Rita, I sure enjoyed the Contra Dance band we did last year with the leadership of Bill D etc. If it is done again this year, we should put out a list of tunes to be practiced ahead of time. It might be best to see who could call the dance and then have that person give a general plan as to what dances would be called, (ex: two reels and a minor jig for one dance, a country waltz, etc). Then someone could do a thread to create a set-list for the dance. If someone wanted to do a waltz evening we should do a set list thread for that one also. I just did Open Band at the reopening of the Spanish Ballroom at Glen Echo and it was a ball. The new sound system still has some quirks to work out, but the building itself was grand to play in, the money wasn't bad, and I figure about 400 dancers showed up, to reopen the hall. I suspect that if some of the folks who are essentially "Folk-Singers", but who are also good musicians, could understand they can make extra money playing at Contra Dances, they may decide to form a band and give it a try.
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