Orchestras consisted of violins, cellos, bass viol, clarinet, and cornet played music. The city folks dianced some of the rural dances as well as other contre dances, quadrilles, waltzes and polkas. 1900 to Present Country and city life styles have merged. Microphones are used for larger crowds in larger halls. Callers teach as well as call, and dances have become more complex.
Fiddles are still the lead instruments, accompanied by accordion, piano, banjo, and guitar.
Because so many musicians are highly trained, the music is often less rough and earthy sounding. The dances still be done today are Virginia Reels including Sir Roger de Coverly, singing square dances like Marching through Georgia, contre dances, polkas, modern urban contra dances and modern western square dances. People still dance in their homes as well as in barns and town halls. Some of tunes common to most dance bands are Haste to the Wedding, Road to Boston, Flowers of Edinburgh, Fisher's Hornpipe, and thousands more, with many new ones written each year. Barn dance is a good name for what we do because it includes most of all the above kinds of dances and music.