New on May 22, 2022
New Rules & Regulations are available
What is Square Dancing?
Square Dancing is a team sport. Four female dancers and four male dancers ensure a sense of achievement through teamwork. Our choreography – in contrast to most other forms of dancing in clubs – is not learned by heart. Dance figure by dance figure is given to the dancers just in time by a caller, our type of a dance leader, This requires a rather spontaneous realization of these choreographic bricks. This encourages a form of togetherness, is beneficial to the physical and psychological health, and as a sideline it is also fun.
In the course of this a variety of challenges are exercised, they include:
- short- and long-term memory
- capacity of reaction
- to take your own decisions and put them into action
- teamwork
- spacial orientation
A world wide standard of the calls and their definitions enables us to pursue our hobby with people from other countries, even if we cannot verbally communicate with them.
In more than 800 clubs in Europe Square Dancing is done on a regular basis. One is certainly in your vicinity. Please ask me.
Callerlab "The Proposal"
Sessions from Callerlab Chairman Ted Lizotte about the proposal to modify the dance programs:
at the 49th Callerlab Convention
at the 73rd National Square Dance Convention
Further information
For ECTA-Members there has been a Zoom-talk with Ted Lizotte and Teresa Berger about "The Proposal" on September, 1st .
The Square Dance Branch in ECTA
The Square Dance Council is the ECTA section for Square Dance Callers and other ECTA members who are interested in that subject area. The Square Dance Coordinator represents his section in the extended ECTA board.
Different tasks are realised by committees formed for their purpose. At the moment there are committees for
- the dance programs (Basic/Mainstream, Plus, Advanced and Challenge)
- Women in Calling
- EEP
More committees will be realised for particular tasks and dissolved after achievement of objectives.
Who May Become a Member?
Every ECTA member can become member of the Square Dance Council. Only members with active status can vote in the council. Active and trainee members may bring in their talents in the committees. Further information on the respective categories of membership can be found here.
Education for Square Dance Callers
Since 2001 the EEP committee of ECTA works on an education guideline für the ECTA Education Program, short EEP. All members can participate in the training program and receive further training certificates through it. After passing tests EEP participants can communicate to their clubs through a shingle that they educate themselves regularly.
The ECTA Convention is the annual event with several opportunities to further education. Most seminars on the ECTA Convention are attributed to one of the education levels of EEP and convey (not only) the knowledge which is tested in the examinations.
In close cooperation with the EEP committee we also host seminars on EAASDC/ECTA-Jamborees and Fall Roundups. However, the focus of these lies on trans-sectoral topics. Furthermore we offer a platform for education on the ECTA Student Jamboree; specifically the possibility to try out the other dance forms of ECTA.
Further information about EEP can be found with the EEP-Committee.
Events
ECTA Student Jamboree
Each year ECTA stages the ECTA Student Jamboree. In calendar years with an even number we have a Student Jamboree at the same time in the northern and southern parts of ECTA’s range. To plan an application to host this event the following information shall support you with the decision.
Application
Even-numbered years: Student Jamboree North/South (N/S)
Odd-numbered years: one central Student Jamboree (C)
- Date of the event: last Saturday in March. If this day is also the Holy Saturday, the event will be on the second to last Saturday in March.
- The dates for the next years are (N/S = North/South; C = Central):
| Year | ECTA Student Jamboree | N/S; C | Holy Saturday |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Cancelled | ||
| 2025 | March 29, 2025 | C | April 19, 2025 |
| 2026 | March, 28, 2026 | N/S | April 4, 2026 |
| 2027 | April 3, 2027 | C | March 27, 2027 |
- Name of the hosting club
- Proposed place of the event and the name(s) of the halls.
- A copy of he halls’ layout inclusive of all installations and rooms and their sizes.
- Benchmark for the hall
- Main hall: North, ca. 600 m²; South, ca. 700 m²; Central, ca. 900 m²; with additional space for stage, seating and possible shops on the margin of the dance floor.
- A second, smaller hall is desirable.
- Benchmark for the stages: height ca. 0.8 to 1 m, size ca. 6 x 3 m.
- Sufficient number of dressing rooms and sanitary facilities – by tendency more for ladies than for gentlemen.
- Additional space for shops
- A separate room for meetings
- If possible an event office
- Space for registration and queue (neither in rain nor blazing sun!)
- The entire budget (Excel spreadsheet available through ECTA Square Dance Coordinator)
- All other information Informationen regarding the event and it’s organization.
Profit/Loss
The following statement relates to the carried-out event in accordance with the authorized plan:
- A profit will evenly be shared by ECTA and hosting club.
- A loss will be carried by ECTA.
Callerlab
Callerlab, proprietary spelling CALLERLAB, is the worldwide normative umbrella association of square dance callers. ECTA is an associated meber of Callerlab and assists to establish and maintain worldwide standards. Callerlab's definitions experience worldwide recognition and almost no square dance club deviates from them. The standardized definitions enable us, as dancers and callers, to worldwide dance or call dances without further verbal communication possibilities.
Links to Callerlab Definitions
The date of the definition is the date when the file was published on CALLERLAB's web site. The links should download the files directly. However, some of them just open in the window and you have safe them to the disk.
| Program/Type | Call-List | Definitions | Other (Anderes) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | 2021-09-01 | 2023-03-06 | 2020-11-01 Basic, deutsch |
| Basic/Mainstream | 2011-02-07 Definition Guide | ||
| Basic/Mainstream | 2007-12-19 Non Program Teaching Items | ||
| Mainstream | 2020-03-02 | 2020-02-20 | |
| Plus | |||
| Advanced | Advanced Dancing | ||
| Challenge 1 | 2021-11-28 | 2021-11-30 | |
| Challenge 2 | 2021-11-29 | 2021-11-30 | |
| Challenge 3a | 2021-11-28 | 2021-11-30 |
| Applications Review Committee | 2017-12-11 | In English. German version: 2012-05-16 | ||
| Formation Pictograms | 2014-09-17 | |||
| Formations and Arrangements | 2014-09-17 |