A CONTRA DANCING PRIMER
Contra dancing is similar to square dancing in that they both use similar moves. There are two major differences, however. With square dancing, you and your partner dance with three other couples in a square formation, partner next to partner. With contra dancing, you form long-ways sets, usually across from your partner, and you and your partner dance with everyone in the hall, moving up and down the set. The other major difference is that in square dancing, if someone gets behind, the dancers can wait for them to catch up, and it doesn’t really matter. In contra dancing, the dances are written to fit the music, so if you get behind, you need to skip what you missed or somehow "fix" the dance so you stay on the music. I will start this discussion by explaining the moves, then the music, then I will try to put them together. A glossary, bibliography, discography and other resources follow.
Contra Dance Moves
As I said, the moves in contra dances are similar to square dance moves. Typical moves (the details of how to do them are in the glossary) include swinging your partner (or corner, called neighbor in contra dances) left- or right-hand stars, circling left or right, ladies chain, right-left through, pass through, allemande left or right, do-si-do, see-saw, heys. Almost all the moves (except the hey) that are performed in contra dancing take eight counts of the music, and this is where the music comes in.
Contra Dance Music
The tunes that contra dances are danced to are called "square" or "regular" tunes. They have two parts, an "A" part and a "B" part, and each part is 8 measures, 16 counts. They are played: 2 A’s followed by 2 B’s alternating this way (called "AABB") until the band switches to a new tune (similar to the previous tune, but because a particular dance can go for 5 to 10 minutes, the band usually plays medleys) or the caller tells them to stop. Tunes that don’t fit this format, so called "crooked" tunes, are not appropriate for contra dances, as you will usually have more music than moves.
Putting the Music and the Dance Together
Dances are usually written in terms of where the moves occur (first A, second A, first B, second B), though you will need to develop your own notation as you get into it. Generally, once the basic moves are understood, your job as teacher/caller is just to walk the dancers through the moves without the music. Then, once they understand the dance, it is danced to the music (much more fun than the walk through). So they know what to do, you cue them for the moves a couple of beats before it is due. The way it works is you and your partner will dance the dance with one other couple in the line, one time through. Then you and your partner move up (toward the band) or down (away from the band) the line to a new couple and repeat the dance. This continues in this manner until the caller decides it’s time to stop that dance.
So, essentially, a contra dance is any combination of moves that two couples perform together. These moves are written to go with a particular type of music, so that the dance always starts at the beginning of the tune (first A) and ends, ready to dance with a new couple, at the end of the tune (second B).
Setting Up the Dance
All contra dances start in what is called "proper" formation, with the women in one line and the men, across from and facing their partner, in the other. The woman’s line should be on the caller’s left hand (as the caller faces the long line (called the (major) set)). In order to determine who is dancing with whom the first time through the dance, the caller will have the dancers, "Take hands four from the top". ("The top" is the band/caller end of the set.) What this means is that the first couple should face the second couple, and they take hands in a circle of four. Then the third and fourth couples do the same, the fifth and sixth and so on down to the end of the line. The odd numbered couples (those with their backs to the band when they are holding hands with the other couple) are called "active" or "#1" couples and the even numbered couples (those facing the band) are called "inactive" or "#2" couples. Each group of four is called a minor set.
The dancers will dance the dance with these people, then the active couples will move away from the band one couple and the inactive couple will move up one couple to get to the next couple they will dance with. The couples always move up and down the set in the same direction until they run out of people to dance with (at the bottom or the top of the set). Active couples will move away from the band one couple at a time until they reach the bottom of the set. Inactive couples will move toward the band one couple at a time until they reach the top of the set. When a couple reaches the bottom or the top of the set, they sit out one time through the dance, then come in as inactive (if they were active before) and move up the set, or come in as active (if they were inactive before) and move down the set.
