Ralph Page – Swing Your Partners
This short essay by Ralph Page (1939) is interesting for several reasons. First, he's writing for a publication of the New Hampshire Planning and Development Commission, and Page cites the economic benefits of the activity: "It is more than a craze; more than a fad. It is paying dividends to many towns, the same as winter sports or summer tourists."
The activity is clearly labeled "square dancing," but the tunes that Page cites (e.g., Money Musk, Hull's Victory) are more usually labeled today as contra dances. It's an indication that in New Hampshire at that time, the dance repertoire includes contra but the overall activity had a different name. ("Contra dance" to describe an evening of dancing didn't appear until the mid-1970s.)
Also interesting is his example of caller patter ("You swing yours, I'll swing mine, / Your girl's pretty, so is mine) is today more closely associated with southern Appalachian squares.
Subjects: Northern / New England, General - Dance and Culture
Tags: New Hampshire, Ralph Page
Item Relations
| This Item | is related to | Item: How To Put On & Make Successful The Country Dance Party |
| This Item | is related to | Item: Ralph Page – Sets in Order tribute |
| This Item | is related to | Item: Ralph Page |
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The activity is clearly labeled "square dancing," but the tunes that Page cites (e.g., Money Musk, Hull's Victory) are more usually labeled today as contra dances. It's an indication that in New Hampshire at that time, the dance repertoire includes contra but the overall activity had a different name. ("Contra dance" to describe an evening of dancing didn't appear until the mid-1970s.)
Also interesting is his example of caller patter ("You swing yours, I'll swing mine, / Your girl's pretty, so is mine) is today more closely associated with southern Appalachian squares.