Back from a weekend enjoying the Dead Ringers in San Francisco. Friends who've been morris dancing for years gather from the corners of the continent where they've spread out, and dance several sets near the Cannery and Hyde Pier in SF on Saturday, retiring to the Steelhead brewery for dinner; then continue on Sunday with a beach picnic, bocce 'tournament' and pub session (singing, dancing of jigs, consumption of goodies) until we're ready to wander off and call it a great time until next year.

Note to self: must find and learn the words to The Pro Musica Antiqua. no one could perform it *quite* so 'comme il faut' as Lynn, perhaps, but it Must be Known...

some highlights: Alex and Time came over to J&P's on Saturday night after the day of dance, and we played a set of Cliffs of Moher alternating with it jig self in 7/8 for the sheer fun and games of it.

Most religious moment of the day: playing for Jane, Liz & Patti, the tune Over the Hills and Far Away for the 3-person jig Barrow's House. Strangers reading this should know that morris dancing in general takes a long while to learn and coordinate with one's team, and is thus performance dance; a jig is a solo or small group ensemble-with-solos dance for showing the youngun's How It's Done. or something like that.
Jay came up with a credible new jig to the Webley Twizzle and Peterff leapt and twirled his 'Whirled Service" jig in the tradition of Minneapolis on Mississippi, a regional morris form created for the Bells of the North by Jim Brickwedde, when they were a New team lo these few decades ago. Further fascinated new readers may peruse the following locations for edification and amusement:
http://www.mit.edu:8001/people/jcb/morris-teams.html
http://www.thedonkey.org/index2.html
http://web.syr.edu/~hytelnet/mddl/