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Country Dance and Song Society

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Country Dance and Song Society
AbbreviationCDSS
Formation1915; 109 years ago (1915)
TypeNonprofit organization
HeadquartersEasthampton, Massachusetts[1]
Region served
United States and Canada
Membership
2400 individuals and 260 affiliate groups[2]
Katy German
Budget
$1.2 million (2021)[3]
Staff
12[4]
Websitewww.cdss.org

The Country Dance and Song Society (abbreviated CDSS) is a nonprofit organization that seeks to promote participatory dance, music, and song with English and North American roots.[5][6][7][8][9]

History

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CDSS began in 1915 as a series of American chapters of the English Dance and Folk Society established by Cecil Sharp.[10]

Several US branches united under the English Folk Dance and Song Society of America in 1933,[11] and May Gadd was appointed as its first national director.[12] The organization consolidated in 1940. In 1949, its name was changed to Country Dance Society; “and Song” was added in 1967.

CDSS moved its office from New York City to western Massachusetts in 1987 and started a mail-order store for books, recordings, and supplies around the same time. Its website was launched in 2009.[11] Today, CDSS supports more than 260 local affiliate groups.[13]

Leadership

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Activities

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CDSS promotes a number of types of participatory dance, including contra dance,[14] English country dance, square dance,[15] morris dance, rapper sword, and clogging.[16]

CDSS runs several week-long summer camps at Pinewoods Dance Camp (MA),[17] Camp Cavell (MI), Agassiz Village (ME), and Camp Louise (MD).[18] They also run web chats[19] and other online programs year-round.[20]

References

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  1. ^ "Office Staff". Country Dance and Song Society. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
  2. ^ "Country Dance & Song Society - About". CDSS. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
  3. ^ "CDSS 2021 Financial Statement" (PDF). CDSS. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
  4. ^ "Country Dance & Song Society - About". CDSS. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
  5. ^ Hast, Dorothea E. (1993). "Performance, Transformation, and Community: Contra Dance in New England". Dance Research Journal. 25 (1): 21–32. doi:10.2307/1478188. JSTOR 1478188. S2CID 147023859.
  6. ^ Horton, Laurel (2001). "Material Expressions of Communality among Dance Groups". Western Folklore. 60 (2/3): 203–226. doi:10.2307/1500377. JSTOR 1500377.
  7. ^ Larkin, Leah (3 January 1971). "The old dances rock along". The Courier-Journal. p. 92. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  8. ^ Foster, Cathy (24 January 1982). "Country dancing revival is sweeping the country". The Daily Register. Christian Science Monitor. p. 47. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  9. ^ Walkowitz, Daniel J. (2010). City Folk: English Country Dance and the Politics of Folk in Modern America. New York University Press. pp. 2, 235–236, 244, 258, 273–274.
  10. ^ "Rare images taken by Cecil Sharp to be displayed in Burnsville". Black Mountain News. August 21, 2018. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  11. ^ a b "History of CDSS". Country Dance and Song Society. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
  12. ^ "May Gadd". SocialFolkDance.org. Retrieved 2024-09-26.
  13. ^ "About CDSS". Country Dance & Song Society. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
  14. ^ Smith, Sean (November 29, 2017). "Folk music's Windborne troupe loves to perform, and educate in the doing of it". Boston Irish Reporter. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  15. ^ Rhone, Jeffrey (2017). "The Challenge and Benefit of Evaluating Folk Dancing Quality". General Music Today. 31 (1): 10–15. doi:10.1177/1048371317713068. S2CID 149080455.
  16. ^ "The Social Dance Traditions". Country Dance and Song Society. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
  17. ^ "Program Providers". Pinewoods. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  18. ^ "CDSS Dance, Music, and Song Camps | CDSS Dance, Music, and Song Camps and Online Programs". Retrieved 2023-06-24.
  19. ^ "Web Chats for Organizers". Country Dance & Song Society. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
  20. ^ "Online Programs | CDSS Dance, Music, and Song Camps and Online Programs". Retrieved 2023-06-24.
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