Caller
The caller is the "announcer" in the square dance . The dance steps and figures are not decided individually by the dancers, but by the caller who announces them to the dancers (English: to call ). These announcements either consist of spoken chants (in the more choreographically oriented Patter Call , also called hoedown ) or are sung (in a so-called "Singing Call", in which well-known songs are used, the texts of which are partially replaced by calls , i.e. the announcement of a character become).
The caller is responsible for an orderly dance sequence, he gives the choreography . He repairs when a square has collapsed (i.e. when the dancers are no longer able to continue dancing) and ensures that the dancers come back to their original formation and position at the end of the dance.
Technical equipment and music
The caller uses a music system with a microphone for technical support. Special makes of turntables are traditionally in use, which have the advantage of speed control. Recently, CD / MD players or laptops have predominantly been used.
The music used by the caller is partly available in the form of classic records in single format, but also as MP3 songs and includes a wide range of music forms, no longer just the country music originally used : pop , rock , jazz , Musicals etc. found their way into the caller's repertoire decades ago.
Other names
In round dance this person is called a cuer .
In traditional , the announcer is a prompter .
In the Salsa Rueda Speak of the singer ( cantante ).
When “the caller” is mentioned, the female form is to be understood implicitly.