AZ FOLK NE WS News from Phoenix Traditional Music & Dance

2011

April thru June

MARK YOUR CALENDAR for our Spring 2011 scheduled dances…

Second Saturday dances Please join us on the second Saturday of the month for

our regular monthly dances at Kenilworth School.

Apr 9th – Wendy Graham with ClusterFolk May 7th – Peg Hesley with Francis, Lloyd & Traub FIRST SATURDAY THIS MONTH (May Madness - 2nd Saturday- See article on page 2.) June 11th – Seth Levine & Dave Black with ClusterFolk

Fourth Friday dances Starting this year, our fourth Wednesday dances held at the Irish Cultural Center have moved to Fridays! Please be sure to mark your calendars for this change! April 22nd – Claire Zucker with ClusterFolk May 27th – Peg Hensley with TBA June 24th – TBA Wendy Graham calls April Kenilworth Dance World-renowned caller, Wendy Graham will return to Phoenix on April 9 to call the Kenilworth dance. We are lucky to have her between her travels to New Mexico and the Glen Echo dance near Washington, DC. Wendy has loved folk dancing since the age of 13. Her super-friendly personality spreads the love of contra dance, and she says, “If everyone leaves smiling, I did a good job”. A self-described “dance maniac”, her lively, fun calling gets dancers moving in traditional contra style, as well as barn dancing, Southern and New England squares, English Country dance, and more. Wendy regularly helps run the Durango contra dances as well as two dance weekends, “FOLKMADS” in New Mexico, and “Stellar Days and Nights” in Colorado. In 2009, Wendy joined the CDSS governing board to help organize dance clubs and events nation-wide. Visit her website at http://www.folkmads.org/wendy.html, and we’ll see you dancing on April 9. Visit her website at http://www.folkmads.org/wendy.html, and we’ll see you dancing on April 9.

Newsletter Article Contributions Have you been to a recent dance

camp, weekend, class or other Contra related event? Would you like to share your experience with other dancers in our group? The PHXtmd quarterly

newsletter AZ Folk News would love to hear from you, and print your story in an upcoming newsletter. Please submit your article to: Newsletter@PHXtmd.org Be sure to include your contact information including name and phone number. Introduction to English Country Dancing Take a break from the hectic and chaotic frenzy of everyday life to have fun, socialize, and exercise while learning simple, smooth and elegant dances set to beautiful music. This 4-session series is a unique opportunity to learn the basics of English Country Dancing Join caller Peg Hesley 10AM - noon on Saturday mornings. April 2, 9, 16, 23 & 30 2011 Dances are held at: The Irish Cultural Center, 1106 N Central Ave, Phx 85004 $20 pd in advance, or $7 per session. To learn more about English Country Dancing go to www.peghesley.com or call Peg at 602.564.6620

Tucson Holds Benefit Dance On Saturday, April 30, TFTM will use their 5th Saturday dance event to host a benefit dinner and dance for Casa de los Niños. La Casa de los Niños is a child abuse prevention organization. Come enjoy a fabulous evening and help a good cause! A delicious dinner will be catered by Carrabba’s Italian Grill from 6:30 – 7:30, with dancing from 7:30 – 10:30 p.m. Music will be provided by Tucson’s own Privy Tippers accompanying “a cavalcade of callers”. The event will be held at the Old Pueblo Dance Center, 630 E. Delano (off N. 1st Ave, one block South of Ft. Lowell Road) in Tucson. A suggested donation of $15.00 per person is asked for the evening, or $9.00 ($6 students), if you are interested in attending just the dance. Please RSVP for the dinner as early as you can by mailing your payment to TFTM at P.O. Box 40654, Tucson, AZ 85717-0654.

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AZ Folk News is a publication of the Phoenix Traditional Music & Dance

organization dedicated to the preservation and advancement of traditional Contra Dance and Music, in

Phoenix and Arizona.

For more information or to submit an article, contact Janice at 623.910.2152 or newsletter@phxtmd.org

Phoenix Traditional Music & Dance 13236 N 7th St. � Suite 4 #191 Phoenix AZ 85022

Caller’s Corner

Our local callers are off to do great things this spring! Arizona is privileged to send our own Peg Hesley and Deb Comly to nationally-acclaimed dance events. The weekend of April 8 – 10, Peg will host the Mt. Baldy Dance Weekend near Claremont, California. This weekend is a fabulous, high energy dancing, jamming, and music event that attracts people from all over the country.

