Swingin' Tern Dances: Perpetual e-Motion and Bob Isaacs 4/6/13 contra and waltz
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- Опубліковано 15 вер 2024
- The final contra dance and waltz of the evening at Swingin' Tern Dances in East Hanover, NJ. Perpetual e-Motion features John Coté on guitar, didgeridoo, feet, vocals and electronica along with Ed Howe on fiddle and electronica. Bob Isaacs is calling the contra dance 333 by Steve Zakon-Anderson. Bob is part of the Swingin' Tern community but has garnered national renown for his inventive choreography. This dance is followed by a waltz, the traditional close to any evening of contra dancing.
Swingin' Tern Dances holds its dances on the first and third Saturday of each month. More information can be found on the web at folkproject.org... and on Facebook at www.facebook.c...
Thanks for all the attention to the band Doug. I’ve danced to Perpetual Motion a few times but never had a chance to watch how these two keep it all going.
And thank you for the acknowledgement Ellen. It's my privilege to wander among such talent on stage to capture the individual components of the total sound we hear on the dance floor.
I play acoustic string bass or piano with a local contra dance society. Most of the tunes we use for our dances are from the old time folk music tradition or Irish folk tunes or Scottish tunes. We do our best to play these tunes and the dancers do seem to enjoy the music. The dances take place in the fellowship hall at a Presbyterian church which does have a piano but the piano does not get regular maintenance and is out of tune. So when I play piano, I have to use my Roland FP-30 Digital Piano instead. Besides piano or bass, we usually have a rhythm guitar and two or three fiddles playing for the dances.
Great video, Doug, and an even greater night of music and contra dancing. Thanks for posting it so quickly.
AWESOME video and AWESOME music!! GREAT GREAT GREAT..love it and shared it on FB..lol
Thanks Scarlet!
Most Old Time musicians I know, who have been trained in the old ways, have succumbed to the pressure to “Modernize.” It is the equivalent to fracking to our spiritual well. My generation has aggrandized their egos and mistaken form for content.
Your point is well taken Coleman, but that is the beauty of the contra dance community. There is a plethora of contra dance bands, many of which are firmly grounded in the traditional old timey tunes and most use those tunes as their springboard. There is a true synergy between the dancers and the musicians at a contra dance. The dancers respond to different interpretations of the traditional music with its ebbs and flows and crescendos. The band amplifies the energy from the dance floor and reflects it back to the dancers. There is no question that bands such as Perpetual e-Motion and Great Bear that have pushed the boundaries of the music have enticed a younger generation. The fresher sound provides the hook to reel them into the community at large. Across the span of a dance weekend or a series such as Swingin' Tern, many band styles are represented. A perusal of the four dozen bands among the videos I have taken attest to this. They are a small sampling of the bands that I have torn myself off the dance floor to grab my video camera and capture the magic. The contra dance community at large is dynamic but it is rooted in tradition.
+Doug Heacock
You are doing a great job Dough and I do understand the need
to transfer our cultural gifts to the next generation. Your words about the
interplay between musician and dancer are eloquent and true.
But, I must speak out about some difficult issues. The cultural
activities that have empowered European Americans were like “natural springs”or “wells” that everyone shared and had access to. Now all of those good things have been mutated, undermined, abandoned, and face extinction. The “natural springs” that sustained us and were available to everyone have been taken and turned into things that the average person cannot make for himself like Gatorade, Coke, Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Red
Bull, and Perrier bottled water. It is interesting that these consumer products also promote themselves as being “fresher” or “pushing the boundaries." Sadly, the few “wells” that are still available have been ruined due to “fracking.”
Serving Gatorade because the children won’t drink from the
spring is a bad situation.
The old tunes are sacred/powerful and provide a spiritual
connection. Like the Eastern Spiritual Masters, the ego must be quiet/small to connect with our Higher Power/ Ancestors and everyone who participates. For an Old Time musician, the tune is more important than the musician/ singer. The repetition of the simple tune puts everyone
involved into a transcendental state of mind.
Modern music has gone in a different direction. I get it. People
who are used to caffeinated or sugary drinks are unable to appreciate real “spring water” directly from the “spring.” Without the spiritual benefits, community, or connection to nature, Old Time music seems too simple and boring for “modern” ears.
The simplified music of European Americans allows more
people to play traditional musical instruments. Playing simplified acoustic
music develops the mind and body in many amazing ways which provides
advantages. Old Time Musicians and Singers develop their whole brain and therefore have greater intelligence.
The advantage of Old Time music it that it is simple enough
so that it could allow a lot more people to drink from the “natural spring.” In
the past everyone participated. Old Time music is more user friendly.
The “Fresher Sounds” and “Pushing the boundaries” are not “improvements.”