TAMWORTH OUTING CLUB SECOND SATURDAY DANCE CALENDAR
All dances are from 7:30pm-10pm, at the Tamworth Town House, 27 Cleveland Hill Road, Tamworth, unless noted otherwise.
Saturday, March 8
Larry Unger and the Trail Magic Fiddlers, with Jennifer McHone Villalobos calling
Saturday, April 12
Caravan Band with Tom Chiappisi calling
Saturday, May 10
Black Cat Quadrille with Peter Yarensky calling
Saturday, June 14
Puckerbrush with Byron Ricker
Saturday, July 12
String Equinox
Saturday, August 9
Gale Wood calling with the High Strung String Band
Saturday, September 13
Dudley Laufman and the Town House Band
TAMWORTH OUTING CLUB
TAMWORTH TRADITIONAL MUSIC & DANCE
Traditional New England dancing is fun, easy, and family-friendly – a participatory art form. Tamworth dances are well-known throughout the state and region as welcoming and multi-generational, with dancers of all ages and abilities gathering to enjoy the company of old friends and new acquaintances. There is no true audience and everyone is part of the “performance,” with each dance a unique collaboration between musicians, dancers, and the caller. Callers spend time before each set teaching the steps and guiding dancers through parts of the upcoming dance. Experienced dancers are encouraged to help others, so that everyone can enjoy the lively music and congenial mixing and mingling on the floor. Talented callers and musicians from around the region come to Tamworth’s historic Town House to lead dancers through jigs, reels, squares, circles, waltzes, and more.
Tamworth is home to the second oldest continuously held dance in the State of New Hampshire. There is a rich tradition of dancing in our town, the result of many people working to keep the dances going over the years and to pass the joy of swinging and sashaying across a Tamworth dance floor along to future generations. Dances have been a valued community event here for years, hosted by the Tamworth Outing Club since 1937. Tamworth’s dances have a strong reputation throughout the region for welcoming participants of all ages and abilities, providing enjoyment and inclusion for both dancers and musicians.
The array of programs offered provides traditional music and dance opportunities in Tamworth for dancers of all ages and abilities, and for musicians seeking to learn and participate in our local and regional dance band traditions. These programs continue to improve and enhance the awareness, participation, skills, and appreciation needed to maintain Tamworth’s music and dance tradition into the future.
For tune archives and sheet music, visit Beverly Woods’ Tamworth Tune & Bandcraft web page by clicking here.
Come join us for a memorable evening on the dance floor!
Dancing starts at 7:30pm and goes till 10:00pm. Admission is $10 for teens and adults; free for children 12 and under.
The Tamworth Town House is located at 27 Cleveland Hill Road in Tamworth, directly across from the Congregational Church.
Get directions from Google Maps Here.
For more information, contact Amy Berrier at 603-651-5800 or Teresa Fournier at 978-609-2181.
Note: Sit-in musicians are often welcome at Tamworth dances, but please check with Dexter (dexterbanjo@gmail.com) or Amy (603-651-5800) to be sure before you arrive.
TAMWORTH OUTING CLUB
TAMWORTH DANCES THROUGH THE YEARS
HISTORY BEING MADE
It was a magical moment to walk into the Tamworth Town House on New Year’s Eve 2014 and find Dudley Laufman telling everyone to find a partner and line up in two lines—just as he has been doing since 1965. As the evening progressed, more and more people came. Two lines became four, and then we had a hall full of squares. The familiar music with Jacqueline Laufman, Beverley Woods, and Bob Reed, and others kept a steady beat.
Dudley has gone on to achieve national prominence over the years. He was honored with the National Heritage Fellowship presented by the National Endowment for the Arts in 2009. It’s the nation’s highest honor for folk and traditional arts. Yet here he was on a major holiday playing for a dance that he has loved for fifty years.
October 31st, 1979
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The Tamworth Outing Club has been sponsoring dances since its beginning in 1935. Ned Behr was the first caller. Originally the dances were held in Huggins Barn until it burned in 1961. Ned and Joan were a stately couple, dancing in the old way—one that Dudley insisted that all of us follow as well. Occasionally the young would let their swings take over, and Dudley would remind us that this was a dance, not a sporting event.
The dance moved to the Brett School for a few years, and Dudley actually came once there. However, Helen Steele, who took over management of the dances in 1965, was responsible for recruiting him as a regular caller. Helen and Dana went down to a dance in Canterbury and persuaded Dudley to come to Tamworth. Before that, Ned shared the role with folks like Fred Pulsiver, Bronson, and Tod Whittemore.
1n 1966, the dance moved to Staffords in the Field, where Dudley and Ned traded weeks all summer for the Thursday night dances. That was the year we built our cabin as well, and we became regulars. We’d bring the children, putting them to sleep in the car after an hour or so, and we’d keep on dancing. It was easy to learn, and soon Peggy and David became experts as well. I remember Nancy Coville coming up to ask David, age four, to dance—thinking that she was doing this little guy a favor. She came back grinning, saying, “Boy, can he swing!” Helen confirms that David is still one of the best dancers around.
The dances lasted at Staffords until their renovations began in the late 80s, and then moved to the Town House, where they’ve been held ever since. Their popularity waned a bit in the early 2000s, but, judging from the crowd on New Year’s Eve, contra dancing is back in style. Watch for the notice of the next dance and give it a try. It’s great fun!
—Betsy Loughran
New Years Eve, 2015
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New Years Eve, 2016
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