Help: Contra Dancing Music

Subject: Contra Dancing Music
From: dulcimer
Date: 29 Dec 99 - 07:45 PM

Just interested in hearing some samples of contra dancing music. An web sites that would have some samples or abc or midis of some of the more popular contra dance tunes?

Subject: RE: Help: Contra Dancing Music
From: Rosebrook
Date: 30 Dec 99 - 01:35 AM

A good starting place would be:

http://www.io.com/~entropy/contradance/dance-home.html

(I never did catch on to those blue, click-me things, but you can cut and paste these URLs!)

This site has some samples of contradance music:

http://www.netheaven.com/~rfutyma/musicclips.shtml

This is the homepage of Swallowtail, a favorite contradance band:

http://www.netheaven.com/~rfutyma/musicclips.shtml

And Wild Asparagus, another hot band (with sound clips available on their homepage):

http://he.net/~bmd/wild.html#recordings

When I lived in the Phila. area I used to contradance every week. Since moving to the middle of cultural nowhere, I have really missed giving a balance and a swing in a big way! Again, sorry for the inconvenience of no hyperlinks.

Rose

Subject: RE: Help: Contra Dancing Music
From: T in Oklahoma (Okiemockbird)
Date: 30 Dec 99 - 09:07 AM

Contra dances I have attended use a variety of music from the English, Irish, and American dance and song traditions. In every case I can remember, the band strung several melodies together, just so they were all 4/4 or whatever, and compatible with the choreography. So if the band started, say, with "The Rakes of Mallow", it would after a few cycles of the choreography switch to some other tune in the same time signature.

T.

Subject: RE: Help: Contra Dancing Music
From: Jacob Bloom
Date: 30 Dec 99 - 04:41 PM

There is an abc archive of contra dance music at

http://trillian.mit.edu/~jc/music/abc/Contra/

Rosebrook, what cultural nowhere are you living in? I might be able to dig up a dance in your area.

Subject: RE: Help: Contra Dancing Music
From: BeauDangles
Date: 30 Dec 99 - 09:49 PM

Hey Rose,

Sorry your are in the contra deadzone. I can't imagine moving somewhere where I couldn't dance. Serious withdrawal. I have a friend who used to dance up in Philadelphia, and played with the SPUDDS group up there. She speaks very highly of that community. Here's hoping you can find a dance somewhere.

BeauD

Subject: RE: Help: Contra Dancing Music
From: Kristi H
Date: 31 Dec 99 - 12:27 AM

OUr band Upsala plays regularly at contra dances. Two of our tunes from our CD are tunes we do at the dances. Real Audio versions of those are on our web page at www.geocities.com/upsala1

Also, www.oldtimemusic.com has a bunch of links to old time and I am sure they would contain losts of contra music.

Kristi

Subject: RE: Help: Contra Dancing Music
From: Rosebrook
Date: 31 Dec 99 - 12:46 AM

Hi Jacob,

I couldn't access the link you offered. Sounded like a goodie, too. Maybe you could try again?

I'm on the gorgeous southern Oregon coast, 2+ hours away from a regular contradance...18 years since I've participated in a regular dance...

I really miss the stuff! I've organized a couple of dances here - we have interested musicians and dancers, but no callers. I suppose some of us could learn! We've had offers from a nice fellow who is a dance organizer up in McMinnville area to come down and help us get started.

This conversation is making me feel wistful for a hambo and a good end-of-the-dance waltz!

Rose

Subject: RE: Help: Contra Dancing Music
From: Jacob Bloom
Date: 03 Jan 00 - 12:47 PM

Hi Rose,

The link above works when I try it. Maybe the server was down when you tried it. MIT was planning to shut down all of their computers for all of Y2K weekend, but they should be up now. Try it again and let me know what happens.

The only caller I'm familiar with in the Pacific Northwest is Penn Fix. I have no expectations to be in Oregon in the forseeable future, but if I get there, I'd be delighted to call a dance for you.

Jacob