http://books.google.com/books/about/Creating_Community.html?id=NpZdXwAACAAJ
Rasby Marlene Powell's 1997 sociology dissertation, Florida State University: Creating Community -- An Ethnography of Old-time Dance Groups.
Richard Hopkins
850-894-9212 at home
850-544-7614 mobile
Hopkinsrs(a)comcast.net
Sent from my iPhone
Calling all contra dance callers! The CDSS (Country Dance and Song Society) Contra Dance Task Group wants to find out how CDSS can better support contra dance callers. We encourage you to take our survey at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/VFC5FK7 so CDSS can hear your ideas, concerns, and questions directly. We will send you a summary of the results if you provide us with your email address at the end of the survey.
The survey is truly geared to contra callers of all experience levels from brand new to retired, so the more information you give us about your calling experiences, the better. We are focusing on learning about needed resources for North American contra callers, but we welcome any feedback from callers on other continents as well. We want to hear from as many of the hundreds of contra callers as possible, so please encourage your fellow callers to respond.
Even if you don’t take the survey, we’d like to keep you informed about the survey results and the availability of new contra dance caller resources. Go to the survey http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/VFC5FK7 and choose the "I can't do it now..." item.
We look forward to hearing from you very soon.
Lynn Ackerson (El Cerrito, CA)
Emily Addison (Ottawa, ONT)
David Chandler (Metuchen, NJ)
Martha Edwards (St. Louis, MO)
Lisa Greenleaf (Bolton, MA)
Chris Page (San Diego, CA)
Louise Siddons (Stillwater, OK)
Mary Wesley (Ferrisburg, VT)
Rhodri Davies and I are both running Zesty Playford workshops at
Eastbourne Folk Festival in a weeks' time. I've written a set of
notes, some of which I intend to use then, and would welcome feedback
either through the list or direct to me.
http://www.colinhume.com/dezesty.htm
Colin Hume
Holy Ghost (improper) by Maia McCormick
A1: neighbor gypsy (right)
half hey, women by L
A1: neighbor gypsy (right)
neighbor swing
B1: circle L 3/4
partner swing
B2: R/L through across
circle left 3/4 and pass through
Aside from "partner" and "neighbor," "balance" may be the most frequently
used word in calling, and experienced dancers and callers alike tend to
forget that beginners do not automatically know what it is. I teach it at the
very top of the lesson, particularly because it's used to launch other
moves -- balance and swing, balance the ring and.... I describe it as a
step-forward+tap and step-backward+tap, and emphasize that the convention is to
shift your weight forward onto the right foot first (many beginners will
start with the left foot), and then shift it onto the left foot, because the
next move is frequently to the right, but that either is acceptable.
April Blum
> This won't be for everybody -- but -- in an orientation I sometimes tell people that a balance is a lot like some relationships I have been in: when the other person gets too close you push them away, and when they get too far away you pull them closer. Another way of saying it's all in the arms, and there is always tension in the arms.
Richard Hopkins
Hopkinsrs at Comcast.net
8508949212
There have been a number of references to balances always involving a
stomp.
I was under the impression that there were lots of ways to balance, many
of which don't involve a stomp. I usually teach "balance to the
right-2-3, to the left-2-3".
I did notice more stomping than I was familiar with at The Flurry this
year, just step right, stamp left, step left, stamp right.
Is stomping now the standard across America?
What do YOU teach as the footwork in a balance?
See
http://www.izaak.unh.edu/dlp/NorthernJunket/pages/NJv05/NJv05-01/NJv.05.
01.p13.htm for 50 variations of the balance.
Thanks.
Happy dancing,
John
John Sweeney, Dancer, England john(a)modernjive.com 01233 625 362
http://www.contrafusion.co.uk for Dancing in Kent
Greg wrote:
This sounds like a program suitable for a dance weekend or festival--but
not for an open, public contra dance. What would you offer as a "high
energy" dance at an open, public contra dance with first-timers in the mix?
Now I understand, that's where lots of balances would be good. They would help to anchor the dancers.
How about:
Salmonella Evening by Steve ZA
More 'O More by Jim Kitch
The Baby Rose by David Kaynor
Jill
