Square dancers of all ages twirl around Westmoreland Fair, learn steps with seasoned caller, musicians

Square dancing has been an integral part of David Lang’s life since he was a boy.

“I (was) probably dancing before I was born because my mother was dancing when she was pregnant with me,” said Lang, 62, of New Stanton. “I guess you could say (my life) kinda revolves around square dancing.”

During a square dance, sets of four couples stand in a series of squares and are guided through various movements by a caller. Fairgoers of various experience levels grabbed a partner this week to partake in Westmoreland Fair’s Square Dance Social — with Lang as the caller.

Over the years, he learned specifics of square dancing and eventually decided to try his hand at the calls. Now, he’s “one of the few” still calling, he said.

“There’s not a whole lot of callers left anymore,” Lang said. “I’m probably the youngest, and I’m 62.”

Though there weren’t many couples dancing, Lang was able to make do while still teaching newcomers.

“We’ll walk you through it,” Lang said, encouraging anyone to give the dance a try. “If you screw up, nobody’s gonna get mad at you … they’re not gonna laugh at you — they’re gonna laugh with you.”

Tuesday night’s social was what Lang called an “old-fashioned or hoedown-style square dance,” compared to the other style, “western or modern,” that you typically see at farm shows, he said.

In modern style, the caller typically uses the music on his computer, but with old-fashioned there’s usually a live band.

Brothers Bernie and George Patrick provided the live music for the Square Dance Social, with Bernie on the fiddle and George on the keyboard.

Bernie, 60, of Derry has played fiddle for about 55 years, and George, 61, of Latrobe has played keyboard for about 50 years. They have known Lang for almost 50 years after meeting him through square dances.

“My mother was musical and my grandfather was musical, so music’s in our family,” George said.

George said he likes playing when there are three or four sets of four couples out on the dance floor and “everybody’s having a good time and the music’s flowing.”

“If you could get three or four more sets out there, it would be great,” George said of the social at the Westmoreland Fair.

Bernie’s favorite part is making people laugh and smile, spreading joy.

“We don’t do it for the money, that’s for sure,” Bernie said.

Liz Hand said dancing with the music was “really encouraging” because it’s not something you get to do just anywhere.

Hand, 63, of Monroeville is a self-proclaimed “kid at heart,” and she came out to the Westmoreland Fair this week because she knew about the Square Dance Social.

She only square danced one other time in her life — when she “basically threw a square dance party” as an undergraduate at Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

“We had a lot of fun, and I couldn’t wait to do it again,” Hand said.

She was a “little winded” after dancing with her husband of 35 years, but similar to Lang, she said “it doesn’t matter if you get all the steps right.”

“It’s just a matter of getting out there, dancing to the music, meeting new people,” Hand said.

If someone’s interested in learning to square dance, she suggested that they look up videos on YouTube, listen to the caller and practice with their partner before coming out.

Lang advised new square dancers to pay attention to the calls because “once you know the lingo, it’s a lot easier.”