Contra Dance Links for
the Great Lakes region
of the United States
Regional | Illinois | Indiana | Kentucky | Minnesota | Michigan
Ohio |
West Virginia | Wisconsin | Bands
and Musicians | Callers | Organizations
This page is devoted to listing contra dances in the Great Lakes
region of the United States along with bands, musicians, callers, and
organizations that are based in the region. URLs and e-mail addresses
are listed when available. New entries, additional information, and
changes in information are always welcome. Links to other pages in
the www.contradancelinks.com web site are listed at the bottom of the page.
New links are simply new to me, not
necessarily new to the World Wide Web. Change
in URL means that a link has changed its WWW address or
URL.
In addition to the many of the sites which have links to nearby
dances, the following provide expansive lists of dances in this
region:
- The Friends of Traditional Music and Dance in Carbondale hold
dances on 4th Saturday of the month from April to October with a page maintained by Martha Edwards.
- The Chicago Barn
Dance Company holds and helps sponsor a variety of dances in and
around Chicago. They also include listings for area dances.
- The University of Chicago
Folklore Society sponsors a Folk
Festival in early February each year which includes a small
amount of contra dancing. They also host contra dances on various Saturdays of the month.
- Mark Gaines provides a Chicago Traditional
American Folk Dance web site which includes information about a
variety of dances including contras.
- The calendar of the Folk Dance Council of Chicago covers
all types of folk dancing including contras. Jim Rust provides the
data.
- The Plank Road Folk Music Society holds periodic dance parties in Downers Grove along with the other events which they sponsor. Slight change in URL (February 15, 2008)
- The Elsah Community Folk Dance is held on the 3rd Saturday of most months at Farley's Music Hall with a variety of callers and musicians.
- In Geneva, the Fox
Valley Folklore Society sponsors the Fox Valley Folk
Music & Storytelling Festival in late August and/or early
September which includes a barn dance.
- Diane Ippel supplies information about the old-time dances in Morris which are held, generally, on the 4th Tuesday of the month. Change in date (February 15, 2008)
- The Illowa Community Folk Dance Series occurs in Rock Island, generally but not always on the 1st Friday of the month from September to June. Everything from contras to British Historical Dances from 1651-1830 to a Welsh/Cornish Barn Dance is part of the schedule.
- The Urbana
Country Dancers host dances on the 1st and 3rd Fridays of each month. In addition, they hold an annual Jan Jam in
early-mid January and an Illinois All Night
Dance in early October. The site is maintained by Jonathan Sivier.
- Lynn Garren maintains the web page for the folks at the Fermilab
Folk Club in Warrenville, outside
Chicago, who hold dances on second (September to June) and third
Sundays (November to April).
- One of the activities at the Indiana Fiddlers' Gathering in Battle Ground, held
in late June, is a contra dance.
- The Bloomington
Old-Time Music and Dance Group dances each Wednesday and also on
the 5th Saturdays of the months that have them. In addition to their regular dance schedule, they sponsor Sugar
Hill in Bloomington, a dance weekend in mid-late August and they hold an annual informal dance weekend in April in Bloomington
called Swing into Spring. Updated location of Swing Into Spring (February 15, 2008)
- The Goshen Community Contra
Dancing happens on the 1st Saturday of the month.
- The Indianapolis
Traditional Music and Dance Group holds dances on Tuesdays with an
occasional dance on Saturday. In addition, they hold the Gypsy Moon Ball in late
October. Doug Becker provides the information.
- Also in Indianapolis
is the Celebration Dance Weekend held in July and hosted by the
Indianapolis Contra Dance Community. (on hiatus)
- Contra dances are generally held on the 2nd Friday
of the month during the school year, at the Common Grounds Coffeehouse,
which is located at West Richmond Friends Meeting, 609 West Main Street, Richmond . Check the calendar for details. Added URL (February 15, 2008)
- The Valparaiso Oldtime
Dance Society holds contra dances on the 3rd Saturday of each month
in northwest Indiana.
- The Vincennes
Colonial and Contra Dancers meet on the 2nd and 4th Saturdays (sometimes other Saturdays) of most months.
- The Contraire Dance Association dances in Berea every fourth Saturday and most 3rd Fridays with open-mic calling and a pick-up band.
- Berea College sponsors an annual Christmas Country Dance School
in late December in Berea
featuring classes in instruction for a number of styles of dance.
- The Thorn Hill Country Dancers meet first and third Fridays monthly, September through May in Frankfort.
- Based on their schedule, the Lexington Traditional Dance Association generally holds contras on the first Saturday and second and third or fourth Fridays, each month. In early June they hold a "Dance Trance" weekend. Cary Ravitz provides the information.
- In late January, Lexington and Berea host the Swing Shift contra/swing weekend.
- Dwayne Johnson at provides information about the dances sponsored
by the Louisville Country
Dancers, which are held on Monday nights and third Saturdays. They also host the Potato Run weekend in May.
- The Lloyd Shaw Foundation
hosts Cumberland
Camp in Nancy near
Lake Cumberland in late July which includes contras and a wide
variety of other dances. Marnen Laibow-Koser maintains the LSF web
site.
- The Ann Arbor Council for Traditional Music and Dance provides
listings for a number of Michigan dances
including contras.
- The Ann Arbor Council for
Traditional Music and Dance holds contra dances on 1st Saturdays and 4th Saturdays along with a wide range of other activities including the Ann Arbor Dawn
Dance Weekend in late February.
- The Oakland County Traditional Dance Society hosts dances in Clawson on the 4th Saturday
of most months and dances on the 1st Sunday of October and November.
