Re: [Callers] Choreography and Copyright

[Martha Wild via Callers]

Actually, I wrote that. It was included in Alan’s post.
Martha

> On Jan 23, 2016, at 11:45 AM, Rich Sbardella via Callers 
> <callers@lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
> 
> Alan wrote, "As for me - as a dance choreographer - please feel free to 
> spread my dances - they are on my website, and I wrote them to go out into 
> the world and be fruitful and multiply and all that."
> 
> Thank you Alan for your generosity.
> 
> My comments below are related to the square dance and contra dance worlds, 
> since I am unaware of ECD norms.
> 
> I wish that their was a central website that could serve as a dance swap, or 
> dance sharing site.  Any caller that wanted to make their choreo available 
> could then easily upload the dances, and folks like me could easily download 
> or at leat view the material.  If a caller chose to keep his dances 
> proprietary, he could make that choice as well.  It would be great to be able 
> to search for dances by title and choreography as well.
> 
> As a caller that called MWSD and has migrated to contras. it was a bit of a 
> surprise how some contra calllers commercially published dance choreography 
> for a particular set of dances.  In MWSD, 64 step dances are quite the norm 
> for singing calls, and many callers have developed quite interesting figures. 
>  Several callers have published compilations of singing call figures without 
> crediting thei original choreographers.  If I danced a figure, and I enjoyed 
> it, it was perfectly acceptable to use that figure in a different singing 
> call., in fact it was encouraged.   I often searched websites, not 
> necessarily for music to buy, but rather for dance figures. 
> 
> In the contra world, I have met callers very liberal with their dances, and 
> they will freely provide choreography.  Some are honored, or even flattered, 
> when another caller calls their dance.  Other callers are more protective of 
> their choreography,  for what ever reason.  They may sell that choreography 
> in booklet or recorded form.  That is certainly within their rights.  I have 
> purchased many such booklets.
> 
> However, when I go to a dance as a dancer, I am looking for smooth and/or 
> interesting choreography to add to my collection of dances.  I may take notes 
> on several dances, but  I seldom use more that one or two dances that I pick 
> up on any given evening.  I am guessing that this is ethical.  
> 
> Last weekend, I danced to a caller that was new to me.  He has written many 
> dances and I especially enjoyed two of the ones he called.  When I emailed 
> him about the dances, he sent me the requested choreography, along with a few 
> others he wrote.  He was more generous than I hoped for.
> 
> I also have a basement full of dance books, records and CDs by many callers 
> and bands.  When it is available, I often take advantage of the opportunity 
> to purchase material as a way to support artists.  I also find much 
> choreography on line.  Youtube is a valuable resource.  There are many other 
> resources as well.  Many callers have websites with their dances published 
> for the free use of others.  
> 
> My cards always indicate the author of the dance, or the source, if I do not 
> know the author, and I most often announce the author when I call dance.  The 
> concept that someone own's choreography is difficult for me to understand, 
> since most dances incorporate elements of previous dances, or moves borrowed 
> from someone, or somewhere.  I understand that choreographers can innovate as 
> they write dances, but really are not most, or maybe all, dances really just 
> variations of others, either in part or in whole?    
> 
> Rich
> Stafford, CT
> 
> 
> 
> On Fri, Jan 22, 2016 at 10:42 PM, Winston, Alan P. via Callers 
> <callers@lists.sharedweight.net <mailto:callers@lists.sharedweight.net>> 
> wrote:
> 
> 
> On 1/22/2016 7:02 PM, Martha Wild via Callers wrote:
> Call a dance written by someone else:
> Pretty much always, is my guess. If I note down a dance at a festival and I 
> like it, I call it, and try to get all attributions for announcement. Maybe 
> if there was a caller who stipulate that no one was to call their dances 
> without express permission or proof they’d bought the book - but I don’t know 
> of a caller doing that.
> Agreed!
> 
> Publish a dance written by someone else:
> If the dance is on the author's open website, or I know the caller personally 
> and know they are happy to have their dances spread throughout the community, 
> then fine. If a dance is in a book that one has to buy, then never - might 
> mention the name and author, and maybe the book, but I wouldn’t give out the 
> dance details. Don’t know? Don’t publish it.
> I assume you're using "publish" to mean "disseminate" - give out the 
> instructions on mailing lists, let people see your card, whatever.
> If so, agreed!  To be excessively anal about it, I would disagree if 
> "publish" meant "include in a collection I was putting out to sell" (without 
> getting express permission from the author.)
> 
> 
> Modify, borrow from, a dance written by someone else?
> Always! If it’s a small change and I’m calling it I just give the author 
> credit and say it’s a slight variant (forward and back instead of circle left 
> for example). Using an interesting figure and sticking it in a new context 
> substantially different from the original - no problem, but I might credit 
> the original on a website for example - “inspired by Title, by So-and-So”.
> Agreed.  And sometimes the name of the new dance can have a nod to the name 
> of the old dance.
> 
> Very different from English Country, by the way. If someone has written a 
> dance there, and you realize that a turn single left would be so much more 
> intuitive and flow better than a turn single right, heaven forfend that you 
> should suggest changing the author’s original intention! Even if maybe it was 
> an oversight originally! Liberty is NOT to be taken, at least with modern 
> dances - though it’s a little grayer with traditional dances that various 
> people interpret differently because the original directions are sometimes 
> obscure.
> 
> Not *always*.   I have seen respected ECD leaders call things differently 
> than they were written, although they usually call attention to it when doing 
> it.  I have also had someone ask me if a particular modification of a dance 
> I'd written - a right-hand turn instead of a g-word  - was acceptable to me, 
> and I said "sure", and wasn't honked that he called it that way.  I was 
> pleased when he put it on the program of a ball he was calling, and then 
> honked when the ball booklet had the modified version and listed the dance as 
> a collaboration between the two of us.
> 
> 
> 
> As for me - as a dance choreographer - please feel free to spread my dances - 
> they are on my website, and I wrote them to go out into the world and be 
> fruitful and multiply and all that.
> Thanks for that!  I've called some of them and been happy to have them.
> 
> -- Alan
> 
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