I'm asking myself why not demo a ricochet? In my mind there are some
advantages to demonstrating a move instead of describing it (or doing
both with a wireless mic).
My experience is most contra callers are highly educated and have
exceptional verbal skills. Maybe some callers don't value a good
demonstration. Or is a demonstration too beneath some of us? One of
my calling students told me that I failed as a caller because I
demonstrated a move.
My own view is that watching and learning is an integral part of
being human. We could make a long list of older skills (like
hunting) or newer ones like learning to play a musical instrument
where watching and imitating is the key to learning.
I recently took an informal workshop on dance history. The teachers
pointed out that when people watch something, appropriate synapses
fire in preparation for performing a task. This physiological
response helps the person actually learn a task better.
T