- The Michigan Dance Heritage Spring Weekend (Trillium Twirl) is held near Dowling in mid-April. Bob Stein
provides the information.
- The Grand River Folk Arts
Society hosts contra dances on the 4th Friday of the month.
- The Allegan Woods Folk Arts Cooperative hosts dances in Holland on the 3rd Friday of each month at the Park Township Community Hall.
- Country Dancing in Kalamazoo sponsors
great American and English traditional dancing to live music. Contra
and square dances are held on various Saturdays throughout the year, "Dance Just for Fun" on 1st Sundays, and occasional events on other days of the week. Robert Messer handles the web duties. Added mention of Dance Just for Fun (February 17, 2008)
- Ten Pound Fiddle provides a variety of activities, including
contra dances in the Lansing area on first
Saturdays. The pages are sponsored by the Ten Pound Fiddle
Coffeehouse in East Lansing, Michigan, and are maintained by Warren
Armstrong.
- Also in the Lansing area is the Looking Glass Music And Arts Association which among its activities sponsors monthly contra and square dances on the 3rd Saturday of the month and hosts the Looking Glass Festival in mid-October. The combined efforts of Bonnie Wheeler, Hanno Meingast,
and Julie Levy-Weston make the page possible.
- The Michigan Dance Heritage Fall Dance Weekend in mid-late September at Camp Cavell, on the shore of Lake Huron, near Lexington. The Weekend includes contras, squares, English country, couple dances, jamming, singing, baking and time to relax with friends!
- The Folklore Society of Midland sponsors a dance
including contras, squares, and circle dances on the 2nd and 4th
Saturday of every month from October to mid-May. In addition,
they sponsor the Midland Dulcimer
Festival in late August. John and Sharon Skaryd maintain the
page.
- The Blissfest Country Dance series is held at the Rustic Ballroom between Petoskey and Walloon Lake on the 1st Saturday of the month.
- The Wheatland Music Organization sponsor contra dances, among
their other activities, on the 3rd or 4th Saturday of the month, in
Remus. In addition, they
sponsor the Wheatland
Festival in early September and a Traditional Arts Festival
in late May.
- The Paint Creek Folklore Society gets together to share folk and
traditional music during monthly meetings that include a workshop, a
song swap and jam sessions in and around Rochester Hills.
They hold an occasional contra dance.
- The mission of the Bayside Travellers Country Dance Society is to
promote traditional music and dance. Contra and Square dances are
held in various locations, on 2nd Saturdays, in and around Traverse
City. Don Basch maintains the site.
- The Tamarack Dance Association holds Community Contra and Barn Dances on the 3rd Saturday of the month in Duluth.
- The Home on the Range (Iron Range) Dance Association sponsors
dances and special events in Ely and other communities
in northeastern Minnesota such as circle dances, New England contra
dances, Irish dances, waltzes, polkas, schottisches, and two steps.
- Check the Fergus Falls Culture Pulse site for information about various barn dances there.
- The Lanesboro
barn dance is held periodically throughout the year.
- The Tapestry Folkdance Center in Minneapolis hosts New
England-style Contra on the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Saturdays of each
month. Challenge Contras are featured on the first Thursday of each
month.
- According to the Tapestry Folk Dance Center, there are dances on 1st
Saturdays in St. Paul.
- Brian Haskell also mentions the 1st Saturday dances along with a
variety of folk music and dance events in St. Paul and Minneapolis. Change in URL (February 17, 2008)
- Harold Cheyney provides information about the dance in Athens which occur
generally, but not always, on the 2nd Saturday of the month. In addition, the Ohio University Traditional Dance Club meets on Tuesdays. Added mention of Dance Club (February 17, 2008)
- Headquartered in Broadview
Heights, the Northeast Ohio Folk & Traditional Music & Dance
Society covers events and listings for the area.
- John Brockman supplies information about the Cincinnati
ContraDancers which sponsor contra dances every Monday night and the
2nd (generally) Saturday of the month. In addition, they sponsor an annual Pigtown Fling in March in Covington, Kentucky.
- Bob McKimm covers the contra dance scene around Cleveland including schedules, news, special events, and web links.
- Paul Koret posts a Cleveland & North East Ohio
Community Dance Schedule which has information by the month. Last information posted was for April 2007 (February 17, 2008)
- Harold Cheyney provides information about the Big Scioty dances
in Columbus. They are mostly
on the first and third Saturdays, except for the occasional Friday.
In addition, they have:
 
- Also in Columbus is the All
Soles contra dance series on a Friday of each month, September through May. All Soles switches to 4th Saturdays for a summer dance series in June, July and August.
- And the Partyline Extension Contra Dance is held on the 1st and
3rd Thursday of the month, from September to May at the Brookwood
Presbyterian Church, 2685 Livingston Avenue, from 7:30-10 PM in Columbus. For more information,
call 614-861-2088 or e-mail.
- Dancers from the Cleveland/Akron area are sponsor a River
Rendezvous Dance Weekend in mid-July in Coshocton. Carol Kuegeler
provides the information.
- CityFolk, has
information about contra dances in Dayton on the 1st
Friday of non-summer months. They also host the CityFolk
Festival in July.
- The Dandelion Romp in Oberlin is held in
late April.
- And the Oberlin Contra Dance Club holds dances during the school year.
- The Northwest Ohio Traditional Music and Dance (NOTMAD) in Toledo holds contra dances on 2nd
Saturdays (usually). Cathy Whitaker maintains the site.
- Balance and Swing in Wooster
holds dances on the 1st Saturday of the month from October to April
and has information about other dances in the area. Susan English
hosts the site.
