Greetings to the list...

I hope that I would not be presuming too much to post a rough list of
dance classes scheduled for the upcoming Estrella War. Classes will
run from 10am - 5 or 6pm, Thursday through Saturday. There will also
be a ball Friday night, and open dancing in the grand court pavillion
every night apart from that.

Thursday:
Introduction to Dancing
Teaching Beginners to Dance in the SCA
More Dancing (Beyond the Bransles)
Idiot's Guide to: Galliards
Two Italian Dances
Il Canario
The Old Measures
15th century Italian Bassadanza

Friday:
Early Dance
SCA Dance for Children
Beginning English Country Dance
Intermediate English Country Dance
And Cast, Cast, Cast - Moving Thy Feet
History of Western European Dance
Introduction to Cascarde

Saturday:
Contrapasso da farsi in Ruota
Creating dances after a period model
Introduction to Burgundian Basse Danse
Celeste Giglio workshop
Bransles
15th century Italian Balli
Country Dancing just for fun

Sunday:
Advanced Country Dancing

If you would like any further information, please just give me a
yell. :) The full schedule is posted on the Estrella War website,
although it's a little difficult to read. :)

In service,
Lady Julian ferch Rhys
Minister of Dance, Kingdom of Atenveldt
Estrella War A&S sub-autocrat (Dance)

Greetings to all,

Per the request of the autocrat, we will be dancing at Chieftains. I
believe it is planned for after feast while the "knights dishwashing
brigade" is doing it's stuff (or at least thats the rumors I hear).
The current planned set is:
Rosti boli
Scots branle
Hearts Ease
Black Alman
Montard
Korobushka

Requests afterwords. Musicians welcome of course. The above order (of
dances) does not reflect the final results. Post-revel is just down
the block when we are done.

Hope to see you all there!

Rowan
Three Rivers

Well, it looks like I may be going.  One of the upsides to living in a
bigger town with other SCA folk.  Jarl Rorik was needing a rider, I was
needing a ride...

Now I just have to explain why a non-fighter has as much luggage as a
fighter (and it's somewhat more fragile)

katriana

At 09:09 PM 2/8/02 +0000, you wrote:
>Greetings to all,
>
>Per the request of the autocrat, we will be dancing at Chieftains. I
>believe it is planned for after feast while the "knights dishwashing
>brigade" is doing it's stuff (or at least thats the rumors I hear).
>The current planned set is:
>Rosti boli
>Scots branle
>Hearts Ease
>Black Alman
>Montard
>Korobushka
>
>Requests afterwords. Musicians welcome of course. The above order (of
>dances) does not reflect the final results. Post-revel is just down
>the block when we are done.
>
>Hope to see you all there!
>
>Rowan
>Three Rivers


_________________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com

Oops, change of plan.  We just got the 4-H newsletter.  Looks like
I'll be supporting my daughter and niece as they give 2 speeches each
at 4-H days on that day.

Sorry

katriana

We'll miss you!!!
Conna

calonkat wrote:

> Oops, change of plan.  We just got the 4-H newsletter.  Looks like
> I'll be supporting my daughter and niece as they give 2 speeches each
> at 4-H days on that day.
>
> Sorry
>
> katriana
>
>
>
>
> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/

Greetings folks,

Sorry for the distraction.  This is hopefully one of
the last Letter of Dance mass housekeeping e-mails
that I will need to send out.

I'm trying to track down various people who have been
subscribers to LoD during the past volume, but whose
addresses do not appear to be correct (ie. their
issues bounced).  If you are, or know how I can reach,
any of the following people, please contact me at
letterofdance@... so that I can get the
subscription straightened out.