Peggy is organizing the dance camp, “Dancing on the Edge” north of Payson, AZ in June. This will be a relaxing and fun weekend featuring English Country dancing, squares, and contras at the picturesque lodge at Camp Colley.

Locally, Peg is getting English Country dance off the ground by hosting ECD events every Saturday morning, and calling fun contras and squares all over the state. Visit her website at http://www.peghesley.com.

Flagstaff’s famous caller, Deb Comly, is the main organizer for Prescott’s May Madness weekend, May 13 – 15. She has arranged two delightful headliner bands and has already generated a crowd twice the size of last year’s weekend! All of Arizona enjoys the fruits of her dynamic leadership as she is active in the Flagstaff dance scene, puts together the monthly Cottonwood Contra Dance, and often organizes a summer time Ghost Town Chill Down in addition to calling throughout Arizona. She will be highlighted at San Francisco’s high fun, high energy Balance the Bay weekend August 12 – 14. Visit her website at http://www.azwedance.org. Linda Leslie hails from New Bedford, Massachusetts. Her calling experiences include countless local Contra and English dances, weekends and festivals in the U.S. and abroad. Linda is known for her resonant voice, clear teaching, careful programming, and, most especially, her catch-fire enthusiasm. Upcoming Dance Camps May Madness – May 13-15th in Prescott AZ

To celebrate the 20th Anniversary of May Madness, two fabulous bands from the East Coast will be featured at the wild weekend in Northern Arizona. This celebration of music and dance will be held at the Grace Sparks Activity Center in downtown Prescott the weekend after Mother’s Day.

There is still room for a few dancers, so sign up soon! Go to AZWeDance.org and click on the May Madness Registration pages for more detailed information and a registration form. Arizona dancers who haven’t done so are urged to register soon to ensure a spot!

May Madness - cont’d The full and varied weekend schedule will provide lots of daytime dance opportunities and evening dance parties, along with daytime workshops (for musicians, callers, organizers, etc). We’ll also be featuring a contra medley and other varied dance offerings including lively and exciting English Dancing.

Don’t miss the dynamic sounds of Wild Asparagus and the Avant Gardeners coupled with incredible calling by George Marshall and Linda Leslie.

Wild Asparagus features the lyrical mastery of Becky Tracy, the bombastic innovation of David Cantieni, the dance awareness of George Marshall, the intuitive percussion and dynamism of Mark Hellenberg, and Keith Murphy’s harmonic sensitivity and propulsive rhythm. The Avant Gardeners are the sweet fiddle and delicious vocals of Laura Light, spicy piano vamps and hot swing of George Paul, the fiery bonding rhythms and wicked licks of Dave Bartley with the home grown, trad-jazz fusion of accordionist David DiGiuseppe.

George Marshall’s beaming countenance and silky voice have been transporting dancers since the inception of Wild Asparagus. His is renowned for his knack of matching music to the dance and for his smooth, concise teaching and presentation.

Dancing On The Edge – Camp Colley AZ Taking place June 17-19, 2011, this new dance camp is located on the Mogollon Rim in Arizona’s high country, one hour north of Payson.

This unique weekend is designed for 50 participants. The afternoon workshops will include both Contra and English Country dancing and both styles will be called at the evening dances. We will be dancing on the beautiful covered deck of the dining hall. A music workshop led by Betsy and Mark will be offered as well as the opportunity to wake-up to the gentle moves of Qigong/TaiChi.

We don’t anticipate rain on the Rim in June, but if nature provides us with a downpour, we can move our cots and sleeping bags into the dining hall for a slumber party. There are flush toilets and hot showers near the dining hall and port-a-johns in the meadow.We are excited to be able to camp and dance in this unique environment. The staff is dedicated to guaranteeing a wonderful experience here.

Your $165 registration fee ($180 after April 15) includes 2 dinners, 2 breakfasts, and 2 lunches. Registration is open and the . Please check their website to download the form. Organizers are our own Peg and Joe Hesley! Details available: www.dancingcampers.org

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Let’s Get ’er done! You love those great snacks and beverages that are available at our monthly dances, don’t you? Did you know that those goodies are supplied by volunteers of the club? Each month we need someone to help purchase the items (reimbursed up to $25.00/mo), bring them to the dance. If you are able to help, please contact Irene Lundquist at 480-897-7275. Your time, and talent, are also needed in many other areas for the club, so please help support PHXtmd by volunteering!

The PHXtmd Board of Directors, extends a huge ‘THANK YOU’

to all of you who have volunteered in the past to help make our dances a success!

