A week before writing this I was at a dance event. It was one of those dance school events where there are students dancing all different sorts of styles and at different levels. One thing that I noticed was that despite the level, the tap dancers always seemed to have better timing then the other dancers.
I started thinking why this might be the case.
I posed the question on a LinkedIn group dedicated to teachers and coaches of dance. A few people responded, but the basic theme of the responses was the same. Tap dancers do have better timing. And this is why:
Tap dancing has both auditory and physical feedback. You can hear the sound as you step. This makes it easier to tell when you are out of time.
Tap dancers are more like musicians. Sometimes the tap dancer needs to actually add to the music when they dance. Think of the magenta tap in the time ward scene from the Rocky Horror Picture Show. See at 3:10 on the video below
Watch Time Warp - The Rocky Horror Picture Show in Music | View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com
If you’re struggling with timing or just want better musicality, then maybe a tap class or a course is what you need. Some other instructors said that they were sure that tap had made them much better able to dance with and express music. It's probably never occured to you, until then it had never occured to me, but it's still worth a try. If I do try it, then I will tell you more.
