The following articles appeared in the South Pacific Square Dance Review during 1997.

The Ten Commandments Of Square Dancing

APD, DBD and CALLERLAB

Standard Applications

Australian Square Dance Styling

What is the Future of Square Dancing?

Country Music and Square Dancing

The Abundance of Weekend Festivals

This thought provoking set of "Ten Commandments" is taken from a very old American Square Dance magazine. I have found that the philosophy and meaning behind them is the important thing, rather than the literal translation.

A wise man once said that you will get out of life what you put into it. There is no doubt that this applies to Square Dancing too! The following "rules" are meant as good advice, and should be seen as a way of keeping our activity courteous, fun and fulfilling.

1. You will Square Dance only for the fun that you will find in it.
2. You shall not be a snob by considering yourself too good to dance with any and all by sitting out mixers, or by leaving a square lest you be required to dance with those you deem unworthy of your talents, for the gods of retribution will visit mischief upon you and you will be the one to goof in the square.
3. You shall be exuberant, but shall act your age. Do not offend others by your high flung legs, out flared skirts, or by over zealous endeavors to help others who may hesitate by pulling, grabbing, or pushing upon them or speaking loudly to them.
4. You shall go abroad and dance to other callers so that your opinions expressed as to the merit of this one and that one are based on fact.
5. You shall be conscious of the feelings of those around you, and shall not let the stranger in your midst sit on the side lines nor fail to speak to him or her.
6. You shall bathe diligently, that the sweet aroma of soap and shaving lotion may assail the nostrils of your associates. You shall similarly take care that the words of your mouth are not scented with strong smelling herbs such as garlic, or strong smelling beverages such as beer. Men shall wear long sleeved shirts so that their arms may be more pleasant to grasp.

7. You shall guard carefully the utterances from your lips while dancing, lest you add confusion to your square and cause yourself or others to hear the next call, for there is but one designated caller in the hall.
8. You shall honour your club and give your loyalty, for if you cannot do this, it would be better to separate yourself from it and join yourself to another whose methods, members and caller are more to your liking.
9. You shall not kill your club by bickering and fault finding, or by pointing fingers of blame for errors in dancing or club operation, at any member or fellow dancer, for, in so doing, such a finger may thus be due in your direction.
10. You shall never forget that you were once a beginner and that others helped you to become a good dancer by tolerating your mistakes. You shall always remember that if you are to be able to continue in square dancing for a long time there must always be beginners and new dancers joining your hobby, and they need your patience and assistance.

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Recently, some dancers who had returned from a State Convention were talking about one of the Plus sessions being "DBD" (Dance By Definition) or "APD" (All Position Dancing). I heard the comment: "I thought I could dance Plus, but the caller was calling the moves from strange positions, and I was thoroughly confused. Should I be expected to know the moves from all positions?" My short answer was: "no one can know all the moves from all the possible positions - not even the caller."

In this article, I will give a bit more explanation about what the terms "APD" and "DBD" mean, and the current CALLERLAB policy regarding their use.

CALLERLAB is the International Association Of Square Dance Callers. It is a democratic body that sets International Standards and Guidelines for callers to follow, and has developed a "universal" and consistent set of Dance Programs, such as BASICS, MAINSTREAM and PLUS. I have been a member of CALLERLAB for over ten years (all callers can join CALLERLAB, no matter which Country they call in). As a member, I participate in voting on the various policy and Program changes that are made from time to time. Not all members necessarily agree with all decisions, but being a democratic organization, we do get to vote and have a say.

The concept of "All Position Dancing" was introduced several years ago, with the intention that experienced dancers would learn how to perform moves from various angles, which would allow the caller to give "variety" in his choreography by calling the same move from any different set up. The original concept of APD was that dancers should be able to dance the steps from either the "man’s position" or the "lady’s position".

"Dance By Definition" took this a step further by requiring the dancers to learn the definition of each move, thus acquiring a greater awareness of the "mechanics" of choreography, so they could perform the moves from more unusual set-ups. Over the years, some clubs and callers have embraced these concepts, while others prefer to call and dance only from "standard" positions.