All calendar information subject to change. Please contact each organization to confirm dates, times, locations, etc.

Phoenix Traditional Music & Dance

13236 N 7th St. � Suite 4 #191 � Phoenix AZ 85022 www.PHXtmd.org

C O N T R A C A L E N D A R

April - June 2011

PHXTMD Monthly Dances PHOENIX 2nd Saturdays / 4th Fridays / Select 5th Fridays Come early for a free lesson! Dance: 7:30 to 10:30PM

2nd Saturdays @ Kenilworth School (KS) 1210 N. 5th Ave. (at I-10), Phoenix 85003. $10.00, $7.00 for members, $3.00 under 18.

4th Fridays @ Irish Cultural Center (ICC) 1106 N Central Ave, Phoenix 85004 $7.00

April Sat. April 9th – Wendy Graham with ClusterFolk Fri. April 22nd – Claire Zucker with ClusterFolk May Sat. May 7th – Peg Hesley with Francis, Lloyd & Traub Fri. May 27th – Peg Hesley with TBA June Sat. June 11th – Seth Levine & Dave Black with ClusterFolk Fri. June 24th – TBA

MONTHLY POTLUCK and Board meeting April 4th, May 2nd, June 6th, Monday All are welcome. Usually the 1st Monday of the month. Dinner: 7:00PM Meeting: 8:00PM Location: Ron and Linda Nieman's home. Call to confirm date, and for directions. 480-893-3328 or 602-268-7181.

Come early (6:00PM) for a FREE Waltz lesson

A R O U N D A R I Z O N A

PRESCOTT 04/01, 05 /06 Folk Happens! Contra Dance Grace Sparkes Activity Center, 824 E. Gurley St. Lesson 7:30, dance 8:00-10:30PM. April 1 – Archie Maclellan with Iona April Location: Prescott College, 218 N. Granite Street May 6 - Archie Maclellan with Traditional Blend May Location: Skull Valley Elementary School, 3150 S. Skull Valley Road, Skull Valley June 3 - TBA $7 public; $5 members or other Arizona Contra dance organizations, teachers, and students; $3 teacher and student members www.folkhappens.org, Bruce: 928-445-3496. COTTONWOOD 04/16, 05/21, 06/18

Contra dances at the Cottonwood Clubhouse (Civic Center) in old town Cottonwood. Lesson: 6:30PM, Dance: 7:00 - 10:00 PM. $6 www.AzWeDance.org April 16 - Peg Hesley with Hands Four May 21 & June 18 - TBA Deb: 928-774-5936, e-mail: azwedance@gmail.com

FLAGSTAFF 04/02, 05/07, 06/04 Flagstaff Friends of Traditional Music Contra Dance NAU's Ashurst Hall, 7:30-11:00PM. $8, $5 member/student April 02 – Caller TBA with Just Desserts May 07 – Claire Zucker with Wild Thyme from Prescott June 04 – TBA www.ffotm.org or call Kris at 928-526-3020 for info.

TUCSON 04/02, 04/15, 04/23, 04/30, May and June dates – please visit their website Tucson Friends of Traditional Music (TFTM) Contra Dances, 1st United Methodist Church, 915 4th St. Lesson 6:30 PM, dance 7-10 PM. $8 / $7 members. Lynn Maners, lmaners@dakotacom.net Dale 520-906-0352, www.tftm.org. OTHER SPECIAL EVENTS

(See articles on pages 1 and 2 for details.) May Madness – May 13-15th Prescott, AZ Dancing on the Edge – June 17-19th Camp Colley, AZ Casa de los Niños benefit dinner and dance -- Saturday, April 30th Tucson, AZ

PHXtmd Newsletter Advertising Opportunity PHXtmd’s quarterly newsletter, is now publishing our events calendar with an advertising page on the back. Our newsletter is distributed at all dance events, sent via email to all club members, and available online on our website, Facebook, and Meet-up pages as a download. Ads are business card sized (3.5” x 2”), and are only $25.00 per issue. Next submission deadline is June 1, 2011. Please contact Janice at newsletter@PHXtmd.org.

(a nonprofit 501(c)(3) corporation) preserves old-time music in Phoenix by presenting and promoting dances, concerts, and other special events throughout the year. Your membership supports PHXtmd’s work, entitles you to discounts at most PHXtmd events, and a subscription to the Arizona Folk News, a newsletter published four times a year. A monetary donation to PHXtmd, beyond the membership fee, may be tax deductible.

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