- Whitewater Whirl, a weekend with a combination of dance and outdoor events, occurs each year in early May near Beckley. New entry (February 17, 2008)
- The Kanawha Valley Friends of Old Time Music and Dance host the
annual Fall Festival in late-mid September in Beckwith. Steve Ballman
handles the page design.
- The Vandalia Gathering occurs in Charleston in late May
each year and includes a little bit of contradancing.
- Also in Charleston is a series
of dances on the 3rd Friday of the month sponsored by the Kanawha Valley Friends of Old Time Music and Dance. Steve Ballman handles the page design.
- The Augusta Heritage Center of Davis & Elkins College in Elkins sponsors a variety
of classes and workshops each year.
- In Elkins they
dance on the 2nd or 3rd Saturday of the month (depending on the
month). Steve Ballman handles the page design and the Kanawha Valley Friends of Old Time Music and Dance host the web page.
- The Almost Heaven Committee sponsors the Almost Heaven Dance Weekend in late May and the FootFall Dance Weekend in September each year at the Timber Ridge Camp in High View. Jim Hoyt maintains the site.
- The Morgantown
Friends of Old-Time Music hosts a mix of old time squares, contras,
circle dances and waltzes on a variety Saturdays. Mary Swim supports the site. There is an alternate site.
- The Contradancers Delight Holiday takes places in late December each year in Morgantown.
- The Lloyd Shaw Foundation sponsors Terpsichore's Holiday in late December and early January in Roanoke. Change in URL (January 29, 2008)
- Elaine Keagle provides information on
behalf of Shepherdstown Music and Dance, which sponsors the dances on the 1st Saturday of each month with some dances on 5th Saturdays.
- The Prairie Hill Contra Dance sponsors dances on the 1st Saturday of the month in Delafield.
- The Folklore Center in Dodgeville hosts dances on
the 1st Saturday of the month.
- Clint Sprott presents information about the Squirrel Moon Dance
Weekend held in Dodgeville in
mid-September.
- The University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee holds periodic
Stringalong Gatherings at the Edwards Conference Center in East Troy.
- Clint Sprott provides information about contra dances in Madison on
Tuesday nights plus a variety of dances during the weekends.
- The Last
Gaspé including John Kraniak, Paul Biere, Kevin Clark, Amy
McFarland, and Maria Terres, play on 2nd Saturdays in
Madison.
- Mark Gaines provides information about the Milwaukee Folk Dance
Community which includes contra dances, usually on 3rd Friday
nights.
- The River Falls Community Arts Base in River Falls is a co-sponsor of a series of barn dances on the 2nd Saturday of each month.
- The Door County Folk Festival in Sister Bay is held in early-mid July
and features contradancing among its wide range of dance and music
activities.
- The Good Apple in Stockholm
sponsors a series of barn dances on the 1st Saturday of each month
during the summer.
- The Sugar on the Floor Barn Dance Society sponsors dances in Sturgeon Bay on a variety of dates along with holding other music and song events.
- Waterford
will host the 49th (2008) Wisconsin Square & Round Dance Convention
in mid-August. While mostly squares and rounds, there will be some
contras among the activities.
- The Ann Arbor Council for Traditional Music and Dance has
information about a number of bands and musicians in
Michigan.
- The 3rdSunday String Band is a group of dynamic Chicago musicians dedicated to the preservation and performance of Traditional American Music.
- Aisling is a Columbus, Ohio Irish traditional music band playing all of the dance music of Ireland: jigs, reels, polkas, hornpipes, slipjigs, marches, and set dances. MySpace page. Slight change in URL (February 17, 2008) Added MySpace page (February 17, 2008)
- Stefan John Amidon plays percussion and other instruments in bands including Magic Foot and Assembly. He lives in Ohio. New entry (January 10, 2008)
- The Appalachian
Celtic Consort plays traditional Irish and Scottish music mostly,
but also a little old-time and some original compositions with a mix
of the local flavor and is based in Charleston, West Virginia.
- Aunt Lu
& The Oakland County All-Stars come from White Lake, Michigan.
- The Band O'Goshen is of the Indiana Goshen. (e-mail only)
- The Doctor of Stuntology, Sam Bartlett who
plays with a number of contra musicians and other types, has a site
featuring his works. He is based in Indiana.
- Mandolin player Michael Mayerfeld Bell is a former member of bands such as The Fiddleheads and the Barn Owl Band has composed tunes recorded by the latter, Fool's Gold and Wild Asparagus. He is based in Wisconsin.
- The Berea
Castoffs, composed of Alice White, Al White, Atossa Kramer, David
Witherspoon and occasionally Elise Melrood play on most 4th Saturdays
each month at the Berea,
Kentucky dance.
- Black River Ironworks plays at dances in Ohio and neighboring areas. (e-mail only) New entry (April 19, 2008)
- While Michigan's Blue Water Ramblers mostly sing extraordinary folk music, they occasionally do play at a contra dance.
- Born Old is Doug Van Gundy and Paul Gartner. They have been playing together since 1997, and have learned or stolen from the best traditional musicians in the state of West Virginia. They play traditional old-time music from West Virginia with occasional forays into early country music from the 78 rpm era. New entry (February 17, 2008)
- Bob Bovee and Gail
Heil play everything from square dance tunes to authentic cowboy
songs to yodels & tin pan alley favorites and are based in Minnesota.
