance and/or the Fan Dance, Blobs, and possibly teach Jefferson & Liberty, or a slightly simplified version of Haste to the Wedding and the first "Hands Four" dance. So, I've been collecting the Simple Contra Dances, and adding them to my repertoire with thanks to all sharing them! I am looking for Whole Set Dances. Here's one from me: Building a Tunnel I put some figures together after looking at dancing in Douglastown, Quebec, that I found from Laura Risk's wonderful collection of music and notes she coproduced with Brian Morris, the Douglastown cd (https://www.laurarisk.com/recordings.html). I call this Building a Tunnel. Then I stole part of what I think is The Flying Scottsman (which I learned from the wonderful Sandy Bradley) or is it Kingston Flyer as Tony Parkes mentioned. Building a Tunnel Longways set a Whole Set dance Not too phrased to the music In long lines, Head Person of Line One leads their line all the way around Line Two Then Head of Line Two leads line around Line One All Partner Do Si Do, Swing (any way: elbow, 2-hand, ballroom) Top Couple arch over one line to the bottom-Mow The Lawn... Top Couple arch over the other line back to the top-Cut Their Hair... Top Couple Sashay to Bottom, Make an Arch The two lines face down, go down and around the Top (soon to be Bottom) Couple Through the arch, and, as the line goes under, make an Arch when couples go through the last arch (made by the couple they've been following). In other words, Building a Tunnel. When teaching the Top Couple to make an arch I teach taking one hand as they face the line. By the second or third time, couple start doing the arch with two hands, thus, I don't know why I bother... Like other dances as the Virginia Reel, sets can easily get out of sync. If they do, I watch and stop calling except to remind un-sync-ed if they forgot something. So many times when teaching the Virginia Reel, dancers want to do the "build a tunnel" and I (and most likely most of you) have to teach promenading up and not passing anyone. Now they get to build it! Thinking of making the first Hands Four dance Easier For years I've called the dance at the Full Belly Farm's "Hoes Down" where they put their hoes down and dance. I've used Jefferson & Liberty, but, in sets on an empty field where sets can easily get 20-couples long or longer, and not wanting to take even more time bi and trifurcating sets into shorter sets. I think I presented Barbarella earlier, and it got me thinking: would it be easier to teach a phrased progressive dance in Becket Formation ending by sliding left to a new couple? So, I'm going to try a couple of ideas at my next One Night Stand: Start getting lines in becket formation. My first thought is to star with Long Lines going forward and back, to reinforce that we are dancing with everyone, but I can also starting by teaching a slice and then putting that slice as B2. That said, these just thinking right now: My First Try: A1 LLF&B; Neighbor across Do Si Do A2 Partner Do Si Do, Swing (any way) B1 Face Down for Line of Four Down the Hall, Turn as a Couple (or, uh, not), Return B2 Circle Left, Circle Right, Slide Right to next couple to A1 LLF&B Or A1 w/ Couple Across: Circle Left, then Right A2 w/ Neighbor Across: DSD, Two Hand Turn B1 Back on Own Side: Ptnr DSD, Two Hand Turn (or Swing any kind) B2 Looking to the Left: Long Lines go Forward to a New Couple, then Straight Back, to A1 with New Nbr I think these might be easier to explain to complete novices. Any thoughts? ~Erik Hoffman Oakland, CA

1 year, 11 months

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Contra Callers