Learning To Call

Or: What I wish I'd done before my first caller school::

• Pick two simple two simple singing calls and learn them cold. Do not pick musically interesting songs, or new and novel ones. Pick things that your club caller over-uses, that you've gotten as ear-worms and hate because they're now boring and in a musical style that would have made your grandparents roll their eyes at the saccharine blandness. If you absolutely can't stand the oldies, get something from http://hipster-productions.com/ because their cue sheets have emphasis marks, which will help you with your rhythm.

Now that you've got the timing for the two (hopefully different) corner figures that came with the song down solidly, replace one of the singing call figures with something simple. Try: Heads promenade 1/2 way, come into the middle and square thru 4, right and left thru, veer left, ferris wheel, centers square thru 3, swing & promenade. Sing this until the timing is perfect, you hit every beat, you can feel every footstep. Dance it by yourself while you sing it.

("Heads You PromeNade aBout Half Way, [beat] Down the Middle And Square Thru Four. [beat, breathe] All The Way And Then A Right And Left Thru, Veer Left And Ferris Wheel. [beat, breathe] Centers Square Thru Three Hands Round, [beat] Swing Your Corner And PromeNade")

Make that fit your singing calls. You have danced this figure often enough that you probably already know the timing for it, and it will flow easily in your head.

• Now learn "The Chicken Plucker". Start with "heads square thru 4". Then repeat this sequence until you mumble it every time there's silence:

right and left thru, pass thru, trade by.

Call that twice (or any multiple of twice) and you can call an "Allemande Left".

• Go to Rich Reel's "Do-It-Yourself Singing Call Figures". Work through some of the possible sequences with checkers. Note how they tie in to the "corner box" (ie: heads square thru 4) or to an "across the street box" (ie: called an odd number of chicken pluckers).

Now you are ready for caller school.

Category: Newbies