Hi Mavis, I think Beatrice is a fantastic three-part French Canadian tune, so I would guess Erik wrote the dance for that tune.
I wrote a three part dance once, to go with a three part tune that some musicians wanted to play, that I thought would be great, but which flopped when I tried it. I learned a great three part dance from David Kaynor Shutesbury Reel by David Kaynor 3 part contra dance A1: Circle L X1 & Swng N A2: Down Center, turn as couples and return B1: Face across & full hey B2: Dsd NEW N (#1's look Dwn, #2's look up) RHT N 1.75 C1: M take LH-Blanc Wavy line, M pull by L & Swing Partner C2: Circle L 3/4, Blnc ring, Ptnr Calif twirl I can't remember which tune he used for it, but it was a classic New England 3 part tune. I have called that twice. Once it worked, and the other time it didn't work that well. I think it is a great dance that I have to learn a little more thoroughly. My experience is that contra dancers are so used to the AABB format that if you call a three-part dance it had better be a very good and intuitive dance, and you had better be prepared to know it inside out and upside down for efficient teaching and very clear, memorized prompting. I think a good three-part dance can be a great change for experienced dancers. Are you able to share the Erik Hoffman 3-part dance? Best, Peter -- Peter Amidon [email protected] 20 Willow Street Brattleboro, VT 05301 802-257-1006 cell: 917-922-5462 http://www.amidonmusic.com http://www.dancingmasters.com I have never been lost, but I will admit to being confused for several weeks. -Daniel Boone