The following folks are owed back issues:

Bradford C. Smith, Knoxville TN
Dave Lankford, Bloomington IN
Monica Cellio, Pittsburgh PA
Tom Vincent, Phoenix AZ
Gerry Baygents, Columbia SC
Sue Kronenfeld, Somerville MA
Helen K. Dolbey, Ottawa OT

The following people are owed a copy of Tape #4:

Helen K. Dolbey, Ottawa OT
Daniel Gillespie, Hyattsville MD
Bess Libby, Framingham MA
Aimee D. Allione, Plains, PA

I have uncashed checks made out to Bill Street from
the following people:

Frank Shiavone, Ridgecrest CA
Kevin Woods, Colona IL
Barbara VanPatter, Matthews NC

If you believe that you are owed anything by LoD and
do not see your name above, please contact me.  If
your name is listed above and LoD does *not* owe you
anything, also please let me know.  I'd like to get
everything straightened out and resolved once and for
all.

Thanks!
Katherine
--
The Letter of Dance
Lady Katherine Mercer, editor
letterofdance@...
http://http://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/lod/


=====
Katherine Mercer,
Editor of The Letter of Dance
letterofdance@...
http://http://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/lod/

__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Sports - sign up for Fantasy Baseball
http://sports.yahoo.com

The following is only applicable to those list members who have Yahoo IDs.

You may remember when you signed up for a Yahoo ID and were asked by them if
you wished to receive any "Special Offers & Marketing Communications."

Yahoo recently revised their privacy policy. As a result, and regardless if
you chose to receive any of these "Special Offers" or not when you signed up
for your Yahoo ID, Yahoo have set every single person who has a Yahoo ID (and
those that have more than one) to "Yes" in these preferences.

This means that you may well be inundated with even more junk mail than you
are already receiving. In order to change your settings back to whatever you
had them at before, you will need to log in to your account and physically
change them.

Login at the following URL - you will be prompted for your Yahoo ID and
password:
http://edit.my.yahoo.com/config/eval_profile

The middle segment within the Member Information (email addresses) section
has a link to: "Edit your marketing references."
Click on this link and you will see all of your settings were changed to
"Yes." Meaning of course that you will receive all kinds of "offers" from
Yahoo and their "partners."

Unless you wish to receive even more junk mail than you are already getting,
you may wish to go through the entire page and choose whether to receive such
notices. Also, right at the bottom of the page are other ways you could be
notified - by phone or postal mail.
Unless you wish to receive unsolicited phone calls and paper junk mail, you
will need to change these settings to "No" also.

Once you have finished your selections, make sure you click on the Save
Changes button right at the bottom of the page.

Yahoo is supposedly sending out notices to all its users regarding this
particular change. However, it is estimated it will take several weeks for
everyone to receive their notification. In the meantime ... a considerable
amount of marketing mail could be making its way to everyone's mail boxes.

Regards,
David Reynolds
--
"Natives who beat drums to drive off evil spirits are objects of scorn
to smart Americans who blow horns to break up traffic jams."

Greeting everyone

As some of you may know I am in the process
of producing dance music CD so that good quality,
music is available for dancing.

Instead of making one CD of ECD, one of Italian
etc. I've decided to do one of intro/easy dances,
one of intermediate and one of advanced - then go
from there.

Here's where I need your help. I'm doing the intro
one first. I want to have some copies ready for
Coronation. I've got most of the stuff on my
computer.

This is where you all com in!

What dances would you like to see on
and intro to medieval/renaissance dance CD?

Conrad

What you mean I won't have to carry around a full box of CDs?!? ;)

Excuse all spelling:
Belle Qui Pavan (Carolingian)- The easiest of the pavans IMHO
Petite Riens - probably the easiest of the italians (start them early!)
several branles - good ones that you can even teach at a demo. Probably Maltese,
and Horses, maybe Montard or Tangle.
Calontir Branle!
several EC - On a summers day (although I find it boring), maybe Black nag. Ack!
brain fumble! The one that goes "ladies go in while the men go out and back to
the circle again, step to the left step to the right and turn around again...".
A couple of the "but everyone does them" 'ethnic' dances, probably Korobushka
and maybe Angus Reel.
At least one progression dance - sorry, it would have to be hole in the wall.

