Well done, sir.
> Aahz wrote: > > > Despite your admonition that the caller is responsible for > > everything (which certainly is worthwhile as general advice), I think > > that placing the onus for the sound system also on the caller is probably > > going a bit too far. > > > Actually,…I don’t think anyone should place an onus on anybody at a social > event. Unfortunately the fact is that sometimes onuses just “fall” in the > dance hall. Nobody knows where they fall *from* but I suspect they are up > there—perhaps somewhere near the light fixtures. > > Often the onus falls upon the dancers. That’s not good. Onuses are not > attractive and dancers don’t like them. I try to keep those guys off the > dancers if at all possible. > > I think that having onuses falling in a dance hall is a bad idea. When an > onus falls on a dancer, for instance, it can be very disturbing for the > dancer and makes it harder for them to concentrate on anything else but > that damned onus. Once an onus gets on a dancer they are not easy to get > rid of. And, fact is, that there are a lot of folks who won’t even want to > dance with you once you’ve got an onus on you. And who could blame them. If > one onus falls then it’s a good bet that there’s another one up there, > lurking, and the critter is likely to fall on the same dancer again. It is > safer to stay away from a dancer who has an ornery onus on them. Some > folks even stay away from the spot in the hall where an onus fell on a > dancer on account of there are probably more of them up there. > > Once onuses start falling in a dance hall everybody gets a little edgy. > Nobody > wants an onus to get on them. Onuses can hurt when they hit a dancer. > > But the caller can do something about the onuses. A good caller can catch > an onus before it falls on a dancer. A live microphone is an effective > onus-catching device. By being a leader the caller can take responsibility > and apologize for whatever the onus is about and that is how the caller can > catch the onus before somebody is injured or hurt. > > I was not calling before we had microphones. Back then maybe leaders could > catch onuses without a mike…if they had a strong voice. But the pa system > sure helps with onus catching. Masters of Ceremony have to catch onuses > all the time. It’s part of their professional responsibility > > The caller can catch most onuses before they hit the dance floor. Even > better they should catch them before one even hits the stage, where the > musicians are. And they should certainly try to catch an onus before it > hits a sound engineer. > > Years ago I saw a rock performer drop an onus on a sound engineer and it > was an ugly thing. The singer was inebriated and didn’t like the sound he > was getting so he dropped a particularly onerous onus smack dab on the > sound engineer’s head. Man! When that onus hit him the guy lost it. He > shut down the pa system, screamed a few descriptive words at the singer, > and stomped out of the hall in a huff. It took a half hour to get the > sound system working again and the singer’s performance was not well > received after that. > > I would never drop an onus on the sound guy. > > The night I attended my first contra dance the lovely woman who dragged me > there told me that I should not worry because, if anyone makes a mistake > everybody knows that it’s always the caller’s fault. That’s when I > realized that the caller is the Chief Onus-Catcher in the hall. The caller > catches the onus by stepping up, taking responsibility, and being a leader. > > But it’s not just the caller’s professional responsibility. It’s also the > smartest thing a caller can do. > > When the dancers realize that somebody is catching the onuses they can > relax and focus on dancing and having fun. The dancers are not stupid > either. Some of them will realize that the caller has a high opinion of > the dancers and expects more from them. > > If you want to be a true “Folk Hero” start catching falling onuses at the > dances you call. The dancers will love you for that. Some will follow > that example and take more personal responsibility themselves. And many > will work harder to make the caller look good. > > Everybody wins when the onuses are kept out of the dance hall. > > - Greg McKenzie > > West Coast, USA > _______________________________________________ > Callers mailing list > [email protected] > http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
