Re: [Callers] tune structure as second nature

[Lisa Sieverts]

On Fri, Dec 2, 2011 at 4:32 PM, Donald Perley  wrote:

> On Fri, Dec 2, 2011 at 12:54 PM, Chrissy Fowler
> > Anyone else have this experience?  Anyone know what might make a given
> part of the tune sound "A-ish" or "B-ish"?  And perhaps more to the point,
> does anyone even want to spend bandwidth pondering these questions??  ;)
>
>
> And then there's calling in Nelson, where it's common to hear Cape Breton
tunes played A/B/A/B. I have to keep repeating to myself, "One A, One B" or
otherwise I'll call the wrong part.

So yes, I agree with Chrissy that it's incredibly useful to have AABB in
your bloodstream. Dance lots, and listen to lots of fiddle tunes.

Best,
Lisa
-- 

l...@lisasieverts.com
603-762-0235

Re: [Callers] Hello and a few questions...

[Lisa Sieverts]

Don,

Welcome!

My favorite way to practice calling is to play tunes on the stereo and call
while DRIVING. It's a reasonable simulation of the number of things you
need to be able to do at the same time that you are calling.

Note that I have missed exits in this manner, but have never been in an
accident :-).

Best,
Lisa


-- 

l...@lisasieverts.com
603-762-0235

Re: [Callers] Holiday dances and tunes

[Richard Mckeever]

One I remember was when the band played the Chipmunk Song (it is a Christmas 
themed waltz) for the ending waltz and everyone started singing the few words 
they could remember.

Of course Jingle Bells works well if you need something with phrasing for 
contras, etc. - again,you can encourage sing along if you want.


Mac




 From: Ric Goldman 
To: 'Caller's discussion list'  
Sent: Friday, December 2, 2011 2:23 PM
Subject: [Callers] Holiday dances and tunes
 
Hi folks,

I have 4 gigs coming up this month, 1 of which is a ONS.  I'll look in archives 
as well, but I'm curious if folks can recommend any
good dances or tunes in an Xmas, Hannukah, Solstice, or Kwanza theme I can use. 
 I already have a few gimmicks, but always looking
for more.

Thanx, Ric Goldman
Palo Alto, CA 

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Re: [Callers] Holiday dances and tunes

[Alan Winston - SSRL Central Computing]

"What Child Is This" / "Greensleeves" works fine for a waltz and can be
substituted for, eg, "Spanish Waltz".

"Jingle Bells" is fine for a contra or a polka  (and Gayle Ticknor wrote an
"English" dance to it).

"Winter Solstice" is Wendy Crouch's five-couple square English dance, not
really ONS-appropriate.

John Garden has a large book of Christmas-carol themed dances, not all really
recognizable as country dances.

-- Alan

> Hi folks,

> I have 4 gigs coming up this month, 1 of which is a ONS.  I'll look in 
> archives as well, but I'm curious if folks can recommend any
> good dances or tunes in an Xmas, Hannukah, Solstice, or Kwanza theme I can 
> use.  I already have a few gimmicks, but always looking
> for more.

> Thanx, Ric Goldman
> Palo Alto, CA

> ___
> Callers mailing list
> call...@sharedweight.net
> http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers

-- 
===
 Alan Winston --- wins...@ssrl.slac.stanford.edu
 Disclaimer: I speak only for myself, not SLAC or SSRL   Phone:  650/926-3056
 Paper mail to: SSRL -- SLAC BIN 99, 2575 Sand Hill Rd, Menlo Park CA   94025
===

[Callers] Holiday dances and tunes

[Ric Goldman]

Hi folks,

I have 4 gigs coming up this month, 1 of which is a ONS.  I'll look in archives 
as well, but I'm curious if folks can recommend any
good dances or tunes in an Xmas, Hannukah, Solstice, or Kwanza theme I can use. 
 I already have a few gimmicks, but always looking
for more.

Thanx, Ric Goldman
Palo Alto, CA 

Re: [Callers] Hello and a few questions...

[lynn ackerson]

Congratulations Don! 

