A light night - only four other dancers showed. So once again I delved into that category of dances that I call "n-somes". These are dances for three, four or five dancers (not couples) and they reside in my card file under their very own separator so when I need them I not only have them I can find them.
Last night's dances were:
Ducks in a Row (32 J 5 dancers) Martha Veranth
The Gay Goshawk (32 J 2) B. Priddey
Dragonflies (32 S 5-some) J. Lataille
Cactus Flower (32 J 5-some) J. Lataille
The Four Poster (32 S 4-some) T. Glasspool
Four of Diamonds (32 J 4-some) T. Glasspool
Gypsy Dreams (32 S 2) T. Glasspool
**********
Ducks in a Row - The first time ever teaching this dance. I was not impressed. My fault I am sure. The music was not an inspired choice on my part. Better music might have made all the difference.
The last formation, which we ended up calling it 'single-triangles', was what caught everyones attention and was the highlight of the dance. Nice pattern. The dance needs redoing to better music.
The Gay Goshawk - This was the second time I have taught this dance and it will never earn a Dancer's Choice award I fear. Don't get me wrong, it is by Barry Priddey, and I like his dances. This is a solid and respectable dance but it is missing the "Oh Wow" factor that the really special dances have. The first time I taught it I used The Weaver and His Wife (Andrew Rankine). That tune fits the nature of the dance but the Jimmy Blair recording is just too fast and I am not able to slow it down because my software combination (Winamp + Pacemaker) is just too volatile. I used Anne Munro of Portree instead. It is a delightful, slower tempo jig that I often use when 'any good jig' is called for. It did not work well with this dance. Just gotta keep on lookin' I guess.
Dragonflies - Dancer's Choice award winner from Jane Lataille. I have now taught this dance 16 times over the last 5 years and I have always had a positive response from the dancers. I just checked my Top 50 list and this one is missing and I must rectify that omission.
Cactus Flower - Another good solid dance from Jane Lataille. But not an award winner. But don't let that stop you.
The Four Poster - Terry Glasspool. *Magnificent* Interlocking Back-to-Backs. Back-to-Back Half Reels of Four. Wow! He is the most innovative dance choreographer I have ever run across. And I found music that fits the dance: Pasadena Prom, by Muriel Johnstone & her Band from the CD "Dances with a Difference."
Four of Diamonds - Another Terry Glasspool dance. This one is another winner in MHO. Not as original as The Four Poster but still a fun one.
Gypsy Dreams - Dancer's Choice award winner a hundred times over. Simply one of the prettiest dances ever devised. And not just my opinion either. It is a gem and it belongs in the standard repertoire. Another Terry Glasspool creation!
Showing posts with label Terry Glasspool. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Terry Glasspool. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
New Haven Summer Social - 7 September 2010
Four couples turned out. For the day after the long weekend I thought that was pretty good. The temperature was cool, the humidity was high, and two fans dealt with that.
Summer is over and when my class in Wilton resumes I will be teaching there on Tuesdays and only rarely making it to the New Haven class and only as a dancer, not as a teacher. My teaching in New Haven will once again be restricted to the Second Monday of the month class on the Heights.
Bad news - but not completely unexpected: Mary Kate Adami (nee Sampson), who has been quite sick for some time, has died. A memorial service was held this past weekend.
Summer is over and when my class in Wilton resumes I will be teaching there on Tuesdays and only rarely making it to the New Haven class and only as a dancer, not as a teacher. My teaching in New Haven will once again be restricted to the Second Monday of the month class on the Heights.
Bad news - but not completely unexpected: Mary Kate Adami (nee Sampson), who has been quite sick for some time, has died. A memorial service was held this past weekend.
Tonight's dances were:
Knights' Heys (32 H 3) T. Glasspool
Gypsy Dreams (32 S 2) T. Glasspool
Miss Muriel Johnstone's Jig (32 J 3) G. Dale Birdsall – A Cup of Kindness
Auchindrain (32 R 3) P. Price
Through A Glass Darkly (32 S 4) B. Skelton – Kiwi Book
Un-Named Dance (32 S 2) C. Anagnostakis
Lang May Your Lum Reek (32 J 2) B. Priddey
**********
Knights' Heys - Teacher's Check Mark award winner in 2003 and about to make its first encore appearance since that ball - and about time too.
