Country Dance and Song Society English & American Dance Week at Pinewoods August 19 - 26, 2000

As of March 17, 2000, the daily class schedule has changed a bit.
As of April 27, there is a short wait list at this week.

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Program Description Staff Class Descriptions & Schedule Programs Homepage

English & American Dance Week at Pinewoods August 19 - 26, 2000 Program Director: Brad Foster Staff: Laurie Andres* Karen Axelrod Sam Bartlett Alistair Brown Pete Campbell Bob Dalsemer Mary Devlin* Rosie Donovan Ruthie Dornfeld Colin Hume Paul Hutchinson Mary Lea Meg Ryan* Paul Sartin George Wilson * Advisors, plus: Steve Howe Barbara Russell

Program Description: [Back to Top]

The program this year offers a rich variety of styles and traditions with a central focus on country dancing. The American country will include a wide range of contras and squares. The contras will range from chestnuts to recent compositions and from smooth flowing and lyrical to fast paced and hard driving. The squares will include traditional dances of the South, patter and singing calls from the golden age of the revival in the 1950s, plus modern western squares. English country will include historical or "Playford" style dances, from old favorites to modern compositions and reconstructions, as well as traditional and modern ceilidh dances. They will range from the classic dances reconstructed or collected by Cecil Sharp through reconstructions and compositions of Pat Shaw, Fried de Metz Herman, Colin Hume, Gary Roodman and others. Additional workshops will cover Cotswold morris, Northwest morris, rapper, English clog, a workshop for callers and singing. And the music will be fantastic! We've gathered excellent musicians from around the U.S. and from England to play fiddle, piano, mandolin, oboe, banjo, accordion and more in styles ranging from Southern string band to New England to English country.

Come and enjoy the fun, the community and the special setting of Pinewoods Camp. For dance fanatics, you can keep your feet moving and expand your knowledge in a wide variety of forms throughout the day. For those seeking a relaxing vacation, you can make up your own schedule of dance classes plus singing, callers workshop, swimming, canoeing and more. For all, come and make new friends, meet old ones and share in the excitement of camp life.

Your day will include five main workshop periods, plus plenty of breaks for rest, meals, refreshments, swimming and perusing the bookstore. After dinner, most evenings will start with a staff concert, followed by a dance party. Each evening dance will include a variety of both English and American dance. On most evenings, the dance will be followed by activities including opening and closing night parties, a singing gathering, skit night or talent show, jam sessions, and a fun- and fund- raising auction. This year the "free night" will be moved to Wednesday; on this night there is no formally scheduled activity, but there is always a camper-led dance in camp and occasionally a morris tour in town. Bring your dances to call and/or instruments to play in the band, both for the Wednesday night dance and for Open Mic, in the middle of the day. The week will end with class presentations in the afternoon, a gathering for socializing, fun and games outside Pinecones, and a final Grand Ball.

Staff: [Back to Top]

This year we are featuring two callers. Both Colin Hume and Bob Dalsemer have been part of English & American Week in the past, but we haven't seen either of them here in a long time. We are very pleased to get them both back after too long of an absence. Both have extremely wide and eclectic knowledge of the dance in their particular fields of interest; both have also traveled extensively throughout the U.S. and in Europe. Colin is a writer of superb dances and tunes. We know him primarily for his English dances; he loves (and writes) American ones too. He will share those dances and others, ranging from recent compositions to old classics. Bob has collected traditional dances from a variety of communities in the South, and is a master at Singing Squares and the dances of the Western or Club Style square dance revival. Besides teaching country classes during the day, Bob will lead a callers workshop. Joining Bob and Colin in teaching country dancing are Brad Foster and Mary Devlin. All four teach a wide variety of material and are versed in multiple traditions. During the day, Brad will teach his favorite thing -- the joy in dancing, in two classes of English country. Mary will teach a class in contras as well as being MC for the Open Mic. New as well as experienced dancers from coast to coast have loved Mary's quick and explicit teaching, clear, crisp calling and flowing dances.

Completing the roster of teachers, Alistair Brown, Meg Ryan and Rosie Donovan will offer a great variety of English morris, sword and clog dances. Alistair Brown is a friendly, inspiring teacher from London, Ontario. He is a fantastic teacher of rapper and morris and a great musician to boot. Meg Ryan is one of the best and most active teachers and dancers of English clog in the U.S. today. She has studied with Pat Tracey, Anna Marley and Alex Woodcock and the dances of Sam Sherry. Rosie is amazing. You haven't lived until you've taken her Northwest morris class. She'll have you jumping and sweating, dancing tall, and loving every minute.

This year we bring a rare treat to the week: two musicians from England, both of them new to the week. Paul Sartin (oboe, fiddle, voice) and Paul Hutchinson (accordion) form the duo Belshazzar's Feast as well as playing in other bands. They will both play for English country. Sartin will also lead a class in vocal technique, and Hutchinson will play for morris. They bring great music and a marvelous sense of humor. Joining the Pauls are a number of extremely skilled and fun musicians from around the country. Karen Axelrod from Northampton, MA will play piano for English country and accordion for Northwest. Mary Lea from Brattleboro, VT will play fiddle and viola for English country, contra and rapper. Sam Bartlett from Bloomington, IN will play guitar, mandolin, banjo for contras and squares. Ruthie Dornfeld from Seattle, WA will play fiddle for contras and squares as well as teaching fiddle within the American Dance Musicians Course. Pete Campbell from Greensboro, NC will play piano for contras and English country and lead the music in the Open Band. George Wilson of Wynantskill, NY will play for American dances. Joining them all in the evenings will be Laurie Andres, from Seattle, WA, who will play accordion and piano for everything under the stars. During the day he will lead the American Dance Musicians Course
.

