I can only speak with reference to calling at NEFFA, as I have never applied to DownEast. As some of you may know that Linda Leslie is NEFFA's program chair, I will note that the program chair does not select performers for contra sessions.
Regarding NEFFA 2007, the following notice is now posted at http://neffa.org/perf_app.html - The Program Committee is not prepared to take your application at this time, since it is too late to apply for this year's NEFFA Festival. Please note that the application to perform is always available during the month of September, with a deadline in October. If you'd like to get an e-mail notice of application availability, send a blank e-mail to NEFFA_Performers-subscribe(a)yahoogroups.com
So you can note on your calendar that September is a good time to check the NEFFA web site, and also arrange for a notice to pop up in your e-mail.
The NEFFA application invites you to come up with a briefly-described theme for your session, with a title of 20 characters or less. IMO, use your own judgment as to how important the theme is. If you are offering a concept that's really meaningful to you, don't be afraid to describe it. If what you really want to do is just call some hot contras, then IMO I wouldn't go overboard on the theme.
Unlike Northwest Folklife, callers and bands apply SEPARATELY to the New England Folk Festival. And I believe that this is a very good thing for beginning callers who hope to have a chance at getting onstage. This mix-and-match policy gives a fresh perspective for experienced performers, and can be an eye-opening experience for newcomers who may get to work with seasoned veterans. I will never forget calling at NEFFA with Northern Spy, a band that has worked with caller David Millstone for 25 years. And where was David during this session? Out on the floor, happily dancing to the music of his own band. NEFFA's selection process made that wonderful hour possible for me.
For what it's worth, the first year I successfully applied I asked for a "Festival Orchestra" slot, which means that instead of calling a themed, hour-long session I called two dances in the Main Hall with the assembled orchestra and then got off the stage as the next Festival Orchestra caller had a turn. IMO, the key here (as well as in submitting a session proposal) is to choose dances that you know by heart, can teach well, fully believe in, and love to share with a crowd. You don't want to have second thoughts as you approach the microphone.
If you're wondering why performer applications are required so far in advance of a festival, note that NEFFA may have 1700 performers, many of whom perform in multiple sessions (perhaps performing alone, and with a participatory dance group, and also with a concert performance group!). You can't doublebook a performer (or larger groups to which she may belong), you have to give her time to move from one venue to another, plus a bunch of other scheduling etceteras that would drive me loony to contemplate further. How scheduling was done in the days before computers is beyond me.
--
Robert Jon Golder
164 Maxfield St
New Bedford, MA 02740
(508) 999-2486
Yes Bob Hofkin, they did a medley and the caller in me was delighted for the added variety. Bev Birnbaum also called a square which I LOVED.
Eric Black told me this about Mt Airy contra’s sound tech:
"video conferencing app called source connect now. The Mount airy Contra in Philadelphia used it last Thursday, and the sound quality on zoom was excellent. It’s broadcast quality low latency zero loss compression for audio up to 256K on an adequate Internet link, and it also has video into and much like zoom or Google meet.”
Here’s the software they are using to send band music to caller who sends calling over music to zoom. now.source-elements.com/ <http://now.source-elements.com/>
BACDS will be trying that for a future contra. We will have ours monthly on 4th Sundays 4pm PDT/ 7pm EDT.
Live band and caller.
Email me (claire(a)bacds.org <mailto:claire@bacds.org>) to get on my zoom event email list. Also Wed Waltz & Sun Dance concerts every week.
Claire Takemori
Dance Caller
(408) 874-6840 <tel:(408)%20874-6840> (VM)
clairedancecaller(a)gmail.com <mailto:clairedancecaller@gmail.com>
https://www.facebook.com/ClaireTakemoriDanceCaller/ <https://www.facebook.com/ClaireTakemoriDanceCaller/>
bacds.org/teen <http://bacds.org/teen>
> On May 23, 2020, at 10:00 PM, contracallers-request(a)lists.sharedweight.net wrote:
>
> Date: Sat, 23 May 2020 12:25:26 -0400
> From: Bob Hofkin <bhofkin(a)middleJ.com <mailto:bhofkin@middleJ.com>>
> Subject: [Callers] Re: Virtual (Zoom) Contra Dance this Saturday!
> To: Bob Isaacs <isaacsbob(a)hotmail.com <mailto:isaacsbob@hotmail.com>>, Shared Weight callers list
> <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net <mailto:callers@lists.sharedweight.net>>, Becky Liddle <beckyliddle(a)bell.net <mailto:beckyliddle@bell.net>>
> Message-ID: <285af40b-a2f9-5735-00de-ee985013bbcb(a)middleJ.com <mailto:285af40b-a2f9-5735-00de-ee985013bbcb@middleJ.com>>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=windows-1252; format=flowed
>
> Perhaps no walk-thru medleys would work.
