Workshop Notes
Simpson College Music Dept. Workshop - Indeola, Iowa • Saturday, January 31, 2010
Peter and Mary Alice leading:
Creating a Dynamic Learning Community with
Traditional Dance, Song and Storytelling
Dear Simpson College workshop participants,
We had a great time with you; thanks for your enthusiastic participation in the dancing and singing. Kudos to Dr. Michael Patterson who did such a great job of setting the workshop up and taking care of us while we were here.
Your homework is to go dancing; here is a website for Iowa contra dances:
http://www.cibd.org/calendar.html
Note that these dances have live music, beginners are always welcome; you do not need to go with a partner; it is the convention to ask folks to dance (and for folks to ask you to dance) whom you have never met before; if you go with a friend and you are both inexperienced at contra dancing, do not dance with each other at first but each of you find a more experienced partner.
Here is a website for finding contra dances around the United States:
http://thedancegypsy.com/
If you are looking for a deeper experience of Mary Alice’s and my work you might consider coming to our 3-credit 5-day Summerterm course at Hartt School of Music in West Hartford, CT. The course is called:
Rich Traditions and New Creations:
Dance, Song, Storytelling and Literature in the Music Classroom.
For registration and/or more information contact dehansen@hartford.edu - for more information go to
http://www.amidonmusic.com/workshops and scroll down to the
Hartt workshop description.
Here are the workshop notes:
Blaydon Races p. 10 in the handout
in NEDM’s Chimes of Dunkirk collection
We used ‘Old Favorite’ from NEDM’s
‘Other Side of the Tracks’ for this.
We did this is a mixer, but you can also do it with
younger children without changing partners.
We often call this at weddings. We always start
teaching this, as we do with any circle mixer, by
having the dancers promenade and defining the
gents/moons/peanut butter/inside partners and the
ladies/stars/jelly/outside partners.
Tree Song p. 8 in the handout
in NEDM’s Down in the Valley collection
I introduced this with a story about Roger who clears
some new land, marries, has children, and plants an
apple tree for every special event in their lives.
Lorraine Hammond, who composed this wonderful singing
game, is a songwriter and musician, and the best known
Appalachian dulcimer player in the country. She is in the
greater Boston area. The piano arrangement on the CD
is mine. We find this to be a calming, centering dance,
both for the children and for ourselves.
Old Brass Wagon p. 8 in the handout.
In NEDM’s Down in the Valley collection
This can be an a cappella singing game, or, with the
CD (or live music) a great early dance to instrumental
music. When I teach it I walk through the
figures first, and then says “Now just do whatever
Mary Alice says,” and put on the CD.
Dance Teaching Tips:
Mittens; front of your mitten on the front of your neighbor’s
mitten, thumb lightly on back; take hands drop hands take
hands drop hands; posture; teach the forward separately
from the back in the forward and back; shake partner’s
hand, hang on, take partner’s left hand for teaching promenade;
while promenading: inside person is the moon/peanut butter/gent,
outside is the star/jelly/lady; four steps of making a circle from a
promenade: “Hang on to partner stop walking, hang on
to partner face the center, drop hands, take hands.”;
9 ways of keeping the circle big and round on circle
left and right; dosido (gents start on inside, ladies start
going outside) flowing into two hand turn flowing into
promenade; when music starts clapping the first of
each 8 beats; doing the dance with your hands; “thick”
calling, then “thin” calling then no calling; saying the
call right before the ‘clap’ or before the first beat of
the phrase and figure.
Comment ca va p. 10 in the handout
In NEDM’s Sashay the Donut collection
Music: Any reel (French Canadian is nice for this;
for example, “Quebeqois Reels” on NEDM’s
“Sashay the Donut” CD
This is really a version of “La Bastringue”
with a more sophisticated B1 section
(after the Circle L, Circle R, and before
the promenade) that makes it a great
dance for 4th - 6th graders; it is not
too difficult, but it keeps them engaged
and the flowing B1 figures makes them
feel like sophisticated dancers.
En La Pulga p. 2 in the handout
Mi Gallo p. 2 in the handout
Una Sardina p. 3 in the handout
From the Seed in the Ground p. 7 in the handout.