When they first form the lines, as I said, they will be in "proper" formation with the women and men in their own lines (with women on the caller’s left hand when the caller faces the set). Most of the dances we do in the US these days, however, are in "improper" formation, with the lines alternating women and men. To get into improper formation, while the dancers are still in their circles of four after taking hands four, have them note the active couple (those with the backs to the band), and have the active couple switch places with their partner, so the active women are in the men’s line and the active men are in the women’s line. The active couple should still be across from their partner, ready to dance with the same couple they took hands four with. Once you have gotten this far, you may start teaching the dance (assuming the dance is improper).
TEACHING A SIMPLE DANCE
Dud’s Reel (Dudley Briggs), duple, improper
A1. Balance and swing neighbor (16 counts)
A2. Chain the ladies over and back (16 counts)
B1. Long lines forward and back (8 counts)
Forward and back again (8 counts)
B2. Circle left (8 counts)
Star left (8 counts)
Begin teaching this dancing by having the couples take hands four from the top, and actives cross over. Make sure everyone understands who is active and inactive. Also make sure they understand that they will be active/inactive all the time until they reach the bottom or the top of the set and don’t have anyone to dance with. At this time, they will wait one time through the dance, trade places and come in as what they weren’t. (A good way to trade places is to swing partners and leave the woman on the right of the man facing the set and they will be right.)
A1. Have everyone face their neighbor, balance & swing that neighbor (4 counts for the balance, 12 for the swing). Explain about giving weight during the balance, so they can use that spring in their arms to give them momentum for the swing. End the swing facing across the set, woman on the gent’s right.
A2. Ladies chain (ladies take right hands, pull by, courtesy turn on the side with your partner)
Ladies chain back (same move, but now courtesy turn with your neighbor)
B1. Forward & back (take hands in long lines, forward 4 and back 4)
repeat
B2. Circle left (take hands in your little group of 4 and circle one time ‘round...this is a good time to remind them of giving weight again...circling is so much more fun and so much easier if everyone gives weight)
Star left to place (put your left hands in and take the wrist of the person in front of you, and walk forward one time round). As you finish the star, look the direction you are going (actives look down, inactives look up), find a new neighbor and the dance starts over with balance and swing the neighbor.
Ending A Dance & Handling the Band
Dances usually go until the caller says to stop. It’s a judgement call as to the right time. If the sets are fairly short, wait until the couple who started out at the top of the set goes all the way through to being at the top again. Try to stop when there is not a couple out at the top. In other words, end with everybody dancing, if possible. Ask the band how much warning they want before you stop. Sometimes they’ll want to know when you think you’re about half way through (I am very bad at that one, and usually forget to tell them). Sometimes all they want is "one more" or "two more". Make sure you all agree on what that means (i.e., does it mean one more after the one they are playing, or is the one they are playing the one more). If the dance falls apart (it happens to the best of us), the rule is: it is always your fault. Just start over, with or without re-teaching a sticky part. Sometimes, you just have to toss the card and call something else. If this happens try to make the "something else" something really easy. Again, don’t forget the point is to have fun.
General Notes That Don’t Seem to Fit Anywhere Else
In putting together a dance, start easy, and add one move at a time. The emphasis should be on flirting and fun (I guess that depends upon the age group, of course), but screwing up should be acceptable as long as it is safe. The timing of the calls is important. If the music that goes with a move has already started, it is too late to call the move. So, unlike square dancing, the calls have to come a beat (or two or three) before it is time to do them. This is probably the hardest part of contra dance calling (well, the teaching is pretty important, too). Keep your calls consistent. In other words, don’t change the name in the middle of the dance. You may start short-handing the calls as the dance goes on (e.g., quit saying "left hand star" and just say, "star"), but try to make sure the dancers have it before you short hand it. In fact, the goal is to be able to quit calling all together. Once the dancers have a sequence, just call the start of the sequence. After awhile, you won’t even need to call at all. BUT, keep an eye on them to make sure they don’t start losing it. Always be ready to start calling again. It really helps if you understand the music so you don’t have to count to keep track of where you are. Dancing and listening really help!! Also, give credit where credit is due: Provide the name of the dance and the author, if known. And don’t forget to thank the band.
