David: Always enjoy hearing you in soapbox mode. On the dip and dive, there's also Dip and Dive by Tom Hinds. It's in one of his earlier books - Bob
> Date: Mon, 7 May 2012 09:18:06 -0400 > From: david.millst...@valley.net > To: call...@sharedweight.net > Subject: Re: [Callers] Don't teach proper formation unless you need it > > --- Martha wrote: > This is probably a regional or specific community thing. In our village, St > Louis, > Missouri, we just line up improper > --- end of quote --- > > I'd agree that what Martha describes is increasingly the norm, especially in > relatively > new series and outside of New England. There are still dance series and > callers > where dancers enjoy a wider variety of dances in an evening than duple > improper > or Becket, including a mix of contras, squares and other formations. And even > within the contras-only format, one might encounter proper dances or-- > gasp!-- > triple minors, both old favorites or new compositions in that "hands six" > formation. > > /entering soapbox mode/ > > Myself, with a strong curmudgeonly streak, I think that such variety adds > richness > to a program as well as helping dancers become more experienced by exposing > them > to more choreographic possibilities. (Take, for example, dip and dive; that's > a common square dance move and there are triplets and triple minor contras > that > use it, but only one contra that I know of, David Smukler's Frog in the Well.) > > As as a long-time New England caller, I admit to a special fondness for the > so-called > chestnuts, most of which are in proper formation; I think that dancers can > appreciate > having these in their repertoire as a connection to the long traditions of > music > and dance we inherit, and a community does well to foster those connections. > > /stepping off soapbox/ > > David Millstone > _______________________________________________ > Callers mailing list > call...@sharedweight.net > http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