Gypsy Dreams - What a delight! The Tournee is becoming a good looking formation. Finally. Due to sheer repetition. I hope the teachers in New Haven continue with this. Oh and by the way - reappearing on the 2011 K&G ball program for the first time since it premiered in '04.
Miss Muriel Johnstone's Jig - A fairly simple wee dance, heavily weighted toward first couple. Second and third couples are very much supporting couples in the dance - theirs is a choppy role with lots of stop and go four bar phrases. I would like to dance it some time and see for myself - but no Dancer's Check Mark Award for it tonight.
Through a Glass Darkly - No dancers award for this one either, but I would give it a Teacher's award. Why? To justify the amount of head banging I had to do to get a couple of very simple concept across. Set advancing men, that means moving forward on bar 1! Right? Got it? Not.
Un-Named dance by C. Anagnostakis - Sorry. You will just have to wait, but I think it will be worth it.
Lang May Your Lum Reek - I just love that stealth progression (bars 29-32). Worth all the angst and sturm und drang of the third figure. As for that - try practicing it with both hands joined and you may find the key to the whole dance. Note well: I am programming this one as the premier dance on the 2011 K&G ball program.
Knights' Heys - Teacher's Check Mark award winner in 2003 and about to make its first encore appearance since that ball - and about time too.
Gypsy Dreams - What a delight! The Tournee is becoming a good looking formation. Finally. Due to sheer repetition. I hope the teachers in New Haven continue with this. Oh and by the way - reappearing on the 2011 K&G ball program for the first time since it premiered in '04.
Miss Muriel Johnstone's Jig - A fairly simple wee dance, heavily weighted toward first couple. Second and third couples are very much supporting couples in the dance - theirs is a choppy role with lots of stop and go four bar phrases. I would like to dance it some time and see for myself - but no Dancer's Check Mark Award for it tonight.
Through a Glass Darkly - No dancers award for this one either, but I would give it a Teacher's award. Why? To justify the amount of head banging I had to do to get a couple of very simple concept across. Set advancing men, that means moving forward on bar 1! Right? Got it? Not.
Un-Named dance by C. Anagnostakis - Sorry. You will just have to wait, but I think it will be worth it.
Lang May Your Lum Reek - I just love that stealth progression (bars 29-32). Worth all the angst and sturm und drang of the third figure. As for that - try practicing it with both hands joined and you may find the key to the whole dance. Note well: I am programming this one as the premier dance on the 2011 K&G ball program.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Dancing on the Heights - 9 August 2010
The weather turned hot and muggy again and only four dancers showed up. That gave me the space to do some individual coaching. And, Hooray for me, I had prepared a number of 2C dances so I wasn't scrambling for material.
One dance was completely new, one was a favourite from the Kilts and Ghillies Ball circa 2005 and the other two were recent finds of mine that have been given the top accolade of applause from the floor. Mind you there are two possible reasons for applause - either the dancers really liked the dance or they are really happy it is done and over with.
And regarding that favourite dance, Terry Glasspool's Gypsy Dreams - before tonight I have taught it only once in the last five years, and that was in April of this year. And it bothers me that when we find real gems, and Gypsy Dreams is definitely a gem, we don't make sure, by repetition, that the dance becomes part of our repertoire. And I know how difficult the initial teaching was, and tonight I was astonished at how inherently easy the dance really is. So why?
Susan Leff offered a solution - build up a repertoire of dances linked to the Kilts and Ghillies ball. This is what the Brooklyn, NY class does with their Drewry Night. They program the neat but difficult dances every other year or so. Worth considering.
