Halifax group
dancing up a storm
MARY-FRANCES
LYNCH
Published August
30, 2014 - 10:15am
Last Updated August
30, 2014 - 10:22am
Average: 5 (2 votes)
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People attend a contra dance event at St. Antonio’s Church Hall in
Halifax in May. (ADRIEN VECZAN / Staff)
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Fiddle tunes, fast spins, and “do-si-dos” are
prominent in contra dancing. (ADRIEN VECZAN / Staff)
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Contra dancing has its roots in English country dancing and French
quadrilles (or squares). (ADRIEN VECZAN / Staff)
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Traditional square and circle dancing are
cousins to contra dancing. (ADRIEN VECZAN / Staff)
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The popularity of contra dancing in Halifax has grown in recent years.
(ADRIEN VECZAN / Staff)
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The two Halifax contra groups joined forces to bid for a stop on the
Country Dance and Song Society’s North American Centennial Tour. (ADRIEN
VECZAN/Staff)
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A Contra Fest is scheduled for Sept. 27 to Oct. 3, with events in
Halifax, the Annapolis Valley, and on the South Shore. (ADRIEN VECZAN / Staff)
Nova Scotians have been dancing in circles, squares, and kitchens for
generations, but more and more you’ll find them lining up at local contra
dances. Fiddle tunes, fast spins, “do-si-dos,” and a
healthy dose of sweat and laughter make up the contra repertoire. No dancing
experience required — under the guidance of a caller instructing you and your
partner’s every move, it literally won’t take you long to get into the swing of
things.
“Anyone can contra dance. People need to be able to stand on their own
two feet … and knowing your left from your right is helpful, too,”
jokes Kat Kitching, who is one of the organizers of
the Halifax Contra Dances.
Contra dancing, a cousin to traditional square and circle dancing,
distinguishes itself by long line formations and one especially popular
ingredient, lots of swinging. In no time, you’ve gone forward-and-back, swung
with your neighbour, and made friends with your partner (and everyone else down
the line).
Before becoming popular in Nova Scotia, contra can trace its dance steps
back to English country dancing and French quadrilles (or squares). The European
settlers of the 1800s and 1900s brought with them to North America a culture of
social dancing which still today remains popular in New England and the
Maritimes.
“Contra dancing tends to use traditional jigs and reels. I think that
that’s one of the things that makes it attractive to
Nova Scotians because that kind of music is part of the Nova Scotia heritage,”
says Dottie Welch, originally from New England, but now a seasoned and devoted
member of Nova Scotia’s traditional dance community.
“I think I was born into it. My parents were contra dancers with a very
famous contra caller in New England and I have very early memories of
traditional square dancing and contra dancing.” She recalls skiing
the Appalachians with family during the day and square and contra dancing at
night. These social dances were always a great way to connect people and create
community, so in 1973 when Dottie and husband Garry Welch made the move to Nova
Scotia, dancing was a natural way to integrate into their new community.
Forty years later, Dottie is still dancing and calling as well as
leading the Contra Time Dancers.
This group and the Halifax Contra Dances make up today’s contra dance
scene in Halifax, one that has become popular over the past few years, thanks
in part to the Smokin’ Contra Band. The band was
brought together in 2007 by fiddler Amy Lounder and
included flutist and guitarist Ben Sichel, mandolin
player Dave Ron, and drummer Jason Dionne. The group loved the tunes and wanted
to build a larger contra community in Halifax.
They did just that. The band’s first dance saw about 30 dancers circle
down the floor and over the next four years that modest crowd grew to about 120
at the monthly dances. In 2011, the Smokin’ Contra
Band handed over the musical reins to a group of community volunteers who
formed Halifax Contra Dances and kept up the monthly dance tradition. The
dances are still a big draw for many reasons.
“It’s a great way to meet people. I love that intimacy with strangers
that cements a sense of community,” says musician and contra dancer Erin
Dempsey. A traditional Irish flutist, Erin performed at a dance in 2011 and
recalls how “it was an amazing experience to look around and see everyone look
so happy. Everyone was dancing.”
After spending the last six years in Ireland developing her musical
career, she recently returned to Halifax and happily found herself on the
contra dance floor following up on the recommendation of one of her students.
She’s not alone in embracing contra culture. Daniel Gagnon travelled all
the way from Gatineau, Que., to attend the last Halifax Contra Dance of the
season this past May. He was first introduced to traditional dancing three
years ago in Quebec and dove in feet first. “I heard people talking about
contra dancing in Ottawa and I started and just fell in love with it. Now I
travel to Montreal, Toronto, the States and now Halifax to do contra dancing.
It’s always interesting to see who you are going to meet. It’s just so much
fun. I’m hooked (on) it.”
With plenty of enthusiasm and an established contra community, Halifax’s
two contra groups recently teamed up to place a bid to host one of the seven
stops on the Country Dance and Song Society’s North American Centennial Tour.
The U.S.-based society is the leading organization supporting traditional
dancing in North America, and last fall shared the good news with the Halifax
groups that they had won a stop on the tour. Ever since, volunteers have been
hard at work planning the tour stop that will see the finest contra dancers, callers,
and musicians share their expertise with Nova Scotians.
The week-long Contra Fest will provide a cross-pollination of contra
skills between the American staff and Nova Scotian
participants. “The goal is to have a long-term impact on the growth of contra
in Nova Scotia” says Kitching. Festival events will
take place in 2015 from Sept. 27 to Oct. 3 in Halifax, the Valley and South
Shore.
The week will include dances, caller and musician workshops, as well as
community, university, and high-school dances every day of the week, with major
dances on Sunday, Sept. 27, and Saturday, Oct. 3.
A welcoming environment for even the greenest of dancers, you’re invited
to attend the Contra Fest events and encouraged to try your hand (and feet) at
this dizzyingly fun social dance. You may find yourself connecting with a long
line of traditional dance, one that may keep you swinging back for more.
Line up with Halifax’s two contra dance groups.
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Halifax
Contra Dances 2014 monthly dances: Sept. 20,
Oct. 11, Nov. 15, Dec. 6, 7:30-11 p.m. $10 or pay what you can. All Nations
Church, 2535 Robie St., Halifax.
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Contra Time Dancers 2014 monthly dances: Sept. 27,
Nov. 1, Nov. 29, 8-10:30 p.m., $10. Evangelical Lutheran Church, 2096 Windsor
St., Halifax
Nova Scotia Contra Fest 2015
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Find more information on the country
dance and song society tour here.
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Check out details of the Nova Scotia
Contra Fest 2015 at Contrafest.ca or on Facebook
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If you’d like to volunteer with the
Halifax contra dance groups or help with Contra Fest celebrations, email Kat
at halifaxcontradances@gmail.com or
Dottie at dwelch@eastlink.ca.
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