- The Boys of the Hock' play instrumental interpretations of Irish traditional music weaving together lively jigs and reels, stately hornpipes, and haunting airs to bring the sounds of Ireland to the hills of Appalachia and to their home base in Ohio. New entry (November 7, 2007)
- Brittany Bay is an
acoustic quartet from Cincinnati, Ohio which draws upon music from
New England, the British Isles, and French Canada and takes a new
approach to the traditional folk dance music.
- The Brook
String Farm Band plays on a regular basis at the dances in Kalamazoo, Michigan.
- Members of the Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin based Bubble and Squeak play for dances there along with weddings, private parties and receptions.
- Buzzstep is a Kentucky-based contra dance band including Cary Ravitz on fiddle, Richard King on piano, and Steve Bennett on drums. New entry (April 20, 2008)
- Celtic Mist, featuring Steve Hedges, Mark Moschell and Will Watt
played at the Indianapolis, Indiana
dance on February 19, 2008.
- The Celery City Sodbusters are based in Kalamazoo, Michigan and play at dances in the area. (e-mail only)
- Ceol Cridhe are three
musicians based in Frankfort, Kentucky, begins a concert. Jack
Twombly, Bob Cox, and Bryn Bowen Cox share a love and passion for the
traditional music of Ireland, Scotland, England, Wales, as well as
the lesser-known Celtic cultures of Brittany and Cape Breton, Nova
Scotia.
- Changeling is the Celtic
music duo of guitarist/singer Karl Clark Colón and fiddler
Deborah Clark Colón.
- The Circle of Friends
Dance Band is the resident band for the Home on the Range
Community Dance Association and has performed widely throughout
northern Minnesota since 1996. Circle of Friends plays traditional
American and Irish music for contra dances, house dances, weddings,
concerts, and other special occasions.
- The Clearfork Valley String Band is an Ohio based band with members spanning three generations. The band performs traditional fiddle-based music with a purity that transcends trends and gimmicks. New entry (February 17, 2008)
- The Ohio band, Colerain
Connection plays American traditional dance tunes as well as
music from the Anglo & Celtic heritages and a variety of
International dance tunes for different types of events.
- The Common Taters have a bunch of fun playing and singing traditional old-time stringband music for dances, festivals, weddings, and other events in the Chicago area.
- Hailing from West Virginia, the Contrarians are
comfortable in a variety of styles and traditions: Celtic, New
England, swing, and of course, old-time (Appalachian). They also
write original material. With rhythmic variety, occasional glimpses
of ethnic music, and unique improvisations, dancers let loose and
never lose interest in the music. MySpace page. Added MySpace page (November 11, 2007)
- Contratopia, featuring
John Goodin on the mandolin, Eric Sessions on the fiddle, Patrice
Pakiz on keyboard, oboe, and percussion, and Pat O'Loughlin on
concertina and banjo, is based in Minnesota.
- The Corndrinkers
include Tom Duffee (banjo), Barbara Kuhns (fiddle), Linda Scutt
(fiddle), Doug Smith (guitar), and Al Turnbull (bass), are based in
the Springfield-Troy area of southwestern Ohio and have played for
more than 25 years. You should be able to contact them by e-mail.
- The Cosmic Otters are the Chicago based duo of Jonathan Whitall on fiddle and Meg Dedolph on guitar playing Celtic music for contra dancing.MySpace page. Added MySpace page (May 3, 2008)
- Dark of the
Moon, a women's band based in Madison, Wisconsin, plays traditional
music from the the British Isles, America, Scandinavia, and other
countries for dancing and listening. They specialize in music for
contradancing, such as jigs and reels, and also play waltzes, polkas,
schottisches, folk songs, and other traditional music. Mary Mullen
and Bonnie Gruber provide the information.
- Bob & Lynn Dixon hail from Minneapolis, Minnesota and play as a duo and in bands such as Danebodium. New entry (November 11, 2007)
- Duck for the
Oyster specializes in traditional music for dancing, from 18th
and 19th century America as well as a variety of dances from around
the world and play a regular dance series in northwestern Wisconsin
featuring squares, contras, reels, quadrilles, international, circle
and round dances.
- Rachel Eddy plays fiddle, clawhammer banjo and mandolin with fellow old-time and Irish music musicians and is a member of the Morgantown Rounders in West Virginia. New entry (November 15, 2007)
- Erwynne's Mash is the
Erwin family ceilidh band from Oberlin, Ohio. (e-mail only)
- The Ethnic
Connection performs Jewish Klezmer music, as well as Balkan Folk
Dance music and is based in Michigan.
- The Fall Creek Delta Boys continue to play on a periodic basis at
the Indianapolis,
Indiana dance.
- The Fiddle Fire aka Panning Family Band specializes in traditional, foot stomping fiddle music, as well as gospel bluegrass for events ranging from dances to corporate parties and is based in Michigan.
- Five-Oh! is based in Indianapolis, Indiana and plays at dances in the area. (e-mail only)
- Flying
Fingers is a student run musical ensemble at Macalester College
in St. Paul, MN, performing traditional folk music from the
Scottish-Irish tradition and its descendants in America (old-time,
contradance, bluegrass, etc.), with occasional forays into other
forms of traditional folk music.
- Four Mile Portage is Brandy Forsman, Tom Maloney and friends and plays at dances in Duluth, Minnesota area. New entry (February 17, 2008)
- The Full Moon Country Dance Orchestra continues to play at
the at dances in Indiana and thereabouts. You can contact Astrid Otey about the band
(e-mail only).
