[n.b. this has been 'cross posted' to the yahoo traditional callers list, in case anyone is on
both lists...]
This post from a llooonnnngg time dancer and first time caller who is
requesting some advice for an unusual situation...but as it is my
first post, I will explain a little about myself, and along the way
that will explain the unusual situation and help guide and refine any
replies.
My name is david crespo, a name some of you no doubt fear -- I mean
recognize -- or would (recognize, that is) (if you saw my ugly
mug) (well, maybe fear...) from my 20 odd (quite odd) years of
dancing and involvement in the dance community in New England, mostly
Vermont (Etna, Norwich, Thetford, to Northern Spy etc.) and Maine
(SMFA (Yarmouth), Falmouth, Bates, Bowdoinham...). As some of you
thus know, about 3 years ago, at a Wake the Neighbors Bates dance I
was met by a cute and not very frightening Japanese exchange student,
Yukie, who with a very little gentle nudging at Deffa a week later,
eventually (rapidly, that is) was able to parlay that happenstance
circumstance into what is now a beautiful and happy marriage. She
returned to Japan shortly after we completed our courtship and about
a year later I followed. We're living in Kyoto.
Alas, there is one tragic note attending this otherwise joyous and
perfect scenario. Japan, you see, is a land thouroughly devoid of one
essential nutrient: contradancing. You can imagine my dismay, tears,
and lamentations. Sadly, then, since my arrival, I have been quietly
(well not so quietly) teaching english while secretly incubating evil
plans to conquer Japan, then Asia, then the world in 64 (drastic)
measures (hmmm--- good name for a dance). This month, my long patient
agony of waiting has begun to pay off. I have been given the
opportunity to indoctrinate a few trusting and innocent souls into
the sublime mysteries of la dance du contra and create an army of
swiftfooted robots, ready and willing to do my bidding at every call.
SOON I WILL CONQUER THE WORLD!!!
ahem.
please excuse me while my medicine kicks in. Ah, yes, thank you. OK,
where was I? The fact is, my wife and I have been invited to lead a
contradance workshop at a local festival on October 20. When we found
out, we began doing as much research as we could on calling and so
on. We found a few basic dances, like Baby Rose and Diane's Visit and
Atonement Reel that we like and figured would be suitable and we have
been practicing calling them. But I really welcome any suggestions...
Actually, above and beyond some decades of doing things proper and
improper, I took a caller workshop or two from Rick Mohr (thanks
Rick) so I have a rough idea of what's involved. And I've learned a
bit from practicing calling and writing a few ad hoc dances on my
own. For example, I learned that being a dancer has habituated me to
act ON the beat, but as a caller I need to act BEFORE the beat,
eh....this flustered me at first. Are there any other typical first
caller pointers we should be on the lookout for?
In addition, there are a few other associated circumstances in this
project that create the aforementioned unique situation. In brief
(HA! fooled you), since I've rattled on too long, here is what I mean:
I don't speak more than the rudiments of Japanese. My wife is still a
beginner dancer, to wit, she isn't a strong enough one to call on her
own. Between us we are trying to teach each other what the other
lacks and hopefully make one good caller out of the two of us. One
question that has come up is is it better to keep the standard names
for the figures, or to Japanify them. (We are leaning to the
former...Japanese has a very high percentage of english loan words,
and they learn english (poooooorly) in school.) Still, has anyone
ever tried to call across a language barrier?
Japanese are touch sensitve. They don't touch, they don't give eye
contact. They don't give weight. (They give wait). They don't hug.
They don't even say I love you. They are very shy. For example, I am
told that this is to the point that standing in a line of men facing
a line of women is likely be uncomfortable, even for the younger
generation, so Yukie feels we should use mixed couples with armbands
to distinguish "gender"--I mean position. As we build a community of
experienced dancers, it would be expected that some of this
inhibition might wear off...). You can see why they need to dance. On
the other hand, they are good followers. Any advice for working with
a shy crowd?
Some or many of the attendees at this workshop, we just found out,
are likely to be children. Depending on the percentage, it may be
necessary to do a kids dance, or at least a dance kids could enjoy. I
am good at working with kids in general, but I would love any advice
for doing a dance with young people. I don't know or haven't been
able to find any children's dances, though I assume the Family Dance
in Yarmouth is still up and I plan to contact Jeff Raymond about it,
because I can't remember the caller's name (Nancy....) (though we
have danced and chatted about dancing and calling several times at
the May Day Festival...gads! say hi if you're listening..).
So, children's dances are one thing I am looking for.
We are working in a small space...maybe two lines of six couples
each. Advice for small spaces???　
We are doing three workshops. If the same people return, we may do
more advanced things, or we may just repeat teh workshop...but I
would like to try different dances each time, for my practice.
The room will be full of beginners, so no experienced dancers to rely
on. Ballroom dancing had a certain following here (and in Kyoto there
is a small set dancing group that we visited...small 14 or so... and
a square dancing group that we plan to visit. ) but not enough to be
helpful, in the sense that there are few cultural supports for
learning (i.e. in the US most everyone knows (even if they don't
admit it) how to at least fake a waltz or ballroom position...not
here.) Think martian territory...
I should add that we are seriously working towards starting a regular
dance here (we've found an available and very suitable space, a
church hall in a nearby church, for example) and this is for us a
tryout and possible stepping stone. We want to whet people's
appetite, and leave them wanting more. We have a half hour to do it...
OK...apologies for the verbose and windy post. Fond regards to all of
you I know, hajimemashite ("nice to meet you" in japanese, literally
"beginning") to the rest and many thanks in advance for your time and
help...cheers...david
nothing rhymes with nostril...
____________________________________________________________________________________
Don't let your dream ride pass you by. Make it a reality with Yahoo! Autos.
http://autos.yahoo.com/index.html
David,
I was likely calling the dance when you met Yukie. Congratulations! No
wonder I haven't seen you around lately.