English & American Dance Week at Pinewoods Tentative Schedule:
9:00 - 10:00
English Country: Recent Compositions	Colin Hume
Southern & Western Squares	Bob Dalsemer
Cotswold Morris: Brackley	Alistair Brown
10:15 - 11:15
English for Experts	Colin Hume
English for All	Brad Foster
English Clog	Meg Ryan
11:20 - 12:00
All Camp Gathering	MC: Mary Devlin
1:45 - 2:45
Open Mic	Dance MC: Mary Devlin, Music MC: Pete Campbell
Singing and Voice Production	Paul Sartin
Northwest Morris	Rosie Donovan
3:00 - 4:00
English Country: Current Favorites	Brad Foster
Contras: Another Angle	Mary Devlin
Callers	Bob Dalsemer
4:05 - 4:25
Tea
4:30 - 5:30
Dancer Friendly Contras and Squares	Bob Dalsemer
Rapper: Winlaton	Alistair Brown
8:00
Special Dances
8:15
Evening Dance Party
11:00
After-Dance Activities

Class Descriptions: [Back to Top]
English Country Dance Classes
English Country: Recent Compositions - Colin Hume
Enjoy the extremely varied styles and superb dances found in the recent compositions from Colin Hume, Fried de Metz Herman, Tom Cook, Gary Roodman, Charles Bolton and others. For all levels.

English for Experts - Colin Hume
Part of our graded series of English country dances, this one will include an eclectic mix of dances for experts. Some will be mind-boggling brain teasers; some will require great skills of memory to retain the patterns. All will require a thorough knowledge of English country dance figures. Colin will give style points and historical background where necessary or appropriate. For experienced dancers.

English for All - Brad Foster
Another class in our graded series of English country dances, this one will focus on the learning of basic and intermediate style and technique for all skill levels. Brad is known for his friendly and insightful instruction. For all levels.

English Country: Current Favorites - Brad Foster
Popular English country dance of today, these will range from old classics like Fandango through middle-aged favorites like Hambleton's Round O and Miss de Jersey's Memorial to some of the older of the modern compositions. For all levels.

American Country Dance Classes
Southern & Western Squares - Bob Dalsemer
This class will include traditional Appalachian squares, dances from the square dance revival of the 1950s and a selection of modern western (club style) square dance figures from 1960 to the present.

Contras: Another Angle - Mary Devlin
Each day will be an exploration of a different angle on contras from chestnuts, to contras with a twist, to those with a splash of English and more. Expect to dance a lot and to see new ways to enhance your dancing pleasure and ability. For all levels.

Dancer Friendly Contras and Squares - Bob Dalsemer
Lots of dancing with little or no teaching and short or no walk throughs. A wonderful way to end your day. For all levels.

Morris, Sword and Clog Dance Classes
Cotswold Morris: Brackley - Alistair Brown
Learn to dance with bells, sticks and hankies with the engaging teaching of Alistair. Morris is a wonderful street theater for the spring; this workshop will include the dances from the village of Brackley. For all levels.

English Clog - Meg Ryan
Meg will teach a routine from one of her favorite sources of traditional clog steps. Clogs or hard soled shoes are recommended. For all levels.

Northwest Morris - Rosie Donovan
Rosie is one of the most inspiring teachers of Northwest around. The dances will be exuberant, boisterous, sweaty exercise and great fun. For all levels.

Rapper: Winlaton - Alistair Brown
Rapper is a fast paced dance using short, flexible metal "swords", tight figures, rapid stepping, and great teamwork, often for teams of five people. The figures presented in this workshop will be from the village of Winlaton. For all levels.

Other Classes
All Camp Gathering - MC: Mary Devlin
We have added an All Camp Gathering before lunch, with songs, stories, jokes, musical presentations and more, lead by Mary Devlin. Bring ideas for short things you'd like to share.

Open Mic - Dance MC: Mary Devlin, Music MC: Pete Campbell
Come dance, play music, call dances -- it's your choice! Dances will include contras, squares, English -- whatever you bring. Mary will offer callers an opportunity to get gentle and thoughtful feedback tailored for improvement. Pete, with his great energy and enthusiasm for American and English tunes, will help put a band together. So bring your dance cards, your instruments, and your dancing shoes for post-lunch fun. For all levels.

Singing and Voice Production - Paul Sartin
This workshop has two focuses: one of getting people to produce/think about producing a good sound with information and exercises involving posture, breathing, etc; and another of putting this stuff into practice, by the teaching of a song or two (in particular English rounds) in which everyone can participate as well as practice song technique. For all levels.

Callers Workshop - Bob Dalsemer
This workshop will focus on teaching and program planning. One topic to be discussed is "How to Keep New Dancers Coming Back". Practice time and individual critiques may be offered as time permits. Callers of all experience levels are welcome, although the workshop will assume at least a basic knowledge of contra calling technique.

Program Description Staff Class Descriptions & Schedule Top

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Country Dance and Song Society 132 Main St/PO Box 338 Haydenville, MA 01039-0338 Office Hours M-F 9:30am - 5:00pm EST

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