Newcastle & District RSCDS

Newsletter

Spring 2007

Youngsters go to Perth

On a wintry January morning, six young members of the Newcastle Branch set off on a journey to Perth. The reason behind the trip was an invitation from the Society’s Youth Director, Jayne Brown, to dancers aged between 16 and 35 from any branch to attend an afternoon of dance. The aim of the event was to confirm whether there was both the interest and ability among young dancers to form a demonstration team for possible future events. Twenty-two youths from several branches, including Edinburgh, Glasgow and Perth, managed to attend. The teacher for the session was Margo Priestley, who taught us dances that were mostly unfamiliar to those of us from Newcastle. We soon learnt that Book 23 was a favourite of Margo’s! The afternoon ended with a medley which tested our ability to learn new dances quickly and dance them without a break, as in a demonstration.
The day finished with a group discussion to give Jayne feedback on how everyone felt the afternoon had gone and on the idea of having similar meetings regularly. Everyone seemed very enthusiastic about creating a youth demonstration team and found the afternoon good fun and such a refreshing change to dance with people of a similar age and with such energy!
Hopefully, another youth meeting will be arranged – possibly nearer to Newcastle – so that the group can establish and develop into a strong, youthful demonstration team ready for displays. Back in January, the only future demonstration Jayne had in mind to tempt us with was possibly the Olympics in 2012! Let’s hope she gets some other offers before some of us are too old to be called ‘youths’!! Gillian Reed


At our AGM next month you will be asked to vote on proposals to change our Constitution so that membership of this Branch has the same categories as those of the Headquarters in Edinburgh (which were altered at the AGM last year in Aberdeen). The Committee is proposing that people aged 16 to 25 only pay half the normal rate, and those under 16 (Junior Associates) will still pay nothing. It is also proposes that our membership year is brought in line with HQ (which now runs from 1st July to 30th June) to make administration easier. The membership fee consists of £10 for HQ (which is likely to rise next year) and £4 to this Branch (increased last year from £2). Tim Bolton-Maggs

Children’s Medal Tests

26 of our young dancers will be taking the Society's Medal Tests in June (date still to be confirmed). Apart from the Introductory Award, which requires only two dances, the youngsters have to be able to perform 3 dances in their Grade. In each grade technique and formations are the key components:
Grade 1 tests rights & lefts, figure of eight, promenade for 2 couples;
Grade 2 tests allemande, set and cast off, ladies' chain, reel of three;
Grade 3 tests poussette, turn corners & partner and set & turn corners followed by reel of three.
The dancers are assessed in the following categories – steps, rhythm, formations, phrasing, deportment, use of hands, teamwork and sociability.
Some of the girls will be taking part in the demonstration at Wallington on the 9th June, so please come along and give them your support – they are the future of dancing.
We wish them the best of luck. Carol Sanderson

Branch Website Questionnaire

The response to the website questionnaire has so far been disappointing. All members should have been sent, or had access to, a copy of the questionnaire asking for your views but very few completed ones have been returned. Please let us have your views / experiences of the website, if it fulfils all your expectations or none at all, and how it could be more useful.
There is a version of the questionnaire on the Branch website (www.rscds-newcastle.org), with instructions on how to download it.
Please let us know what you think and send your replies to Chris Hiller.

Taking the Teacher’s Certificate

Two years ago, I was fortunate enough to be awarded a scholarship to the RSCDS summer school at St Andrews to complete units 2 and 3 (dancing proficiency and basic teaching) of the new style Teaching Certificate. Before I could attend, I had to complete unit 1, a 2 hour written exam paper on the history of the Society and the theory of basic formations.
For two weeks in August 2005, I studied for units 2 and 3 under the tuition of Andrew McConnell (Ayrshire), dancing for 6 hours each day, completing the required homework, and then joining in the evening dances. It was an exhausting fortnight, but an extremely enjoyable and ultimately successful one.
Since passing the first part of the teaching certificate, I have been gaining experience of teaching SCD, eventually starting a beginners class in September last year. For unit 4 (record of teaching practice) I had to complete lesson plans and reviews for 6 hours of teaching, which must only contain dances published by the Society.
Since September 2006, I have been one of 3 students studying for unit 5 (full certificate teaching), along with others studying for units 2 and 3, under the guidance of Malcolm Brown (York). For 3 hours, roughly every fortnight, we have been subjected to rigorous instruction, strenuous homework tasks and regular assessment.
Each week, we are asked to plan to teach our unsuspecting class a dance, or part of a dance. This leads to regular practice and preparation in the kitchen, involving Smarties, coins and, occasionally, unwary neighbours. Invariably, some part of the dance has its own special nuance, and the number of interpretations of the instructions we present still astounds our tutor!
A cup of tea at 3.30 brings welcome relief for those of us studying for unit 5, but for those just about to complete unit 1, it presents an opportunity to have homework checked and to bring pertinent questions to our tutor. During this time, feedback is also given to those who have taught in the first half.
After tea, it’s back to dancing, completing the teaching and then practicing for unit 2. By 5 o’clock we’re all exhausted, but have enjoyed a mentally and physically challenging afternoon.
We hope to complete the examinations early in June this year.