I have to very strongly urge you to follow the advice of Lindsey and Lisa.
That is exactly what I would do. Keep it VERY BASIC or as Ted Sannella
advised, KISS!
That said, check with Eric Black <eric(a)mirador.com>. I know Eric from
NEFFA among other venues. He has lived in Tokyo and led contra dancing
there. I can't vouch for the above email but he was in the Bay Area last I knew.
Good lick, John McIntire, Unity Maine
David,
Greetings from Maine, glad to hear all is well with you...
We've been presenting some community contradances for non-dancers/beginners this past summer, we are both new callers... We've had great results starting with a Bastringue style circle dance, then a Galopede longways set... Both are easy to call and dance to at the same time, and being right in the dance helps a lot because you're teaching by example... If people don't quite understand your instructions, they can watch and see what you are doing, and then the instruction makes more sense... These two dances, with instruction and walk through and some dancing should take up most of a half hour...
After these two dances, we have a good idea whether we should continue on to a contra that progresses, and if so, we do Haste to the Wedding... We only add one new figure with each new dance that gets taught, and we look for that point where the dancers are not picking up anything new... From that point on, we select dances that have all the moves learned up to that point, but different sequences with different music so it feels like a new dance...
Have plenty of flexibility in your program so that you can stay at the beginner level with circles & longways sets, and also have some easy duple contras in the event that the crowd gets it and wants to do more... Remember, if the dancers are having a good time, you're doing a great job!
Good luck, and nice to hear from you...
Richard & Pam Green
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Today's Topics:
1. Japan dance and self intro/update
(sharedweight.99.kyoto(a)spamgourmet.com)
2. Re: Japan dance and self intro/update (Lindsay Morris)
3. Re: Japan dance and self intro/update (Greg McKenzie)
4. Re: Japan dance and self intro/update
(Alan Winston - SSRL Central Computing)
5. Re: Japan dance and self intro/update (Lisa Sieverts)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
Date: Tue, 2 Oct 2007 11:59:28 -0700 (PDT)
From: sharedweight.99.kyoto(a)spamgourmet.com
Subject: [Callers] Japan dance and self intro/update
To: callers(a)sharedweight.net
Message-ID: <74363.4139.qm(a)web38705.mail.mud.yahoo.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
[n.b. this has been 'cross posted' to the yahoo traditional callers list, in case anyone is on
both lists...]
This post from a llooonnnngg time dancer and first time caller who is
requesting some advice for an unusual situation...but as it is my
first post, I will explain a little about myself, and along the way
that will explain the unusual situation and help guide and refine any
replies.
My name is david crespo, a name some of you no doubt fear -- I mean
recognize -- or would (recognize, that is) (if you saw my ugly
mug) (well, maybe fear...) from my 20 odd (quite odd) years of
dancing and involvement in the dance community in New England, mostly
Vermont (Etna, Norwich, Thetford, to Northern Spy etc.) and Maine
(SMFA (Yarmouth), Falmouth, Bates, Bowdoinham...). As some of you
thus know, about 3 years ago, at a Wake the Neighbors Bates dance I
was met by a cute and not very frightening Japanese exchange student,
Yukie, who with a very little gentle nudging at Deffa a week later,
eventually (rapidly, that is) was able to parlay that happenstance
circumstance into what is now a beautiful and happy marriage. She
returned to Japan shortly after we completed our courtship and about
a year later I followed. We're living in Kyoto.
Alas, there is one tragic note attending this otherwise joyous and
perfect scenario. Japan, you see, is a land thouroughly devoid of one
essential nutrient: contradancing. You can imagine my dismay, tears,
and lamentations. Sadly, then, since my arrival, I have been quietly
(well not so quietly) teaching english while secretly incubating evil
plans to conquer Japan, then Asia, then the world in 64 (drastic)
measures (hmmm--- good name for a dance). This month, my long patient
agony of waiting has begun to pay off. I have been given the
opportunity to indoctrinate a few trusting and innocent souls into
the sublime mysteries of la dance du contra and create an army of
swiftfooted robots, ready and willing to do my bidding at every call.
SOON I WILL CONQUER THE WORLD!!!
ahem.
please excuse me while my medicine kicks in. Ah, yes, thank you. OK,
where was I? The fact is, my wife and I have been invited to lead a
contradance workshop at a local festival on October 20. When we found
out, we began doing as much research as we could on calling and so
on. We found a few basic dances, like Baby Rose and Diane's Visit and
Atonement Reel that we like and figured would be suitable and we have
been practicing calling them. But I really welcome any suggestions...
Actually, above and beyond some decades of doing things proper and
improper, I took a caller workshop or two from Rick Mohr (thanks
Rick) so I have a rough idea of what's involved. And I've learned a
bit from practicing calling and writing a few ad hoc dances on my
own. For example, I learned that being a dancer has habituated me to
act ON the beat, but as a caller I need to act BEFORE the beat,
eh....this flustered me at first. Are there any other typical first
caller pointers we should be on the lookout for?
In addition, there are a few other associated circumstances in this
project that create the aforementioned unique situation. In brief
(HA! fooled you), since I've rattled on too long, here is what I mean:
I don't speak more than the rudiments of Japanese. My wife is still a
beginner dancer, to wit, she isn't a strong enough one to call on her
own. Between us we are trying to teach each other what the other
lacks and hopefully make one good caller out of the two of us. One
question that has come up is is it better to keep the standard names
for the figures, or to Japanify them. (We are leaning to the
former...Japanese has a very high percentage of english loan words,
and they learn english (poooooorly) in school.) Still, has anyone
ever tried to call across a language barrier?
Japanese are touch sensitve. They don't touch, they don't give eye
contact. They don't give weight. (They give wait). They don't hug.
