"It's the end of a three-day traveling music festival called Dare to Be Square West, and folks are whirling, stomping and otherwise having a ball. A man who's perched like a shepherd eyeing his flock calls out instructions from the stage. Take your partner and promenade! he hollers, as people form lines, part and reintegrate. That was backwards it was beautiful, though, he says. Now shoe the buffalo!"
"When I was a boy, we had all kinds of music and it always changed. Rock and roll went from Elvis to the Beatles. Classical music went from Bach to Rachmaninoff, he tells the crowd. When I first heard this old-time music, I said to myself, It's fine the way it is.' It will change, but there's just something about it that is so joyous and welcoming, and so unnecessary to try to do anything but get it.'"
Dozens of people danced at Berkeley's Ashkenaz Music & Dance Community Center during the closing night of the three-day Dare to Be Square West festival. Participants whirled, stomped and formed lines as a stage caller directed moves like promenades and the playful 'shoe the buffalo.' The festival returned to the Bay Area after more than a decade and attracted performers and callers from around the country, including Seattle and Wisconsin. Local clubs such as the Lucky Steppers, South Bay Squares and the Oaktown 8s will continue hosting dances across the region. Performers and callers emphasized the music's joyful, welcoming quality and its enduring appeal.
Read at www.mercurynews.com
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