Alex Krogh-Grabbe

This post appeared on the CDSS blog yesterday, Thursday June 23. I started writing it in December, and with the wonderful assistance of Max Newman, it proceeded in fits and starts to what you see below. I hope you enjoy it.

In the first post on the CDSS blog last December, Brad Foster wrote about Tradition and Change. He closed by musing about the future of traditional fusion:

Are techno contra and hip-hop morris part of our future? In both cases I’m sure the answer is “definitively maybe” or “sort of”. It’s likely some elements will make their way into the run-of-the-mill, as happened with swing moves in contra dancing. Both will influence our traditional arts but won’t become those arts. Even techno contra is morphing, with people saying, “That’s nice, but I want to try taking it in yet a different direction.”

He’s right. That “different direction” is emblematic of the living traditions we all hold dear. The folk process is always at work. For decades, bands have become popular for energetic fusion between traditional music and other styles. Even Dudley LaufmanÂ’s Canterbury Contra Dance Orchestra recorded with electric guitar in the 1970s! The most recent manifestation of our vibrant and evolving history is integrating electronic music into contra dancing, often referred to as “techno contra”.

The Name

One of the first questions you run into discussing this nascent genre is, “What do we call it?” As mentioned above, the most popular term is probably “techno contra”, which conveys energy and club dancing even though much of the music may be pop, celtic fusion, or electronica rather than strictly techno. The fact that a number of these dances contain low lighting lends to the club atmosphere. Other terms include “alternative music contra” and “crossover contra”. Personally, I prefer “crossover contra” which is more accurately descriptive, despite being a bit vague and arguably not adequately sexy. “Crossover” is the term I’ll default to here, referring to specific events by the terms their organizers use.

The History

For several years, IÂ’ve been fascinated by the emerging proliferation of contra dances to electronic music. I set out in this post to uncover what I could about this movement and its history. Corresponding with a number of people involved, IÂ’ve traced back some of the history and learned more about how the people involved view their events and their role in the dance community.

The first instance I unearthed of prerecorded electronic music being used at contra dances was in 2001. Lisa Greenleaf and Clark Baker (two Boston-area callers) had a brainwave while listening to celtic rock music. Starting with the music of Scottish “hypnofolkadelic” band Shooglenifty, the two of them began mixing. Lisa debuted the result with friends at small parties where she was trying out new dances. In 2006, she held an alternative music fundraiser dance at the Concord Scout House, and by this time the repertoire had expanded to include such styles as latin, rock, and world beat music. While she initially had exclusively called live at alternative music dances, by the time of the first Scout House fundraiser, she had recorded calling tracks for each musical set. These events have proven popular, but it took an event further south to light a crossover contra fire.

The movement quickly dubbed “techno contra” seems to have begun at the Whipperstompers Weekend in South Carolina in June 2008, a dance weekend organized by Able Allen catering to young dancers. At the end of the weekend, after many attendees had already left, an impromptu dance was called by Taija Tevia-Clark to techno music from someone’s iPod. A brief video from the end of this dance was posted on YouTube, and has been viewed more than 5,000 times:

In attendance at the Whipperstompers techno contra were two dancers who went on to be influential in the early spread of crossover contra. Forrest Oliphant of North Carolina was inspired by the Whipperstompers video to create something similar, but with more planning. He got his opportunity at the inaugural Youth Dance Weekend (YDW) in late September 2008. He organized a techno contra after the scheduled dances were over, and shot two takes of two sets dancing to Adam Tensta’s “My Cool”. The resulting techno contra video has been viewed more than 20,000 times on YouTube, and has inspired many dancers interested in dancing to this sort of music. Since the creation of this video, it has become common for crossover contras to produce videos, and that has become a primary channel through which organizers learn from each other.

Forrest’s “My Cool” video:

Also in attendance at both Whipperstompers and YDW was Jordy Williams of Asheville, NC. Seeing the potential in the dances at those two weekends, Jordy was inspired to organize similar events of his own. He has put on invitational techno contras in Asheville every few months since the first one in June 2009. While most crossover contra dances up to that point had been in the traditional 10-15 minute per dance format, Jordy structured his differently, with techno tracks strung together in 90-minute medleys. At the second YDW, in September 2009, a late-night techno medley was coordinated by Jordy. He continues to organize periodic techno contra dances in Asheville, including the first fully public one on New Year’s Day, 2011.