- Dan Gellert is based in Dayton, Ohio, sings and plays banjo, guitar, and fiddle at various events including contra dances. MySpace page. New entry (November 11, 2007)
- The Golden Griffon
Stringtet is an acoustic, instrumental, square dance & contra
dance band from southeast Michigan whose repertoire includes
traditional music such as jigs, reels, waltzes and airs from Irish,
French-Canadian, New England and Southern/Old Time sources, as well
as contemporary dance tunes written in the traditional style and a
few contemporary pop melodies that they have corrupted into contra
dance tunes.
- Based in Minnesota, Greenwood Tree plays lively
and lyrical renditions of traditional music from Ireland, Scotland,
England, Canada, and Appalachia. Stu Janis maintains the information.
- Guys Can Talk include
Dan Newton on accordion, Eric Mohring on fiddle, and Larry Siegel on
piano and are based in Minnesota and New Hampshire. (e-mail only)
- Hawks & Owls is an
old-time string band based in Michigan.
- From Michigan, Heartsease (e-mail only)
(aka David West & Donna Baird, Chicken Shuckers, etc.).
- The Hoosier Recruits are based in Valparaiso, Indiana. (e-mail only)
- While the Hot Club of Derbytown is best known for recreating the hot sounds of vintage jazz produced in Paris in the 1930s and 40s produced by the Quintet of the Hot Club Of France, it also plays at a contra dance on occasion. New entry (February 17, 2008)
- Ohio's Hotpoint String
Band has the recipe for a wall of rhythm, and it is one of the most in-demand contradance bands in the country. MySpace page. Added MySpace page (November 13, 2007)
- Adam Hurt plays elegantly innovative clawhammer banjo on old-time music tunes in Minnesota. MySpace page. Added MySpace page (November 11, 2007)
- The Java
Junkies have played old-time music for dances in the Lansing,
Michigan area since 1998 and include Doug Berch on banjo, Hanno
Meingast on fiddle, Larry Johnson on guitar, and Steve Szilagyi on
upright bass.
- Jim's Red Pants plays traditional and original folk music, including waltzes, jigs and reels for concerts and dances in Ohio.
- Lakefront Property is
a band from the Lansing, Michigan area. (e-mail only)
- The Last
Gaspé including John Kraniak, Paul Biere, Kevin Clark, Amy
McFarland, and Maria Terres, play on 2nd Saturdays in
Madison.
- Tom Norulak maintains a site about Magic
Forest, based in Ohio, which performs an eclectic mix of
traditional folk songs, modern material, clever originals and vocal
gems mined from the parlour tradition of the 19th century.
- McInnis' Kitchen which plays music in the spirit of a down-home kitchen party, occasionally plays at a contra dance in the Duluth, Minnesota area. New entry (February 17, 2008)
- Minnesota's Mill City Serenaders repertoire encompasses not only square and contra dance music but also minstrel tunes and songs, fiddle rags, waltzes, polkas, schottisches, and the occasional parlor ballad.
- The Mink Run Consort are
based in Frankfort, Kentucky. (e-mail only)
- The Morgantown Rounders are an Old-Time string band of eclectic proportions. They are traditionalists pushing the envelope of tradition, infusing high-energy square dance exhilaration into a mix of vintage songs in West Virginia. New entry (November 15, 2007)
- Judi
Morningstar, a contra musician, hails from White Lake, Michigan.
- Mud In Yer Eye has played dances in the Cleveland area since 1978 and is the oldest continuously operating contra dance band in the Cleveland area. Added URL (February 17, 2008)
- New Bad Habits with Dave Landreth, Chirps Smith, Tim Foss, Andrew Gribble and Dot Kent, play old-time, the music that combines the traditions of immigrants bringing their music to America for more than two centuries; music intended to accompany ethnic as well as uniquely American dances. The members hail from Wisconsin, Illinois and Missouri. Change of URL (February 17, 2008)
- New Deal plays at the 1st Saturday dances in the Welshfield, Ohio area. Change of URL (February 17, 2008)
- From Ann Arbor, Michigan, Nutshell. (e-mail only) Change of e-mail (February 17, 2008)
- The repertoire of the Olde
Michigan Ruffwater Stringband includes traditional jigs, reels
and hornpipes of the British Isles, breakdowns from Southern
Appalachia, and old polkas, waltzes and schottisches from 19th
century Europe and America. They are based in Michigan.
- The Picks & Sticks
Stringband are a gumbo mixture of acoustical folk, swing,
traditional, light pop, western, country, jazz, bluegrass, oldies,
and ethnic tunes that captivates audiences of all genres based in
Michigan.
- Pig's Eye Landing is
a Saint Paul, Minnesota based contra, square and swing dance band.
They play an eclectic (and sometimes epiplectic) blend of Irish,
old-timey, and the occasional rock and roll tune. Erik Peterson
maintains the site.
- The Pit Bull
String Band from Ohio plays, as they say, "Old Time Music with a
bite".
- The Plum Creek String Band plays Appalachian Jamaican groove music: West Virginia meets West Jamaica and goes out dancing. They are based in Ohio. MySpace page. Added MySpace page (November 15, 2007)
- Named for the Raisin River, the Raisin Pickers are from
Michigan and "...Their music flows effortlessly from swing to ballad,
from hometown cookouts to outer space..."
- Rattletrap Stringband, from Athens County, Ohio, features Matthew McElroy (fiddle), Tim Peacock (banjo), Frank McDermott (guitar) and Thom Herbie (bass).
- The Reel World
String Band is headquartered in Lexington, Kentucky and features
Bev Futrell, Karen Jones, Sue Massek, Elise Melrood, and Sharon Ruble.
- The Rhythm Rats is a
Cincinnati based old time band. MySpace page. Added MySpace page (November 15, 2007)
- The Root Cellar String Band plays at dances in the Bowling Green, Ohio area. (e-mail only)
- Chicago, Illinois banjo player Steve Rosen writes about his
trips, t-shirts, music, and bands on his page.
