I'd like to see the phrase "good contra dancers use a buzz-step
swing" changed--I'd say really good contra dancers sometimes use a
buzz step and sometimes use a walking step, depending on the
choreography or music; medium-good contra dancers use a buzz step for
all swings.
I'd point out that the wrist-grip (which I believe you're calling
pack-saddle) star is the one move in contra dance where you should
not give weight--human wrists neither bend that direction nor have
strength the other direction, so it's uncomfortable to be pulled by
the person behind.
My understanding is that English are used to doing a particular dance
fewer times than Americans. You sort of refer to this, but you might
make more a point of it--we like to get into it to the point of not
having to think about it. "Appalachian Sufi dancing."
--Read Weaver
Jamaica Plain, MA
http://lcfd.org
On Mar 10, 2012, at 1:49 PM, Colin Hume wrote:
I ran a workshop on "American with Style" on Sunday and I've now
put the notes on my website at
http://www.colinhume.com/dtastyle.htm
I'd be interested to know what people think. Just bear in mind
that it's aimed at dancers in England, so don't give comments like
"Everybody knows that"!
