Hey Everyone:
A friend and I were thinking about starting a contra dance in Chesterfield,
New Hampshire. Chesterfield is about 10-15 minutes West of Keene, New
Hampshire and about 10-15 minutes East of Brattleboro, Vermont. We were
thinking about having the dance on Thursday nights at the Chesterfield Town
Hall. We were thinking that Thursday nights would be a good time, because we
would not have to compete with the Friday and Saturday night dances, and the
only other contra dance would be Cambridge. As anyone who does not live in
the Greater Boston Area knows that the trip to Cambridge can be a long one,
especially on a Thursday night.
I would hope that we could gear the dance so that it would have a nice balance
of traditional and modern contra dance styles, to appeal to the more
traditional dances in New Hampshire and also the more modern dances of
Greenfield, MA.
Any comments or feedback would be very helpful.
Thanks,
Jeff
Jeffrey M. Petrovitch
jeffrey.m.petrovitch(a)usa.net
“Five night of contra dancing... through ‘top-notch’ style and
technique, with the love and passion for the dance, the title above all other
was awarded. I am an ‘Iron Dancer’. Two times the dancing, two times an
‘Iron Dancer’.” – J. M. Petrovitch
A year or two ago at Pinewoods, my buddy Rick Barrows was doing sound and the
question of which mic to use came up in a callers' class led by Scott Higgs.
Rick suggested that they try out a bunch of different mics to see how they
sounded. I wrote him and his report follows. Note: this covers not just wireless
but wired mics as well
David Millstone
-------
What we learned is that, in general, the basic Shure SM-58 sounded best for
*most* callers. We weren't sure if it was what we were familiar
with, or what. The hard wired EV 757 (?)(current model 767) at Pinewoods were
second, followed by our wireless (15 year old Samson with
EV 757 head) and then the Shure Beta 58, with Scott's cheap wireless from Audio
Technica coming in dead last.
In general,other well-regarded vocal mic's include Sennheiser (835 and up),
Audix (OM series - some are flat EQ, some have a presence peak), Shure Beta 57
for male vocals
For those who care, some of these mics (Shure Beta, Audix OM, Senn 845/855, and
EV) are "hyper" or "super" cardiod - which means a tighter pattern, less
susceptible to feedback and you put your monitor, if you have one, at a 45
degree angle to the butt-end of the mic.
The Shure SM-58, Senn 835 are cardioid mics - bigger pattern, and the monitor,
if you have one, should point directly at the butt-end of the mic.
Some of these mics (Shure, and some Audix, perhaps EV) had a "presence peak" in
the EQ, which boosts the signal at a particular range of frequencies - usually
above 2K in the voice range. Others have a "flat" frequency response. The peak
is supposed to provide vocal clarity. You decide.
And remember, talk into the *top* of the mic - point it directly at you, not
"hold upright and talk into the side..."
Happy to answer any other questions.
adios,
Rick
<rbarrows(a)cs.dartmouth.edu>
For all of you out there who want to get in touch with accessible
old time music, there is a good CD recently put out
by The Percolators (CW Abbott, Larry Edelman, Joe Herrmann,
Joe Fallon and David Cahn), called, "Alive in Prague!"
These are all dance musicians (plus one
caller, Larry Edelman, who plays a mean mandolin), and the CD was
made with dancing, calling and fiddle playing in mind.
The tunes are clearly presented,
and it's an excellent intro to anyone who wants to call squares
or contras to old time but isn't familiar with the genre.
The CD was recorded in Czechoslovakia while the
group was on tour there. It also has some French Canadian tunes,
believe it or not; it seems David Cahn, who is known for his bass
playing, has also taken up the button accordion, and he's really good.
So it's a fine CD for practicing any kind of calling.
The Percolators will be at American Week at Pinewoods, so you can get
the
CD there, or by contacting CW Abbott
cwabbott(a)aol.com
or from
home.earthlink.net/~thepercolators
It costs $17 , which includes postage.
Nope, they didn't ask me to do this. I worked with them down In
Florida and
had such a good time with their music (calling squares with Larry in
the band
was GREAT--I just told him the figures and he picked the tune!). Then
I listened
to the CD and realized it would be a good tool for callers of all
levels.
