Capering & Kickery

March 2019 Gig Calendar

Local classes only this month as the Moscow winter hopefully wraps up: cross-step waltz (two intermediate classes) and polka mazurka variations with a bit of a wander through other musical rhythms as well, plus my monthly waltz evening.  Lots of research and writing in between...

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Tuesdays, March 5th, 12th, 19th  ~ Moscow, Russia
Intermediate Cross-Step Waltz: Skater's Variations (VK post - in Russian)
7:00-8:15pm; practice time 8:15-8:45pm
Concentration on "skater's" variations done with matched feet and making smooth and subtle transitions from matched to mirrored feet and through different arm positions!  Second and third classes will incorporate tango variations from the second class as well!  Pay by the week or for a full month including the waltz party on the 26th.

Tuesdays, March 5th, 12th, 19th ~ Moscow, Russia
Intermediate Cross-Step Waltz: Tango Variations (VK post - in Russian)
8:45-10:00pm; practice time 8:15-8:45pm
Variations from tango, including lunges, molinetes, ruedas, scissors, and ganchos.  Pay by the week or for a full month including the waltz party on the 26th.

Thursdays, March 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th ~ Moscow, Russia
Late 19th Century Polka Mazurka Variations (VK post - in Russian)
7:00-9:00pm
Improvisation in polka mazurka using steps and sequences from American variations of the 1880s.  Emphasis on musicality.  Steps work with polka-mazurka, redowa, and mazurka music.  Also: applying these variations in galop and jig time!  Pay by the week or for the full four-week course.

Saturdays, March 16th & 23rd ~ Moscow, Russia
Private lessons
6:00-7:00pm
Noted here just to hold the dates/times.

Tuesday, March 26th ~ Moscow, Russia
Belated St. Patrick's Day Waltz Party (VK event - in Russian)
7:00-10:00pm.  Waltz, waltz, and more waltz!  Light refreshments.  Wearing of the green!

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I am available for private lessons in Moscow, or while on my various travels; during the latter, you must provide the dance space.  Email me directly if you would like to schedule a private lesson.

Moscow, Russia: March 1-31

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Military Times

Military Times is one of the many, many, many little couple dance variations included in both M. B. Gilbert's Round Dancing (Portland, Maine, 1890) and George Washington Lopp's La Danse (Paris, 1903) but not, so far as I can tell, to be found in any other period source.  I'd mentioned it (negatively) in passing many years ago when I wrote about the other "military position" variations in Gilbert, but hadn't ever published a reconstruction.  In the interest of being thorough, and since I feel more positively about it now than I did eleven years ago, here it is!

Military Times is attributed by Gilbert to Ralph Warren of Denver, Colorado.  Like the other dances with "military" in their names, Military Times begins with the dancers side by side, the lady on the right, the gentleman's right arm around the lady's waist and her left hand resting on his shoulder or upper arm.  Their free arms can hold a gentle curve at their sides, or (French style), her hand can hold her skirt while his rests at his waist, palm out.  Unlike those other "military" dances, however, Military Times has both dancers beginning on the same foot, the left.  The reconstruction of the dance is fairly straightforward, though some performance details have to be filled in, given the brief (Gilbert) and confusing (Lopp) descriptions available.

A quick summary of the dance is that the dancers perform four measures of gentle skipping steps followed by the lady doing two full turns of reverse waltz while holding right hands with the gentleman, who travels along with her.  This is an unusual example of an underarm turn in the nineteenth century.

The Columbia

I seem to be doing an impromptu schottische mini-series this week; here's another interesting little variation from M. B. Gilbert's Round Dancing (Portland, Maine, 1890) and G. W. Lopp's La Danse (Paris, 1903).  The Columbia, like the American Gavotte, was adopted by the American Society of Professors of Dancing at their New York meeting in the September of 1886, as mentioned in my post on that dance.  Unlike the American Gavotte, it is perfectly clear that it belongs in the schottische category, and like the Schottische Gavotte, it shows distinct influence by the racket.  It is attributed to dancing master E. C. Spink.  Gilbert and Lopp's descriptions match each other nicely.

The dancers start in normal ballroom hold, the gentleman facing the wall and the lady facing the center, with the gentleman starting on the left foot and the lady on the right.  Their steps move in parallel.

The Columbia (four measures of schottische 4/4 time)
   1&234    Slide-close-slide, cut, leap (along line of dance without turning)
&1234       Close-slide, cut, cut, cut (turning halfway on the last two cuts)
&1&234    Close-slide-close-slide, cut, leap (along line of dance without turning)
&1234       Close-slide, cut, cut, cut (turning halfway on the last two cuts)

Repeat the third and fourth bars indefinitely.

