Details
Join us on February 15, the eve of The Flurry Festival, for a special contradance featuring Countercurrent, a powerhouse acoustic duo based in Olympia WA, featuring fiddle, guitar, harmony vocals, and foot percussion. We are delighted to welcome them to The Rose Room on their way to Saratoga for The Flurry Festival where they will perform in the Main Hall. Our own Margaret Mathews will be calling the dances.
Dance to the Energetic Melodies of Countercurrent:
🎶 Brian Lindsay on fiddle – Brian’s fiddling will set the dance floor on fire with energy.
🎶 Alex Sturbaum on guitar – Alex’s rhythmic guitar will keep you grooving all night long.
Caller Margaret Mathews: Margaret is back by popular demand, bringing her fantastic repertoire of fun and engaging dances. Whether you’re a seasoned contradancer or a newcomer, Margaret’s expert calling ensures a night filled with joy and laughter.
Please let us know when you arrive if you’d like an introduction to contra, which is available at 7:10 before the dance. In addition, this week, Zak Spath will conduct a Contra 102 session at 6:30 pm covering flourishes and fine points that will make your dancing more fun and satisfying.
We charge admission on a voluntary basis, and we suggest a contribution of $10 per dancer, and $5 for the early waltz session. Our expenses are more than we take in. Please feel free to contribute more.
- 6:30 pm Contra 102
- 7:10 pm Contra 101 Introduction
- 7:30 pm Dancing until 10:00
Caller
Margaret Mathews
With more than 35 years experience as dancer, musician and caller, Margaret’s easy-going, engaging style gets everyone out on the dance floor. Her ability to smoothly adjust the dances to the experience level of the dance community make it a fun and accessible evening for everyone. In addition to contra dances, she calls for traditional Old Time square dances, Civil War reenactments, hoedowns, weddings and other joy filled occasions. Her dance calling has taken her up and down the East coast, from the Carolinas to Vermont, as well as the Northwest and Canada. When not calling, Margaret plays bass in Wild Root String Band, a Southern Old Time band.
Band
Countercurrent
Brian Lindsay (fiddle), Alex Sturbaum (Guitar, vocals)
Countercurrent is a powerhouse acoustic duo based in Olympia WA, featuring fiddle, guitar, harmony vocals, and foot percussion.
Alex Sturbaum and Brian Lindsay display a musical fluency that comes from a decade of playing together at contra dances, concert halls, jam sessions, festivals, bars, and living rooms all across the continent. When dancers and listeners experience the blend of lyrical melodies, groovy chords, thumping percussion, and vocal harmonies all simultaneously, the reaction is invariably “How does so much music come from just two people?!”
What does the name mean? In nature, when two flowing bodies moving in opposite directions share energy with each other, the process is called countercurrent exchange. This is the biological phenomenon that allows animals in cold environments to return heat to their core rather than losing it to the air, or enables the human body to concentrate elements that are otherwise dispersed in our bloodstream. In this musical duo, the exchange between Alex and Brian produces a potent flood of music that is astonishingly greater than the sum of its parts. This flux of energy between two musicians, between band and audience, between musicians and caller and dancers; is why the band is called Countercurrent.