They don't even say I love you. They are very shy. For example, I am
told that this is to the point that standing in a line of men facing
a line of women is likely be uncomfortable, even for the younger
generation, so Yukie feels we should use mixed couples with armbands
to distinguish "gender"--I mean position. As we build a community of
experienced dancers, it would be expected that some of this
inhibition might wear off...). You can see why they need to dance. On
the other hand, they are good followers. Any advice for working with
a shy crowd?
Some or many of the attendees at this workshop, we just found out,
are likely to be children. Depending on the percentage, it may be
necessary to do a kids dance, or at least a dance kids could enjoy. I
am good at working with kids in general, but I would love any advice
for doing a dance with young people. I don't know or haven't been
able to find any children's dances, though I assume the Family Dance
in Yarmouth is still up and I plan to contact Jeff Raymond about it,
because I can't remember the caller's name (Nancy....) (though we
have danced and chatted about dancing and calling several times at
the May Day Festival...gads! say hi if you're listening..).
So, children's dances are one thing I am looking for.
We are working in a small space...maybe two lines of six couples
each. Advice for small spaces???@
We are doing three workshops. If the same people return, we may do
more advanced things, or we may just repeat teh workshop...but I
would like to try different dances each time, for my practice.
The room will be full of beginners, so no experienced dancers to rely
on. Ballroom dancing had a certain following here (and in Kyoto there
is a small set dancing group that we visited...small 14 or so... and
a square dancing group that we plan to visit. ) but not enough to be
helpful, in the sense that there are few cultural supports for
learning (i.e. in the US most everyone knows (even if they don't
admit it) how to at least fake a waltz or ballroom position...not
here.) Think martian territory...
I should add that we are seriously working towards starting a regular
dance here (we've found an available and very suitable space, a
church hall in a nearby church, for example) and this is for us a
tryout and possible stepping stone. We want to whet people's
appetite, and leave them wanting more. We have a half hour to do it...
OK...apologies for the verbose and windy post. Fond regards to all of
you I know, hajimemashite ("nice to meet you" in japanese, literally
"beginning") to the rest and many thanks in advance for your time and
help...cheers...david
nothing rhymes with nostril...
____________________________________________________________________________________
Don't let your dream ride pass you by. Make it a reality with Yahoo! Autos.
http://autos.yahoo.com/index.html
------------------------------
Message: 2
Date: Tue, 02 Oct 2007 15:23:07 -0400
From: Lindsay Morris
Subject: Re: [Callers] Japan dance and self intro/update
To: Caller's discussion list
Message-ID: <47029A9B.1020203(a)tsmworks.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Wow, you're biting off too much.
Teach them community-dance stuff first - circle mixers, easy things to
get them used to touching, allemanding, and giving weight.
If they refuse to take hands and circle left, then I suggest you fake a
heart attack and get out.
Lindsay Morris
Principal
TSMworks
[1]www.tsmworks.com
859-539-9900
[2]sharedweight.99.kyoto(a)spamgourmet.com wrote:
[n.b. this has been 'cross posted' to the yahoo traditional callers list, in cas
e anyone is on
both lists...]
This post from a llooonnnngg time dancer and first time caller who is
requesting some advice for an unusual situation...but as it is my
first post, I will explain a little about myself, and along the way
that will explain the unusual situation and help guide and refine any
replies.
My name is david crespo, a name some of you no doubt fear -- I mean
recognize -- or would (recognize, that is) (if you saw my ugly
mug) (well, maybe fear...) from my 20 odd (quite odd) years of
dancing and involvement in the dance community in New England, mostly
Vermont (Etna, Norwich, Thetford, to Northern Spy etc.) and Maine
(SMFA (Yarmouth), Falmouth, Bates, Bowdoinham...). As some of you
thus know, about 3 years ago, at a Wake the Neighbors Bates dance I
was met by a cute and not very frightening Japanese exchange student,
Yukie, who with a very little gentle nudging at Deffa a week later,
eventually (rapidly, that is) was able to parlay that happenstance
circumstance into what is now a beautiful and happy marriage. She
returned to Japan shortly after we completed our courtship and about
a year later I followed. We're living in Kyoto.
Alas, there is one tragic note attending this otherwise joyous and
perfect scenario. Japan, you see, is a land thouroughly devoid of one
essential nutrient: contradancing. You can imagine my dismay, tears,
and lamentations. Sadly, then, since my arrival, I have been quietly
(well not so quietly) teaching english while secretly incubating evil
plans to conquer Japan, then Asia, then the world in 64 (drastic)
measures (hmmm--- good name for a dance). This month, my long patient
agony of waiting has begun to pay off. I have been given the
opportunity to indoctrinate a few trusting and innocent souls into
the sublime mysteries of la dance du contra and create an army of
swiftfooted robots, ready and willing to do my bidding at every call.
SOON I WILL CONQUER THE WORLD!!!
ahem.
please excuse me while my medicine kicks in. Ah, yes, thank you. OK,
where was I? The fact is, my wife and I have been invited to lead a
contradance workshop at a local festival on October 20. When we found
out, we began doing as much research as we could on calling and so
on. We found a few basic dances, like Baby Rose and Diane's Visit and
Atonement Reel that we like and figured would be suitable and we have
been practicing calling them. But I really welcome any suggestions...
Actually, above and beyond some decades of doing things proper and
improper, I took a caller workshop or two from Rick Mohr (thanks
Rick) so I have a rough idea of what's involved. And I've learned a
bit from practicing calling and writing a few ad hoc dances on my
own. For example, I learned that being a dancer has habituated me to
act ON the beat, but as a caller I need to act BEFORE the beat,
eh....this flustered me at first. Are there any other typical first
caller pointers we should be on the lookout for?
In addition, there are a few other associated circumstances in this
project that create the aforementioned unique situation. In brief
(HA! fooled you), since I've rattled on too long, here is what I mean:
I don't speak more than the rudiments of Japanese. My wife is still a
beginner dancer, to wit, she isn't a strong enough one to call on her
own. Between us we are trying to teach each other what the other
lacks and hopefully make one good caller out of the two of us. One
question that has come up is is it better to keep the standard names
for the figures, or to Japanify them. (We are leaning to the
former...Japanese has a very high percentage of english loan words,
and they learn english (poooooorly) in school.) Still, has anyone
ever tried to call across a language barrier?