Since late 2009, there has been a proliferation of crossover contra events all over the country. Special events have been organized in places such as Bates College in Maine, in Boulder, Colorado, and in Seattle, Washington.

In the Triangle region of North Carolina, Peter Clark and Eileen Thorsos have begun using celtic fusion music heavily edited to fit contra, a style which they dub “electrotrad”. Since late 2010, a monthly series (Contra Sonic) has sprung up in the DC area. Now, in the summer of 2011, crossover contra events are being organized faster than I can keep track of them. The proliferation and draw of these events underscores the energy and potential present in crossover contra.

The Vision

Every organizer of crossover events has a different take on the legacy of the tradition, but those I spoke with express great respect for typical contra dance evenings. Jordy Williams, whose events differ most drastically from a normal night of contra dancing, told me, “I have been extremely cautious in not letting it interfere with regular dancing. I treasure contra dance and don’t want a night of canned music to step on the toes of regular musicians in any way.” Peter Clark sees crossover contra as “a way to provide variety and compelling events to draw in a wider portion of the public.” Another major motivation for crossover contra is voiced by Dana Ouellette, an organizer and dancer in western Massachusetts: “I certainly appreciate and love the traditional music, and would never want to turn away from that completely, but having the option to play around with new musical influences keeps me that much more excited about being a part of the community.” Crossover events serve to both keep experienced dancers excited by the variety they provide, and also to expose a broader swath of the population to the joys of contra dancing.

Alongside the events using recorded music, there are a few dance bands blurring the line between live and pre-recorded music. Perpetual e-Motion from Maine, formed in 2003, has gained popularity for their heavy use of electronic effects and looping, allowing them to build complex arrangements on the fly with just two people. According to Perpetual e-Motion’s John Cote, “An important thing for us is that we don’t use pre-recorded music. But now everything, even the feet, goes through electronic processing in some way.” Another duo pushing the form, Double Apex, debuted in December of 2010. They combine recorded samples with live traditional music. According to Julie Vallimont of Double Apex, “For us, contra dancing is both about respecting and maintaining a longstanding tradition and having fun with contra dance and experimenting with a living tradition. Our basic idea is to use fiddle tunes as a base to keep the phrasing and energy of the dance, and add techno beats, synths, loops, and samples.”

A recurring ideal crossover organizers express is to have an experienced DJ who is either personally able to call or who has a strong working relationship with a caller. Peter Clark of North Carolina writes, “I see the future of crossover contra being led by live producer DJs who contra dance themselves. I see them using computer programs which allow for on-the-fly changes to respond to the energy on the dance floor and to tailor the music to specific dances.” Double Apex and DJ Improper (of the Contra Sonic series) are some of those beginning to work with these possibilities.

It has become common practice to produce videos of crossover contra events and share them online. The Whipperstompers and 2008 YDW videos began this trend, and it has been continued at many crossover dances. While the YDW video was planned with filming in mind and featured multiple takes, more organic products can also achieve a similarly high level of quality. More important than the videography, though, is sharing the video online, because that has become one of the primary means of discourse among crossover contra organizers.

Recently, Ryan Holman of the DC area has been compiling the excellent Contra Syncretist, a blog/website resource for crossover contra in its many forms. (The most recent post: “Calling to Hip-Hop (and Other Alternative Music)“, thoughts from Maine caller Chrissy Fowler.)

Crossover contras are new and distinctive in their own way, but their connection to more traditional contras is strong and close. This new music has been used in contras for only the past ten years or so, but its growth over the past several years has been meteoric. Not only has its expansion been fast, but it has been organic. While the content may be new, the process is old. I hope that this movement – linked with tradition, while bringing new perspectives — continues in a direction that appeals to all members of the dance community, from newcomers to experienced, from dancers to performers, and from young to old.

I wrote this story spontaneously for my friends in Crowfoot, inspired by the Fair Folk described within. The spontaneity is preserved below (i.e. it’s unedited and probably full of typos.) I hope you enjoy it.