>
> On 5/23/2020 11:29, Bob Isaacs via Contra Callers wrote:
>> Hi All:
>>
>> Thanks to Toronto for holding these dances, and for expanding their license to welcome us all. Hope to see you there tonight.
>>
>> Perhaps these dances will proliferate until regular dances resume. If so, what makes a good Zoom dance? I've "been" to a couple held by Philadelphia, and here a some observations.
>>
>> The audience is likely all contra-deprived regulars, so the usual beginner-friendly programming at the start of the night isn't necessary.
>>
>> Just about everyone was dancing by themselves or as couples. As a result, the dances should focus on partner action and avoid multiple neighbors. If the dance doesn't progress, no problem!
>>
>> There's no need to run these the usual length - maybe half length is best. The bands should adjust their tune sets accordingly. Since we're not worried about getting everyone active, this might be time to dust off those older 1s active, 2s watch contras.
>>
>> It's hard to swing by yourself, so minimizing swings helps. This past Thursday Sue Gola called the no-swing chestnut Petronella to good effect.
>>
>> Folks can find "partners" by pinning someone, and if they agree you'll only see each other. It's a bit strange at first, but a chance to dance with someone from far away you don't normally see.
>>
>> Given that the audience is experienced, one walkthrough should do - and let them know up front that's the way it's going to be. If everyone but the caller is muted, no need to worry about people talking during the walkthrough.
>>
>> It's best to call all the way through, but minimize the calls after the first few rounds. Some folks will tune in just to hear the live music they've come to love.
>>
>> Encourage hand-waving after each dance so the band hears that virtual applause.
>>
>> Your thoughts?
>>
>> Good health and happiness to you all -
>>
>> Bob
Hello Fellow Callers!
This post has 2 purposes: to invite you all to the dance, and also to drum up interested callers who might want to donate their calling to future dances (which will be the 2nd & 4th Saturday of each month at 7:30PM Eastern time in North America).
Our first attempt at a Zoom contra early in May went great, and we’ve decided to do this twice a month for the duration!
Our first (minimally publicized) dance hit our 100 participant Zoom limit (and 67 were still dancing at the end, so they must have been having fun!). This time we have a 500 participant limit and we’re publicizing it far and wide.
More info and the link to join appears in announcement below. This week’s callers will be Bev Bernbaum, Drew Delaware, and me (Becky Liddle).
Hope to see you there!
Becky
> Dancing in Isolation - A Virtual Contra Dance by Zoom, Saturday May 23, 2020, at 7:30PM Eastern
>
> Contra dance alone or with other dancers in your household, along with dancers across the continent! We'll be dancing to recorded music (due to tech limitations) and live calling. Dancing with imaginary people ("ghosts") is challenging, so we are assuming everyone is a reasonably experienced contra dancer. There will be no beginners’ lesson. But the good news is that when you dance alone in your living room, the contra line is exactly where you imagine it, and unexpected moves become glorious new choreography! Everyone is welcome to join!
>
> https://zoom.us/j/99530765467?pwd=YUEyZms5ZnlZbDlqa0tvREp1QkZyZz09 <https://zoom.us/j/99530765467?pwd=YUEyZms5ZnlZbDlqa0tvREp1QkZyZz09>
> Meeting ID: 995 3076 5467
> Password: 007
>
> Join the Zoom meeting any time between 7:00 and 7:30PM Eastern on Saturday, but try to join by 7:20 if possible. There will be an introduction to the dance at 7:25 and dancing will begin promptly at 7:30 Eastern.
>
> We hope to have these dances every 2nd and 4th Saturday evening until we can dance in person again. You can keep track of scheduled dances here or on the Toronto Contra Dance Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TorontoContraDance <https://www.facebook.com/TorontoContraDance> . At our first dance we hit our 100 participant limit, but this time we can have up to 500 participants, so tell your contra dancing friends, and feel free to repost this announcement to your local contra dance websites!
>
> Participation is free, but if you enjoy the dance, we ask that you make a donation (in an amount you are comfortable with) to benefit freelance artists in our music & dance community who are struggling with the loss of income due to COVID-19 shutting down all our in-person events.