Japanese are touch sensitve. They don't touch, they don't give eye
contact. They don't give weight. (They give wait). They don't hug.
They don't even say I love you. They are very shy. For example, I am
told that this is to the point that standing in a line of men facing
a line of women is likely be uncomfortable, even for the younger
generation, so Yukie feels we should use mixed couples with armbands
to distinguish "gender"--I mean position. As we build a community of
experienced dancers, it would be expected that some of this
inhibition might wear off...). You can see why they need to dance. On
the other hand, they are good followers. Any advice for working with
a shy crowd?
Some or many of the attendees at this workshop, we just found out,
are likely to be children. Depending on the percentage, it may be
necessary to do a kids dance, or at least a dance kids could enjoy. I
am good at working with kids in general, but I would love any advice
for doing a dance with young people. I don't know or haven't been
able to find any children's dances, though I assume the Family Dance
in Yarmouth is still up and I plan to contact Jeff Raymond about it,
because I can't remember the caller's name (Nancy....) (though we
have danced and chatted about dancing and calling several times at
the May Day Festival...gads! say hi if you're listening..).
So, children's dances are one thing I am looking for.
We are working in a small space...maybe two lines of six couples
each. Advice for small spaces???@
We are doing three workshops. If the same people return, we may do
more advanced things, or we may just repeat teh workshop...but I
would like to try different dances each time, for my practice.
The room will be full of beginners, so no experienced dancers to rely
on. Ballroom dancing had a certain following here (and in Kyoto there
is a small set dancing group that we visited...small 14 or so... and
a square dancing group that we plan to visit. ) but not enough to be
helpful, in the sense that there are few cultural supports for
learning (i.e. in the US most everyone knows (even if they don't
admit it) how to at least fake a waltz or ballroom position...not
here.) Think martian territory...
I should add that we are seriously working towards starting a regular
dance here (we've found an available and very suitable space, a
church hall in a nearby church, for example) and this is for us a
tryout and possible stepping stone. We want to whet people's
appetite, and leave them wanting more. We have a half hour to do it...
OK...apologies for the verbose and windy post. Fond regards to all of
you I know, hajimemashite ("nice to meet you" in japanese, literally
"beginning") to the rest and many thanks in advance for your time and
help...cheers...david
nothing rhymes with nostril...
__________________________________________________________________________
__________
Don't let your dream ride pass you by. Make it a reality with Yahoo! Autos.
[3]http://autos.yahoo.com/index.html
_______________________________________________
Callers mailing list
[4]Callers(a)sharedweight.net
[5]http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
References
1. http://www.tsmworks.com/
2. mailto:sharedweight.99.kyoto@spamgourmet.com
3. http://autos.yahoo.com/index.html
4. mailto:Callers@sharedweight.net
5. http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
Hey, David,
Here's an experience you may find instructive:
Back when I was pretty darn new to this calling business, I was asked to call a dance for a mixed group of high school kids -- about 30 American and 60 Russian. The event was in Hardwick, VT in the high school gym and it was the Russian visitors who pulled things together for the American kids, who looked and acted like the last thing they wanted was to do some weird dancing to weirder fiddle tunes. As is often the case, there were more English speakers among the Russians than Russian speakers among the Americans, and very few American kids felt up to finding Russian partners -- it was usually the Russian girls who would put an American kid on the spot and claim him as a partner. Sounds like you won't have a mixed group, though--it might be all, or almost all, Japanese.
To cut to the chase, there was an interpreter with the visitors, a blowsy woman with a voice any caller would be happy to have. She stood beside me and translated my instructions in what sounded like very succinct and clear terms. After forming the set and getting everyone's "hands joined in circles of four", I went down to the center set and used the "duck-duck-goose" method of showing who the ones and twos were, using gestures to indicate how they would interact then progress in opposite directions. Before I could get too smug about how their eager smiles and nods reflected on my own skills, I suddenly realized that the interpreter had shadowed me closely, mimicking my every move and gesture to everyone's great amusement and insight. I pantomimed arriving at the end of the set to find no more couples, turning around and waiting, and starting back up the set, the entire time still being copied by the interpreter. The whole deal took about three minutes, but it broke the ice and reluctance for everybody on the floor and the rest of the walkthrough was a piece of cake. The rest of the evening was a complete success, thanks to that interpreter. With her, it probably would have been possible to do well with a 100% Russian group. Without her, things that night might have had an entirely different outcome.
The moral of the story for me was "act out more and speak less," and have a good interpreter if possible. Since you're dealing with festival-goers, you won't have to cope with outright aversion to even being there, but I suspect you'll be able to take the actual temperature of your group as soon as you see the manner in which they collect on the floor. Be ready to adapt on the fly. There have been many great suggestions in this email group about the best dances for beginners, and about the importance of choosing dances where the foursome maintains strong unambiguous physical connection as much as possible.
You didn't mention the musical resources you'll have or won't have, and they will probably be as critical as anything else. A live band, I hope? Strongly-phrased tunes with steady rhythms seem more important than the actual choice of tunes or the band's level of virtuosity, but good music really does make for good dancing. If you have tunes with easily-noticed differences between the A and B parts, it'll make it easier for you to keep track of where you are in the process. Don't ask the band to play much slower than usual--it's much harder to dance in slow motion--but you don't want the band racing through the tunes in an attempt to make them seem more exciting.
There will probably be many more good suggestions from the many truly talented contributors to this group, but I hope these will be of some value.
Good luck!
Chip Hedler
(Norwich, VT!)