Enjoy,
Lisa Greenleaf
-- Lisa
Hi all,
I'm curious about this comment Sue Rosen made to Chris Weiler:
>But, before you spend your caller's earnings on a mic, please, please,
>please sign up for caller's insurance through CDSS if you haven't already.
>And may none of us ever need it!
I actually wasn't aware (until now) that such insurance existed, and I've
been calling for a while and have also been thinking about buying a cordless
mic. I'm looking at the CDSS website right now, at the note about this
coverage but am finding it somewhat confusing. I don't know whether Toronto
Country Dancers (TCD) has "group insurance" but I'll check that out. But if
they do, does that mean that I would be covered, and would I only be covered
if I was calling specifically at the TCD hall ?? The second line in the
first paragraph says :
"...but if you only need to insure your caller and hall, consider this
option. The policy provides for general liability, bodily injury and
property damage in the combined amount of $2,000,000."
Does anyone know if this insurance covers me if I'm calling in other halls,
meaning if I'm on tour ? Does this even extend to callers living in Canada,
calling in and outside of the home country ? Does anyone know of a caller
that's been named in a lawsuit ? While I have insurance for my home and
car, I must admit that it's never occurred to me to have insurance for
calling. Should I be setting this up a.s.a.p ?? I have requested an
application from CDSS but would appreciate any info from callers out there.
Thanks,
Bev
*****************************************
The Witful Turnip wturnip(a)sympatico.ca
"I'm 40-fucking-5, and I've got nothing to hide !"
- Samantha Jones (Sex in the City)
*****************************************
I asked Sue Rosen about microphones when I saw her on Thursday. She sent
me this note the next day:
Sue Rosen wrote:
>Hi Chris,
>
>I hunted through old emails and found this from Kathy Anderson in 1998:
>"My mic is the Shure vocal artist mic, and I love it."
>
>But, before you spend your caller's earnings on a mic, please, please,
>please sign up for caller's insurance through CDSS if you haven't already.
>And may none of us ever need it!
>
-snip-
AMEN!
I sent an e-mail to office(a)cdss.org with a request for an application form. It's only $34 per year.
Chris
Hello Everyone:
Just wondering if everyone could help me with the authors and names of some
dances.
Improper
A1:
Neighbors do-si-do
Neighbors allemende right 3/4
Gents allemende left 1
A2:
Hey
B1:
Neighbors gypsy and swing
B2:
Circle left 1
Active couples swing
____
Improper
A1:
Star left
Neighbors allemende left 1 1/2
A2:
Ladies allemende right 1 1/2
Partners swing
B1:
Circle left 3/4
Neighbors swing
B2:
Long line forward and back
Star right
____
Thanks,
Jeff
Jeffrey M. Petrovitch
jeffrey.m.petrovitch(a)usa.net
“Five night of contra dancing... through ‘top-notch’ style and
technique, with the love and passion for the dance, the title above all other
was awarded. I am an ‘Iron Dancer’. Two times the dancing, two times an
‘Iron Dancer’.” – J. M. Petrovitch
Okay, I've got:
"Hello My Baby" and "The Baby Rose" and "Crumbs in the Diaper". Possibly
"Rant and Roar".
What other baby/infant/child/sleep/diaper/nappy/crib/etc themed contra
(square, circle, sicillian) dance names can you come up with?
I'd love to call a baby themed program. Suggestions welcome.
seth
=========================================================================
Seth Tepfer: Director of Administrative Computing & Innovative Technology
Oxford College of Emory University - 770-784-8487 - labst(a)emory.edu
Jex Raven Eidson Tepfer - Born 6/5/05 00:52! Say hi at:
http://www.jexRaven.com/
=========================================================================
"A facility for quotation covers the absence of original thought." -Dorothy
L. Sayers
Hey Everyone!!!
After another amazing and wonderfull contra dance at the Nelson Town Hall, in
Nelson, New Hampshire, I just wanted to share a couple
interpretations/thoughts about calling. Every Monday Night, I usually call
about two or three dances (In Nelson, it is always open microphone for callers
and musicians), and last night, I decided to call a couple of my favorite
dances: "You Can't Get There From Here" by Carol Ormand and "Trip To
Lamberville" by Steve Zakon-Anderson. For me these dances are really fund to
call and dance, with great driving balances and beats.