>
> CDSS has a donation page here: https://www.cdss.org/community/covid19/send-love-to-freelancers <https://www.cdss.org/community/covid19/send-love-to-freelancers>
> where you can donate to a freelance musician or caller. You are welcome to choose an artist of your choice, but the list loads in random order, so you can also simply donate to whoever is top on the list when you load the page, knowing that others will be donating to someone else, and everybody ends up getting a little help in a difficult time. Or, if you like the specific music we play at the dance, we encourage you to donate to (or buy music from) the musicians whose music we use. We will post a list of those artists to the Toronto Contra Dance Facebook page after each dance. Please come to the dance, and afterwards decide what it was worth to you, and give generously to keep the music going until we can all meet in joy on the other side of this pandemic.
>
> The dance is organized by Becky Liddle, ably assisted by Drew Delaware, with a great deal of help from other Toronto area folks. Becky happens to be president of Toronto Contra Dance, but this dance is only loosely associated with TCD. So if you have any complaints, please blame Becky or Drew, not TCD! :-)
I'm surprised more musicians are not taking advantage of Jamulus. This
open-source software, when I looked into it, had already been used by
people who want to jam across a distance. The pandemic may have added
significant traffic, but I think it's still good. I tried it out with a
friend, and depending on your own internet connection (helped by using
Ethernet cables), you can almost completely eliminate the lag. There's an
online community on Facebook which has some helpful info about getting
started (the software itself is not super intuitive). FB group is called
Jamulus Online Musicians/Singers Jamming (apologies for no link). Someone
will need to set up a server that all musicians (and caller) then join.
Almost as good as the real thing. Somehow it is possible to line up video
as well through a different platform, though I'm not sure how that's done.
Don't ask me for more details because I only tried it out a couple times!
And do check to see if it's been overloaded with users since I looked at it
a month and a half ago.
Hi Bob!
Thanks for your thoughts!
We adopted most of these excellent suggestions already at our first (smaller, trial) zoom dance, also as a result of attending a few other (braver!) groups’ early zoom dances:
In my intro I explain that there’s no such thing as messing up the line with a “mistake” so we’re not worrying about details of the dance (so we don’t take questions after the walk-thru—just move to the music & enjoy!)
Each dance is only 5-6 times thru, to avoid monotony (since we don’t have the joy of new faces coming up the line or the magic of the line silently moving together w/o the caller).
All dancers will be muted (without the option to unmute) except for a 5-second group un-muting after each dance to allow for applause and whoops of delight, before all being muted again for the next walk-thru & dance. Because the Scissortail dance was disrupted by internet trolls last night, in addition to our other precautions (e.g., no participant screen sharing, participants removed cannot return, you cannot unmute yourself) we may have to also eliminate the 5-second cheering/applause moment (along with eliminating chat). So mentioning the waving of hands is a great idea. Because our dance has been so widely publicized, and because of the zoom bombing incident last night at that other dance, we will also have a dedicated volunteer co-host whose job will be to keep scrolling through the pages of participants to boot out anyone posting offensive material. Sad but necessary.
We’ve been altering the dances slightly to eliminate the progression so that folks don’t end up in the next room by the end of the dance, tho we may have to loosen up on that preference as we go along, because some dances modify easily (e.g., eliminate slide left or pass-thru) whereas others (e.g., ending in Calif. twirl) do not. So I’ve told callers who prefer not to remove the progression to just warn folks that they’ll need to adjust to avoid accidentally ending up in the kitchen. :-)
Personally, I find swinging alone (using a buzz step) to be quite easy/pleasant. But for those who walk around to swing rather than using a buzz step, swings would be exhausting. Drew Delaware (who will be our first caller tonight) just wrote a new dance, avoiding the neighbour swing (to minimize swinging but to allow those lucky enough to have a partner at home to swing them) and also avoiding the progression. He called it “Let’s stay home” which I thought was a lovely double-meaning title! :-)
I like the idea of dusting off the 1’s swing chestnuts. And thanks for the tip about Petronella!
Sadly, we have not found a way to use live music given the Zoom lag, but I will be picking your brain privately to learn how you’ve managed that in Philadelphia! We would love to find a way to do that. In the mean time, we have (when possible) asked permission of the musicians whose music we use, and then we post the names of the bands and tracks after the dance along with where to buy their music. We are also encouraging folks who had a good time to donate to musicians on the CDSS site in gratitude.
Keep dancing!! Hope to see you all in person on the other side of this!
Becky
> On May 23, 2020, at 5:54 AM, Bob Isaacs <isaacsbob(a)hotmail.com> wrote:
>
> Hi All:
>
> Thanks to Toronto for holding these dances, and for expanding their license to welcome us all. Hope to see you there tonight.
>
> Perhaps these dances will proliferate until regular dances resume. If so, what makes a good Zoom dance? I've "been" to a couple held by Philadelphia, and here a some observations.