I'll probably think of more later
Rowan

---------- Original Message ----------------------------------
From: "Sauer, Michael F." <sauerm@...>
Reply-To: CalontirDance@yahoogroups.com
Date: Fri, 29 Mar 2002 13:32:18 -0600

>Greeting everyone
>
>As some of you may know I am in the process
>of producing dance music CD so that good quality,
>music is available for dancing.
>
>Instead of making one CD of ECD, one of Italian
>etc. I've decided to do one of intro/easy dances,
>one of intermediate and one of advanced - then go
>from there.
>
>Here's where I need your help. I'm doing the intro
>one first. I want to have some copies ready for
>Coronation. I've got most of the stuff on my
>computer.
>
>This is where you all com in!
>
>What dances would you like to see on
>and intro to medieval/renaissance dance CD?
>
>Conrad
>
>
>
>
>Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
>
>
>

--
In Service,
Rowan
Calontir
rowan@...




--

At 03:58 PM 3/29/02 -0500, Rowan wrote:
>What you mean I won't have to carry around a full box of CDs?!? ;)
Doesn't help me any :-)

>several EC - On a summers day (although I find it boring), maybe Black
>nag. Ack! brain fumble! The one that goes "ladies go in while the men go
>out and back to the circle again, step to the left step to the right and
>turn around again...".
Sellinger's Round, I think

katriana



_________________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com

Let me know if you'd like access to two 3:1 standalone duplicators so you
can make about 50 copies in an hour

On Fri, 29 Mar 2002, Sauer, Michael F. wrote:

> Greeting everyone
>
> As some of you may know I am in the process
> of producing dance music CD so that good quality,
> music is available for dancing.
>
> Instead of making one CD of ECD, one of Italian
> etc. I've decided to do one of intro/easy dances,
> one of intermediate and one of advanced - then go
> from there.
>
> Here's where I need your help. I'm doing the intro
> one first. I want to have some copies ready for
> Coronation. I've got most of the stuff on my
> computer.
>
> This is where you all com in!
>
> What dances would you like to see on
> and intro to medieval/renaissance dance CD?
>
> Conrad
>
>
>
>
> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
>
>
>

   //Christian M. Cepel - Bomby - Philippe Sebastian LeLutre

+===================================================================+
Christian Marcus Cepel              ("`-''-/").___..--''"`-._
christian@... icq:12384980     `6_ 6  )   `-.  (     ).`-.__.`)
5812 Square Circle, Columbia 65203   (_Y_.)'  ._   )  `._ `. ``-..-'
w573.882.8309 h443.8676 m268.7533  _..`--'_..-_/  /--'_.' ,'
Computer Support Specialist, Sr.  (il),-''  (li),'  ((!.-'
School of Information Science & Learning Technologies, College of Ed,
University of Missouri - Columbia * And the wrens have returned & are
nesting *In the hollow of that oak where his heart once had been *And
he lifts his arms in a blessing *For being born again. --Rich Mullins
+===================================================================+

Hi there:

      As it happens, I have a list of dances that I use for introductory /
basic dance classes:

Amoroso
Anello
Gelosia
Leoncello Vecchio
Petite Vriens

Lauro
Casulle la Novelle

Carolingian Pavan ("Belle Qui Tienne Ma Vie")
Galliard and simple variations (cinq pas, 'bell' step)

Lorayne Alman
Queen's Alman
Black Alman

Ballo del Fiore in duo
The Pinwheel Game from "La Caccia d'Amore"

Branle Cassandre (in a suite)
Branle Pinagay (in a suite)
Branle Charlotte (alone or in the suite)
Branle D'Ecosse (Scott's)
Branle Des Lavandieres (Washerwoman's)
Branle Des Pois (Peas)
Branle du Chandelier (Candlestick)
Branle Chevaulx (Horses)
Branle de la Montarde

Black Nag
Gathering Peascods
Grimstock
Heart's Ease
Jenny Pluck Pears
Rufty Tufty
Upon A Summer's Day

All thirty probably won't fit on one CD :)  I select from the list depending
on the theme for the class - sometimes they're all from one era, sometimes I
do a sampler of one from each era.  The list is a bit heavy with branles,
but they are easy, aren't they?  (The other Old Measures are so easy I don't
even bother with them except as a suite, which isn't so easy.)