Dear David,
I agree with Lindsay. Contras are hinged to a deep tradition and a well-established ritual. To start from scratch it will take at least a generation to get a "real" contra dance going.
I suggest you put out the word through whatever media you can and try to contact other contra dancers in Japan. You may be surprised to learn how many there are. If you can get a crowd with at least 20% dancers with some contra experience you can make it work...provided your calling is very precise.
I have organized three contra dance tours of the former Soviet Union. One thing I learned is that you don't need a caller who speaks the native tongue, as long as you have a core of experienced dancers. In fact, calling in English is recommended. The new dancers will learn by watching and dancing with those who have done it before. They won't learn from verbal descriptions in any language.
Good Luck,
Greg McKenzie
-----Original Message-----
>From: Lindsay Morris <lindsay(a)tsmworks.com>
>Sent: Oct 2, 2007 3:23 PM
>To: Caller's discussion list <callers(a)sharedweight.net>
>Subject: Re: [Callers] Japan dance and self intro/update
>
> Wow, you're biting off too much.
> Teach them community-dance stuff first - circle mixers, easy things to
> get them used to touching, allemanding, and giving weight.
> If they refuse to take hands and circle left, then I suggest you fake a
> heart attack and get out.
>Lindsay Morris
>Principal
>TSMworks
>[1]www.tsmworks.com
>859-539-9900
Hi Folks,
I'm finally getting ready to consider buying a wireless microphone -
handheld, not a headset. What are the minimum requirements I should
consider? What should I expect to pay for such a mic (with receiver)?
Any/all advice is appreciated. Feel free to point me elsewhere.
Thanks,
Warren
If you're on a PC, British caller, choreographer, and computer programmer Colin
Hume has a program that he devised for doing just what you've described. you can
find full details at this site:
http://www.colinhume.com/download.htm
Good luck.
David Millstone
Lebanon, NH
I'm looking for a way to get my collection of hand written dances into a
computer. I'd love to hear what programs other callers use, have used, etc
along with their limitations and strengths. A strong "search"
component would be a feature that I'd want such a program to have.
Any advice and/or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks - Deb
Many thanks to all who post on this list. I enjoy reading the digests, and digesting them myself - to inform my calling practice (whether the posts are about repertoire, teaching techniques, attitude and philosophical underpinnings, affirmation +/or virtual-kicks-in-the-behind, or sheer entertainment.) A gift indeed.
Chrissy Fowler* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Check out our dance series at http://www.belfastflyingshoes.org home 207-338-0979 cell 603-498-3506
_________________________________________________________________
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Re: When to abort a dance?
Some time ago we had a situation where the scheduled caller was
suddenly unable to call one night, so several of us took turns during
the night. Our banjo player is a caller, so she left the band to get
up and call a few, then sat down again. The next caller was teaching
a dance, when suddenly, just as we were called upon for the four
potatoes, not only did I recognize it as one I wrote, but I realized
it was the same dance that my friend had called earlier. We stared at
each other, began playing, and watched. Nothing seemed to happen,
everyone danced happily. At the end of the dance I asked a few of the
dancers what they thought of the dance, and they were all happy -
when I told them it was one they'd done previously in the evening,
their common response was "No wonder it seemed so familiar!" But no
one seemed aware at the time that it was the same dance. And we all
got a laugh out of it.
So, Chris, don't sweat it too much! It probably seemed worse than it
was because you were feeling worse than usual. If you "smile and keep
moving" as my aunt says, a lot will be forgiven and forgotten.
Martha
On Sep 26, 2007, at 5:50 AM, callers-request(a)sharedweight.net wrote:
> Send Callers mailing list submissions to
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>
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> than "Re: Contents of Callers digest..."
>
>
> Today's Topics:
>
> 1. when to abort a dance (Chris Weiler)
> 2. Re: when to abort a dance (Alan Winston - SSRL Central
> Computing)
> 3. Re: when to abort a dance (Robert Golder)
> 4. Please Correct A Pirate (Rickey)
> 5. Re: Please Correct A Pirate (David Giusti)
> 6. Re: when to abort a dance (Dan Black)
> 7. Re: Please Correct A Pirate (Tepfer, Seth)
> 8. Re: Please Correct A Pirate (Lisa Greenleaf)
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Message: 1
> Date: Wed, 26 Sep 2007 00:51:14 -0400
> From: Chris Weiler <chris.weiler(a)weirdtable.org>
> Subject: [Callers] when to abort a dance
> To: Shared Weight <callers(a)sharedweight.net>
> Message-ID: <46F9E542.1000707(a)weirdtable.org>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
>
> Hello everyone,
>
> Tonight I had a pretty bad gig (just a hint: don't schedule a dentist
> appointment for the afternoon before your gig). So tonight I made some
> choreographic goofs when choosing my dances. One dance I realized that
> it didn't flow as well as I would have hoped after the walkthrough.
> Should I have aborted and called something else? Tom Hinds has a
> line "I
> don't like that dance, let's do something else". However, he usually
> follows it by teaching the very same dance again. I stuck with it and
> just ran the dance a little shorter.
>
> The same thing happened a little later when I called two dances in
> a row
> with the sequence: ladies chain, ladies "x" once around, partner
> swing.
> I realized it during the walk through, but went ahead and called it
> anyway.
>
> What do you think? Abort or deal with it?
>
> Chris Weiler
> Goffstown, NH
> http://www.chrisweiler.ws/
>
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 2
> Date: Tue, 25 Sep 2007 21:54:37 -0700 (PDT)
> From: Alan Winston - SSRL Central Computing
> <winston(a)slac.stanford.edu>
> Subject: Re: [Callers] when to abort a dance
> To: Chris Weiler <chris.weiler(a)weirdtable.org>
> Cc: Shared Weight <callers(a)sharedweight.net>
> Message-ID: <01MLSHX9KT92FP4SVF(a)SSRL.SLAC.STANFORD.EDU>
> Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=us-ascii
>
> Chris wrote:
>
>> Tonight I had a pretty bad gig (just a hint: don't schedule a dentist
>> appointment for the afternoon before your gig). So tonight I made
>> some
>> choreographic goofs when choosing my dances. One dance I realized
>> that
>> it didn't flow as well as I would have hoped after the walkthrough.