GLOSSARY OF CONTRA DANCE TERMS
active couple: In the groups of four at the start of the dance, those dancers with their backs to the band.
allemande left/right: Take the appropriate hand with the appropriate person in a thumb’s up arm-wrestling sort of grip, and walk around each other for the required number of beats. It is very important to give weight in this move. (usually 4 or 8)
balance: Usually facing someone of the opposite sex, you take hands, then step toward each other then back away, taking four counts of music. Usually want to have some spring in your arms because the move usually precedes something that needs some momentum, like a swing. (4 counts)
Becket formation: A more advanced way to set up your lines. Instead of being across from your partner, you are next to your partner on the side of the set, facing another couple. The best way to get into Becket formation is to start the normal way with proper lines. Then have the actives trade places. Have the couples re-form their circles of 4, then turn the circle one place to the left. That will put them in Becket formation. Don’t try this until you have danced some Becket dances yourself and your dancers can do a regular contra ok.
circle left/right: Unless otherwise noted, take hands in your circle of four, and turn the circle one whole time until you get back to where you started. (usually 8 counts of music)
contra corners: Don’t even go there. A very advanced move, that I don’t recommend unless you don’t have to look up how to do it in a glossary.
courtesy turn: Usually the second half of a ladies chain or right-left through, the lady puts her left hand in the gent’s left hand, he puts his right hand around her waist (she may put her right hand on his right hand on her waist), then she walks forward and he backs up to come around to face the center of the set. This move is a nice, smooth way to get the lady (in a ladies chain) to face back into the set. In a right-left through, it is a way for both dancers to come around to face the center of the set. (4 counts)
do-si-do: Face the person you are to do-si-do, pass right shoulders, go back-to-back and return to place. Some people turn alone as they do this move. Don’t bother with the "hands cross" thing you probably learned in third grade. (8 counts)
down (the hall): Away from the band.
duple: Two couples at a time dance the dance before moving on to the next.
forward & back: Take hands in the long lines (up and down the hall) and take four counts forward and four counts back. (8 counts)
gypsy: A very fun move, except for the most shy of us (and I’m not sure what children think of this move). It’s like an allemande except you maintain eye contact the whole time you are walking around each other. Very flirty.
hands four: see "take hands four".
hey for four: This move looks and sounds much more complicated than it is. Basically, you take 16 counts to wander to the other side of the set then go back where you started the hey. The thing to get across to the dancers is that if they get lost, they should just go back to where they started. The way it usually works is this: ladies start by passing right shoulders in the center. The men follow behind and pass left shoulders with the ladies as the men go into the center and pass right shoulders with each other. Then the men pass left with the ladies as the ladies go back in and pass right in the center, then left with the gents as they go back in and pass right with each other, and everybody’s home. It’s basically a figure eight over and back. Another way to think of it is right on the inside left on the outside. Yet another way is that you pass right by the same sex and left by the opposite sex. Or, just think of it as wandering! (16 counts)
inactive couple: In the groups of four at the start of the dance, those dancers facing the band.
ladies chain: Ladies take right hands, pull past each other, and courtesy turn with the gent across the set (may be neighbor or partner, depending upon dance). (8 counts)
major set: Everybody making up one long line of partners facing each other. So, it’s actually two lines: the woman’s line and the man’s line. Usually have only one major set unless there are more couples than length of the hall, in which case you may have two or more major sets.
minor set: Groups of four who will dance together one time through the dance.
pass through: Just pass right shoulders with the person you are facing. No touching, and listen to the instructions to know what to do following the pass through. What comes next varies from dance to dance.