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This Festival has grown from very small beginnings to become one of the largest adult competitive festivals in the country. We arrived at Emmanuel College, Gateshead, at 8.30 in the morning to be greeted by the International Team who had arrived early to practise! 14 teams entered the Festival from Europe, London, Leeds, Glasgow, Edinburgh (3), St Andrew’s University Dumfries (3) and Darlington, as well as our home grown Newcastle and Hexham teams; a total of 32 entries which necessitated the Festival beginning at 11.00 a.m.

The Festival’s success is entirely dependent on the immense amount of work put in by Branch Members: we had our own Sound Team, 6 hard-working Scribes, 2 all-day Ticket Sellers, Door Controllers, magnificent Food Providers, Tea Ladies, First Aiders, Flower Arranger, Announcers, Welcomers – a total of more than 30 people who voluntarily gave of their time and to whom we are most grateful. They were absolutely essential to the smooth working of the Festival.

A few statistics:

· 87 Spectators paid £1 each to watch the dancing;

· we used 1300 plastic cups and 30 pints of milk, dispensing free tea, coffee & juice throughout the day – well done, Tea Ladies!

· a total of 47 badges (costing £1.50 each) were given to under 16s – Bronze for their first attendance, Silver for their second and Gold for their third;

· the dance was attended by 262 people who enjoyed some superb music from David Cunningham & his Band – the hall was full and vibrant at 11.30 p.m. when the dancing stopped.

It was midnight when we left Emmanuel College after a very long but most enjoyable day. John & Patricia Cass

John’s modesty in omitting to give details about everything that happens between their arrival at 8.30 a.m. and departure at midnight prompted me to add the following account. I’m sure it doesn’t cover everything that happens – even in the ordinary event – and I hope somebody else might write an article to put that right.

This year the organisation was complicated by the fact that the people doing Unit 1 of their Teaching Certificate were taking the written exam from 9.30 a.m., requiring a quiet classroom and two invigilators. As you may expect, everything was arranged without any problems – thanks to John’s meticulous attention to detail.

The first task is to put up all the notices and make sure the official Welcomers know which room has been allocated to each team. The sound system, refreshments and other equipment must be unloaded and set up, tables and chairs put out and the hall decorated with tartans and flower arrangements. Trophies have to be collected from last year’s winners as they arrive so they can be put on display. The Adjudicators are given coffee and introduced to the Scribes who will be writing down their comments on each team’s performance. Later, at a suitable break in the proceedings, they are given lunch. Meanwhile, as enormous urns come to the boil in the cafeteria and gallons of juice are made in large jugs, sound levels are tested in the hall and visiting musicians given the chance to try out the system; the teams practise in whatever spaces they can find.

After the competitions are over, a new phase of activity begins: the hall is cleared to make more space for the evening dance; the Band arrive and set up their equipment; there is a huge run on refreshments, as many teams stay in the college to eat their meals (the local pizza places are kept busy!); then the Band is given a meal while the Ticket Sellers set up again outside the hall.
When the dance finishes, there is the task of clearing up: checking that the teams have left all their rooms clean & tidy; dismantling the decorations; loading all the urns, trays, cup-holders & jugs into cars; putting all the rubbish into black bags and leaving them where they can be taken away by the school cleaners.