>> Should I have aborted and called something else? Tom Hinds has a
>> line "I
>> don't like that dance, let's do something else". However, he usually
>> follows it by teaching the very same dance again. I stuck with it and
>> just ran the dance a little shorter.
>
> What wastes as little as possible of the dancer's time? Bag it if
> it doesn't
> work during the walkthrough, but if it's merely a little
> infelicitous in the
> dance and you can keep it working by prompting, then running it
> long enough
> that it feels like a dance, but not as long as a *good* dance seems
> like a good
> choice.
>
>> The same thing happened a little later when I called two dances in
>> a row
>> with the sequence: ladies chain, ladies "x" once around, partner
>> swing.
>> I realized it during the walk through, but went ahead and called
>> it anyway.
>
>> What do you think? Abort or deal with it?
>
> Depends on the crowd, and on where you are in the evening. If
> there are enough
> beginners, doing something like this can be a positive, confidence-
> building
> strategy. If there are too many sharpies in the crowd, you can
> expect joshing
> later.
>
> But you're really asking how to make judgments when your judgment's
> impaired
> (by pain or anesthesia or whatever). That's a harder question.
>
> -- Alan
>
> --
> ======================================================================
> =========
> Alan Winston --- WINSTON(a)SSRL.SLAC.STANFORD.EDU
> Disclaimer: I speak only for myself, not SLAC or SSRL Phone:
> 650/926-3056
> Paper mail to: SSRL -- SLAC BIN 99, 2575 Sand Hill Rd, Menlo Park
> CA 94025
> ======================================================================
> =========
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 3
> Date: Wed, 26 Sep 2007 01:18:45 -0400
> From: Robert Golder <robertgolder(a)comcast.net>
> Subject: Re: [Callers] when to abort a dance
> To: Caller's discussion list <callers(a)sharedweight.net>
> Message-ID: <1b344666e77c5116fe3e7c28a6f83d19(a)comcast.net>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; format=flowed
>
> It's extremely useful to have some dances thoroughly memorized. I
> would
> call something else if I knew what the "something else" was going
> to be
> (preferably using one of my can't-fail memorized dances), and
> understood why the new dance I selected was going to work better than
> my original choice. Otherwise, I'd just accept that the next couple of
> dances share some choreography, call them as well as possible, and
> move
> on. Whichever option you choose, decide quickly and carry out your
> decision with confidence. ... Bob
>
> Robert Jon Golder
> 164 Maxfield St
> New Bedford, MA 02740 USA
> 508-999-2486
>
> On Sep 26, 2007, at 12:51 AM, Chris Weiler wrote:
>
>> Hello everyone,
>>
>> Tonight I had a pretty bad gig (just a hint: don't schedule a dentist
>> appointment for the afternoon before your gig). So tonight I made
>> some
>> choreographic goofs when choosing my dances. One dance I realized
>> that
>> it didn't flow as well as I would have hoped after the walkthrough.
>> Should I have aborted and called something else? Tom Hinds has a line
>> "I
>> don't like that dance, let's do something else". However, he usually
>> follows it by teaching the very same dance again. I stuck with it and
>> just ran the dance a little shorter.
>>
>> The same thing happened a little later when I called two dances in a
>> row
>> with the sequence: ladies chain, ladies "x" once around, partner
>> swing.
>> I realized it during the walk through, but went ahead and called it
>> anyway.
>>
>> What do you think? Abort or deal with it?
>>
>> Chris Weiler
>> Goffstown, NH
>> http://www.chrisweiler.ws/
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 4
> Date: Wed, 26 Sep 2007 07:19:18 -0400
> From: "Rickey" <holt.e(a)comcast.net>
> Subject: [Callers] Please Correct A Pirate
> To: <callers(a)sharedweight.net>
> Message-ID: <000001c8002f$1672e2f0$020fa8c0@maxx>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>
> Hi I have some more incomplete notes on dances. Hard as I try, my
> own notes
> don?t always make sense to me when I get to look at them. I very much
> appreciate the help I have gotten in the past. Here are questions
> on some
> more. If you know any of these dances I would appreciate you help
> again.
>
> Rickey Holt, Fremont, NH
>
> A Pirate?s Life for Me, author?
>
> (Duple Improper)
>
> A1 Neighbor Balance and Swing
>
> A2 Pass to a wave (men slide past each other into a wavey
> line of 4
> across the set)
>
> ??????
>
> Men Allemande Left to Partner
>
> B1 Partner Balance and Swing
>
> B2 Women Dos 1 ?
>
> Neighbor Gypsy (just a ?glance?)
>
> Progress to New Neighbors
>
> QUESTION: My notes on A2 seem incomplete
>
>
>
> Feet in Flight, Dale Rempert
>
> (Duple Improper)
>
> in A1 (4) Balance the ring
>
> (4) Ladies Roll neighbor GENT away with a 1/2 sashay
> (Rt to L)
>
> (8) Ladies chain to Partner
>
> QUESTION: I am not familiar with doing a roll away from a circle
> formation,
> and by the time dancers are doing a ladies chain, I expect that
> they are in
> a line. How and when do you have dancers transition into a line
> when you
> call this dance.
>
>
>
> QUESTION: I have the same problem in
>
> FORTY MOHR YEARS, Sue Rosen
>
> (Becket)
>
> in B1 Balance the ring
>
> Roll Away with a Half Sashay (Ladies or Gents Roll Away,
> depending on the version)
>
> Ladies Chain
>
>
>
> Pedal Pushers, Bob Dalsemer
>
> (Duple Improper)
>
> in A1 Gents Al? Left 1 1/2,
>
> Scoop Up Partner Star Promenade
>
> Butterfly Twirl
>
> QUESTION: What is the timing?