Keith  /  Guillaume   S:}>
Denver, CO / Caerthe, Outlands

"Sauer, Michael F." wrote:
>
> Greeting everyone
>
> ...
> What dances would you like to see on
> and intro to medieval/renaissance dance CD?
>
> Conrad

Hi this is what I've put together.
Any glaring omissions?

Conrad

1 Quen Quer Que 	 03:42
2 Gelosia 	 02:43
3 Petit Riense 	 01:46
4 Vita Di Cholino  01:16
5 Ballo del Fiore  03:06
6 Bizzaria d'Amore  03:30
7 Black Alman 	 03:54
8 Lorayne Alman  02:01
9 Carolingian Pavanne 02:12
10 Quadran Pavanne  01:13
11 Charlotte Bransle  01:26
12 Turkish Bransle  02:39
13 Montarde Bransle  01:23
14 Nika Nika 	 02:35
15 Official Bransle  01:40
16 Pease Bransle  01:07
17 Black Nag 	 01:13
18 Chestnut 	 01:39
19 Gathering Peascods 02:07
20 Godesses 	 04:29
21 Heart's Ease  01:20
22 Heralds in Love  01:36
23 Horses' Bransle  04:40
24 Jenny Pluck Pears  02:59
25 Rufty Tufty 	 01:26
26 Sellenger's Round  01:48
27 Trenchmore short 	 07:51

If it fits I may add a 1:46 version of Casulle la Novelle

Hi,
  So it is that time again.
If you would like to teach a dance class at Lillies, please let me know.  I
would really apprecitate getting as many classes as possible.
We are fairly open on times, so let me know what day and time you might like to
teach, and what class with a short description.  If those I have spoken with
already could also e-mail me their info again, that would be great .
Thank you,
Seonaid- seonaid@...

Basic Italian or basic ECD
- any day I'm not teaching hounds for the kids or rush.
Rowan


---------- Original Message ----------------------------------
From: "Stewart, Sara" <stewarts@...>
Reply-To: CalontirDance@yahoogroups.com
Date: Fri, 26 Apr 2002 13:19:46 -0500

>Hi,
> So it is that time again.
>If you would like to teach a dance class at Lillies, please let me know.  I
would really apprecitate getting as many classes as possible.
>We are fairly open on times, so let me know what day and time you might like to
teach, and what class with a short description.  If those I have spoken with
already could also e-mail me their info again, that would be great .
>Thank you,
>Seonaid- seonaid@...
>
>
>
>
>Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
>
>
>

--

rowan@...




--

I'm not sure I'm asking in the right place, but I hope so!
I can't remember names well [and the mead didn't help much] but do remember
faces, I'm looking to speak to the gentleman who conducted the dance session at
night at the Spring Thaw held in Rolla this month.  I'd like to get a list of
the dances we did, and more info on how to get copies of the music too.  I
really appreciate the time you spent teaching; I have *never* been a 'dancer'
in any aspect of my life, and am not certain what inside me said to dance, but
I am glad that I had that experience.  I only felt nervous for a while, and
think that this can be a great addition to enjoying the rich and full life in
the SCA. [And truthfully, a nice aspect of my life as I restructure it.]

My thanks for letting me bend your ears, M'Lords and M'Ladies!

Edaine

Does anyone know any medieval dances that only require one person?
One of the teen here that dances a good bit is asking. She would like
to do medieval dance for a pagent/talent thing in Aug, but is not
allowed a partner. I told her that I didn't know of any but I would
ask. Certainly some italians could be done w/o a partner - playing
both parts the way we do when teaching but if there is something out
there that would work better.

Rowan

Hi Edaine, that was me.

Hey Constancia's here, yeah!

Conrad

Constantia's here? Well, let the party begin!

Conna


"Sauer, Michael F." wrote:

> Hi Edaine, that was me.
>
> Hey Constancia's here, yeah!
>
> Conrad
>
>
>
>
> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/

I cna think of 2 classes right off.

16th Century Italian

Bizzaria d'Amore
Lo Spagnoletto
Ballo Del Fiorie

Reconstuction

Sit down class, this year I want to try an italian.