I don't have a set routine when things fall apart. I may just tell them to take 
hands 4 from the top and wait until the top of the music comes around. If the 
dance has been running for a while, just say "Find your partner and swing" as 
you cue out the band with a raised foot. Then have a "go to" dance ready for 
the 

next one - one you know cold that works 99% of the time (like Nice Combination 
or Al's Safeway Produce). It restores everyone's confidence. Even a simple 
dance 

can be fun if the band plays a very lively tune. It's good to get the signals 
worked out with the band ahead of time. Typical ones are faster (palm facing 
and 

pushing up); slower (palm facing and pushing down); going out at the end of 
this 

phrase (the raised foot). Find out which of the band members can talk while 
they're playing. Not all musicians can. This is the one you can ask when you 
don't know where you are in the music. And if there's a clear musician in 
charge 

of keeping the rhythm, I've walked up to them during a tune and called out "I 
can't hear the phrasing" - hoping they'll make it clearer. If you have a few 
"ringers" in the room, they may be good to cue off of  - assuming they're 
almost 

always in the right place at the right time. Also ask the band how much notice 
they want before the end of the dance: 1, 2, or 3 times and then count it down 
instead of assuming they can keep track. 


I've only heard you call a couple of times, but both times you've been very 
clear and at least sounded confident. You'll do great, and it's about time you 
did more calling. Good luck. I look forward to getting a full report.
    Lynn





- Original Message 
From: Don Veino 
To: call...@sharedweight.net
Sent: Thu, December 1, 2011 10:20:18 PM
Subject: [Callers] Hello and a few questions...

Hi Folks,

Brand new to the list. I'm one of the organizers for the MondayContras
series at the Concord, MA Scout House and have been an avid dancer for just
over 4 years now. Hi to those I already know and to those of you I'll get
to know from here!

I've been an occasional caller for dances on shared evening programs and
camper nights, etc. but have my first full evening coming up later this
month, which I'm excited about. This is for a smaller regional dance that
attracts a mixed crowd of mostly periodic dancers. I've done some basic
"how to call" workshops at festivals, etc. but have not taken a formal
caller's course.

I'm planning to tailor my dance selection to the expected crowd and build
in some flexibility to address variability. I'm pretty confident in my
dance selection skills but I'm definitely still counting my way through the
music to call. So one concern is with making sure I stay firmly anchored to
the music, without depending upon the crowd for cues. I craft my calls to
fit the phrasing and rehearse with music to get confident but dance
breakdowns are a fear. I've come close a couple of times early on but have
been able to set things right somehow on the fly... however, I was not very
confident doing so at the time.

So with that concern, a couple of related questions:
- Do you have practiced recovery routines (more than just "get home and
swing your partner")? Is that common? Or do most callers just make it up on
the spot?
- In working with the musicians, are there any customary "I've lost track,
where are we in the music?" signals?

I look forward to learning from the shared wisdom of the group here and am
open to any other tips you may have.

Thanks,
Don
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Re: [Callers] Hello and a few questions...

[Don Veino]

Hi, thanks for the help, see below.

And BTW, I forgot to mention in my intro that I'm also very involved with
NEFFA as a Director and being the guy responsible for Advance Ticket Sales
and getting the sound equipment into the smaller venues for several years.
Late night/new parent brain. :)

On Fri, Dec 2, 2011 at 2:01 AM, Alan Winston - SSRL Central Computing <
wins...@slac.stanford.edu> wrote:

>
> [snip]


> > I'm pretty confident in my
> > dance selection skills but I'm definitely still counting my way through
> the
> > music to call. So one concern is with making sure I stay firmly anchored
> to
> > the music, without depending upon the crowd for cues. I craft my calls to
> > fit the phrasing and rehearse with music to get confident but dance
> > breakdowns are a fear. I've come close a couple of times early on but
> have
> > been able to set things right somehow on the fly... however, I was not
> very
> > confident doing so at the time.
>
> Hmm.  Do you pay attention to the music when you're dancing?  Do you know
> where
> you are in the tune when you're on the floor?  You kinda need for that to
> be
> second nature - something you don't have to spend conscious brain cycles
> on.
> If it isn't, I can only suggest even more practice with recorded music than
> you're doing, plus trying to be conscious about it when you're dancing, so
> you
> always know what phrase you're in.  (If you're a good dancer, you probably
> do
> actually know this, but you might not know you do.)
>
>
> Good point. Yes, as a dancer with that form of immersion in the dance, I'm
totally in sync with the music and choreography without counting. I just
know/feel what comes next and when. I guess the point then is that I need
to transfer that connectedness while being on the other side of the mic.

