Dance ramblings...

Great music/dance titles is one of the best things about English Country dancing. During the past few weeks at our weekly Monday night English dances at the Gainesville Dance & Music Association (GDMA), we've done Dr. Vincent's Delight, The Astonished Archaeologist, Bonnie Cockoo, Christmas at Zeist, Barbarini's Tambourine, Picking Up Sticks, Jovial Beggars, A Retiring Fellow, Trip to the Manors, Mayfair, Winter Solstice, Wibsey Roundabout, Childgrove, Smithy Hill, Jack's Maggot, and dozens of others. Don't you just love those names?? If you're waltzing, then you can dance to any music that's in 3/4 time. Same for latin dances, or pretty much any ballroom dance--if the beat is right, you can do the dance. But in ECD, each dance has its own tune. So when you hear the band practicing, you know what dance is coming up. Some dances have been written to fit established tunes; for instance, Bonnie Cuckoo is done to an old Scottish classic called Shebeg Shemore. And there's such a wide range of music for ECD!! Hauntingly beautiful waltz-time tunes like Turn of the Tide or Elizabeth, rowdy tunes like Jack's Health or Liliburlero, dramatic tunes like Mary K or Companions, cute mind-worm tunes like Benjamin's Birthday, and dances done to classic tunes like Good Man of Cambridge which is done to Mozart's Rondo Alla Turka.

OK, that's enough rambling on. If any of these songs sound intriguing to you, email me at rthorp@aclib.us and I'll send you the audio. And if you're interested in maybe coming to dance with us, I'll be glad to tell you more. We dance every Monday from 7:00 'til 10:00 at GDMA, 308 W. University Ave. It's right next door to the Seagle Building, upstairs in the old Firestone Building. "But I don't know how to do it!" you say. These are called dances--the caller walks everyone through the dance a couple of times before dance starts, and continues to prompt the first few times through. "I don't know the footwork" ECD has no footwork, just a smooth walking step. Literally, if you can walk you can do ECD. "I don't have a partner" Doesn't matter. ECD has no ballroom hold, and the men's and women's steps are pretty much identical. If there are more men than women, then a man dances the woman's part. It's no big deal at all; it usually means nothing more than standing in a different place. "I'll look silly" No you won't--well, no sillier than you normally look. ;>) Put that ego in check--everyone won't be watching you, they'll be dancing and enjoying themselves. And we were all newcomers at one time, so we're very understanding.

Think about it!!