--------------------

I more than willing to do some of the general purpose classes,
like branlses or intro itialian or ECD to make sure all or at
least most of the dances in the ball get taught.

Only day I'm not available is thursday - all day.

Conrad

============================================

Hi,
  So it is that time again.
If you would like to teach a dance class at Lillies, please let me know.  I
would really apprecitate getting as many classes as possible.
We are fairly open on times, so let me know what day and time you might like to
teach, and what class with a short description.  If those I have spoken with
already could also e-mail me their info again, that would be great .
Thank you,
Seonaid- seonaid@...




Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/

Hello,

	 Here is a  tenttative list of classes for Lillies. Thanks to all who agreed to
teach. If you have a problem with the time you are scheduled or want to take
over one of my  time slots, please let me know.  I am alway swilling to add
teachers.

	 Thank you,

	 Seonaid

	 Lillie Dance Classes



	 Sunday

	 1pm – Bransles- Phillipe

	 3pm- Beginning English Country- Rowan



	 Monday-

	  10am- Ball Dances ( I will go over various dances that are on the ball list)-
Seonaid

	 1pm- Basse Dance- Seonaid



	 Tuesday-

	 10 am- Ball Dances- Seonaid

	 1 pm- 16th century Italian- Conrad



	 Wednesday-

	 10am Ball Dances- Seoniad

	 1pm- Beginning Italian- Conrad



	 Thursday-

	 10 am Intermediate English- Tsire

	 1pm- Ball Dances- Seonaid



	 Friday-

	 10am- Dance Reconstruction- Conrad

	 1pm- Galliard Basics- Tsire



	 Saturday-

	 10 am- Dances for Four- Tsire

	 1pm- Open (Bring a dance and Teach it)- Seonaid

I know people look down on the company because of its RenFaire slant, but 15%
off on dance music is money saved!

If this doesn't come through clearly, there are links in the message to find the
site.

                                 ---= Morgan


Original Message:
-----------------
From: Chivalry Sports, Inc.
Date: Thu, 16 May 2002 15:02:42 -0700
To: Renstore-3@...
Subject: Celebrate Dance Days!


If this does not display properly, go to Celebrating Dance.
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--------------------------------------------------------------------
mail2web - Check your email from the web at
http://mail2web.com/ .

Greetings from Constantia Innocenti,
     Music Coordinator for Lilies XVI,

I send this missive to encourage all gentles who are interested in playing
or learning to play music to attend this Lilies War!

This year there will be a five day guitar class for beginners taught by Lord
Christian d'Hiver, so dust off that guitar you never learned to play (or
borrow one!), check those strings, and join me in class.

There will also be several other music classes including beginning recorder,
Middle Eastern music, Kaval(an end-blown flute - kavals provided!), period
Scottish music and more.

I would also like to encourage all gentles who have flutes and other band
instruments from your earlier school days to bring them with you to Lilies.
I and others would be glad to help you relearn the joy of playing music.
(make sure those instruments are in good working order - they get rickety
when they sit too long!)

Throughout the war there will be many opportunities to practice and/or
perform for all levels of musicians. For more information, see the Lilies
website, http://calontir.sca.org/lilieswar/index.html    under Arts and
Sciences.

Please feel free to forward this message to other Kingdom or discussion
lists that you feel might be interested.

You may also email questions/comments to me at ironfist@...

See you at LILIES!!

Constantia Innocenti

Constantia sent a great message to the Calontir List.  Conrad, you
might think about just sticking it up on the Lilies Site (with
Constantia's approval, of course)

katriana
*******forwarded message*********
Greetings from Constantia Innocenti,
     Music Coordinator for Lilies XVI,

I send this missive to encourage all gentles who are interested in
playing or learning to play music to attend this Lilies War!

This year there will be a five day guitar class for beginners taught
by Lord Christian d'Hiver, so dust off that guitar you never learned
to play (or borrow one!), check those strings, and join me in class.

There will also be several other music classes including beginning
recorder, Middle Eastern music, Kaval(an end-blown flute - kavals
provided!), period Scottish music and more.