Tonight's dances were:
Cubbie Roo (32 J 2) J. Attwood
The Burn of Sorrow (32 S 2) B. Priddey
Lang May Your Lum Reek (32 J 2) B. Priddey
Gypsy Dreams (32 S 2) T. Glasspool
Elixabeth Adair (32 J 2) Hugh Foss
**********
Cubbie Roo - Jean Attwood. Worth a second take, mainly because I think different music would be a huge improvement. It was the first dance of the evening and that was probably a mistake. The dance requires mental clarity and precision. With neither minds nor legs warm precision was out of the question. A relentless dance, a proper set would have been a great relief.
The Burn of Sorrow - Dancers like this one (two trials and two positive responses). Me too. What I like is the contrast between the strong turn and loop that follows the initial right hands across and the much slower no turn and loop (in four) out of the left hands across. Too, I simply adore the tourbillon progression and was tickled pink when one of the dancers wanted to work on the timing. It is so lovely when done right.
The key to the tourbillon, IMHO, is the timing of the handing. The turn with partner is only a half turn - that puts 1M into position to dance down the Ladies' side into 2L's position and by dropping his left (partner's right) hand after just one step he gets to 'draw' her back to her place, where they then set on the sides with near hands joined. They turn again, again only half way, and that puts 1L in position to dance across to 2M's place. By dropping her left hand (partner's right) after just one step she gets to 'draw' 1M back to 2L's place. And here is the but - But the only way they can be in 2nd place on the sides across from one another is if they drop both hands. And here is the big but - BUT don't drop them at the same time! She should drop her left hand first and a moment later, after setting up the illusion of the draw, she should drop her right hand and dance across the set as 1M dances back into 2L's place. Couples now cross to own sides.
Another consideration - the nature of the figure is inherently curvy. From lines to turns (think 2 person circles) to lines and set. From lines to turns (again think circles) to the side lines and cross. Think covering too.
I am SO tempted to put this on the K&G ball.
Lang May Your Lum Reek - We have another Winnah! With sixteen bars of lullaby to get you to lower your guard, and then... Wham! Eight bars of Rotating Ptolemaic Epicyclic Hello Goodbye setting no less. ( no lie - that is the name we came up with tonight - and not me, it was Bob Cole!) And the progression is one the simplest and most satisfying I have ever danced.
And, gulp, I did succumb to temptation and I have put it on the K&G program for April.
Gypsy Dreams - So beautiful! I have no other words. You have to dance this one at least once in your life. And once you have, once won't be enough. This is my #1 strathspey despite of the tournee.
Susan, you are absolutely right. So I promise, I will teach and program Gypsy Dreams more often.
One dance was completely new, one was a favourite from the Kilts and Ghillies Ball circa 2005 and the other two were recent finds of mine that have been given the top accolade of applause from the floor. Mind you there are two possible reasons for applause - either the dancers really liked the dance or they are really happy it is done and over with.
And regarding that favourite dance, Terry Glasspool's Gypsy Dreams - before tonight I have taught it only once in the last five years, and that was in April of this year. And it bothers me that when we find real gems, and Gypsy Dreams is definitely a gem, we don't make sure, by repetition, that the dance becomes part of our repertoire. And I know how difficult the initial teaching was, and tonight I was astonished at how inherently easy the dance really is. So why?
Susan Leff offered a solution - build up a repertoire of dances linked to the Kilts and Ghillies ball. This is what the Brooklyn, NY class does with their Drewry Night. They program the neat but difficult dances every other year or so. Worth considering.
Tonight's dances were:
Cubbie Roo (32 J 2) J. Attwood
The Burn of Sorrow (32 S 2) B. Priddey
Lang May Your Lum Reek (32 J 2) B. Priddey
Gypsy Dreams (32 S 2) T. Glasspool
Elixabeth Adair (32 J 2) Hugh Foss
**********
Cubbie Roo - Jean Attwood. Worth a second take, mainly because I think different music would be a huge improvement. It was the first dance of the evening and that was probably a mistake. The dance requires mental clarity and precision. With neither minds nor legs warm precision was out of the question. A relentless dance, a proper set would have been a great relief.
The Burn of Sorrow - Dancers like this one (two trials and two positive responses). Me too. What I like is the contrast between the strong turn and loop that follows the initial right hands across and the much slower no turn and loop (in four) out of the left hands across. Too, I simply adore the tourbillon progression and was tickled pink when one of the dancers wanted to work on the timing. It is so lovely when done right.