- The Ann Arbor, Michigan based Scalar Scalawags have been described as "a touch of classical meets traditional, Celtic, Eastern European, rock, and pub." They play at dances in Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. New entry (April 19, 2008)
- The Scarlet
Runner String Band, now featuring Mike Ross, Dave Langdon, Larry
Johnson, and Brian Hefferen started playing in Lansing, Michigan more
than twenty years ago and continue to play at dances in the area.
- The Ann Arbor Council for Traditional Music and Dance provides information about the members of the Sharon
Hollow String Band which is from Michigan. Change of URL (February 18, 2008)
- Soltré is an Irish musical trio from the Indiana (Middlebury)/Chicago area. With fiddle, flute, guitar, and vocals, they present a unique, innovative variety of traditional and contemporary Irish music.
- The Squeaky
Reels is a contra dance band based in Lexington, Kentucky which
includes Cary Ravitz on fiddle, Brett Mason on piano, Eve Podet on
Mandolin, and Shannon Arnold on bass guitar.
- Patty Stevenson and Craig
Siemsen play for an occasional contra dance in Wisconsin along
with their other gigs.
- Stewed Mulligan
blends the old backwoods sound of West Virginia with clever Country
Rock to create music that could have been birthed in a basement by
the illegitimate sons of The Band.
- Strings and Things plays in northeast Ohio. Change of URL (February 18, 2008)
- Suite
Contraband plays primarily Irish and old-time contradance music,
more in the New England style rather than the southern old-time
style. They are noted for their interesting arrangements and
pulse-pushing, dance-enhancing sound. They are based in West Virginia.
- Tanglemere, from Grand Forks, Michigan, is a group of players with a diverse background and a love for Celtic and traditional music. This group takes traditional songs and tunes, pairs them with modern energy, creating a toe tapping, frolicking good time. New entry (November 15, 2007)
- ThisBigStringBand
is an old-time trio with banjo, guitars, and fiddle featuring David
Algeo Smith, Steve Noel on 5-string banjo and Jim Marks on tenor and
6-string guitars and is based in Illinois.
- The Tickwood Stringband is an old-time string band based in Ottertail County, Minnesota which has been playing music for dances and concerts around the region for over four years. New entry (February 17, 2008)
- The Timbre
Wolves, based in Columbus, Ohio, are a five-member acoustic band
playing "old-time", celtic, a little bluegrass, and a spot of jazz.
- The Top Drawer
String Band featuring Brian Bishop (fiddle), Laura Stein (piano),
and Joel Mabusis (guitar, banjo, fiddle), is based in Michigan.
- From Ohio, the Turkeys in The Straw
feature Barry Chern, Marian Funk, Jeanne Budde, Mike Allen, Bruce
Dadisman, and Andrea Ardito. Harold Cheyney provides the information.
- The Tuscan String Band features Elizabeth Lamberti on fiddle,
Jim Becker on fiddle, banjo and guitar and Jessica Ziegler on fiddle and banjo and plays at dances in Illinois.
- Twas Brillig and the Mazel-Toves has a plethora of instruments to paint a complex musical picture, the group is well versed in contra dance, international dance, and klezmer dance music. The band is based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. New entry (February 17, 2008)
- Twechar, an
Ohio-based duo is Christine Gorbach and Gary Lee Nelson who sing
ballads and aires in the Celtic tradition and are also known for
their "waltzing through breakfast" set for dancers who rise early at
various dance weekends.
- Doug Van Gundy, from Elkins, West Virginia, plays old-time music on the fiddle for concerts and dances.
- The Volo
Bogtrotters hail from the Chicago, Illinois area.
- Harold Cheyney provides information about the callers at the Big Scioty
dances in Columbus.
- Bob McKimm has a page on callers
in Ohio.
- The Ann Arbor
Council for Traditional Music and Dance has information about a
number of callers in Michigan.
- Tom Allen calls contras
and squares in the Detroit and Ann Arbor, Michigan area, along with
Toledo, Ohio. (e-mail only)
- Kathy Anderson
(e-mail only) is back in Ohio and is a regular caller there and
elsewhere. You can obtain more information about her on the Big Scioty callers
page and the Bay Area
page.
- Tom Anderson calls at dances in Illinois. (e-mail only)
- Karen Andrews calls in the Goshen, Indiana area. (e-mail only)
- Peter Baker has called in Michigan and others states and in Denmark and Austria. He leads dances in schools, churches and other public gatherings.
- Steve Bennett is a caller from Lexington, Kentucky who has called since 1995 in Ohio, Kentucky and West Virginia.
- Chris Bischoff is
a caller from Taylorsville, Kentucky who also is a storyteller, banjo picker and lawn mower repairman.
- Mike
Boerschig calls from Cincinnati, Ohio and lists the elements of
five of his dances on this page.
- Erna-Lynne Bogue calls in
Michigan. (e-mail only)
- Jim Brooks is a
caller in the St. Paul, Minnesota area. (e-mail only)
- Mike Clark started calling in 1990 in Kalamazoo and has since then branched out to other dance series in southern Michigan and Indiana. Change of from e-mail to URL (February 17, 2008)
- Phil Coleman calls in the Indianapolis, Indiana area. (e-mail only)
- Paul
Collins is a caller of traditional American square and contra dances and an instructor of ethnic folk dance in the Chicago, Illinois area.
- Eric
Conrad calls at dances across Ohio.
