Remembering Rosemary
Read the article in Rosemary Lach’s honour published in the CDSS Fall News 2023
Sheet music for Remembering, composed by the Dancehall Players in memory of Rosemary. The sheet music is downloadable - please feel free to share it
Playing Remembering at Rosemary’s memorial gathering
Remembering Rosemary Lach
The Dancehall Players, Victoria English Country Dance Society (VECDS)
Ann Schau: In April 2023, I received an email from Keith that said - “Let’s do something special in remembrance off Rosemary - let’s write a tune for her. I’ve written the first 4 bars. The band can finish the rest.” The Dancehall Players played Remembering, our waltz for Rosemary, at her memorial. The tune will be recorded this fall as part of Out Of The Silence Vol. 3, and will be available in the spring of 2024. The music is included here, to share as a downloadable pdf, so that all may use it - in Rosemary’s name. I met Rosemary 22 years ago, when I walked in the door of St. Xavier’s church hall to play piano for a weekly series of English Country Dancing that she was calling in the spring of 2001. The other recruit for the occasion was Dan Page, violin. I recall her tolerance as we learned the intricacies of accompanying the dance. And her insistence that I learn to dance, as well as play! A substitute pianist was found and away I went. Though I don’t remember which dance it was, I have a clear picture of Rosemary’s back, as she deftly slid in front of me to lead me through a hey. For me, that memory says it all - her passion for dance, her understanding of the relation of music and dance, her willingness to share. Meeting Rosemary and Dan changed my life! In the fall, we began our long and fruitful collaboration for the VECDS. We miss her.
Keith Malcolm: Rosemary was always there for others. From calling dances to teaching future instructors, she had a compassionate desire to share her knowledge. I will also remember her tireless efforts to promote English country dancing on Vancouver Island, and beyond our borders. Rosemary will be greatly missed.
Karen McIvor: We will miss her - so many people who knew her and had danced with her over the years, from far and near, or had worked with her on big events. I think especially of all the work you did together over the years, and all left undone at this point. And I’m thinking of her family. Best regards to all.
Lael Whitehead: Rosemary Lach was a force of nature. The very first time I met her I was struck by her energy and her quick mind. She was calling the dance in Dan’s Hall - in fact, at that time, she was the only caller in the Victoria English Country Dance club. My husband, Richard, and I were new to English Country Dancing. I arrived that evening with a brain that felt very “crowded” with new information about dance figures, sets, corners, lines of dance, etc. So much to keep track of! And the fear of a misstep - of colliding with another dancer and embarrassing myself - was never far from my mind. Rosemary greeted us that evening with what I came to know as her direct, no-nonsense manner. “You’ll pick it up,” she said confidently. “Just takes time.” It turned out that she was a great teacher. She didn’t fuss, she didn’t hover; she just gave clear directions and, when we got really muddled, set us straight with a quick demo. Her confident mood was contagious. We both relaxed and, despite our inexperience, felt a few moments of rapture on the dance floor that night. I was thoroughly hooked, and couldn’t wait to come back the following week! Rosemary could come across as stern. But she also had a lovely, playful side, and would occasionally burst into delighted laughter when things got chaotic out on the dance floor. Her competence, her humour and her obvious love of dance kept it fun for the rest of us. I feel a wave of deep gratitude thinking of all she helped to create and nurture in our Victoria dance community. Her legacy will live on.
Artwork by Joanne Thomson 2015
And to the greater ECD community: Thank you for sharing your stories of Rosemary. Here are some of those remembrances.
Lorraine Sutton Clarksburg, Ont: What sad news for the Victoria community , west coast and other dance communities where Rosemary made friends and offered her dance calling talents and shared dance notations. I first met her at a Trip To Ottawa, November weekend, then a TECDA Friday night dance in Toronto and the Lenox Weekend in Mass in 2017. She contributed the dance ACTIVE PASS to the ECD Sea-To Sea booklet that was published in 2017. Rosemary will be missed ...and so valued for her leadership, love and skills for English Dance. Warm regards to all who encountered her.
Trevor Monson UK: We're so sorry to hear about Rosemary. We first "met" on the ECD list, and later when she came over to England we actually met and danced together, without realising who each other was! But she invited me over to teach in Victoria, was a wonderful host with an amazing sense of humour. And because of this we also met, danced and stayed with Ann - another lasting friendship. A very sad loss to our dancing world.
Renée Camus: I'm so sorry to hear about the passing of Rosemary Lach. I didn't know her well but she was clearly a significant member of the dance community and an important organizer and proponent of dance. I wish you all comfort and hope in keeping her memory alive.
Jacqueline Schwab: I was so very sorry to read the sad and, for me, unexpected news on the ECD list that Rosemary Lach has died. I know she was a vital part of your lovely, very special community. Thinking of you, as you grieve the loss of her - and, as you wrote, honor her memory by carrying on. Lots of love.