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 5
> Date: Wed, 26 Sep 2007 08:02:30 -0400
> From: David Giusti <David.Giusti(a)oberlin.edu>
> Subject: Re: [Callers] Please Correct A Pirate
> To: Caller's discussion list <callers(a)sharedweight.net>
> Message-ID: <f9ede9e910395.10395f9ede9e9(a)oberlin.edu>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
>
> One of my favorite dances to call!
>
> It's a Pirate's Life for Me, by Nathanial Jack
> I got it from Nils Fredland's calling
> improper
> A1. N B+S
> A2. Pass through to a short wavey line/ocean wave* (4), Balance the
> wave
> R+L (4)
> Slide right (4), gents allemande left once (4)**
> B1. P B+S
> B2. Ladies allemande right 1 1/2
> Neighbor allemande right 1 1/2 to new neighbor (actually 1 3/4,
> but
> who's counting)
>
> *everybody passes through across; ladies catch left hands, give
> right to
> neighbor in short wave -- ladies in the middle, gents on ends.
>
> **This is confusing during the walkthrough, since the gents actually
> have to slide past two people, unlike the usual wave balance/slide
> figure. As long as the gents allemande by the left hand, things
> will be
> fine -- you just have to make them beleive that's how the dance goes,
> really.
>
> -David Giusti
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Rickey <holt.e(a)comcast.net>
> Date: Wednesday, September 26, 2007 7:19 am
> Subject: [Callers] Please Correct A Pirate
> To: callers(a)sharedweight.net
>
>> Hi I have some more incomplete notes on dances. Hard as I try, my
>> own notes
>> don?t always make sense to me when I get to look at them. I very
>> much
>> appreciate the help I have gotten in the past. Here are questions
>> on some
>> more. If you know any of these dances I would appreciate you help
>> again.
>> Rickey Holt, Fremont, NH
>>
>> A Pirate?s Life for Me, author?
>>
>> (Duple Improper)
>>
>> A1 Neighbor Balance and Swing
>>
>> A2 Pass to a wave (men slide past each other into a wavey
>> line of 4
>> across the set)
>>
>> ??????
>>
>> Men Allemande Left to Partner
>>
>> B1 Partner Balance and Swing
>>
>> B2 Women Dos 1 ?
>>
>> Neighbor Gypsy (just a ?glance?)
>>
>> Progress to New Neighbors
>>
>> QUESTION: My notes on A2 seem incomplete
>>
>>
>>
>> Feet in Flight, Dale Rempert
>>
>> (Duple Improper)
>>
>> in A1 (4) Balance the ring
>>
>> (4) Ladies Roll neighbor GENT away with a 1/2 sashay
>> (Rt to L)
>>
>> (8) Ladies chain to Partner
>>
>> QUESTION: I am not familiar with doing a roll away from a circle
>> formation,and by the time dancers are doing a ladies chain, I
>> expect that they are in
>> a line. How and when do you have dancers transition into a line
>> when you
>> call this dance.
>>
>>
>>
>> QUESTION: I have the same problem in
>>
>> FORTY MOHR YEARS, Sue Rosen
>>
>> (Becket)
>>
>> in B1 Balance the ring
>>
>> Roll Away with a Half Sashay (Ladies or Gents Roll Away,
>> depending on the version)
>>
>> Ladies Chain
>>
>>
>>
>> Pedal Pushers, Bob Dalsemer
>>
>> (Duple Improper)
>>
>> in A1 Gents Al? Left 1 1/2,
>>
>> Scoop Up Partner Star Promenade
>>
>> Butterfly Twirl
>>
>> QUESTION: What is the timing?
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Callers mailing list
>> Callers(a)sharedweight.net
>> http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
>>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 6
> Date: Wed, 26 Sep 2007 05:08:21 -0700 (PDT)
> From: Dan Black <blackjunier(a)yahoo.com>
> Subject: Re: [Callers] when to abort a dance
> To: Caller's discussion list <callers(a)sharedweight.net>
> Message-ID: <425464.34200.qm(a)web52208.mail.re2.yahoo.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
>
> Chris,
>
> First off I'd like to say thanks for sharing the so called bad with
> the so called good. So I am not the only caller that has learning
> experiences, thanks for helping me not feel alone with this.
> Pardon my soap box. If you could do it over again what would you
> do different this time? The reason I say that is in August was a
> learning experience for me. Doing a walkthrough from the stage and
> it doesn't look right but I went with it anyway. Like you I ran it
> short and got on with the next dance.
>
> For me I would not call at the same monthly dance two months in a
> row nor saying yes when I really didn't want to call. For me I
> can't fake calling with enthusiasm. In this same dance, I tried a
> dance that I had walked through the dance during the break at
> another dance. I knew the dance worked but there was a glitch in
> the progression during the walkthrough. After a demo and one walk
> through, I canned the dance immediately. There was no way for me
> to recover this after the problem dance in the first half.
>
> See ya from the floor,
> Dan Black
>
> ----- Original Message ----
> From: Chris Weiler <chris.weiler(a)weirdtable.org>
> To: Shared Weight <callers(a)sharedweight.net>
> Sent: Wednesday, September 26, 2007 12:51:14 AM
> Subject: [Callers] when to abort a dance
>
>
> Hello everyone,
>
> Tonight I had a pretty bad gig (just a hint: don't schedule a dentist
> appointment for the afternoon before your gig). So tonight I made some
> choreographic goofs when choosing my dances. One dance I realized that
> it didn't flow as well as I would have hoped after the walkthrough.
> Should I have aborted and called something else? Tom Hinds has a
> line "I
> don't like that dance, let's do something else". However, he usually
> follows it by teaching the very same dance again. I stuck with it and
> just ran the dance a little shorter.
