What Do Classic Black Jazz Shoes and Tap Dance Footwear Have in Common?
Tapping To Jazz Jazz music was, and still is sometimes, used for tap dance numbers, in fact jazz and tap were very closely connected when African American routines were in their heyday during the early 1900’s through to the 1950’s. However jazz dance and it’s respective footwear took a slightly different turn, becoming more of a modern dance that incorporated segments from ballet and other contemporary choreographed styles, and in many cases required a mix of footwear flexibility, the ability to perform a pirouette while still not being ballet, and later being able to add rhythmic movements, and most recently incorporate hip hop street dance styles. Fred Astaire Tapping Naturally the footwear once used for jazz, which consisted of basic black tap shoes in rather formal ballroomesque styles, had to change with the needs of the dancers. Dancers required diverse things, from an oxford to a soft flexible leather, or a modern sneaker to a street style high top boot that would be accepted on