Dance Scottish Week: 7th to 15th September

Attracting new members, both young and not so young, is difficult with the vast number of activities that are now available to everyone, so HQ has asked all branches to take part in a national profile-raising exercise in the second week of September.
Here in Newcastle, the Dance Sub-Committee (Peter Avery, Sheila Trafford, Jean Wright, Pauline Rice) felt that our efforts at recruitment should be focused on the "young". Letters were sent to First Schools in the Morpeth, Newcastle, South Shields, Whitley Bay and Hexham areas asking whether they would be interested in taster sessions for 8-9 year olds. The response has been overwhelming. In Hexham alone the Sele School have 3 classes of thirty 8-9 year olds!! Consequently I have been co-opted on to the Sub-Committee. Hopefully we can accommodate all the taster sessions requested, but careful thought will need to be given as to whether we can sustain classes in all these areas if the interest is maintained. It is certainly an opportunity we need to grab.
If you are interested in helping in any way, please let any one of the sub-committee members know. As an organisation we need new dancers!

Carol Sanderson

Special events in Scotland:

Friday 7th September: Reception/Launch & Ball in the Surgeon’s Hall, Edinburgh. Attendance at the Reception is by invitation only – the Newcastle Branch has TWO places available, so if you’d like to go, please contact the Sheila Trafford AT ONCE.

Ball tickets cost £25 and can be ordered from HQ (with a cheque made payable to RSCDS) but until 15th June, priority will be given to people attending the Reception.

Friday 15th September: Unveiling of Plaque to Miss Milligan and buffet lunch at the Jordanhill Campus, Strathclyde University from 10.30am. The Newcastle Branch has ONE place available – if you’d like to go, please contact Sheila Trafford AT ONCE.

There’s an informal dance at St Andrew’s in the Square (Glasgow) on the same night, 7.30-11.30pm. Tickets cost £10 and can be ordered by sending a SAE & cheque (made payable to RSCDSGlasgow Branch) to Flora Frame, 19 Kilmardinny Crescent, Bearsden, Glasgow G61 3NP.

Further details can be obtained from Sheila Trafford on 01670 512568

It seemed as if we were jinxed this year: first of all we couldn’t be sure that West Jesmond School would be available, so we couldn’t finalise details until late December (6 months later than usual); then, early in January, Peter Shand sent an e-mail to say that increased pressure of work (due to promotion) would prevent him from playing for us; finally – but not altogether unexpectedly – Doreen McKerron ‘phoned at the start of February to say that her husband, Bob, was being rushed into hospital for an operation to remove a tumour from his throat and this meant that she would be unable to honour her commitment.

Thanks to the RSCDS grapevine, substitutes were contacted and, by good fortune, were free to fill the gaps. We were delighted that George McLennan & Moira Reekie were able to play for us and thankful that Helen Russell and Eric Finley were happy to work with them. So many positive comments were made about the two partnerships that we have invited them back next year.

The morning sessions both stressed the link between music & dancing. One task that Eric gave his class was to decide what the music actually tells you: Moira played the tune Borowlaski’s Fancy and the four sets were given five minutes to come up with a sequence of figures that the music suggested. Each set then demonstrated its ideas to the rest of the class. Not one of them got anything like the dance that goes with the tune in the RSCDS book, but everyone agreed that each of their sequences was more fitting than the “official” one! Moira then told the class that she had played for Bobby Crowe’s recording of the dance and that he had altered the repeat pattern of the tune to make it fit the action better.

A total of 42 people attended, a 29% drop from last year. The majority were Members and most of them signed up for the whole day. 9 non-members attended, roughly the same number as last year, but most of them stayed all day, unlike last year. The 3 Junior Associates who attended did so for the whole day – last year each of the 4 JAs only came for one session. Keeping numbers right for full sets is sometimes awkward, so it’s a great help to everyone when folk sign up for a whole day. Thanks are due to some of the experienced dancers for helping out with Eric’s class in the afternoon and giving up their own chance of being at Helen’s. I trust you’ll get a chance to experience her teaching next year! Also, I hope news of the fun has spread, so more folk will decide to try out the Day School next year. Tim Bolton-Maggs



This starts up on Wednesday 2nd May and runs from 7.30 – 9.30 p.m. at All Saints Church Hall, Linden Road, Gosforth. All dancers welcome!



There are two more sessions of the Teacher’s Certificate Class at West Denton Community Centre and we still need folk to come and make up sets for the students to practice on. If you are free on Sundays 29th April & 20th May, 2 – 5 p.m., please come along.

It is with sadness that we report the death of Jean McConnochie, whose band was due to play at our December Dance.


Newcastle & District R.S.C.D.S. Registered Charity No 1061992

www.rscds-newcastle.org

Hon. Secretary: Mrs S.Trafford, 2 Benridge Moor, Morpeth NE61 3SD