I would also like to encourage all gentles who have flutes and
other band instruments from your earlier school days to bring them
with you to Lilies. I and others would be glad to help you relearn
the joy of playing music. (make sure those instruments are in good
working order - they get rickety when they sit too long!)

Throughout the war there will be many opportunities to practice
and/or perform for all levels of musicians. For more information, see
the Lilies website, http://calontir.sca.org/lilieswar/index.html
under Arts and Sciences.

Please feel free to forward this message to other Kingdom or
discussion lists that you feel might be interested.

You may also email questions/comments to me at ironfist@...

See you at LILIES!!

Constantia Innoce

This is Constantia Innocenti and I am "in charge"(yeah, right!) of the
Lilies ball music pit (eeks!).

I would like to hear some opinions that people may have regarding the
solemnity levels of music performance in the SCA, particularly during balls.

I have quacked, barked, meowed and screamed my way through "Hole in the
Wall", witnessed a lovely version of Mickey Mouse during one particular
dance and seen marshmallows flung precariously at wayward dancers and nearby
musicians. I have not played at many balls so I can only imagine what
strange mayhem I might have missed.(Katriana, I bet YOU have some stories!)

What I want to know from the dancer point of view is,
1. What is it that musicians do during balls that irritate dancers?
2. What is just NOT funny coming from the musicians pit?
3. Is ANYTHING funny from the musicians pit, or is it only funny  to the
musicians?
4. What is more fun at a ball - an ambiance of regality and dignity, or is
it something looser,
    and less refined? like more of a comradery sort of thing?)
5. Why do dancers dance? (I've tried it, but not much so I am curious)
6. What makes a musician pit good to dance to?

From the musicians, I would like to know,
1. Is this serious stuff for you, or is it - something else? What else?
2. Have you ever been talked into performing something in a certain way that
you regretted?
   (Maanshaft on Kazoo, perhaps?)
3. What makes playing for a ball satisfying for you (speak now or forever
hold your piece, I
     say!)
4. If you've  ever had a bad time playing at a ball, what made it bad?

If anyone has anything they don't want to say in public, you can email me at
ironfist@... though hopefully most opinions out there that can be
openly discussed.
Thanks, Constantia

I'm sending you a longer message in private.

Most music during a ball is pretty "serious."  There
is a limited amount of time to get through the ball
sets.  After the ball is the time for "funny" stuff.

A lot more weirdness happens at Pennsic just 'cause
we're all there, night after night, doing many of the
same dances over and over.  Still, most of the playing
around happens later at night when the casual dancers
have left.

The musicians messing around with the music can really
throw inexperienced dancers, so it is best done with
experienced people.  If the dancers stop dancing
because they don't "get it", it really isn't any fun
for anybody.

When we have really good musicians playing, who can
ornament the music, few "weirdnesses" happen because
the rest of us are just trying to keep up :-)

katriana


__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
LAUNCH - Your Yahoo! Music Experience
http://launch.yahoo.com

Gosh, you've really posed some interesting questions! I'm looking forward to
hearing some dancers' perspectives.

Constantia wrote:
>From the musicians, I would like to know,

> 1. Is this serious stuff for you, or is it - something else? What else?
> 2. Have you ever been talked into performing something in a certain way that
> you regretted?
>   (Maanshaft on Kazoo, perhaps?)
> 3. What makes playing for a ball satisfying for you (speak now or forever
> hold your piece, I
>     say!)
> 4. If you've  ever had a bad time playing at a ball, what made it bad?
>

1. I have to admit that I view dance music more as a service than as an art. I
take the strictly instrumental music a lot more seriously. With dance music,
the beat is the most important thing; nouances that I might put into
instrumental music might go unnoticed with dancers who are busy dancing and
musicians who are also trying to keep the beat steady for the dancers. And I'm
usually so hung up on the steady beat goal that there's not much time for
anything else. Not much room for creativity; but I know that going in to dance
music, so that's not a complaint; it's just the reality. (And now I'm trying to
learn the other parts, so that's keeping things interesting for me.)