The key to the tourbillon, IMHO, is the timing of the handing. The turn with partner is only a half turn - that puts 1M into position to dance down the Ladies' side into 2L's position and by dropping his left (partner's right) hand after just one step he gets to 'draw' her back to her place, where they then set on the sides with near hands joined. They turn again, again only half way, and that puts 1L in position to dance across to 2M's place. By dropping her left hand (partner's right) after just one step she gets to 'draw' 1M back to 2L's place. And here is the but - But the only way they can be in 2nd place on the sides across from one another is if they drop both hands. And here is the big but - BUT don't drop them at the same time! She should drop her left hand first and a moment later, after setting up the illusion of the draw, she should drop her right hand and dance across the set as 1M dances back into 2L's place. Couples now cross to own sides.
Another consideration - the nature of the figure is inherently curvy. From lines to turns (think 2 person circles) to lines and set. From lines to turns (again think circles) to the side lines and cross. Think covering too.
I am SO tempted to put this on the K&G ball.
Lang May Your Lum Reek - We have another Winnah! With sixteen bars of lullaby to get you to lower your guard, and then... Wham! Eight bars of Rotating Ptolemaic Epicyclic Hello Goodbye setting no less. ( no lie - that is the name we came up with tonight - and not me, it was Bob Cole!) And the progression is one the simplest and most satisfying I have ever danced.
And, gulp, I did succumb to temptation and I have put it on the K&G program for April.
Gypsy Dreams - So beautiful! I have no other words. You have to dance this one at least once in your life. And once you have, once won't be enough. This is my #1 strathspey despite of the tournee.
Susan, you are absolutely right. So I promise, I will teach and program Gypsy Dreams more often.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
New Haven Summer Social - 27 July 2010
As is almost always the case, especially after having six couples for the last two weeks, when I plan six-couple dances, and I prepared three of them, I only get five and a half couples. One more person, please, just one more...
Tonight's dances were:
Hana Strathspey (32 S 3) Alex Gray
The Sea Caves (32 R 5) Green - Southern Stars
The Glenora Ferry (40 J 3) Terry Glasspool
Ythanside (32 S 3) John Drewry
A Winter's Walk (32 J 3) Pam Stephens
The Black Craig of Dee (32 R 3) Hugh Foss
**********
Hana Strathspey - I have the Tokyo 25th Anniversary CD with the music for this dance and the dance directions are in the liner notes. The music doesn't do it for me (what ever 'it' is), but the dancers liked it. The dance itself is a very basic dance - not a bad thing because there are basic dances and then there are boring basic dances which, according to the mob, this one isn't.
The dance is by Alex Grey, present chairman of the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society, who taught it at the New York Branch's Pawling Weekend this past May. It introduces his figure "The Helix" which is sweet.
I give it a 72 - but I am a tough grader.
The Sea Caves - By Jeff Green, whom I have never heard of before, but I hope to hear more of him in the future, 'cause this is a fun dance. It is from his Southern Stars Book.
What I find neat is the rather different progression - in a 5C set the usual is: 1s and 3s start together and after one round of the dance 1C is in 3rd place and 3C is at the bottom. So, starting at the top, each couple dances twice-and-to-the-bottom, just like all the 8x32 3C dances we have been doing since our first day of dancing.
Here 1C dance it once and end at the bottom while 3C end in top place and repeats from there. Different.
And for the active dancers in the reel of four - 8 bars is just enough time to dance half way round the set and I do mean just.
If I don't sound enthusiastic enough it is because I have been up since 5:30 this AM and I don't do mornings well at all. The dance made it onto my A list. OK?
The Glenora Ferry - by Terry Glasspool - by TERRY GLASSPOOL - ANOTHER good Terry Glasspool dance. Have you got it yet? Do I need to say more? Great dance. The circulating Allemande, where 1C (in 2nd place) start out and up while 2C 3C start out and down, is a thing of beauty.
