Tapping in Silence

     I've been tapping just about since I learned how to walk. I've learned several other forms of dance such as ballet, jazz, modern, contemporary, hip-hop and lyrical, but tap has always been a favorite of mine, despite the fact that it isn't as popular as it was years ago.
     When I was thinking about composing a song without traditional instruments, for a while, I knew I wanted to work with taps in some sort of way. Beyond that, I was lost. I let the idea sink in over my Thanksgiving break as I relaxed. During my time off, I relived part of my childhood and played "The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker." Since I've played this game more times than I can count, as I played this past week, I paid special attention to the music in the game. I always loved and appreciated the soundtrack; however the interaction between the player and the songs became a highlight for me. When the main character struck an enemy with his sword, the music would react: a burst of string instrumentation would play.
    This interaction between player and music truly enhanced the experience of the game, and made the fights much more dangerous and thrilling. But this concept of interactive music was really what fascinated me. Listening to music is usually a passive experience. "Wind Waker" challenged this idea of passivity and it paid off in the long run, making the music more entertaining and adding to the game itself.
     I wanted to recreate this idea of interactive music with the art of tap dancing.
     After much thought, I decided to let my song be the soundtrack or background music for a group of people playing Ninja. There is the basic beat of the person striking the shoes with the taps removed, while there is the contrary metallic sound of the taps whenever a player strikes or gets hit. The piece itself is simple and the listeners will most likely tune it out after a while. In a sense, this song is also a metaphor for tap dancing in modern times: barely alive in mainstream society and something one can ignore fairly easily, yet it is still an interesting and unique form of dance.
     I don't want anyone to forget of tap. I hope this song will do the art justice while conveying the message of an interesting, dying art.

"This is a shoebox. It's also my written composition, written on a forgotten object. It's a simple piece, just to animate the silence of the room ... Use this as background music for a game of Ninja. You may forget the song is playing after a while, and that's okay. Tap is a fading art, a style of dance that is no longer common. Don't let tap fade completely, though. It's still a beautiful art, after all."