- Caller Jan Coray is based in Holland, Michigan. New entry (April 26, 2008)
- Roger Diggle is a caller
from Madison, Wisconsin who can call a dance and accompany himself by
whistling. He also plays guitar. (e-mail only)
- Lou Dow called at the Indianapolis, Indiana
dance on January 22, 2008.
- Bob Duffy called at the Indianapolis, Indiana
dance on February 26, 2008.
- Barry Dupen is a
contra dance composer and caller from Columbia City, Indiana (near
Fort Wayne). (e-mail only)
- Karen
Durham calls throughout Michigan, Ohio, and Indiana. She
specializes in historic re-enactments and special event dances, with a
focus on getting beginners up and having fun.
- Michigan caller Susan
English fell in love with international folk dance in the 1960s and taught her first dance class on a rooftop in China in 1980. Discovering contras and competitive swing dance in Washington, DC, Susan has called monthly contra dances since 1990.
- David Ernst calls
at dances in Indiana. (e-mail only)
- Mary Keith Cornett Eustis is
from Lexington, Kentucky calls mainly in Ohio and Kentucky although
she has called from Michigan to Maine.
- Mike Finucane calls from
Elizabeth, Kentucky. (e-mail only)
- John Freeman is a Michigan
caller who calls contra and square dances, family dances, school
dances, and Civil War balls. He also leads caller workshops and music
and dance workshops for teachers and students. (e-mail only)
- Margaret Glenn called at the dance in Lakewood, Ohio on January 5, 2008 and lives in the Cleveland, Ohio area.
- Steve Gold calls from
the Detroit, Michigan area. (e-mail only)
- Judy Goldsmith is
a caller from Kentucky along with being an avid bicyclist and Morris dancer.
- Keith Harding (e-mail only)
calls from Lexington, Kentucky.
- Jerry Hickman is based
in Midland, Michigan. (e-mail only)
- Becky Hill, is based in Ohio and is the author Twirling Dervish books and is well known for calling frequently at workshops and dance camps, and is an experienced caller of intergenerational dances and programs for special needs populations. Change of URL (February 18, 2008)
- Along with calling, Pat Hoekje is one of the organizers for the Bayside Travellers Country Dance Society in Michigan. (e-mail only) New entry (April 26, 2008)
- Bob Howell calls in the Ohio
area. He is also one of the co-authors of Dancing for Busy People.
(e-mail only for Bob, the book has a website)
- Sue Hulsether calls contras, squares, family dances, and school events Minnesota and Wisconsin along with being an Artist in Residence for schools with traditional American dance and music. Change from e-mail to URL (February 17, 2008)
- Carol Jacobs has been
calling in the Ann Arbor area since 2002, and has been an avid contra
dancer since 1980. She also calls Family dances and English country
dances. (e-mail only)
- Frank Jenkins is a
caller from Berea, Kentucky. (e-mail only)
- Besides his nifty contra pages including a clickable map, Dwayne Johnson is a caller
in Kentucky and has called for more than 20 years.
- Dot Kent of Grayslake, Illinois, called at the Urbandale, Iowa dance on
September 1, 2007 and calls at other dances in the region.
- Richard King calls from
Lexington, Kentucky (e-mail only).
- David Kirchner is a caller who lives near St. Paul, Minnesota and has been calling contra dances and square dances since about 1992.
- Cassie Knight, from
Madison, Wisconsin, is known for calling contras and Scandinavian
dances. (e-mail only)
- Van Knowles is a
caller from Lexington, Kentucky (e-mail only).
- Carol Kopp calls at a number of the North East Ohio
Community dances and is into he third decade of calling dances.
- Over the past 15 years John Legge has enthusiastically embraced several dance styles, including contra, English country, international, Scandinavian, modern Western squares, two-step, and country-western line dance in and around Grand Rapids, Michigan. (e-mail only) New entry (April 26, 2008)
- Julie Levy-Weston lives in Lansing, Michigan, started contra dancing in 1992, and started calling in 1997. She favors dances that flow and tries to teach carefully and concisely.
- Tamara Lowenthal called at the Bloomington, Indiana
dance on February 13, 2008.
- Drake Meadow is a caller and dance organizer based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. (e-mail only) New entry (April 26, 2008)
- Greg Meisner is a cantra dance caller and Morris dancer from the Ann Arbor, Michigan area. (e-mail only) New entry (April 26, 2008)
- Henry Morgenstein
calls, writes essays about contra dancing, and organizes contra dance
trips and camps in the United States and England. In the United
States, he is based in Michigan.
- Michigan caller Glen Morningstar calls dances for beginning to advanced dancers in a range of settings from school artist-in-residence to Saturday Night Contra & Square Dances to wedding receptions to scout camps to traditional dance camps across the USA, Europe & Scandinavia. Change from e-mail to URL (February 18, 2008)
- Lindsay Morris (e-mail
only) calls in the Lexington, Kentucky area.
- Susan Moffet is a
caller in Kentucky. (e-mail only)
- Danika Murray began
calling in the spring of 2001 and in these past few years she has
traveled to call dances throughout Michigan (including Clawson, Ann
Arbor, Traverse City), to Indiana, Illinois and even Barcelona,
Spain. (e-mail only)
- Carol Ormand is a caller in Wisconsin, and has been calling dances since the spring of 1990, and has called at dances, weekends, and festivals all over the United States (and once in Denmark!). She includes some dance compositions on her page.
- Lisa Ornstein is
a caller from Chicago. She organizes dances, hosts the Celebration
Dance Weekend in Indianapolis and a dance jam series in Chicago.