This inevitably created a problem, as these two groups have the opposite philosophy. Some callers (and dancers) have been very vocal in stating that ALL dancers and callers should know the definitions of all the moves in the Program that they dance. This of course does not take into account that many dancers do not wish to be totally dedicated to learning everything about every Square Dance move, but merely wish to enjoy Square Dancing while enjoying a social evening with their friends. In addition to this, some callers do not have the time (nor the desire or ability) to dedicate their life to creating new variations of all the moves.

Obviously, this conflict in ideas is what resulted in the comments mentioned earlier. A caller who calls DBD at his own club has called DBD at a large Festival or Convention, and many of the dancers were unable to follow the calls, as they were not familiar with the non-standard positions.

There is merit to both opinions, and who is to say that anyone is right or wrong. As a rule, dancers will dance where ever they are comfortable, and attend the clubs and Festivals that they enjoy the most.

In order to form an acceptable compromise between these two viewpoints, CALLERLAB has decided to no longer endorse the concepts of DBD and APD. The members have voted to accept a "STANDARD APPLICATIONS POLICY".

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The CALLERLAB "Standard Applications Policy" recognizes that there are certain variations of each Square Dance movement that are more widely danced than others. These are considered to be the "STANDARD APPLICATIONS" of the move. The other variations are to be considered the "EXTENDED APPLICATIONS" of the move.

Callers are encouraged to teach all the "STANDARD APPLICATIONS" at their home clubs.

Callers are not restricted to calling only "Standard Applications" in their own clubs, if they wish to call other "Extended Applications", they are free to do so. However, at large Square Dance functions such as Festivals and Conventions, where it can be expected that there will be dancers from many areas and different levels of experience attending, they should stick to calling the "STANDARD APPLICATIONS". This does not apply to "workshop" sessions, where the caller can walk the dancers through some non-standard variations.

As with all policies, there will be those who agree, and others who disagree. When I first presented this policy to my club members, there was concern that this would somehow dilute or lessen the dancing standard at Conventions and Festivals. I agree that the dancing and calling at Conventions (and other large Festivals) must be of high quality. There must be sufficient challenge and stimulation for the experienced dancers, if they are to continue to support these functions. (Can you imagine what it would be like without the experienced Mainstream and Plus dancers attending Conventions?)

I believe that the intention of CALLERLAB is not to deplete the potential of callers to provide challenging choreography at major Festivals, but to ensure that all dancers in attendance understand the minimum requirements for dancing at a particular session. My understanding of the Callerlab "Standard Applications Policy" is that the caller should feel confident that he/she can call certain things without the fear of squares breaking down all the time. At the same time, the dancers will be aware that they should know the calls from a certain number of set-ups before joining the session.

Any caller "worth his salt" should be able to judge the standard of the floor by calling the "Standard Applications", and only venture on to other variations once he/she is confident that the majority of dancers in attendance can handle it. This can be done without adding any "frustration factor". To provide enjoyment on the dance floor for as many people as possible, callers should only call what the majority of dancers on the floor are capable of.

All the "great" callers that I know have been doing this for years (this is one of the qualities that has set them apart from the rest). The truly great callers can make the simplest calls extremely interesting, by using clever presentation and good timing. This is all that is necessary for the caller to present an interesting and challenging program to the dancers, whether at their regular club, or at a Festival or Convention. What really sets a caller apart is their ability to entertain the dancers. Keep the dancing FUN!

Square Dancing is more than the ability to perform moves from every angle. Just as important is being able to enjoy the social activity and fellowship that Square Dancing can provide. This does not in any way detract from those who wish to dance more complex choreography. I say "each to their own". Some dancers look for mental challenge, some enjoy so called "higher levels", some prefer the social interaction.

I believe that with reasonable publicity of the "Standard Applications Policy", most callers will understand it’s intention and should therefor adhere to it.

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It was interesting to read the Australian Callers Federation article by Les Tulloch in the July Review, describing the technical differences between how we dance in Australia compared to the rest of the world. Having had the opportunity to dance in several other Countries, I would like to offer my thoughts.

Square Dancing originated in America, and has spread across the world to become a truly international hobby. Many years ago there were many different dancing styles and call variations, but over the last few decades organizations such as Callerlab have helped to introduce standards that are accepted all over the world.

The calls are the same, whether you dance in USA, Japan, Germany, Sweden or Australia. Even if you don’t speak the native language of a country that you are dancing in, you can still understand the calls. Words such as "Promenade", "Allemande Left", "Square thru" etc. are part of the language of Square Dancing. We also dance the Callerlab Programs (Basic, Mainstream, Plus etc.) world wide, which enables travellers to dance anywhere.