I have done a treble voice/piano arrangement of this
that part of my collection of 5 children choir arrangements.
Here is the dance we did that I’d made up to this song:
If you go the sun
*Walk sideways with hands miming sun rising.
and if you got the rain
*Walk sideways the other way with hands miming rain.
and you plant a little seed
*Crouch down.
in the old back lane
*Then jump and turn halfway with
arms moving directly over head,
end pointing in opposite direction.
And you wish and you hope
*hands clasped together in front,
take step to diagonal left, then diagonal right,
And you keep the weeds down
*Crouch down, keeping head up.
You might find, oh
*standing up, step and gesture with arm to left.
You might find
*step and gesture with arm to right
a root growing down from the seed
*mime with hands
in the ground
*take one step forward (leaving other
foot in place) ending with forward
leg bent a little and back leg straight
as arms and hands sweep from front
to both sides (separating) as if miming
the flat surface of the ground.
My Heart is Ready by Cindy Kallet
MyHeartIsReady.pdf
This is one of our instant by-ear harmony
songs to teach.
Going to Alberta p.9 in the handout
In NEDM’s Sashay the Donut collection
This is a GREAT way to teach the ballroom position (used for the waltz,
the polka, and for a contra dance swing) at the same time as a simple
polka step. We have found this to be a great dance for little kids,
big kids mixed ages, community dance, in short, for anyone. You can
do it as an a cappella singing game, or accompany it with piano,
guitar, accordion, or Orff instruments, or do it to the music from
NEDM’s Sashay the Donut CD.
Owl Moon source p. 13 in handout
You can find the song Mary Alice sang that goes with this book on
the web; it is by Bruce O’Brian
Johnny Appleseed source p. 13 in the handout
The song is on our ‘Faerie’s Gift’ CD.
In the Fiddle source p. 13 in the handout
Love Me Tender source p. 13 in the handout
The song is on our ‘Beatitudes’ CD.
I’m Growing Up p. 6 on the handout
Try adding motions to this; turn it into
a sort of dance.
Brotherhood & Sisterhood p. 4 in the handout
Choosing partners
We think it is a real gift to children to teach them
how to choose their own partners. I like to frame
this in ‘Kings’ and ‘Queens’ language to help the
children get over their self consciousness over
choosing partners.
I start with a story about how Kings and Queens
realized that it might be more fun to dance with
more than just their own spouses, and so they
needed to devise a polite and efficient way to
choose other partners. “And the method they
came up with was so good we still do it today.”
I have them all practice the words: ‘May I please
have this dance?’ ‘Yes thank you.’ and then
practice answering me, and then practice
asking me. Then I demonstrate what it
looks like to ask a partner to dance, by
asking one of the ‘Queens’. Then, I
have that Queen sit down, and I ask
her again, showing the 10 steps:
The approach. Eye contact. The question.
The answer. King puts out his hand.
Queen stands and takes King’s hand.
They hang on to each other’s hand and
walk to the top of the hall. If there are
two Queens then there is a Queen on one
side and a Queen on the other side. If
there are two Kings (you know the rest).
If it is a King and a Queen, the King
stands on the King’s side, the Queen on
the Queen’s side and they face each other,
nose, toes and bellybutton, taking two hands.
Then they drop their hands, and, voila, there
they are.
Then I have a volunteer Queen ask a King,
and when they are finished I have a
volunteer King ask a Queen, and they get
in place in the line beside the first King & Queen.
Then all ask. This can be wonderful, and the
children who succeed in doing this can be
quite proud of themselves.
Then I have a volunteer Queen ask a King,
then a volunteer King ask a Queen, and then
all ask. This can be wonderful, and the
children who succeed in doing this can be
quite proud of themselves.
Kings and Queens p. 11 in the handout
In NEDM’s Sashay the Donut collection
We used ‘On the Danforth’ from NEDM’s ‘Other Side of the
Tracks’ CD for this dance. You might also use our other
version of ‘On the Danforth’ which is on our ‘Sashay
the Donut’ CD.