2. Since it is all volunteer, I'm sort of bugged when I'm asked to sit out a
song or play it on an instrument that I don't feel like playing at the time. I
have regretted trying to muddle through songs I could "kinda" play, only to
have a trainwreck in the middle of a dance. When in doubt, go with a CD, if
possible.

3. I really, really like it when the musician gel, and we play really well
together. This is hard to control. It seems to happen when the stars align and
God smiles down on us. Usually when all the musicians know and like each other.
We listen to each other, and we're all just a bit more in tune with each other.
Like we're a 5-headed musician, rather than five separate musicians each
playing a part in isolation. Maybe a big group hug at the start of the ball
would help this ;-)

4. The bad experiences come from mean people. I don't think that's allowed in
Calontir, right?

Conna

As an interested outsider who is unlikely to attend Lillies, I will
respond and you may take it for what its worth.  If you find wisdom in
my words, you may please use it.  If not, just ignore my feeble rants.

I am a dancer who has been to several Pennsic Wars, a couple of Estrella
Wars, and KWDS II & III.  I work with our local musicians on occasion to
coordinate dance music, so I will try to see their side as well.

> What I want to know from the dancer point of view is,
> 1. What is it that musicians do during balls that irritate dancers?

      I really haven't seen much, if anything, that constitutes
irritating.  I am immensely grateful to the musicians who play for us.

      The worst thing for dancers is an unpredictable beat, so musicians
that hesitate over unfamilliar music can be irritating.  Next on the
list is a beat that's hard to follow, especially when other musical
queues are absent.  Bassa dances, for instance, need strong beats and
tenor lines.  Many dancers with limited experience rely on a specific
known recording:  dancers who can only dance to a familliar recording
are not the musicans fault, though.

> 2. What is just NOT funny coming from the musicians pit?

      Anything that seems to be deliberately disruptive, such as changing
the dance without notice or otherwise making it impossible for the
dancers to participate, is just NOT funny.  I've never seen this, I
mearly suggest that anything less than this MAY be funny.

      I guess my caveat would be:  don't over do it.  Try the fun stuff
sparingly at first until you have a good feel for how it fits in.  This
works both on the level of learning from the experience of several
events and on the level of the course of a single evening of dance.

> 3. Is ANYTHING funny from the musicians pit, or is it only funny  to the
> musicians?

      Our local musicians harbour a propensity to speed up and slow down
the music semi-randomly.  They have been know to stand up and wander out
amoungst the dancers.  These actions could be irritating for new dancers
or dancers with carefully rehersed performances, but our musicians are
wise enough to avoid disruption in these situations.  The first several
repetition of the music are done straight; only when the piece is
becoming boring (even to some new dancers) do they "play" with it so
severely.  When compelled to play endless repetitions of
Hole-In-The-Head, they will signal that the dance is ending by wandering
out amoung the dancers and generally being a nuisance.  Personally, I
find this endeering.

> 4. What is more fun at a ball - an ambiance of regality and dignity, or is
> it something looser,
>    and less refined? like more of a comradery sort of thing?)

      It depends.  What is the nature of the event?  At a Feast of Fools
events, I would expect foolishness from the start.  At formal event
where great effort has gone into carefull preparation for the ball,
dignity is the order of business.  At a multi-day event, such as Lillies
War, some days need not (and probably should not) be too serious.  At
least *some* time, however, should be serious for those who want or need
it, even if its the first hour of the Saturday evening ball and no other
time.  Such diversity can be indicated in play lists and advertisements,
so the dancers and musicians both know what to expect.

      My generic preference is to start with some dignity and
predicatability and then become less formal as the evening pregresses.
This lets performers and new dancers begin without fear of unexpected
weirdness.  It also alows a comradery to build as everyone gets used to
each other, culminating in more casual fun as the evening winds down.
From some descriptions, this coincidentally seems to be how the Inns of
Court Revels progressed.

> 5. Why do dancers dance? (I've tried it, but not much so I am curious)

My interest in dance has grown over the last ten years to the point that
I concentrate much more on dance then any other SCA activity (and I have
many other SCA activities).  I feel that dance should be a core activity
for any serious SCA participant.  I have thought long and hard about how
to entice others to take up dancing.  As yet, I have no idea why I find
dance such a pleasing pastime, let alone how to convince others.  Partly
its the fliting, partly its the formal movement, but in the end I just
don't know.  I try to lead by example.