>
> The audience is likely all contra-deprived regulars, so the usual beginner-friendly programming at the start of the night isn't necessary.
>
> Just about everyone was dancing by themselves or as couples. As a result, the dances should focus on partner action and avoid multiple neighbors. If the dance doesn't progress, no problem!
>
> There's no need to run these the usual length - maybe half length is best. The bands should adjust their tune sets accordingly. Since we're not worried about getting everyone active, this might be time to dust off those older 1s active, 2s watch contras.
>
> It's hard to swing by yourself, so minimizing swings helps. This past Thursday Sue Gola called the no-swing chestnut Petronella to good effect.
>
> Folks can find "partners" by pinning someone, and if they agree you'll only see each other. It's a bit strange at first, but a chance to dance with someone from far away you don't normally see.
>
> Given that the audience is experienced, one walkthrough should do - and let them know up front that's the way it's going to be. If everyone but the caller is muted, no need to worry about people talking during the walkthrough.
>
> It's best to call all the way through, but minimize the calls after the first few rounds. Some folks will tune in just to hear the live music they've come to love.
>
> Encourage hand-waving after each dance so the band hears that virtual applause.
>
> Your thoughts?
>
> Good health and happiness to you all -
>
> Bob
>
> From: Becky Liddle via Contra Callers <contracallers(a)lists.sharedweight.net <mailto:contracallers@lists.sharedweight.net>>
> Sent: Friday, May 22, 2020 11:50 AM
> To: Shared Weight callers list <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net <mailto:callers@lists.sharedweight.net>>
> Subject: [Callers] Virtual (Zoom) Contra Dance this Saturday!
>
> Hello Fellow Callers!
>
> This post has 2 purposes: to invite you all to the dance, and also to drum up interested callers who might want to donate their calling to future dances (which will be the 2nd & 4th Saturday of each month at 7:30PM Eastern time in North America).
>
> Our first attempt at a Zoom contra early in May went great, and we’ve decided to do this twice a month for the duration!
> Our first (minimally publicized) dance hit our 100 participant Zoom limit (and 67 were still dancing at the end, so they must have been having fun!). This time we have a 500 participant limit and we’re publicizing it far and wide.
>
> More info and the link to join appears in announcement below. This week’s callers will be Bev Bernbaum, Drew Delaware, and me (Becky Liddle).
> Hope to see you there!
>
> Becky
>
>> Dancing in Isolation - A Virtual Contra Dance by Zoom, Saturday May 23, 2020, at 7:30PM Eastern
>>
>> Contra dance alone or with other dancers in your household, along with dancers across the continent! We'll be dancing to recorded music (due to tech limitations) and live calling. Dancing with imaginary people ("ghosts") is challenging, so we are assuming everyone is a reasonably experienced contra dancer. There will be no beginners’ lesson. But the good news is that when you dance alone in your living room, the contra line is exactly where you imagine it, and unexpected moves become glorious new choreography! Everyone is welcome to join!
>>
>> https://zoom.us/j/99530765467?pwd=YUEyZms5ZnlZbDlqa0tvREp1QkZyZz09 <https://zoom.us/j/99530765467?pwd=YUEyZms5ZnlZbDlqa0tvREp1QkZyZz09>
>> Meeting ID: 995 3076 5467
>> Password: 007
>>
>> Join the Zoom meeting any time between 7:00 and 7:30PM Eastern on Saturday, but try to join by 7:20 if possible. There will be an introduction to the dance at 7:25 and dancing will begin promptly at 7:30 Eastern.
>>
>> We hope to have these dances every 2nd and 4th Saturday evening until we can dance in person again. You can keep track of scheduled dances here or on the Toronto Contra Dance Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TorontoContraDance <https://www.facebook.com/TorontoContraDance> . At our first dance we hit our 100 participant limit, but this time we can have up to 500 participants, so tell your contra dancing friends, and feel free to repost this announcement to your local contra dance websites!
>>
>> Participation is free, but if you enjoy the dance, we ask that you make a donation (in an amount you are comfortable with) to benefit freelance artists in our music & dance community who are struggling with the loss of income due to COVID-19 shutting down all our in-person events.
>>
>> CDSS has a donation page here: https://www.cdss.org/community/covid19/send-love-to-freelancers <https://www.cdss.org/community/covid19/send-love-to-freelancers>
>> where you can donate to a freelance musician or caller. You are welcome to choose an artist of your choice, but the list loads in random order, so you can also simply donate to whoever is top on the list when you load the page, knowing that others will be donating to someone else, and everybody ends up getting a little help in a difficult time. Or, if you like the specific music we play at the dance, we encourage you to donate to (or buy music from) the musicians whose music we use. We will post a list of those artists to the Toronto Contra Dance Facebook page after each dance. Please come to the dance, and afterwards decide what it was worth to you, and give generously to keep the music going until we can all meet in joy on the other side of this pandemic.
