Tap History

Dancers as musicians
Tap dancer's shoes are the instrument.
Dancer needs control of the knees, ankles and feet to make clear sounds.
Ragtime and jazz intertwine with the development of tap dance.
Jazz created by merging African and European musical traditions - African music provided
the rhythmic element while european music provided the melody and harmony.
History
Early slave trade in American resulted in rhythmic collision of cultures.
African-Americans were forbidden to use drums so they used their feet to convey messages
to each other. Complex rhythm passages.
A vaudeville tap star was Bill Bojangles, and Hollywood popularised it with Fred Astaire
and The Nickless Brothers.
Glossary

Time-Step - A repetitive tap combination which was originally used to set the tempo for the
band.

Rhythm The regular occurrence of an accented beat in a bar of music. Natural accents are
the 1st and 3rd.

Accent A definite, loud beat.

Syncopation The irregular occurrence of an accented beat in a bar of music.

How to create syncopation:
1 A basic rhythm
2 Disturb the accent
3 Could add pauses which will disturb the accent but that will not be syncopation
4 You have it, it must stand out to the ear like bursts of excitement. E.G. A strong accent on a
weak beat or a rest on a strong beat.

Time Time signature, E.G. 4/4, 3/4, 6/8, 2/4 [Top number is amount of beats in a bar].
Tempo Speed.

Tacit When the music or the dancer stops for 8 or more counts.
Stop-time When 1 or 2 beats aren't dances or played.

4 beat riff 4 sounds. Forward tap and heel catch R, heel dig and ball beat R.

3 beat wing change 3 sounds. A 3 beat wing, the first two sounds on the R foot and the
following one on the left foot.

4 beat wing change 4 sounds. A 3 beat wing change ending with a movement of a single
sound, E.G. toe tap, toe beat or heel beat.

Pendulum wing 4 sounds. A 3 beat wing preceded or followed by a brush. Candidates at

this level will be expected to perform a series of pendulum wings on one foot [max 8].

Anything Goes
The S.S. American, sailing from New York to England, carries an unusual group of
passengers. Included amongst them are a gangster (Moonface Martin), a wealthy debutante and her
mother (Hope and Evangeline Harcourt), a nightclub singer (Reno Sweeny), and a wealthy New
York businessman and his stowaway assistant (Elisha Witney and Billy Crocker). It turns out that
Hope is Billy's long-lost love. Unfortunately, she is now engaged to a wealthy Englishman, Lord
Evelyn Oakleigh. After a series of comedic happenings, Billy manages to win back Hope.
Meanwhile, Billy's friend, Reno, manages to seduce and win Lord Evelyn. All this happens while
Moonface Martin attempts to escape the law and Hope's mother strives to maintain her social status.
Our dance

The first step in our show was the 'Suzie-Q', we all stood in alternating circles and did this
step around the stage. It is a repetitive step which I struggled with to begin with, as there is a
tricky tap-step between the shuffle and the pick-up, but after practicing I could do it.
We then tap-springed into two diagonal lines which separated the two class levels of tap, we
had to watch our spacial awareness on this section because our group was smaller than the
second group and so we had to try to fill out the stage so the lines looked even, without any
of us looking out of place.
Once in position we began wing time-steps, which is a combination of two movements, we
have to pick up our front foot, spring and wing with that same foot, and then change to the
second foot. The timing for this step is very difficult because it is fast, in exercise one set is:
'8 and 1, 2 and 3 and'.
We then tap-springed around the stage and took our position upstage right and wiggled our
hips and swayed in a classic broadway type style which resonates the theme of the musical.
We then reached what I found the most difficult part of the dance, the turning sequence from
the corner. This was difficult for me because we had to tap, turn and move our arms at the
same time. I had difficulties getting in all of the hops, which meant my timing was askew, so
I had to work on it with Charlotte for a while before I was confident enough in the step.
Luckily I wasn't at the front of the group for this part!
Up until this point most of the dance had been done in cannon, which each group alternating
each other. We are now united in the centre of the stage and so we dance in sync. We brush
the ground with our heel and tap the heel of our other foot 4 times before picking up,
shuffling and tapping the balls of our heels on the ground to finish the step. This was a
relatively easy step.
The two teams then shuffled outwards whilst leaning downwards, in a movement which is
similar to movements seen in old Hollywood type films and classic Broadway musicals such
as 42nd Street and Anything Goes, in opposite directions and facing each other in a cheery
dance-off style.
We then left the stage whilst a solo ensued and tap-springed back on for the final 'chorus
line'. Which is something which would have been seen in Vaudeville acts. We used our right
foot to create a downwards accented beat on count one, before swapping it over with the left
foot and stomping the right foot down again at the back but with our bodies all facing
upright. Again the part was in cannon up until everybody was doing the same.
We then went forward and for the finale of the dance we created a boat type shape, and I
salute to the audience like a sailor.