Ythanside - a pastorale - another dance of surpassing beauty. Kudos to Leslie Kearney for introducing me to this dance. I had read it over but not recognized it for what it is. The high point is the last figure (circles) and the key to the circles is the last 4 bars of the previous figure:
Lines of 3 set a second time, then while 1C cast to own sides the 2 corner men, and the 2 corner ladies, turn BH half round in 2 bars. SLOWLY! and merge smoothly into the circles of three on the sides, then the circles of three must begin to speed up and merge into the circle of 6 which needs to keep accelerating to get everyone far enough round to make to own sides. Sweet! The previous 20 bars of dance is just a set-up for these last 12 bars.
Not only is it on my A list, it is in fact on my Top 50 Strathspey list, and is actually one of my top 10 strathspeys of all time. (And the music makes the dance so do use the right music).
A Winter's Walk - by Pam Stephens from Between the Rivers. I like what Pam is doing. This is a fun dance and definitely on my A list of Top 50 Jigs. And Between the Rivers is one of my two favourite dance books - the other being Dunsmuir Dances from the Dunsmuir class in the San Francisco area. These books have more winners than any other 5 books of dances I have seen.
The Black Craig of Dee - One of my favourites. Love that music. Like the dance.
Dance by Hugh Foss, music by Peter White. One of the top items on my "in-my-lifetime" wish list: that the Peter White/Hugh Foss albums be remastered and issued on CD.
The Foss dances are good, if not great, and certainly of historical importance, while the music Peter White wrote/arranged and plays approaches the sublime because theirs was a collaboration and the fit of music and dance is near perfect.
Tonight's dances were:
Hana Strathspey (32 S 3) Alex Gray
The Sea Caves (32 R 5) Green - Southern Stars
The Glenora Ferry (40 J 3) Terry Glasspool
Ythanside (32 S 3) John Drewry
A Winter's Walk (32 J 3) Pam Stephens
The Black Craig of Dee (32 R 3) Hugh Foss
**********
Hana Strathspey - I have the Tokyo 25th Anniversary CD with the music for this dance and the dance directions are in the liner notes. The music doesn't do it for me (what ever 'it' is), but the dancers liked it. The dance itself is a very basic dance - not a bad thing because there are basic dances and then there are boring basic dances which, according to the mob, this one isn't.
The dance is by Alex Grey, present chairman of the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society, who taught it at the New York Branch's Pawling Weekend this past May. It introduces his figure "The Helix" which is sweet.
I give it a 72 - but I am a tough grader.
The Sea Caves - By Jeff Green, whom I have never heard of before, but I hope to hear more of him in the future, 'cause this is a fun dance. It is from his Southern Stars Book.
What I find neat is the rather different progression - in a 5C set the usual is: 1s and 3s start together and after one round of the dance 1C is in 3rd place and 3C is at the bottom. So, starting at the top, each couple dances twice-and-to-the-bottom, just like all the 8x32 3C dances we have been doing since our first day of dancing.
Here 1C dance it once and end at the bottom while 3C end in top place and repeats from there. Different.
And for the active dancers in the reel of four - 8 bars is just enough time to dance half way round the set and I do mean just.
If I don't sound enthusiastic enough it is because I have been up since 5:30 this AM and I don't do mornings well at all. The dance made it onto my A list. OK?
The Glenora Ferry - by Terry Glasspool - by TERRY GLASSPOOL - ANOTHER good Terry Glasspool dance. Have you got it yet? Do I need to say more? Great dance. The circulating Allemande, where 1C (in 2nd place) start out and up while 2C 3C start out and down, is a thing of beauty.
Ythanside - a pastorale - another dance of surpassing beauty. Kudos to Leslie Kearney for introducing me to this dance. I had read it over but not recognized it for what it is. The high point is the last figure (circles) and the key to the circles is the last 4 bars of the previous figure:
Lines of 3 set a second time, then while 1C cast to own sides the 2 corner men, and the 2 corner ladies, turn BH half round in 2 bars. SLOWLY! and merge smoothly into the circles of three on the sides, then the circles of three must begin to speed up and merge into the circle of 6 which needs to keep accelerating to get everyone far enough round to make to own sides. Sweet! The previous 20 bars of dance is just a set-up for these last 12 bars.