>
> The same thing happened a little later when I called two dances in
> a row
> with the sequence: ladies chain, ladies "x" once around, partner
> swing.
> I realized it during the walk through, but went ahead and called it
> anyway.
>
> What do you think? Abort or deal with it?
>
> Chris Weiler
> Goffstown, NH
> http://www.chrisweiler.ws/
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Callers mailing list
> Callers(a)sharedweight.net
> http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
>
>
>
> ______________________________________________________________________
> ______________
> Tonight's top picks. What will you watch tonight? Preview the
> hottest shows on Yahoo! TV.
> http://tv.yahoo.com/
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 7
> Date: Wed, 26 Sep 2007 08:27:35 -0400
> From: "Tepfer, Seth" <LABST(a)emory.edu>
> Subject: Re: [Callers] Please Correct A Pirate
> To: "Caller's discussion list" <callers(a)sharedweight.net>
> Message-ID:
> <6EEB8893AB79164AA2F130789B5306DD3839D1(a)DMZEVS1.Eu.Emory.Edu>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>
> What's the story behind the name?
>
> Seth Tepfer
> Director of Administrative Computing
> Oxford College of Emory University
> seth.tepfer(a)emory.edu
> 770-784-8487
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: callers-bounces(a)sharedweight.net [mailto:callers-
> bounces(a)sharedweight.net] On Behalf Of David Giusti
> Sent: Wednesday, September 26, 2007 8:03 AM
> To: Caller's discussion list
> Subject: Re: [Callers] Please Correct A Pirate
>
> One of my favorite dances to call!
>
> It's a Pirate's Life for Me, by Nathanial Jack
> I got it from Nils Fredland's calling
> improper
> A1. N B+S
> A2. Pass through to a short wavey line/ocean wave* (4), Balance the
> wave
> R+L (4)
> Slide right (4), gents allemande left once (4)**
> B1. P B+S
> B2. Ladies allemande right 1 1/2
> Neighbor allemande right 1 1/2 to new neighbor (actually 1 3/4,
> but
> who's counting)
>
> *everybody passes through across; ladies catch left hands, give
> right to
> neighbor in short wave -- ladies in the middle, gents on ends.
>
> **This is confusing during the walkthrough, since the gents actually
> have to slide past two people, unlike the usual wave balance/slide
> figure. As long as the gents allemande by the left hand, things
> will be
> fine -- you just have to make them beleive that's how the dance goes,
> really.
>
> -David Giusti
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Rickey <holt.e(a)comcast.net>
> Date: Wednesday, September 26, 2007 7:19 am
> Subject: [Callers] Please Correct A Pirate
> To: callers(a)sharedweight.net
>
>> Hi I have some more incomplete notes on dances. Hard as I try, my
>> own notes
>> don?t always make sense to me when I get to look at them. I very
>> much
>> appreciate the help I have gotten in the past. Here are questions
>> on some
>> more. If you know any of these dances I would appreciate you help
>> again.
>> Rickey Holt, Fremont, NH
>>
>> A Pirate?s Life for Me, author?
>>
>> (Duple Improper)
>>
>> A1 Neighbor Balance and Swing
>>
>> A2 Pass to a wave (men slide past each other into a wavey
>> line of 4
>> across the set)
>>
>> ??????
>>
>> Men Allemande Left to Partner
>>
>> B1 Partner Balance and Swing
>>
>> B2 Women Dos 1 ?
>>
>> Neighbor Gypsy (just a ?glance?)
>>
>> Progress to New Neighbors
>>
>> QUESTION: My notes on A2 seem incomplete
>>
>>
>>
>> Feet in Flight, Dale Rempert
>>
>> (Duple Improper)
>>
>> in A1 (4) Balance the ring
>>
>> (4) Ladies Roll neighbor GENT away with a 1/2 sashay
>> (Rt to L)
>>
>> (8) Ladies chain to Partner
>>
>> QUESTION: I am not familiar with doing a roll away from a circle
>> formation,and by the time dancers are doing a ladies chain, I
>> expect that they are in
>> a line. How and when do you have dancers transition into a line
>> when you
>> call this dance.
>>
>>
>>
>> QUESTION: I have the same problem in
>>
>> FORTY MOHR YEARS, Sue Rosen
>>
>> (Becket)
>>
>> in B1 Balance the ring
>>
>> Roll Away with a Half Sashay (Ladies or Gents Roll Away,
>> depending on the version)
>>
>> Ladies Chain
>>
>>
>>
>> Pedal Pushers, Bob Dalsemer
>>
>> (Duple Improper)
>>
>> in A1 Gents Al? Left 1 1/2,
>>
>> Scoop Up Partner Star Promenade
>>
>> Butterfly Twirl
>>
>> QUESTION: What is the timing?
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Callers mailing list
>> Callers(a)sharedweight.net
>> http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
>>
> _______________________________________________
> Callers mailing list
> Callers(a)sharedweight.net
> http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 8
> Date: Wed, 26 Sep 2007 08:49:30 -0400
> From: Lisa Greenleaf <laleaf(a)verizon.net>
> Subject: Re: [Callers] Please Correct A Pirate
> To: Caller's discussion list <callers(a)sharedweight.net>
> Message-ID: <095C724E-0247-4966-82CE-2B0C46DDB126(a)verizon.net>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; delsp=yes; format=flowed
>
>
>
>
>> B2. Ladies allemande right 1 1/2
>> Neighbor allemande right 1 1/2 to new neighbor (actually 1 3/4,
>> but
>> who's counting)
>
> Nathaniel's original ending:
>
> B2 Women Do-si-do 1.5 to face current neighbor.
> Gypsy neighbor right 1+ to progress to new neighbor.
>
> It's a little unusual, but it works.
> -- Lisa
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> _______________________________________________
> Callers mailing list
> Callers(a)sharedweight.net
> http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
>
>
> End of Callers Digest, Vol 37, Issue 21
> ***************************************
