Tap dance

Tap dance (or tap) is a form of dance that uses the sounds of tap shoes striking the floor as a form of percussion; it is often accompanied by music. Tap dancing can also be performed with no musical accompaniment; the sound of the taps is its own music.

It is an American artform that evolved alongside the advent of jazz music. Tap is a type of step dance that began with the combination of Southern American and Irish dance traditions, such as Irish soft-shoe and hard-shoe step dances, and a variety of both slave and freeman step dances. The fusion of African rhythms and performance styles with European techniques of footwork led to the creation of tap dance. This fusion began in the mid-17th century but did not become popular until the mid-19th century.

There are two major versions of tap dance: rhythm (jazz) tap and Broadway tap. Broadway tap focuses on dance; it is widely performed in musical theater. Rhythm tap focuses on musicality, and practitioners consider themselves to be a part of the jazz tradition.

The sound is made by shoes that have a metal "tap" on the heel and toe. Different shoes may differ in their sound.