Notes on Tony Parkes' "Contra Dance Calling"

In 1992 Tony Parkes, one of the best-known New England contra dance callers, wrote a book: Contra Dance Calling: a Basic Text. In 2010 he published an updated second edition. I found used copies of each and read through them, interested in both what he thought, and what he thought to change. I read the whole 1992 first edition, then skimmed the 2010 second edition with the older one open at the same time, looking for changes. My notes: I'm mostly interested in it for what it tells us about the community and practice over time, but as what it intends to be—a thorough introduction to the practice of contra dance calling—it succeeds very well. I'm sad I didn't read it a few years earlier so I could ask him questions about it! Parkes' tempos are high: "[120bpm] is the tempo adopted by the army for comfortable long-term marching, and it has been standard in contra dancing for several generations. The tempo can be varied during an evening, to provide contrasts in energy or excitement level,…