> 6. What makes a musician pit good to dance to?

The ambiance.  The ability to taylor the performance to dancer's needs
(instead of CD recorders' needs).  SCA players can perform the correct
repeat structure with an identifiable beat and, when sufficiently
comfortable, can interact with the dancers in surprising ways.
>
> >From the musicians, I would like to know,
> 1. Is this serious stuff for you, or is it - something else? What else?

OK, I can't really answer this, except to say that I have met some very
serious musicians, and they often have the best sense of humor.  The
audience seems to be important to them (otherwise I suppose they
wouldn't show up for dancing).

> 2. Have you ever been talked into performing something in a certain way that
> you regretted?

I seek feedback from our musicians before, during, and after our
dances.  The only complaint that sticks in my mind is playing a dance
that they have not been given sufficient opportunity to practice.  I
suspect that being forced to share instruments or go too long without a
break would be issues.

> 3. What makes playing for a ball satisfying for you (speak now or forever
> hold your piece, I say!)

Since I'm not a musician, I'll pass on this one (can't even answer for
dancers, and I are one!).

> 4. If you've ever had a bad time playing at a ball, what made it bad?

The bigest complaint that I've heard was that visiting musicians were
treated as beginners simply because the other musicians did not know
them.  Its not much fun for the two leading musicians from a kingdom to
be told "here, play this bass line, we'll play the hard stuff," just
because the others didn't know them.  I suppose the best way to address
this is simply to ask new musicians "what have you done before/at home,
and what do you think you can do here?"  Some music may be unfamilliar
to the visitors, but they may also play unusual instruments beautifaully
on the pieces that they do know.  Just don't treat them as unwelcome
guests after they travelled so far to participate at the War.

OK, not exactly a short post, but not too bad for ten questions.

I would add a personal request to try move away from Grosely Our Of
Period dances.  We have so many period dances that we could do, I hate
to see them displaced by dances that don't especially belong in the
SCA.  I'm not asking that every non-period dance be instantly purged
from our experience, just that, when deciding between which dance to do
next, consider giving the period dance a higher priority (especially
early in the evening).  I think its unfortunate that many people do not
know the difference, and I think it falls to the dance leaders to be
honest about which dances are out of period.

Enough rambling.  Let's dance!

Keith / Guillaume  S:}>
Denver / Caerthe, Outlands

Greetings Fellow Dancers of the Knowne World,

It's that time again...

I would like to take this opportunity to once again
solicit submissions of new dances, dance
reconstructions, or any article related to medieval,
renaissance, or SCA dance or dance music.  Basically,
if it would interest you (and you're reading this
missive) it would probably interest our readers.

I am aiming to publish issue 42 on July 1st, which
means I need submissions on or before (preferrably
before) June 15th.  Articles submitted after June 15th
will be considered for the November Issue.

Editorial guidelines area available at:
http://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/lod/editorial.html

Back issues are online at:
http://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/lod/

I'm happy to answer any questions, please feel free to
contact me at letterofdance@....

Subscriptions and back issues are, of course, still
available.

I now return you to your regularly scheduled dance
list.

Katherine Mercer
Editor, The Letter of Dance

=====
Katherine Mercer,
Editor of The Letter of Dance
letterofdance@...
http://http://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/lod/

__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
LAUNCH - Your Yahoo! Music Experience
http://launch.yahoo.com

Greetings.  I am Lady Ursula Strom from the Barony of Small Gray Bear in
Meridies.  Every year we host Diamond Wars and have many people from
Calontir attend.  This year we are trying to include the Calontirians in our
event.  I am autocrat for Diamonds this year and am searching for someone to
run the ball.  The war takes place the last weekend of September and is
located outside of Malvern, Arkansas.  Is there anyone who might be
interested in running the ball? I can provide a jambox and most of the
music.

Sincerely,
Ursula
mka: Deborah