Dancing isn’t everyone’s favorite activity, but one local man bets he can get even the most reluctant of dancers off the sideline and moving in no time.
Paul Rosenberg, of Homespun Community Dancing, has led community dances for more than 25 years. Still, Rosenberg will admit he wasn’t the most outgoing dancer until he found his calling.
“For me, who was a very shy person about dance, I was so scared I would hide in bathrooms at weddings when the music would start,” he said. “The thing that is great about the community dance is that anybody can do it from age 4 to 94. You can go at your own pace, and when you go at your own pace, you are part of the community.”
Last month, Old Songs in Voorheesville kicked off its 2013-14 Community Dance series, which is held monthly on the first Saturday through May. Rosenberg, who helps organize the series, will be calling the Dec. 7 dance featuring FireFlies, and people will be able to learn various dance styles, from contras to squares. At each dance there is a “covered dish supper” at 6 p.m., with the music lasting from 7 to 10 p.m. Admission is $8.
“It is very good for the community because we offer something that nobody else offers in the community,” Andy Spence, executive director of Old Songs, said. “It is to have a good time and get out of the house on a Saturday night and get some exercise.”
Rosenberg said around two years ago he started “testing the waters” for interest by hosting dances at the Delmar Reformed Church. He also earns his living by calling an estimated 200 dances annually.
“The whole idea for this dance series grew out of the tremendous success we have had … playing at private parties, events and celebrations,” he said.
Rosenberg broke out of his fear of dancing around 30 years ago when he was introduced to contra dancing, which he said is “hard to explain in words.”
He described contra dancing as basically a more sophisticated form of group dancing. It is performed in long, parallel lines, generally with men facing women, and a couple will dance with another couple for a little bit before going on to the next couple.
For the community dance series, he opts for a simpler take on contra dancing that’s more accessible and easy to pick up. He said this allows people who might only want to attend dances occasionally to enjoy themselves.
“I felt like we needed to do something that was simpler than contra dancing for people that didn’t want to come all the time and continue to improve,” he said. “They are dancing with pure joy. It is not a matter of having to do anything right. It is a matter of being there and moving to the music.”
Rosenberg said contra dancing has been spreading across the country, with communities sprouting up to support the complex dances.
Spence said Old Songs has been holding dances, along with contra dances, for a long time. Holding the dances also plays into keeping traditions going.
“It is part of Old Songs’ mission to keep traditional music alive, and all of these dances are done with live music,” she said. “The bands are good and the callers are good.”
There are different performers playing music for the local dances, but the style tends to fall around what people would think of as Celtic or Appalachian, Rosenberg said. Nearly all bands will have a fiddler. FireFlies will have a flutist, which doesn’t often accompany contra dances.
“The music is very joyous. The music just lifts people,” he said.
He said the music tends to be similar to the “natural rhythm of life,” which is one’s heartbeat and pulse.
“The pulse of the music pretty much parallels the pulse of a human being,” he said. “It is very natural to want to move to the musical beat.”
Being in a large group, with everyone doing the same movements, he believes also helps people loosen up and feel the beat.
“There is something very appealing to being in a community type dance setting,” he said. “I think it really goes back to thousands and thousands of years ago. This type of dance has been done since people realized you can move to music.”