When Square Dancing was first introduced to Australia, in the 1940’s and 50’s, the people that brought it here taught the styling of the area that they came from. There were also some Australian variations introduced through the years. As a result, Australian Square Dancing has a style all of it's own. Here are some of the subtle differences that make our style unique:

The Round Up. We are the only country that includes the Round Up as a regular part of our dancing program. The Round Up enables singles or visiting dancers to fit into any club, without the need to be invited into a square. It also enables the less experienced dancers to benefit from dancing with others of greater experience and skill.

In most countries, dancers form their own squares at the start of each bracket. This can result in singles missing out on a lot of dancing. It also means that you don’t mix with the other dancers as often, as some groups will tend to stay in the same square for much of the night.

Arm Turns and Allemandes. In Australia we use the "Pigeon wing" styling for all arm turns including allemande, turn thru, swing thru, flutterwheel etc. as standard. I assume that the pigeon wing styling was introduced into Australia many years ago, and has since become traditional over here. However, most areas of America have adopted to the fore-arm style, and it has also become the international standard.

About a decade ago we decided to make all arm turns pigeon wing in Australia. This was done so that everyone would dance with the same styling at our National Conventions. Most Australian clubs adhere to this National decision, however there are exceptions.

Promenade. The way we promenade in Australia was also introduced years ago, (probably by the same people who introduced the pigeon wing styling). This is also slightly different to most other countries, who promenade with hands joined in front of the couple. I personally prefer the Australian promenade, where the man places his right arm behind his partners back.

It is interesting to see that most international visitors quickly adjust to our styling, and some say that they prefer it. I guess you could say - "When in Rome, do as the Romans do". If you travel overseas, remember that you can Square Dance where-ever you go. For information about where dances are held in the areas you intend to visit, contact Cec Wilcox of the Square Dance Society of New South Wales, he is always very helpful and efficient.

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I recently had the pleasure of conducting a Callers School. It was an opportunity for me to meet the future of square dancing. It was an opportunity for me to give encouragement and coaching to those who will carry on the tradition of promoting square dancing to the big wide world. I enjoyed it immensely.

There were eleven students in the class. Two of the students were already running their own club, while the others had very limited calling experience. The school was held over six days spanning three weekends. Homework was given at the completion of each day, and students were required to demonstrate their understanding of the homework exercises at the start of the following class. It was not meant to be a picnic.

The Callerlab curriculum was followed, with all essential and recommended topics being covered. (These include understanding of beat, musical phrase, timing, microphone techniques, the mechanics of choreography, breathing and posture, Module calling, Sight calling, teaching, singing calls, ethics, and many more topics). Emphasis was given to specific topics depending on the student's needs, ability and experience.

That is an awful lot to learn. Some of the students had never had more than the odd call at their home club before the school. The eleven students graduated with a demonstrated understanding of all the essential basic elements of square dance calling. They still have a long way to go.

They also graduated with a strong resolve to make sure that square dancing continues and flourishes into the future. They will help to make it happen, along with graduates from other caller's schools and club leaders worldwide.

It's interesting to look back over the years. I can clearly remember the "stars" of square dancing when I first began to call - names that are now legends. Names like Ron Jones, Wally Cook, Tom McGrath, Les Johnson, Eric Wendell etc. Who would have thought that most of those legends would no longer be calling now. Who would have thought that a whole new generation of callers and leaders would make their first nervous calls, and somehow fill the void. Who would think that now that cycle is beginning once again?

Most of the graduates from the class that I recently conducted will not go on to be known as "legends". Most will quietly contribute in their own way to the preservation and promotion of the square dance activity. This is the case with most caller schools that I have been involved with, and others worldwide. That's the type of legend that we need.

Most callers do not seek stardom, but some have stardom waiting for them. All will become stars in the eyes of their club dancers.

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The music of square dancing is one of the aspects that helps this activity to appeal to every generation, and to people from all walks of life. If there is a song that has been popular at some time, the chances are that it has been released as a square dance!

