as both as musician and caller, i don't care to see a caller's cards when i'm
playing. i ask what kind of mood they want to set, or if they have thoughts on
a certain type of music. with very few exceptions, i find pretty much any
dance goes with any tune, if the music is well-played. there ARE some
exceptions, though, and i've seen things be really weird. however - when i see
that happen, it's mostly the caller's fault. i saw someone booked with an
old-timey band who called a lot of complicated dances - the music was way too
fast. that's what old-timey bands do. in cases like this, the caller needs to
adjust their program. but mostly - i don't want to see the card. that's just
me. and as a caller, i find it more useful to tell the band what type of music
i want (marchy, sleazy jigs, old-timey, rhythmic (for lots of balances),
smooth, driving) and let them interpret it as they will. one funny thing
happened: i was booked with a "new" band (old-timey jammers asked to play for
a dance), so i wrote to them and said i didn't want anything fancy, just 32-bar
reels played about 112-116 would be fine. they didn't answer. i got to the
dance, and asked them if they had seen my email. "yes", they said, "but we
didn't know what you were talking about, so we didn't write back." oh. in the
end, we worked it all out.
> From: [email protected]
> Date: Wed, 20 Feb 2013 07:16:29 -0800
> To: [email protected]
> Subject: Re: [Callers] What to ask a band before the gig?
>
> I like to find out the variety of styles a band plays. Are they strictly
> old-time? Do they play jigs? If I have a smoothish dance planned, do they
> play smooth minor jigs? Do they play bouncy dorky jigs? If they are a
> northern style band, can they play southern tunes? I like to provide a
> program ahead of the dance with a recommended type/feel for each set. I
> rarely strictly follow the program but I do like to stick to the type/feel
> flow.
>
> At the dance if they want to see the card that's fine, but I'm very specific
> on the type of tune set I would like.
>
>
> >>
> >>> From: [email protected]
> >>> Date: Tue, 19 Feb 2013 22:58:42 -0500
> >>> To: [email protected]
> >>> Subject: [Callers] What to ask a band before the gig?
> >>>
> >>> Hi Shared Weight,
> >>>
> >>> I have a few gigs coming up in a short span of time, and I try and touch
> >>> base with the band at least a week out, if possible. I open the door for
> >>> them to ask any questions for me, or to make any suggestions for a caller
> >>> to make things easier / more fun for them to play their music.
> >>>
> >>> I also ask a few questions. I try and keep it to a minimum, so I don't
> >> come
> >>> off too demanding.
> >>>
> >>> What sorts of questions do you ask bands prior to the dance, especially
> >> by
> >>> e-mail / phone?
> >>>
> >>> A couple I like are:
> >>> - Do they have particular music sets they like to play at certain times,
> >>> like, to end the night, etc?
> >>> - Especially if I haven't heard them before in person, what overall types
> >>> of music do they enjoy playing the most?
> >>>
> >>> I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> >>>
> >>> Best,
> >>> Ron T Blechner
> >>> contradances.tumblr.com/ron
>
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