But I have learned the error of my ways. Anita Feldman's Inside Tap is the book I wish I had years ago, the book I would want to write if it hadn't already been written.
Feldman's 200-page volume is packed with information, anecdotes, and exercises for improving and advancing technique. It is the most complete and informative book on tap available. (Not that that's saying much, given the number of books on tap in print in the United States.) And amazingly, it can be useful to dancers of all levels.
For new dancers, it explains some of the basics. The notation/vocabulary list in the introduction serves not only as a key for understanding Feldman's later drills and explanations; it can be used as a checklist for beginners who want to ensure that they know all of the fundamental tap steps. The first chapter discusses instruments: shoes and floors.
From there, Feldman launches right into improvisation and choreography. I was surprised, since many of the teachers I have encountered led me to believe that improvisation was an advanced skill, something you didn't tackle until you had your technique down perfectly. But improvisation is and always has been at the heart of tap, and Feldman is right in asserting that dancers should be taught how to create simple steps from the very beginning.
The rest of the book, which tackles subjects from dynamics to flash, is better suited for more advanced dancers. But for those who have mastered the fundamentals, Feldman lays out exercises and explanations in a way that is easy to read and understand. She explains drills in detail, and describes how to make them increasingly challenging.
Inside Tap is also invaluable for helping dancers charting progress and set goals. In the "Fastest Feet" chapter, for example, where she gives exercises for increasing dance speed, Feldman includes average speeds for intermediate and advanced dancers.
But this is no technical text. The author truly gives us a look "inside" an American art form. There is an entire chapter on the Shim Sham Shimmy and time steps, and Feldman peppers the book with anecdotes about legendary tappers, past and present, like this one about Bill Robinson.
"Bojangles asked the musicians to play an eight-measure introduction synchronized to a metronome only they could hear. The band stopped playing but continues to listen to the metronome while Bojangles continued dancing in silence for three and a half minutes. When the band cam back in, cued by the metronome, Bojangles was in perfect time."
Go To Page: 1 2
