Preconceived notion

Preconceived notion

The preconceived notion regarding the tap dance I had was that tap dance is not American. I had always assumed that this form of music was first performed somewhere in African but later found its way into America. However, reading through the history indicates that this genre of music is rooted deeply into the American culture (Hill, 2014, 12). Another preconceived notion I had is that tap music is in its dying stages. However, I have learned that tap is very popular among Americans and that it continues to be embraced and integrated into other forms of music such as Jazz to add flavor in the dancing styles.

Attraction to the Tap music

My first attraction to the Tap dance was tapping sound and rhythm that dancers produced with shoes during a performance. The sounds were sweet and cool. My first interest was to learn how they did it. What was made of those shoe heels? Was it metallic material, or was it wooden? Well, I could not tell for sure, but I doubted someone would wear a wooden heel shoe into a stage for dancing. As I started learning about tap music, I learned that these are the materials that are fitted into the shoes to produce the desired sounds (LaDuca, Laduca, and Phillip, 2009, 24). Most recently, dancers even fit adjustable screws to facilitate the production of the desired sound effects.

What I hope to learn from Tap music

The most immediate thing I hope to learn from tap music is dancing for enjoyment and feeling like part of the American culture. Secondly, I will also be interested in learning the history of our country in the lens of immigration, slavery, segregation, immigration, feminism, and civil rights movements, as advocated in these forms of music. I believe these are important issues that will help shape both the current and future generations by teaching them where the country has come from.