New Mexico Folk Music & Dance Society

FolkMADS Calendar and Notes

May - June 2003 Volume 6, Issue 3

P.O. Box 40421, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87196-0421

The FolkMADS Calendar and Notes are published bimonthly by the New Mexico Folk Music and Dance Society, a nonprofit organization.

FolkMADS sponsors Albuquerque, Santa Fe, and Taos contra dances, concerts, camps, and other special events. "Contra" dances include contras, squares, mixers, and couple dances. Unless noted on the calendar otherwise, admission is $5 for members, $6 for nonmembers, $3 for children. You need not come with a partner. Free instruction for beginners starts at 7:30 p.m. Most dances begin at 8 p.m. and are smoke-free and alcohol-free. Children and teens are encouraged to participate if supervised by an adult.

Albuquerque Dances 1st and 3rd Saturdays. Heights Community Center, 823 Buena Vista SE, Albuquerque.

Occasionally dances are held at the Lloyd Shaw Dance Center; watch the calendar for details.
The Lloyd Shaw Dance Center is located at 5506 Coal SE in Albuquerque (2 blocks south of Central and 2 blocks east of San Mateo).

Santa Fe Dances 2nd and 4th Saturdays. Odd Fellows Hall, 1125 Cerrillos Road (south of Cordova Drive on the western side of Cerrillos).

Taos Dances 3rd Saturdays, Holy Trinity Parish Hall, Arroyo Seco.

ABQ Megaband Practices All musicians welcome. Albuquerque Megaband practice is held at the Blue Dragon Coffee House, 1517 Girard NE,Albuquerque, the Tuesday before the 3rd Saturday dance. Bruce Thomson, 277-4729, or email Jane Phillips to be added to the listserv.

Santa Fe Megaband Practices Second Tuesday of even months, 7:30 p.m. Call Anna Richards for information, 983-8363.

Acoustic Jam 7 p.m. before the Albuquerque dances. All acoustic musicians are welcome and all types of music are played. Call Jay Cutts for more information, 281-0684.

2003 Officers/Directors

Ongoing Events

Friday, May 2

Practice Dance for New Callers

The beginner's calling class practice dance is Friday, May 2, 7:30-10 p.m., Heights Community Center, 823 Buena Vista SE, Albuquerque. The practice dance, coordinated by instructor Merri Rudd, will feature eight callers (Larry Daughenbaugh, Hillary Elwood, Kris Jensen, Carol Marler, Noralyn Parsons, Linda Starr, Steve Thornton, and Artie Walsh) and two bands: Five-Dog String Band (all boys) and Three-Pup String Band (all girls). Should be fun for all. $2 donation welcome to offset costs of hall, sound, bands. Donations of snacks for the critiquing part of the evening are also welcome. Please come and be dance angels for the new callers.

Wednesday, May 7

Introduction to Couples Dancing via Waltz

7:00-9:00 p.m., Heights Community Center, 823 Buena Vista SE, Albuquerque. For beginners or those who would like to review basics or for followers and leaders who would like to learn the other role. A "gender flexible" setting friendly to people with alternative gender or sexual orientation. Focus will be on dynamics of leading and following and developing the basic skills for more flexible and creative movement. Learn basic waltz steps and variations. Workshop incorporates creativity and movement activities. A wide variety of recorded music will be used to inspire dancing to different moods. For more information contact Jay Cutts, 281-0684.

Saturday, May 10th

Balkan Dance Party with Goddess of Arno

7:30 - 11pm.  RB Winning Coffee Co., 111 Harvard Dr. SE (just south of Central) 
$5.00 general, under 12 free. Info: RB winning's (505) 266-0000; Goddess of Arno (505) 243-6276. Our 2002 NM mic award-winning CD "Balkan Dance Party" is for sale at Natural Sound, The Blue Dragon Coffee House and Barnes and Noble at Coronado. We will also be selling them at our events. $1.00 of each CD sold goes to Voice of Roma, Rom (Gypsy) human rights organization.

Tuesday, May 20 Andy Irvine and Rens van der Zalm House Concert in Corrales Andy Irvine, of Planxty and Patrick Street fame, and Rens van der Zalm, of Dutch folk bands Fungus and Wolverei, are coming to New Mexico! Don't miss this rare treat! Call Jane - 898-2565 to make your reservation. For more info: http://www.unm.edu/~jphill/concert_may03.html

Happy Birthday Jenny

Dancers and musicians at the April Dance in Taos sang "Happy Birthday" for Jenny Vincent's 90th birthday. Jenny, who plays a small accordion, has been a mainstay of Taos Contraband since she was invited to join the group by Alva Morrison in 1997. Jenny has been a well respected musician and teacher of dances in the Hispanic tradition for many years. She is the only Anglo performer included in Jack Loeffler's La Musica de los Viejitos: Hispano Folk Music of the Rio Grande del Norte. Because of her, Taos dancers usually do a couple of the traditional Hispanic dances, such as the Varsoniana or La Valse de los Panos during the evening. We hope to dance to Jenny's music for years to come.

Rodney Miller  

The fiddle music of New England is a wonderful fusion of the very rhythmic, old timey style of the southern U.S. and the lyrical, French and Celtic-influenced music of northeastern Canada. One of the premier musicians of this genre is Rodney Miller who is regarded as one of the finest dance fiddlers. His playing has been fairly well recorded, both under his own name and through his association with the New England Chestunuts. He recorded a wonderful album in 1985, "Airplang" that has been reissued as a CD by Rounder (Rounder CD 0193) that included a terrific jig composed by Peter Barnes, pianist on the session. Rodney will be the featured fiddler at the FolkMADS Dance Camp this May, so ask him to play "Fair Jenny".  

ABC Notation

X:26

T:Fair Jenny

R:Jig

M:6/8

L:1/8

N:Peter Barnes, from the playing of Rodney Miller, Airplang

K:D

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