Paul Ross: This is sad and shocking news, indeed. Rosemary attended The Lenox Assembly several times, where I got to dance and exchange thoughts with her in a most pleasant and rewarding way. She was, like me, a devotee of Fried Herman, her dances and the style of dancing she imparted to those who learned from her. In her 2013 survey following that year's weekend, she wrote, "I'm re-inspired. I will be returning to a dance community which I started 13 years ago and I want to create something new, to expand their horizons and help them dance better. This weekend has helped me focus on the direction I want to take. I will be attempting to give back some of the clarity that Andrew shows in his teaching. The increased familiarity with Fried's dances and how she wanted them danced will give me more confidence when teaching her dances." Rosemary was herself an inspiration and was always "giving back.”
Colin Hume: UK I met Rosemary when she booked me to lead the "Hands across the Water" weekend in 2014. I stayed with Rosemary and later with Ann, and got on very well with both of them. In fact I wrote a dance called "Hands across the Water", dedicated to Rosemary and The Dancehall Players, and called it in the final session. In 2018 Rosemary emailed me to say that she would be in England around New Year's Eve and wondered if there were any dances happening. I told her she was in luck as I was calling a New Year's Eve dance, so Rosemary came and stayed with us, and I had the pleasure of calling the dance in England with Rosemary dancing.
Jenny Beer: You were already mourning the death of Robin last fall, and now this sudden, devastating loss of Rosemary must be turning your hearts inside out. All of you, especially Rosemary, were such kind hosts the several times I have danced with you all on my visits to Vancouver Island (I have cousins in Nanaimo). On my first visit, Rosemary toured me all around Victoria, including her charming houseboat. In her matter-of-fact manner she wanted to show me to everything that made the Victoria dance community special: she loved her dancers, she loved Dan and Dan's Hall, she loved the Dancehall Players musicians, she loved teaching ECD and putting on events--it was as if she held all this precious community in her caring hands. We enjoyed in-person and email conversations about English Country Dancing, especially choreography. I still feel bad that the time she invited me to lead your Ball, and I had laryngitis (!). I was disappointed not to be able to give the 100% back to Rosemary that she deserved.
Patricia Petersen: Sad news indeed. I had very little contact with Rosemary, but I do remember being on the CDSS Board with her years ago. A self-proclaimed introvert, she was quiet and circumspect—but when she did speak, everyone listened, as she always had something worthwhile to say. I’m sorry I never got to know her better.
Alan Winston: I was really shocked to hear of Rosemary’s death. I’d encountered her over the years at Hey Days (perhaps earlier, at Mendocino) on the dance floor and in caller workshops, and at the Seattle Ball; she hired me years ago for the Victoria opening weekend festivities, which was a fabulous experience for me, and more exposure to the really lovely dance community she’d built (or helped to build, not to dismiss other people’s contributions) there. I’ve called her beautiful dance “Filigree”, and we’d danced together probably a dozen times over the years. What makes this even more disconcerting is remembering the Seattle Ball this year, a little over a month ago, and finding myself in Rosemary’s set for Gambols. Brad Foster had made a point of saying that Jenna Simpson didn’t want to specify walking or skipping and was happy with whatever people did, and it turned out that Rosemary and I and our partners were in the same foursome for ends casting and circling, and we were pretty much all on board with skipping. (Well, I was prepared to walk but inspired instantly when I saw them skipping.). And what was entirely characteristic of Rosemary as I knew her was that she was skipping robustly and precisely, her mien was contained but joyful, and she was equally grave and playful. I certainly didn’t imagine that she had any health problem, much less that we’d lose her so soon. It’s hard to think that we will never share another dance floor.
Laura Mé Smith: Losing Rosemary is such a huge loss to us all, both personally and for the ECD community, not only in Victoria, but everywhere. It would be my privilege to honor Rosemary in whatever way you feel appropriate, …to bring the community together in love and grief to celebrate all Rosemary has done for us all over the years. We shall dance and dance and dance through our tears.
Brooke Friendly: Devastating news. She was indeed a driving force and will be much missed. All my love to you and your community.
Graham Christian: Terrible news indeed. Rosemary was a bright light and a friend.
Kalia Kliban Sebastopol: I always enjoyed Rosemary's company, her calling, and her calm and genial presence. My condolences to all the community up there.
Neil & Marguerite Stuart UK: That’s terribly sad news, our thoughts are with all in your community.
David Macemon Portland OR: I can’t imagine how your community is managing this sad news. <<Hugs>> to everyone.
Liz Goossen: It is hard to imagine coming out to dance with you and not being greeted by and dancing with Rosemary.