promenade: In skater’s position (or some similar side-by-side hold), walk with your partner/neighbor. (counts vary depending upon dance)
right-left through: Everybody takes right hands with the person across from them, and pulls by. As you get to the other side of the set, do not turn alone, but turn as a couple using a courtesy turn. (8 counts)
sashay: face partner, take hands, and side step the necessary number of steps (usually side step back to place, too) (8 counts each direction)
see-saw: Just like the do-si-do, except instead of passing right shoulders, you pass left shoulders. (8 counts)
set: See major or minor set.
star left/right: In your groups of four, put the stated hand in the middle (usually take the wrist of the person in front of you), and walk forward until you get back where you started. (8 counts)
swing: This is the heart of contra dancing (square dancing, too, some would argue). Usually done in standard ballroom position, right hip to right hip, either walking or buzz-stepping, giving weight the whole time. Always end with the woman on the man’s right (the man on the woman’s left).
take hands four: Starting at the top of the set, the first couple should face the second couple, and they take hands in a circle of four. Then the third and fourth couple do the same, the fifth and sixth and so on down to the end of the line.
up (the hall): Toward the band.
wavy line: A formation where half of the dancers are facing out (or up the set) and half are facing in (or down the set). May happen up and down the lines or across the set using just the two couples dancing together. A fun move.
weight: Anytime a dancer is taking hands with another dancer (whether it be a ladies chain, circling, or whatever) or when dancers are swinging, they should always have some tension and spring in their arms. Otherwise, it’s just not as much fun, and you often won’t be able to get around in time.
LOCAL (AND NOT SO LOCAL) BANDS, CALLERS, DANCES, & WEB PAGES
BANDS
North Pine String Band, contact Bob Bayles, 509/925-1981
Jolly Mountain String Band, contact Pico Cantieni (Cle Elum), 509/674-4632; pico@eburg.com
Genavie Thomas & Friends, contact Genavie, 933-1090
CALLERS
Marte Fallshore (yours truly): 925-6745; martendale@sisna.com
Gary Miller (E’burg and Spokane): 962-5605; millerg@adsnet.net
Shelly Jenkins (Yakima): 509/966-0044; xlnto1@cs.com
Penn Fix (Spokane): 509/838-2160; no email
DANCES
Ellensburg: First Saturday October to June, 7:30 to 10:30 at the Lincoln School Gym, Sampson & Capitol
Yakima: Second Saturdays all year but August, 7:30 to 11 at the Broadway Grange, 10th & Broadway
Seattle: Almost any day of the week (check out the web pages)
WEB PAGES
Just go to the Ellensburg page, and link from there: http://www.geocities.com/ebgcontra/
Going visiting somewhere? Just do a web search for contra dance and you’ll probably find it wherever you roam!!
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Harris, Jane A., Pittman, Anne, & Waller, Marlys S. (1999). Dance A While (8th ed.). Allyn & Bacon. This book is a classic. It is a general introduction to all kinds of dances, and for all I know all of you had it as a textbook when you took an introduction to dance class. It’s international in its approach, so is much more general than "just" contras, but is a great reference. (available through Amazon.com)
Fix, Penn (1991). Contra Dancing in the Northwest. This book provides a history of contra dancing in the NW (as the title suggests), and includes many dances written by Penn. It is more historical than some of the other references listed here, but a valuable source for anyone interested in dancing in this part of the world. Write directly to Penn for a copy (or you may call him at 509/838-2160): 2630 S. Rhyolite Rd., Spokane, WA 99203. He only has a few copies left, so don’t wait too long. They are $15.00 each, and I’m not sure if that covers postage or not.
Jennings, Larry (1983). Zesty Contras: A Selection of 500 New England Style Dances with a Provocative Explanatory Text. NEFFA (New England Folk Festival Assoc.), 1950 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge MA 02140. Also available through Elderly Music (www.elderly.com). This book is a great resource. In addition to the 500 dances, Larry explains what the moves are, how to put a dance together, what kind of music goes with what kind of dances, etc. In addition, the dances are rated for difficulty. I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in pursuing calling.