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Once there were several fair folk. “Once” might be the wrong world, because as you know, fair folk live in a land that is somewhat chronologically askew from our own. What’s that? You’re not clear on “fair folk” either? Well, they’re the foundation of the popular conception of “fairies”, though I’m sure if you showed them a picture of what most people consider a “fairy”, they would laugh merrily. They are more akin to Susanna Clarke’s portrayal of the gentleman with thistledown hair from her tome of a novel, Jonathan Strange and Mister Norrell. If I recall, this gentleman is somewhat green-tinted and spidery, and possessing of a wild magic. But this portrayal may be more sinister than reality. Or it may not. We shall see.

Anyways, where were we? Oh yes. Once (or perhaps multiple times or no time) there were several of these beings. Three, to be precise. That is not a picture of them; it is a picture of three popularly-conceived elves. Elves are no more correct than fairies. These creatures are purely mythological. Fair folk are powerful and majestic beings, who most of the time do not take interest in the lives of humans. But they do love music. Oh my do they love music. As may be known to you, music is powerful, majestic, and wild in a way that you might agree would be attractive to such beings. Are you aware of the story of King Orfeo? Sometimes, exceptionally impressive music can buy you favor with them. Keep that in mind if you ever should meet some.

Beyond merely its appreciation, fair folk excel in the creation of music. And few made music like these three. Their mastery of harmony and rhythm, tone and melody were beyond the imagination of most humans. Their talents were renowned throughout the fair kingdom Susanna Clarke refers to as “Last-Hope”, which sits astride our own lands and intersects at peculiar metaphysical angles.

Let me tell you how these three fair folk came to make their beautiful music in our lands rather than their own. In truth, but one of the trio was truly and fully of that land. She strolled from the fair kingdom into our land one day, whether aimlessly or purposefully, and singing all the way. Her path took her through a village, where there was a human man whose music was among the finest of any of his kind. He played with rhythm and grace, so much so that crowds would gather to hear his songs. Indeed, our fair woman was flabbergasted to hear his music. She’d not heard a man so talented before. At the end of a song, as he continued strumming chords, she approached him (powerfully slinking in the seductive and uncanny fashion of her kind) and produced her fiddle from who-knows-where (she hadn’t seemed to be carrying it a moment ago). She began to play along to his chords, and instantly they clicked. They played on and on, until their hands were torn and bruised. With few words spoken outside of music, they were away to rest together. For she had decided: this was a worthy human.

Then she was gone, and the man played sad ballads for years to mourn the living dream he had encountered of one short evening. He knew not whether it had been a mere fabrication of sleep’s wiles, or truth, but for a dozen years or more he could not dismiss it as fantasy. One day, he took it upon himself to find her. He strolled the nearby hills, playing as wonderfully as ever, searching for signs that the magical woman was to be found. Sounds like a silly idea, but turns out it was lucky, or timely, or fated, or all three.

As he rounded one shady hill, he heard the sound of lilting notes carried on the breeze down the path. He followed their beckoning, and indeed, there she was. Nor was she alone, for sitting on another rock across the path from her, playing in rich harmony, was another member of her people. This fair one complemented the fiddle with moving chords played upon the bellows of an accordion, or with sharp counter-melodies over the hole of a flute. Our man was not plagued by an ounce of jealousy, but simply rode his wave of joy toward them. They slowed their playing not as they acknowledged his presence, and soon the three were playing in rousing synchrony, like the intricate collaboration of muscles in a running wolf or a flying crow.

These three continued to play for some time, and then paused to rest. There was more human joy in this meeting, with smiles and food exchanged and appreciated. For as our man soon realized, these two had left their land for his own, with a mind to play music among humans. The man expressed sympathy for a difficult choice, but they replied only with joy at having made a firm decision that involved music. As if to emphasize their point, they broke back into playing, with a driving major melody that expressed nothing but pure excitement and joy. The human man joined them, and they played into the night, until they could play no longer.

From then on, they roamed the countryside, delighting man, woman, and child with their joyful reels and haunting songs, melancholy ballads and playful jigs. They were appreciated the land over, and their magic touched many. For to them, the timeless power of music was as breath, and they bestowed it with gentle grace and reckless abandon on all they encountered.