[snip]

>
>
> > - In working with the musicians, are there any customary "I've lost
> track,
> > where are we in the music?" signals?
>
> No, and you really don't want to do that. It's much likelier that they're
> going
> to repeat something they shouldn't or not to repeat something they should
> than
> that you're going to get lost.  You need to be ready to say to somebody
> "Play
> another B!"
>
>
> Interesting! Will work on that.


> Find some couples who are doing the dance right and check in on where they
> are
> in the pattern.  If there aren't any you can rely on, then you picked the
> wrong
> dance.
>
> I agree on the dance selection - my "breakdown" near misses to date were
either from rookie mistakes (like calling a balanceandswing instead of
balance...and swing) or an alignment of the planets around a particular
4-some in a line.

I'm a mis-matcher by nature -- I see/focus on what sticks out. So when a
4-some is having trouble then that is where my attention naturally goes. I
need to make the shift in this instance to see but not overly focus on that
local issue, if the rest of the hall is OK. And picking some trusty couples
would certainly help.

Thanks again!

Re: [Callers] tune structure as second nature

[David Millstone]

--- Chrissy wrote:
But once in a great while there is a tune that just 'sounds backward.'
--- end of quote ---

Keep in mind that there are some tunes where different musicians know the two  
parts in different order. I've run across bands who play the Growling Old Man  
and the Cackling Old Woman in what sounds to me like the wrong order and yes,  
that throws me off, too. And then there are tunes such as Mackimoyle, where some  
musicians put the first beat at the start of opening four eight notes, while others  
treat those as pickup notes. I know the tune best this second way-- that's the  
way I learned it-- so when I encounter it the other way, it takes me a moment  
to adjust.


David Millstone
Lebanon, NH

Re: [Callers] tune structure as second nature

[Jeff Kaufman]

Chrissy Fowler wrote:
> 
> once in a great while there is a tune that just 'sounds backward.'
> The A sounds to me like it's the B, and vice versa.  I have no idea
> why this is true, but it definitely is a phenomenon for me.
> Inevitably I am thrown off track by those tunes, and sometimes do
> something wrong as a consequence (prompt wrong call, give band
> signals midway thru the A1, start dancing the wrong thing, etc.)
> 

If the tune sounds flipped to other people and not just to you, I
would think it wasn't a good choice of tune.  A vs B is part of what
it is the band's job to communicate.

It might also be that they're playing a tune that is commonly played
both ways round.  There are a few tunes in this category, and they
sound fine either way around.  People who have heard enough music to
have been exposed to the tune played the other way around will be
confused, though.  This isn't so much of a problem for the dancers,
but it's not so fun as a caller if it's happening to you.

Jeff

[Callers] tune structure as second nature

[Chrissy Fowler]

Just a funny phenomenon brought to mind by Alan's good advice, quoted here:

> Hmm.  Do you pay attention to the music when you're dancing?  Do you know 
> where
> you are in the tune when you're on the floor?  You kinda need for that to be
> second nature - something you don't have to spend conscious brain cycles on. 

As someone who listens to trad music a lot, I can say Alan's point is the case 
for me (as a caller, dancer, music-appreciator, occasional hack musician.)  I 
just "know" which part is the A and which is the B - kind of like autopilot.  
In fact I think I probably more reliably know automatically where I am in the 
music than where I am in the dance sequence.  

And it's HUGELY helpful to me as a caller.

But once in a great while there is a tune that just 'sounds backward.' The A 
sounds to me like it's the B, and vice versa.  I have no idea why this is true, 
but it definitely is a phenomenon for me.  Inevitably I am thrown off track by 
those tunes, and sometimes do something wrong as a consequence (prompt wrong 
call, give band signals midway thru the A1, start dancing the wrong thing, etc.)

Anyone else have this experience?  Anyone know what might make a given part of 
the tune sound "A-ish" or "B-ish"?  And perhaps more to the point, does anyone 
even want to spend bandwidth pondering these questions??  ;)

Chrissy Fowler
Belfast, ME

  

Re: [Callers] Hello and a few questions...

[Alan Winston - SSRL Central Computing]

Don --


> Brand new to the list. I'm one of the organizers for the MondayContras
> series at the Concord, MA Scout House and have been an avid dancer for just
> over 4 years now. Hi to those I already know and to those of you I'll get
> to know from here!