Not only is it on my A list, it is in fact on my Top 50 Strathspey list, and is actually one of my top 10 strathspeys of all time. (And the music makes the dance so do use the right music).
A Winter's Walk - by Pam Stephens from Between the Rivers. I like what Pam is doing. This is a fun dance and definitely on my A list of Top 50 Jigs. And Between the Rivers is one of my two favourite dance books - the other being Dunsmuir Dances from the Dunsmuir class in the San Francisco area. These books have more winners than any other 5 books of dances I have seen.
The Black Craig of Dee - One of my favourites. Love that music. Like the dance.
Dance by Hugh Foss, music by Peter White. One of the top items on my "in-my-lifetime" wish list: that the Peter White/Hugh Foss albums be remastered and issued on CD.
The Foss dances are good, if not great, and certainly of historical importance, while the music Peter White wrote/arranged and plays approaches the sublime because theirs was a collaboration and the fit of music and dance is near perfect.
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Woodbridge, Friday the 13th
It has been a very difficult week. For the third time I have had, as Jane Lataille so aptly put it, a class of very small numbers. Last night it was three (3). So Tony Kalbfus gets the 'Hero of the Night" award since he drove up from New York to attend and if he hadn't there would not have been a class.
So once again it was threesomes and foursomes, with one exception, until we dropped.
Eigg, Muck and Rum - 32 R 3some - Jane Lataille
The Gay Goshawk - 32 J 2 - Barry Priddey
This One's Four Isobel - 32 S 4some - Terry Glasspool
Four Paws - 32 S 4some - Terry Glasspool
The Four Winds - 32 R 4some - Terry Glasspool
Eigg, Muck and Rum: from Always Enough to Dance. A nice little dance and a superb reinforcement to reels of three. I have the dancers line up in a row across the normal axis of a set with the end dancers facing up and the middle dancer facing down.
The opening fig. 8 foreshadows the upcoming Reel of 3, both are in 6 bars, both are identical tracks, and the final 2-bar crossings (1 bar each) really force correct timing of the reel.
The Gay Goshawk: From The Sutton Coldfield Book - a tight little dance requiring strict phrasing and a concentrated mind. It is worth a second trial with a proper set. A 2-couple dance in a 2-couple set is a bit much.
This One's Four Isobel - a favourite of mine. Of all the foursomes I have done this one comes closest to having a story line (though it may simply be familiarity on my part) and is so pretty that one day, real soon now, it will show up on a ball or party program.
Four Paws - This one is a bear to teach. We danced the first two rounds but on the third round the reels fell apart. There is a moment there that boggles my mind. I normally have a very strong sense of pattern and in that transitional moment I want to go the wrong way every time.
The heart of the dance is the reel - two dancers have a normal(?) half reel of four, the other two dancers have half Schiehallion-like reels, and then you switch! And it is at that moment that I have been going the wrong way, giving right shoulder to the wrong person. The key people are the ones who are starting the Schiehallion-half reels. They go to the person on their right to pass right shoulders. If you are that other person you have to start to your LEFT to pass that opening right shoulder and it doesn't feel right. I may have it sorted out now. One can only hope.
So once again it was threesomes and foursomes, with one exception, until we dropped.
Eigg, Muck and Rum - 32 R 3some - Jane Lataille
The Gay Goshawk - 32 J 2 - Barry Priddey
This One's Four Isobel - 32 S 4some - Terry Glasspool
Four Paws - 32 S 4some - Terry Glasspool
The Four Winds - 32 R 4some - Terry Glasspool
Eigg, Muck and Rum: from Always Enough to Dance. A nice little dance and a superb reinforcement to reels of three. I have the dancers line up in a row across the normal axis of a set with the end dancers facing up and the middle dancer facing down.
The opening fig. 8 foreshadows the upcoming Reel of 3, both are in 6 bars, both are identical tracks, and the final 2-bar crossings (1 bar each) really force correct timing of the reel.