Page, Ralph (1984). An Elegant Collection of Contras and Squares. Denver, CO: The Lloyd Shaw Foundation. Perhaps a bit advanced for the newly initiated, this book provides accompanying music and historical notes for a variety of classic dances. (available through Amazon.com)
Shaw, Lloyd (1945). Cowboy Dances. (out of print, but could probably find used copies around). If you can find this book, it’s a wealth of information for squares, moves, and teaching hints. It’s also an historical treasure.
There are also some web sites where you can find dances. In particular try: arcserve.astro.washington.edu/dances. You can search this site for type of dance, difficulty, etc. It’s not super complete, but it’s very handy.
DISCOGRAPHY
A good source of the music is Elderly Music (www.elderly.com). You might search for contra dance. For some specifics:
A. Robic & the Exertions. Old Time Music Dance Party. (Elderly #FLYF-C415 (available in cassette only)) This tape is for fast dancing, more for clogging than contra dancing, but the tunes are square and long, so they’re good for practice.
Laurie Andres & Cathie Whitesides, Hand it Down: Contra Dance Tunes by Bob McQuillen. (Elderly #AVOC-CD105 for CD or AVOC-C105 for cassette).
Yankee Ingenuity, Heatin’ Up the Hall (Elderly #VAR-CD038 for CD or VAR-C038 for cassette)
Yankee Ingenuity, Kitchen Junket: Traditional New England Square Dance and Music. (Elderly #ALCA-C200 (cassette only))
Anything by Rodney Miller
Finally, I have a tape of me calling if you would like a copy of that. Just provide me with a blank cassette, and I will make you a copy for practice.
SOME MORE EASY DANCES
Scout House Reel (Ted Sannella), duple, improper
A1. Down the hall 4 in line (actives in the center) (6 counts)
Turn individually and come back (10 counts (2 to turn, 8 to come back))
A2. Circle left one time round (8 counts)
Ladies chain (8 counts)
B1. women do-si-do 1 _ times to (8 counts)
swing your neighbor (end facing across) (8 counts)
B2. long lines forward & back (8 counts)
actives only swing (end facing down the hall to the new couple) (8 counts)
Daddy’s Little Girl (Chart Guthrie) duple, improper
A1. Neighbor allemande right 1 3/4 (8 counts)
men allemande left 1 _ (8 counts)
A2. partner balance & swing (16 counts)
B1. ladies chain (8 counts)
right-left through (8 counts)
B2. circle left (8 counts)
left hand star (8 counts) (as you get back to place, start looking for the new neighbor)
Jed’s Reel (Penn Fix) duple, improper
A1. neighbor do-si-do (8 counts)
women do-si-do (8 counts)
A2. men: balance (4), do-si-do (8), allemande right 1 _ (4; 16 counts total)
B1. balance & swing partner (16 counts)
B2. _ promenade across the set (gents pass left shoulders) (8 counts)
circle left 3/4 (!) to pass through to the next (8 counts)
Aw Shucks (Carol Kopp) duple, improper
A1. actives: take hands and sashay down the set & back (8 counts)
repeat, ending between the inactives (8 counts)
A2. actives clap in center (own hands, partner right, own hands, partner left, turn fast) (4 counts)
clap with the inactives (own hands, partner right, own hands, partner left) (4 counts)
swing neighbor (8 counts)
B1. down hall four in line (6 counts)
turn as a couple & come back (2/8 counts)
B2. ladies chain over & back (16 counts)
Ragged Mountain Reel (Jim Morrison) duple, improper
A1. do-si-do neighbor (8 counts)
swing neighbor (8 counts)
A2. ladies chain over & back (16 counts)
B1. circle left (8 counts)
circle right (8 counts)
B2. star left (8 counts)
star right (8 counts)