The caller is responsible not only to the band but to the dancers on the floor
and to the dance organizers. Typically the caller "performs" best when least
visibly performing. However, in order to facilitate the total experience of
music and dance, the caller exercises judgment. Sometimes it's best for the
caller to be silent, but sometimes the caller will call as the dance finishes.
This is the responsibility of the caller, who is hired to look after the total
social experience in the hall, and to exercise sound judgment in order to get
the best result for the participants. The dance organizers get to decide
whether a caller is taking responsibility or showboating, and they are also the
ones who make a similar assessment of the musicians.
On Jan 14, 2013, at 11:31 PM, Dave Casserly <david.j.casse...@gmail.com> wrote:
> I'm with Bob on this one. When I'm in the band, I do not like it at all
> when a caller insists on talking into the microphone during the last couple
> times through the dance, whether to end the dance with a partner swing or
> otherwise. That is the time for the band to make an exciting ending. I
> don't mind a "last time" at the top to warn the dancers, but anything more
> than that, I find pretty intrusive. I know this isn't necessarily the same
> view most musicians have, and I've certainly have callers be unhappy with
> my views on the matter.
>
> If you want the dance to end with a partner swing, call a dance that ends
> with a partner swing. Or the "last time" note can lead astute dancers to
> find a way themselves to swing their partner at the end. But I'm not a fan
> of callers saying anything into the mic after dancers have already mastered
> the dance.
>
> -Dave
>
> On Mon, Jan 14, 2013 at 10:07 PM, Bob Isaacs <isaacs...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
>>
>>>
>>> As a musician and a caller, I have mixed feelings on callers jumping
>>> back in for the last time through. Changing the dance to end with a
>>> partner swing ("this time, long lines, swing your partner") can be
>>> nice, but mostly I don't think bringing the calls back in adds very
>>> little and detracts from the music.
>>
>> No mixed feelings here - I feel a caller who calls the last time thru for
>> calls the dancers have already mastered is just flat out ego-tripping. In
>> effect, they're saying "Remember me, I'm still here - don't forget to
>> applaud for me too." The main reason bands want 2 or 3 to go out is to
>> build to a satisfying finish. Most modern bands have learned how to do
>> that so dancers can feel it coming, and calling over that is at best
>> distracting and at worst disrespectful for what the band has been working
>> towards all along.
>>
>> I do change some dances to finish with a partner swing, especially when
>> the dance has a lot of partner action. But even then, just call the last
>> B2, not the whole dance. A simple "THIS TIME, go forward and back, and
>> swing" reunites partners at the end without getting in the band's way. For
>> slots that are primarily band showcases, such as the last dance of the
>> first half or the last dance of the night, I'll favor Becket dances that
>> end with a partner swing so that isn't needed.
>>
>> If you want to be calling at the end of a dance, call a square.
>> Otherwise, let the band have the undivided attention of the dancers -
>>
>> Bob
>>
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>>
>
>
>
> --
> David Casserly
> (cell) 781 258-2761
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