>>
>> The dance is organized by Becky Liddle, ably assisted by Drew Delaware, with a great deal of help from other Toronto area folks. Becky happens to be president of Toronto Contra Dance, but this dance is only loosely associated with TCD. So if you have any complaints, please blame Becky or Drew, not TCD! :-)
There was a lot of discussion about this on the ECD list a few weeks ago, so I created a page:
https://colinhume.com/neglected.htm
which anyone can update by adding their favourite neglected dances.
I've just sent out a reminder, in case people meant to but never got around to it.
I'm also writing to the trad callers and contra callers lists, in case you would like to add dances.
And therefore apologies if you get this three times!
Colin Hume
Hey Callers,
I received the following email from Judy Greenhill, a caller/dancer here in
Ontario Canada asking if I would post this to any caller listserves I read:
'"Sets in Order " was the square dance magazine that pretty much documented
the rise of Modern square dance. Jeff Priest (an ON square dance caller) has
an almost complete set from 1951-1979. Most are at his place in Brantford
ON; some are with me-he lent them to me for research a while ago. He does
not want to keep them. Jeff is prepared to give these magazines to anyone
who might want them, with the catch that they have to be picked up in
Brantford, or Guelph, or the recipient must be willing to pay to have them
shipped. They are heavy!'
Please contact Judy directly if you're interested. Her email address is:
Judy Greenhill judy.m.greenhill53(a)gmail.com
<mailto:judy.m.greenhill53@gmail.com>
Stay safe everyone and be well. Until we dance together again!
Bev
****************************************************************************
*****
The Witful Turnip <mailto:wturnip@sympatico.ca>
wturnip(a)sympatico.ca
"It will be alright in the end. So, if it is not alright, it is not yet the
end."
- The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
****************************************************************************
*****
Hello Shared Weight community,
I’m sorry for the short notice, but I need to move the mailing lists to a different host this evening. There will be some down time between now and 10pm EST. No messages will be lost, though there may be duplicates in the digests.
I’ll send another email once the move is complete.
Nitty gritty details: AWS hosting looked like the right option, but their pricing structure is not clear. Turns out to cost nearly 2x what I had expected. I am moving us (back) to Linode, where we should have stayed all along. Better service, clear pricing, good support.
Seth
CDMR has some news since my last announcement. Please share this far and wide…
————————————————————
Country Dance Music Radio is now playing at
https://radio.contracorner.com <https://radio.contracorner.com/>
CDMR’s first purpose is to provide a two-way support between musicians and dancers. Dancers can get some of that missing musical uplift any time day or night, and musicians can get your donations and purchases to help support them. Zoom concerts are just once (unless I can record them!) but CDMR is always there for you. Please listen in sometime soon!
✦ The North Bay Country Dance Society is hosting a Zoom concert featuring Rodney Miller, and Country Dance Music Radio will simulcast it! In this way lots more people can hear the concert. It will be recorded and repeated thereafter on CDMR.
The concert is Saturday, May 9
—Pacific time: 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm
—Eastern US time: 10:00 pm to 11:00 pm
Details are here: https://radio.contracorner.com/news/rodney-miller-live-and-a.html <https://radio.contracorner.com/news/rodney-miller-live-and-a.html>
✦ CDMR’s schedule has been renovated. Now you will find segments focused on song, dance, waltzing, calm time, and short musician spotlights.
You can reach the DJ at bob(a)contracorner.com <mailto:bob@contracorner.com>.
Staying safe but missing our dancing,
\Bob Peterson
Country Dance Music Radio https://radio.contracorner.com <https://radio.contracorner.com/>
Bless you for doing this.
:)
On 5/7/20, Seth Seeger via Contra Callers
<contracallers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
> Hello Shared Weight community,
>
> I’m sorry for the short notice, but I need to move the mailing lists to a
> different host this evening. There will be some down time between now and
> 10pm EST. No messages will be lost, though there may be duplicates in the
> digests.
>
> I’ll send another email once the move is complete.
>
> Nitty gritty details: AWS hosting looked like the right option, but their
> pricing structure is not clear. Turns out to cost nearly 2x what I had
> expected. I am moving us (back) to Linode, where we should have stayed all
> along. Better service, clear pricing, good support.
>
> Seth