Hi, Don!

> I've been an occasional caller for dances on shared evening programs and
> camper nights, etc. but have my first full evening coming up later this
> month, which I'm excited about. This is for a smaller regional dance that
> attracts a mixed crowd of mostly periodic dancers. I've done some basic
> "how to call" workshops at festivals, etc. but have not taken a formal
> caller's course.

> I'm planning to tailor my dance selection to the expected crowd and build
> in some flexibility to address variability. I'm pretty confident in my
> dance selection skills but I'm definitely still counting my way through the
> music to call. So one concern is with making sure I stay firmly anchored to
> the music, without depending upon the crowd for cues. I craft my calls to
> fit the phrasing and rehearse with music to get confident but dance
> breakdowns are a fear. I've come close a couple of times early on but have
> been able to set things right somehow on the fly... however, I was not very
> confident doing so at the time.

Hmm.  Do you pay attention to the music when you're dancing?  Do you know where
you are in the tune when you're on the floor?  You kinda need for that to be
second nature - something you don't have to spend conscious brain cycles on. 
If it isn't, I can only suggest even more practice with recorded music than 
you're doing, plus trying to be conscious about it when you're dancing, so you 
always know what phrase you're in.  (If you're a good dancer, you probably do
actually know this, but you might not know you do.)


> So with that concern, a couple of related questions:
> - Do you have practiced recovery routines (more than just "get home and
> swing your partner")? Is that common? Or do most callers just make it up on
> the spot?

I don't have practiced recovery routines.  If the dance has been going on long
enough to be done when it breaks down, something like "Listen up - find your
partner, balance and swing" while signalling the band so they know they're
going out is fine.  If it's really not done, you can just stop the music and
regroup if you have to, but you have to figure out where it's breaking down. 
If you're trying to repair it without stopping, then you need to get people
into the progression in the right orientation, which is really challenging in
some dances.  If I were worried about it - and I'm not, particularly, and don't
think you should be if you're confident in matching your dance choices to the
floor - I would identify the moment in each dance when you're with your partner
with the man on the right and the lady on the left and craft my recovery call
around getting people to that point.


> - In working with the musicians, are there any customary "I've lost track,
> where are we in the music?" signals?

No, and you really don't want to do that. It's much likelier that they're going
to repeat something they shouldn't or not to repeat something they should than
that you're going to get lost.  You need to be ready to say to somebody "Play
another B!"


Find some couples who are doing the dance right and check in on where they are
in the pattern.  If there aren't any you can rely on, then you picked the wrong
dance.

-- Alan


-- 
===
 Alan Winston --- wins...@ssrl.slac.stanford.edu
 Disclaimer: I speak only for myself, not SLAC or SSRL   Phone:  650/926-3056
 Paper mail to: SSRL -- SLAC BIN 99, 2575 Sand Hill Rd, Menlo Park CA   94025
===

[Callers] Hello and a few questions...

[Don Veino]

Hi Folks,

Brand new to the list. I'm one of the organizers for the MondayContras
series at the Concord, MA Scout House and have been an avid dancer for just
over 4 years now. Hi to those I already know and to those of you I'll get
to know from here!

I've been an occasional caller for dances on shared evening programs and
camper nights, etc. but have my first full evening coming up later this
month, which I'm excited about. This is for a smaller regional dance that
attracts a mixed crowd of mostly periodic dancers. I've done some basic
"how to call" workshops at festivals, etc. but have not taken a formal
caller's course.

I'm planning to tailor my dance selection to the expected crowd and build
in some flexibility to address variability. I'm pretty confident in my
dance selection skills but I'm definitely still counting my way through the
music to call. So one concern is with making sure I stay firmly anchored to
the music, without depending upon the crowd for cues. I craft my calls to
fit the phrasing and rehearse with music to get confident but dance
breakdowns are a fear. I've come close a couple of times early on but have
been able to set things right somehow on the fly... however, I was not very
confident doing so at the time.

So with that concern, a couple of related questions:
- Do you have practiced recovery routines (more than just "get home and
swing your partner")? Is that common? Or do most callers just make it up on
the spot?
- In working with the musicians, are there any customary "I've lost track,
where are we in the music?" signals?

I look forward to learning from the shared wisdom of the group here and am
open to any other tips you may have.

Thanks,
Don