The more and more I continue to call the more and more I learn about about
calling and dancing. After only six months of calling, I feel very confident
and strong as a caller, but after last night, I really feel like I am starting
to find myself as a caller, starting to find myself as an individual caller,
with an individual style and individual technique.
As a caller, I think perhaps one of the most important parts of calling is
being yourself, being yourself as a caller. After spending time thinking
about different callers, thinking about his or her style, his or her
technique, perhaps one things that seems so simple now, but did not seem so
simple before, was that every caller had a different style and technique...
I have learned that you can't be a "Peter Amidon", a "Lisa Greenleaf", a "Beth
Milaro", a "Don Primrose", a "Lisa Sieverts", a "Steve Zakon-Anderson", and
the list goes on... Each one of these callers is very different from
eachother, and that it is just not enought to observe, to learn, to apply a
style and technique of one of these callers, but to apply a style and
technique and to allow it to evolve your own style and technique.
Instead of doing that thing Peter Amindon does or doing that thing Lisa
Greenleaf does, allow that thing to evolve your own style and technique, to
evolve yourself as a caller, in other words it is about finding yourself as a
caller...
It seems like I am constantly thinking about contra calling and dancing,
different ways to call a certain call, the timing in between a call, the
transition from one call to the next, and how that is going to change from the
first time through to the second time to the third time. Going back to
"finding yourself as a caller" another thing that I believe that is important,
that I have worked very hard at, is feeling comfortable on stage. I remember
the very first time on stage calling a dance, I was very nervous and very
scared, and I decided to call "The Cookie Man" by Sue Rosen.
Since then, I really feel like I have found my groove on stage, perhaps my
calling is not always right on, but I feel confortable, relaxed, and perhaps
most importantly, I am having fun, a lot of fun.
I guess really all this stuff above comes down to a couple simple things: find
and be yourself as a caller and have fun... So there you, just some thoughts
I thought I wold share...
Sincerely,
Jeff Petrovitch
Jeffrey M. Petrovitch
jeffrey.m.petrovitch(a)usa.net
"Five nights of contra dancing... through 'top-notch' style and technique,
with the love and passion for the dance, the title above all others was
awarded. I am an 'Iron Dancer'." - J.M. Petrovitch
I wonder if we are going to see a resurgence of this dance over the next
couple of months. It will be in vogue to call it! (Yes, I am trying to spur
that resurgence by this email :-).
Title: Salute to Larry Jennings
Author:
<http://www.cambridgefolk.org.uk/contra/dances/ted_sannella/ted_sannella.html>Ted
Sannella
Formation: Improper contra
A1: l
ines go forward and back; ones swing, ending facing down.
A2:
circle left once; do si do on the side
B1:
Grand chain around the whole set, starting right with your neighbour, when
you get the the fourth person do a full allemande left and chain back to
your neighbour
B2:
balance and swing neighbour
=========================================================================
Seth Tepfer: Director of Administrative Computing & Innovative Technology
Oxford College of Emory University - 770-784-8487 - labst(a)emory.edu
Jex Raven Eidson Tepfer - Born 6/5/05 00:52! Say hi at:
http://www.jexRaven.com/
=========================================================================
"A facility for quotation covers the absence of original thought." -Dorothy
L. Sayers
Sad news...
Chris
Forwarded Message:
> To: trad-dance-callers(a)yahoogroups.com
> From: millstone(a)valley.net
> Subject: [trad-dance-callers] Larry Jennings
> Date: 29 Jun 2005 15:11:24 EDT
> -----
> This news just reached me, forwarded from several folks and originating with
> Boston dance organizer Mark Jones:
>
> David
>
> --------
> Dear Friends,
>
> I wish to report to those who have worked and collaborated with Larry Jennings,
> long-time dance enthusiast, organizer, promoter, composer, book writer, critic,
> dance philosopher, and caller, that he died shortly before noon, of cardiac
> arrest, today, June 29, 2005 at the Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, MA.
>
> There will be more formal news as the family gathers.
>
> Best regards,
> Mark Jones
> ---------
>
>