The Gay Goshawk: From The Sutton Coldfield Book - a tight little dance requiring strict phrasing and a concentrated mind. It is worth a second trial with a proper set. A 2-couple dance in a 2-couple set is a bit much.
This One's Four Isobel - a favourite of mine. Of all the foursomes I have done this one comes closest to having a story line (though it may simply be familiarity on my part) and is so pretty that one day, real soon now, it will show up on a ball or party program.
Four Paws - This one is a bear to teach. We danced the first two rounds but on the third round the reels fell apart. There is a moment there that boggles my mind. I normally have a very strong sense of pattern and in that transitional moment I want to go the wrong way every time.
The heart of the dance is the reel - two dancers have a normal(?) half reel of four, the other two dancers have half Schiehallion-like reels, and then you switch! And it is at that moment that I have been going the wrong way, giving right shoulder to the wrong person. The key people are the ones who are starting the Schiehallion-half reels. They go to the person on their right to pass right shoulders. If you are that other person you have to start to your LEFT to pass that opening right shoulder and it doesn't feel right. I may have it sorted out now. One can only hope.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Dancing on the Heights - November 2009
We barely squeaked a class in tonight - just four (4) dancers showed. So, instead of getting a jump on the Book 46 project I had to pull out all the 3-some, 4-some and 5-some dances I had in my card file.
We danced:
Santa Fe Summer (32 J 4-some) - Jane Lataille
This One's Four Isobel - (32 S 4-some) - Terry Glasspool
The Four Winds - (32 R 4-some) - Terry Glasspool
The Four Poster - (32 S 4-some) - Terry Glasspool
What I am finding is that 4-some dances such as these have little chance of developing a storyline. These dances are essentially figure/pattern sequences and the formations can be irregular so a very good short term memory is needed as the parts may be familiar but the patterns are going in unfamiliar directions. Muscle memory can lead you astray here.
This only the second time I have taught Santa Fe Summer and I haven't made up my mind yet.
This One's Four Isobel is absolutely positively one of my favorite dances. It is gorgeous, it is elegant and one day it will end up on a ball program.
The Four Wind is a good journeyman dance. It is fairly simple, fun but it won't win an Uncle Molly Award. The last dance to do that was Mole's Frolic which is the opening dance for this season's Kilts and Ghillies Ball -17 April 2010.
The last dance of the evening, The Four Poster is one another winner. In this one Terry plays games with that good old mundane, if not down right boring, figure: Back-to-Back. Here we have interlocking Back-to-Backs for 4 persons in line, then he gives us a "Back-to-Back Half Reel of Four". Without a doubt Terry has one of the most devilish minds I have had the pleasure of meeting.
We danced:
Santa Fe Summer (32 J 4-some) - Jane Lataille
This One's Four Isobel - (32 S 4-some) - Terry Glasspool
The Four Winds - (32 R 4-some) - Terry Glasspool
The Four Poster - (32 S 4-some) - Terry Glasspool
What I am finding is that 4-some dances such as these have little chance of developing a storyline. These dances are essentially figure/pattern sequences and the formations can be irregular so a very good short term memory is needed as the parts may be familiar but the patterns are going in unfamiliar directions. Muscle memory can lead you astray here.
This only the second time I have taught Santa Fe Summer and I haven't made up my mind yet.
This One's Four Isobel is absolutely positively one of my favorite dances. It is gorgeous, it is elegant and one day it will end up on a ball program.
The Four Wind is a good journeyman dance. It is fairly simple, fun but it won't win an Uncle Molly Award. The last dance to do that was Mole's Frolic which is the opening dance for this season's Kilts and Ghillies Ball -17 April 2010.
The last dance of the evening, The Four Poster is one another winner. In this one Terry plays games with that good old mundane, if not down right boring, figure: Back-to-Back. Here we have interlocking Back-to-Backs for 4 persons in line, then he gives us a "Back-to-Back Half Reel of Four". Without a doubt Terry has one of the most devilish minds I have had the pleasure of meeting.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)