Irving Andert interview
Video or just audio
Interview with Connecticut square dance caller Irving Andert, conducted by Paul Trowbridge, July 9, 1983, recorded in the Brooklyn (CT) Grange. At that time, Andert had been calling 52 years, starting when he was 13 years old. He describes some of the early callers who influenced him, and talks about calling at a major square dance event at the University of Connecticut in Storrs, with more than 1,000 dancers attending.
This video about the caller Irving Andert was provided to us by caller Dave Hass from East Hampton, CT. The video was one of many created over a couple of decades by dancer Paul Trowbridge for use on local community TV stations.
Bob Livingston, a caller from Middletown, CT, has provided this information about Irving Andert:
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Irv Andert was active in eastern CT when I first became aware of the "eastern" dancing still going in CT in the late 1970 early 80s. I would see notices of his dances in the Hartford Courant
for semi-regular events at the Hampton Congregational Church. He was the caller to go to for the Brooklyn, Hyland and Killingly, CT Granges at the time. They all sponsored dances but not necessarily monthly. He called for many agricultural youth groups
Irv was one of two traditional callers that I ever knew that did not rely on singing calls exclusively. He would do dances such as "Swing Ole Adam, Now Little Eve" and "Sashay All Over The Floor" to Turkey in the Straw. His favorite dance to dance was "Dive for the Oyster" to the tune of Hinky Dinky, not for the dives, but for the two full phrases, 16 beats, where you would circle left. Both feet seemed to leave the floor. His favorite dance to call was "My Little Girl" for his wife Evelyn.
Irv had a flooring and carpet business to run and he had a large industrial job which kept him away even on Saturday nights for a six month period. His wife also wanted him home more [but] he wasn't much for slowing down. There was some dancer resentment (old story, huh) when I became the monthly caller at Killingly (1988). For a long time he was fairly regular at my Killingly dance and I would give him the third tip. He lived in Eastford, mailing address Pomfret Center. He died in 2009 at age 91.
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| This Item | is related to | Item: Irving Andert program, 1948 |
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Interview with Connecticut square dance caller Irving Andert, conducted by Paul Trowbridge, July 9, 1983, recorded in the Brooklyn (CT) Grange. At that time, Andert had been calling 52 years, starting when he was 13 years old. He describes some of the early callers who influenced him, and talks about calling at a major square dance event at the University of Connecticut in Storrs, with more than 1,000 dancers attending.
This video about the caller Irving Andert was provided to us by caller Dave Hass from East Hampton, CT. The video was one of many created over a couple of decades by dancer Paul Trowbridge for use on local community TV stations.
Bob Livingston, a caller from Middletown, CT, has provided this information about Irving Andert:
---
Irv Andert was active in eastern CT when I first became aware of the "eastern" dancing still going in CT in the late 1970 early 80s. I would see notices of his dances in the Hartford Courant
for semi-regular events at the Hampton Congregational Church. He was the caller to go to for the Brooklyn, Hyland and Killingly, CT Granges at the time. They all sponsored dances but not necessarily monthly. He called for many agricultural youth groups
Irv was one of two traditional callers that I ever knew that did not rely on singing calls exclusively. He would do dances such as "Swing Ole Adam, Now Little Eve" and "Sashay All Over The Floor" to Turkey in the Straw. His favorite dance to dance was "Dive for the Oyster" to the tune of Hinky Dinky, not for the dives, but for the two full phrases, 16 beats, where you would circle left. Both feet seemed to leave the floor. His favorite dance to call was "My Little Girl" for his wife Evelyn.
Irv had a flooring and carpet business to run and he had a large industrial job which kept him away even on Saturday nights for a six month period. His wife also wanted him home more [but] he wasn't much for slowing down. There was some dancer resentment (old story, huh) when I became the monthly caller at Killingly (1988). For a long time he was fairly regular at my Killingly dance and I would give him the third tip. He lived in Eastford, mailing address Pomfret Center. He died in 2009 at age 91.