Hardly a dance will go by without someone requesting a song, old or new. And the great thing about it is that the song can be from many different styles of music, such as country, rock and roll, pop, ballads, love songs, musicals or movie hits. However, the main musical style that people outside of square dancing associate us with is Country Music. The great thing about it though, is that Country Music is very popular today.

One of Australia’s premier Country Music events is held in an open air setting deep in the Amamoor Creek State Forest Park, near Gympie in Queensland. It brings together many of the top names in Australian Country (such as John Williamson, Lee and Tanya Kurnaghan etc.). About 20,000 people attend the Muster, and although there are very few permanent facilities on site, thanks to the Apex Club a tent city springs up from the wilderness. Massive marquee tents are used for the music and dance venues, and portable showers and toilets are trucked in. It is an amazing sight, although a bit dusty.

This year for the first time, Square Dancing was included in the "Musta Dance" program (along with Clogging, Line Dancing and Rock’n’Roll Dancing). The organisers wanted to have Callers from all around Australia and an international "big name", but they only gave Nev McLachlan (Qld) a couple of months to organise it! After lots of frantic phone calls, Nev was able to bring together Jet Roberts (USA), Howard Cockburn (Vic), Steve Turner (WA) and myself (NSW). Having achieved that, the only thing left was to hope that there would be Square Dancers to call to!

Our fears were quickly put to rest as at the first session, we had about eight or nine squares happily kicking up their heels on the makeshift floor. With five callers there was plenty of square dancing, and as our venue was shared with the Cloggers (some of whom also square danced), there must have been a few exhausted people by the end of the weekend. We always had big crowds watching, and the general level of interest was strong. Much of the dancing was Mainstream, but there was also some Plus and A1, and even a beginners bracket where Nev invited members of the audience to join in. Hopefully some of them will look for more Square Dancing when they get home.

The dancers came and went, as most of those attending also came to see the musicians as well as to dance. Occasionally all five callers shared the stage as (in the words of Jet Roberts) we did some "cluster-calling". We must have used a lot of energy, as the power generators seemed to cut out at the most inappropriate times.

It was a great experience. To be on the same bill as those great Callers and the wonderful country music artists was quite a thrill! Square Dancing and Clogging was given a lot of publicity, being shown on TV and mentioned on radio. Perhaps it will help the general public come to see us as something more than Hill Billies.

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The past decade has brought about a greater opportunity to travel and communicate. There has also been an upsurge in Weekend Festivals, and special events. Like it or not, what we are seeing is the Square Dance World reflecting the outside world. People are moving around more.

Have a look at any issue of the Review. If you wanted to (and if you had the money), you could travel around the country to a different Festival almost every week. You could dance to all the big names and have a great time. But would you have the energy to attend your home club the following week?

Obviously this is an exaggerated situation, but people are only human. We all like a change from time to time. The problem only arises when dancers encourage others to attend some function or another without considering the effect that it might have on their home club. What would happen if no one cared about the rest of the square dance world?

The weekly club cannot constantly produce the party atmosphere or variety that is offered by these special events, nor should it try to. The weekly club is a stable, comfortable place that should be respected. Can you imagine what your home club would be like if you held a party every dance - it wouldn't take long to get tired of it?

On the positive side, many dancers remain loyal to their home club through thick and thin. They enjoy visiting other clubs and dancing at Festivals as much as anybody else does. But they also put in the effort to make sure that they support their home club as often as possible. Usually they seem to have just as much fun on a regular club night as they do at a Festival. They should be rewarded with constant effort from each caller to give 100% every club night.

Why do we teach people to dance? Is it only to have them dance at our own clubs and never mix with others? Of course not. We callers should not feel insecure or cheated if they dance elsewhere as well as "at home?" As callers, we welcome visitors to our clubs with the well-publicised square dance hospitality. For the same reason we should not discourage our club members from attending Festivals.

It is our obligation to keep a cool head and not angrily place blame on someone else. No matter how many weekend Festivals are around, dancers will come back to their home club if the caller provides them with good quality entertainment. But we can’t just dish up the same old stuff week after week. It is easy to become despondent if dancers leave (for whatever reasons) and don't come back. But instead of looking to place the blame on others, I believe that we should always look at ourselves for what is lacking. Keep your club calling at the highest standard that you can by constant practice, building on what you do best. This is not necessarily done by introducing new moves, but by creatively using your current program and selecting your music in an interesting and varied way.

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