(e-mail only)
- Roween Panning calls in Michigan. (e-mail only)
- Steve Pike, from Madison, Wisconsin, called at the Delafield, Wisconsin dance on March 1, 2008.
- Joseph J. Pimentel, Jr.
calls at dances in Ohio, Michigan, and Pennsylvania and other venues.
- Edna Poore is a caller
in Lansing, Michigan. (e-mail only)
- Bill Pope calls
in Ohio and nearby states and shares with the beginning dancers his enthusiasm for contra, and programs dance evenings that balance more forgiving dances with some of the more challenging ones.
- Kate Power has been a contra dance caller in Columbus, Ohio since 2003 and is available for everything from dances to family reunions.
- Barbara Ramlow calls in
the Lexington, Kentucky area. (e-mail only)
- Cary Ravitz is a caller from Lexington, Kentucky who along with writing the essays Notes on Calling Contra Dances and Notes on Choreography for Duple Minor Improper Contra Dances keeps an extensive links about contra dancing.
- Mark Richardson is a
caller from Bloomington, Indiana. (e-mail only)
- Ruth Riegel-Lamborghini called at the Urbana, Illinois dance on July 11, 2008.
- Charles Roth calls in
Michigan and has an unusual two-sided set of dance cards.
- Dave Seboit calls in Michigan and Indiana and is based in Ann Arbor. (e-mail only) New entry (April 19, 2008)
- Jonathan
Sivier is a caller from the Urbana, Illinois area who has been involved in traditional dance since 1987 and have been leading dances since 1992.
- Marilee Standifer calls in Madison, Wisconsin.
- Along with a fair amount of web page work for dances in Michigan,
Bob Stein also calls
dances.
- From Carbondale, Illinois, Joe Surdyk calls in Indiana, Illinois, and Missouri on a
regular basis. (e-mail only)
- Kath Tallichet is
based in Louisville, Kentucky and calls there and in Illinois. (e-mail only)
- John Teskey calls at the Indianapolis, Indiana
dance on March 4, 2008.
- Don Theyken has been calling dances here in Ann Arbor since the early eighties and is now calling contra dances on the second Saturday of the month at the Webster Church Community Building near Dexter MI.
- Martha Tyner is based in Stanford, Illinois and called at the Urbana, Illinois dance
on December 1, 2007.
- Darlene
Underwood is a caller from Cincinnati, Ohio.
- Tom van Deusen calls at dance camps, community dances, weddings, private parties, and other events for adults or children in and around Michigan.
- Martha Vander Kolk is a dance caller from Ypsilanti, Michigan. (e-mail only) New entry (April 26, 2008)
- Sandy Vielmo calls from
Michigan. (e-mail only)
- Alan Vlach has been
dancing since 2000 and began calling in 2002 in Michigan. (e-mail
only)
- Robin Warner calls in
Michigan. (e-mail only)
- Paul Watkins, from
Chicago, Illinois, calls in Chicago and the Fermilab Folk Club just
outside of Chicago on a regular basis. (e-mail only for contact)
- Marlin Whitaker from Ann Arbor, Michigan calls at dances in the Great Lakes states. (e-mail
only)
- While the list of his dances is gone, you can still e-mail Eric Zorn.
- The Chicago Barn Dance
Company is a not-for-profit association of people with a common
interest in New England Contra dance, traditional square dance and
American old-time music.
- The University of Chicago
Folklore Society sponsors a Folk Festival in
early February each year which includes a small amount of contra
dancing.
- The Folk
Dance Council of Chicago is an organization composed of folk
dance enthusiasts who want to help support folk dance activities in
and around Chicago and preserve and promote dance cultures and
traditions from around the world.
- The Fox Valley Folklore
Society sponsors more than 100 folklife events every year in
Chicago's western suburbs, including concerts, sing arounds, old-time
community barn dances, storytelling gatherings, open mikes, and
Illinois' largest folk festival. Their listings include a large
calendar of events.
- The Augusta Heritage
Center of Davis & Elkins College in Elkins, West Virginia is
dedicated to making traditional music, crafts, dancing and folklore
available to visitors and residents alike.
- The Northwest Ohio Traditional Music and Dance (NOTMAD) does more than hold contra
dances.
- The Ann Arbor Council for
Traditional Music and Dance (AACTMAD) is a non-profit
organization dedicated to the promotion and preservation of folk
music and dance. They sponsor "traditional" music and dance events in
the greater Ann Arbor, Michigan area, including contra-dances,
English Country dances, and small-scale folk music concerts.
- The Ten Pound Fiddle
is proud to present concerts, dances and community events in the folk
tradition in the Lansing, Michigan area. The pages are sponsored by
the Ten Pound Fiddle Coffeehouse in East Lansing, Michigan, and are
maintained by Warren Armstrong.
- The Northeast Ohio Folk & Traditional Music & Dance Society has a
site called Folknet which has
information about folk and traditional music, dance and related arts
throughout Northeast Ohio. Folknet is a not-for-profit educational organization that exists to nurture the development and expansion of a vibrant folk and traditional arts community of performers, organizations and advocates.
- The Tapestry
Folkdance Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota provides opportunities
to participate in the joys of dance and music from around the world.
Brian Haskell created the template for the page and Lydia McAnerney
supports it.
- The Folklore Society of Midland, Michigan is
comprised of folk artists dedicated to promoting traditional music,
dance, and folklore and hosts a variety of events throughout the
year. John and Sharon Skaryd maintain the page.
- The Grand River Folk Arts
Society provides the Grand Rapids area with the best in
contemporary Folk Music & Dance.
 
 
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Last updated on May 5, 2008