Before we teach this dance we will dub each child a King or a
Queen, and talk to them (sometimes while the music is playing
to help sustain the mood) about what it means to be a King and
Queen: They have royal posture, they never rush, they make
good decisions, they are very attractive; basically describing
the ideal King/Queen or, which, in my mind is being the
very best person they can be. This is in the style of an
historic English country dance.
Love Call Me Home separate sheet handed
out at workshop.
If you are going to perform this you might get
permission first from Peggy Seeger:
peggy@peggyseeger.com
Country Life p. 5 in the handout
I Live in Music source - p. 13 in the handout
Marion Anderson source - p. 13 in handout
Here is the song Mary Alice made up:
The Day You Were Born source - p. 13 in handout
Month Brothers
MonthBrosSummary.pdf
Acting out stories
Children do this quite naturally; you just
set it up and, as much as possible, get out
of the way. After telling a folktale I give
them the homework to retell it aloud,
we might go through a speed through of
the story or do a quick group map of the
story or discuss the story (What was the
funniest/saddest/most scary/most memorable
moment?) Once they all know the story well,
you are the narrator, and maybe also the musician
(guitar, accordion). Pull the characters (and
human props) from the ‘audience’ of children
sitting in a bunch in front of the ‘stage’.
All the action takes place right in the middle
in front of the audience. The ‘actors’ speak
loudly so everyone can hear. If they forget
what happens next you can feed them a line
as the narrator: “…so Helene suggested to
her mother that they must get rid of Marushka...”
You can use this method to create a musical performance
with added instrumental music, songs and dancing, or
just do it once and leave it at that.
Highland Gates p. 10 in handout.
in NEDM’s Down in the Valley collection
This is a great dance for opening a community dance.
Folks can join in the dancing as they straggle in.
Coffee & Tea an original dance by the
participants of the Amidons’ 1/30/10
Simpson College Music Teacher Workshop:
formation: Circle mixer
music: any jig or reel
A1: Forward and back (8)
Gypsy partner (8)
A2: Allemand left neighbor. (8)
Allemand right partner. (8)
B1: Promenade partner (8)
Circle left
B2: Grand R & L three changes (8)
Right elbow turn 4th person.
Sicilian Vowel Dance p. 11 in handout
In NEDM’s Sashay the Donut collection
We used ‘Golden Keyboard’ (actually, the piano only comes in
at the end of the cut) from NEDM’s ‘Any Jig or Reel’ for this.
Do this with 5th or 6th graders who have a fair amount of dance
experience, and who have already learned the grand right and
left (‘Lucky Seven’ from our Chimes of Dunkirk collection
is a good teaching dance for the Grand Right and Left figure).
You should have at least 20 dancers (five groups of four)
to do this dance; 24 or more is even better.
It can work at a community dance if you have all the younger
children dance with an adult or older experienced child partner.
The main teaching point is, once folks are in the formation
of couple facing couple (Sicilian circle formation), having
everyone point to the left. Those pointing to the inside of
the circle say “I go inside first.” Those pointing to the outside
say, “I go outside first.” That is the direction they start going
when they do the big, no hands, stay-with-partner grand
right and left.
Circle Waltz Mixer (p. 8 in the handout)
In NEDM’s ‘Sashay the Donut’ collection.
We used ‘In Continental’ Waltz from the ‘Sashay’ CD
for the music. This is a wonderful dance for a wedding
where you can do it the original way we learned it, doing
a short waltz instead of the two hand turn. In the original
dance gents are the “posts” and women are the “twirlers”,
but it works perfectly fine in a non-gender community
dance with a two hand turn. In order to make sure
that this works in a community dance you:
Limit the dance to Kindergarteners and older.
Tell K-3 students that they must dance with
an adult or older partner.
Start by having everyone promenade, and have
the older partner promenade on the inside.
Tell all the inside (left hand) partners they are
“posts” and all the outside (right hand) partners
they are “twirlers”.
Posts stay in place and keep their feet planted
during the “twirl” figure.
All look at partner and say “goodbye”.
Carefully teach the first “twirl” each “Post”
does with their left hand neighbor, from left to right.
Once the dancers get that twirl, the rest of the dance
can go pretty smoothly.
Now It’s Time to Go
NowItsTimeDancing.pdf