Schottische Gavotte

I suppose this could be considered the next post in a very stretched-out series covering American "gavotte" variations for the late nineteenth century schottische; my first post on the topic appeared almost ten years ago.  I'm glad I put this one off a bit, however, since my experience since then with reconstructing, dancing, and teaching rackets has given me a better appreciation for how this "gavotte" variation works.  Essentially, it's two halves: a slow schottische turn and a racket.  It's kind of beautiful.

The Schottische Gavotte, like so many other variations, is found in M. B. Gilbert's book of couple dances, Round Dancing (Portland, Maine, 1890) and in G. W. Lopp's La Danse (Paris, 1903).  Gilbert does not attribute it.  Lopp attributes it to Gilbert.  Lopp also lists it as 3/4, but since it is under schottische, notated like a schottische (in 4), and has a given metronome speed of 76 beats per minute in schottische time, I think that 3/4 is an error and it is intended to be in 4/4.  Other than that, the two descriptions agree nicely and the reconstruction is quite simple and straightforward.  The gentleman starts with the left foot, the lady with the right.

Heart Figure, 1900

Continuing the Valentine's Day theme, here's a heart-themed dance game from St. Louis dancing master Jacob Mahler's 1900 compilation Original Cotillion Figures.  I'll give the full text from Mahler first, then a few notes on the listed music.

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Heart Figure
Jacob Mahler, St. Louis, Mo.

Music -- Waltz -- "Just One Girl."

Properties -- White card board hearts about three inches wide and four inches long, tied with baby ribbon four inches long.  These hearts are handed to the ladies; they write their names upon the heart (upon one side only), the leader hangs these hearts upon a curtain at one end of the room, The [sic] written side turned to the curtain.

The Figure.

The leader calls up as many couple as he has hearts upon the curtain, at signal they all gather in front of curtain, at signal the gentlemen rush forward select a heart, and dance with the lady whose name is written upon the heart.

Favors -- Silver hearts, cupid arrow pins, links.

This figure may be made more effective by giving the gentlemen toy guns, with small arrows to shoot at the hearts, and whatever heart he strikes would be his partner.  While the figure is more exciting, I am somewhat afraid of the danger attached to the use of the gun.

The Kosmos Club's Ball, 1895

Image courtesy of The New York Times

One hundred and twenty-four years ago today, Brooklyn's Kosmos Club planned a Valentine's-eve costume ball, which was written up in the society column of The New York Times on February 12, 1895. As is often the case, there's no description of the social dance program, but there are some interesting tidbits about the overall ball format.

First, a bit about the folks putting on the ball.  The Kosmos Club was a women's club, part of a general social movement towards clubs of all kinds during the late nineteenth century.  According to the 1904 edition of the directory Club Women of New York, it was founded in 1894 with the following mission statement:

"The object of this club shall be to form a nucleus for intellectual, social, patriotic, and philanthropic development."

Further details in the listing include the meeting schedule and that the club membership was one hundred.  Club Women of New York was, literally, a listing of women who were members of New York City clubs, and Kosmos Club membership appears next to dozens of names.

The location of the ball was the (men-only) Union League Club of Brooklyn, shown above left (click to enlarge).  A dramatic building, complete with turret, it was relatively new at the time, having been built only in 1890.  According to The New York Times, the club itself was founded in the 1860s to support the Union cause during the Civil War.  More about the club and its then building may be found at The Times, here. The building, sadly stripped of its turret, still exists today; a photo is at the preceding link.  The Union League itself is long gone, however; according to the site Brownstoner, the building was taken over by The Unity Club, a Jewish organization, in 1914, and remained in their hands until they bought a different building in 1944. 

The New Side Step Polka

"There are some variations which may be introduced with advantage.  Of these the so-called 'Ostend Polka' and 'American' or 'Side-step Polka' are among the best."  -- Lilly Grove Frazer, Dancing (London, 1907), p. 421.

I'm not actually certain that Lady Frazer was referring to the New Side Step Polka given by M. B. Gilbert in Round Dancing (Portland, Maine, 1890) and, more-or-less, in G. W. Lopp's  La Danse (Paris, 1903) as the Nouvelle Polka Dansée de Côté.  I don't see anything in this variation that warrants that level of praise; if anything, I find it slightly annoying.  But the way in which it is annoying is interesting, so I'll take a quick look at it just to be thorough.

The New Side Step Polka is attributed to J. G. Hoffman of Waverly, New York.  Working from Gilbert, the reconstruction is fairly straightforward, allowing for Gilbert's typical omissions.  The steps given below are the gentleman's; the lady dances opposite.

New Side Step Polka (8 measures of 2/4 time)
1       Point left foot to 2nd position
2       Hop on right and bring left to 3rd position raised
&1   Slide left to side and close right [with weight]
&2   Slide left to side and close right [without weight], making a half-turn

2b    Repeat all of the above starting on the right foot

4b   Polka