| TAP TERMS |
MOVES: It could be said that all moves are made up of 'brushes', 'steps' (which get a weight change) and 'taps' (which don't get a weight change.)
BRUSHES:
| BRUSH | (hitting the floor with the ball in a pushing motion. Also, with spanking motion. |
| SPANK(PULL) | (a brush back w/ball of foot. Note: many dancers and instructors use BRUSH BACK or SPANK for this move. Brush starts with foot in the air, spank with the heel down and toe up. Substitute.) |
| SCUFF | (fwd brush with heel. End in air.) |
| SHUFFLE | (brush forward w/ball, pull back w/ball.Basically, a BRUSH-SPANK.) |
| RIFF | (brush-scuff forward. End in air.) |
| RIFFLE | (brush-scuff-pull. Basically, a shuffle with an included scuff between the brush and pull.) |
STEPS (get weight change):
| STEP | (on flat foot or on ball, note context to choose.) |
| FLAP | (brush fwd and down on ball w/weight. a "brush-ball") |
| SLAP | (brush fwd and down on ball w/NO weight, a "brush-ball") |
| STAMP | (full foot step that gets weight change."Lick it and STICK it!") |
| STOMP | (full foot step that does NOT get a weight change.) |
| BALL-CHANGE | (two quick steps, one behind heel (BL) of other.) |
| HOP | (leaving ground and landing on same foot.) |
| JUMP | (leaving ground and landing on opposite foot.This
action also called LEAP while JUMP involves both feet.) |
| TOE | (stepping on ball of foot, in combination with HL. |
| HEEL | (dropping heel in combination with BL or TO.) |
| DROP | (dropping heel of support leg when ball is down. |
| CRAMP ROLL | (four steps crammed together. Toe, toe, heel, heel.can
be started R or L. If done as a pickup to a downbeat it's performed 'triplet-down' with the free foot lifted as the last heel drops.) |
| CHUG | (slide support leg forward, dropping heel. |
TAPS (no weight change):
| DIG | tap heel of free foot into floor. End on flr |
| PADDLE | (using the free foot to perform a heel DIG followed by a TAP -or SPANK- in quick succession. Also called SCUFFLE.) |
| STOMP | (full foot step with no weight change.) |
| TAP | (step on ball of foot w/o a weight change. If it's back it will be tip of foot.) |