Tht CaboHOtator

Issue No. 33 L.O.D.C. April 1981

IN THIS ISSUE
1. Analysis and Notating of Tap Dancing ... Page 1
2. Use of Double Horizontal Lines 4
3. Sectional Repeats for Group Scores 6
4. Sectional Repeats - Restatement of Material 9

1. ANALYSIS AND NOTATING OF TAP DANCING

The LABANOTATOR No. 28 (June 1979) contained a piece by Sheila Marion on
writing tap dance. Billie Mahoney's October 1979 reply to and comments on this
should have appeared soon after. We apologize to her for the delay, and devote
this issue not only to Billie's thoughts on Tap Dance, but also to other notation
questions which she has brought up.
Billie writes: "It is because I feel some notators
who are not Tap Dance specialists might give serious
consideration to Ex. lOa (28,p7), here Ex. la), presen-
ted by Sheila Marion as the method of writing what is
known as a "brush" in tap dancing, that I feel compel-
led to present the following comments:

A.I I've been endeavouring to comprehend whether it is

*
la)
"Glancing"
LJ
"Hitting"
(S. Marion's definitions)
the analysis of the tap movement or the meaning of
a transient touch in Labanotation where we differ
when she suggests that Ex. la) here, 'a brief sliding action', will produce
'a curved pattern of motion x / while Ex. Ib) will produce 'an angular
deflection ^xx^ and therefore, a brush in tap dance should be written as
a brief slide. I find it necessary to try to clarify both 'the brush' and a
transient touch for readers of the Labanotator.
DEFINITIONS OF BRUSH
B.I "to touch in passing", Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, 1960.
B.2 "Brush: Swing free foot, striking ball of foot, in any direction." TAP
DANCING, Syllabus and Dictionary of Terms, The National Council of Dance
Teacher Organizations, 1965.
8.3 "BRUSH - Hit the floor with any part of the ball of the foot in either a
forward or a backward motion," TAP DANCING, by Danny Hoctor, 1971.
B.4 "Brush: single tap sound made by touching the front tap on the floor as the
foot swings forward. At the end of the brush, the foot remains off the
floor", THE BOOK OF TAP, by Jerry Ames, 1977.
B.5 "FORWARD TAP Strike the ball of foot sharply forward (ankle action).
FORWARD BRUSH (One sound) A broader movement than a forward tap, the swing
to come from the knee and hip". MODERN TAP TECHNIQUE, by Moyra Gay, pub-
lished by the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing, London, 1976.
Zelia Ray is credited with the Glossary of Terms.

* The example numbers here until page 4 follow those used by Billie in the paper
she sent. In referring to them (in contrast to the rest of the examples) we
suggest use of the prefix BM.
(2) The LabanotatOFj Issue No. 33, 1981

Definitions of Brush (continued)

C. Now let's consider definitions taken from LABANOTATOR No. 15 (1963) which
present Knust's method of writing touching and sliding gestures. At that
time these had not yet been adopted by Labanotation.
C.I "RULES"
TOUCHING GESTURES: One hook attached to the leg gesture symbol indicates a
moment of contact with the floor, a touch.
C.2 SLIDING GESTURES: Two hooks on a gesture symbol indicate a touching progres-
sion - a slide.
C.3 Application of the Rules: ... (the) gesture is a main movement in which the
addition of hooks does not change the basic action - the progression of the
leg through space ... If the touching occurs while the leg is moving then
these are touches which occur in passing, a momentary touch.
C.4 Touch as an Intermediary Action: ... On its way the leg dips to touch...
and rises again .... "
D.I From page 209 of LABANOTATION by Ann Hutchinson, 1970: "A Transient Touch can
occur while the leg is en route from one direction to another."
D.2 Valerie Preston-Dunlop writes in paragraph 351 of PRACTICAL KINETOGRAPHY LABAN
1969: "Because a touch is instantaneous, the exact timing of it on the ges-
ture is significant."
D.3 And on page 158: "Brushing and sliding over the floor are shown by attaching
two touch signs to one direction sign."
D.4 From all of the above, to me the conclusion seems obvious that a "brush" in
tap dance should be written in Labanotation as a transient touch or contact.
Prior to Labanotation1s adopting Knust's method of writing a transient touch,
it had been mast difficult Tcr^analyze^rap^Eovements. TKe^only sources had
shown a sliding contact, but those of us who had worked with tap dancing knew
that one can spend many hours, years, a lifetime to master a good clean foot
contact with no sliding sound. This comes from manipulation of the ankle, and
if you want to get really specific we could even say energy in the toes, while
the lower leg in coordination with varying degrees of contraction of the whole
leg makes a smooth sweeping, but minute, movement. And the contact is an in-
stantaneous, transient touch.
D.5 Therefore, it follows that Sheila Marion's examples,
2a) and b) would produce exactly the same leg move-
ment, a curve. But a) would stay in contact to pro-
duce a slide, however brief, still a slide, and b)
would produce an instantaneous touch and continue on.
To produce the "angular deflection \^/' a differ-
ent notation will be required, Ex. 3). It is a
mistaken idea that one symbol can indicate two dis-
tinct movements in different directions "with a feel-
ing of stopping midway."
D.6 In defense of her method of writing brushes, Sheila cites
Tap Dances by Billy Fagley in the Knust collection. My
research shows Billy Fagley notated "Three Blind Mice" in
1936. Surely we have progressed since then. I should
hope that the tap dancing of Paul Draper, that Ray Cook,
Lucy Venable, Carl Woltz, and I notated in 1961, will not
be held as representative of how to write tap dancing in
the 1980's.
 The Labanotatorf Issue No. 33j 1981 (3)

Definitions of Brush (continued)

D.7 In checking Knust's Handbook, 1958: "Ex.
503k shows a brief brush of the floor in a
tap dance shuffle." His DICTIONARY, 1979,
describes the same movement: "550i Touching
the floor with a short slide at the begin-
ning of each of two leg gestures, like the
"shuffle" in tap dancing." Knust clearly
intends a short slide. Let's look at the
movement in the example: the wide stance 503k 5501
and direction of the leg gestures indicate
the character and style of shuffle which follows Webster's definition:
"Shuffle - To move or perform with a dragging gait; as, to shuffle the feet
.... A slovenly, dragging motion; specif., a sliding or scraping' step in
dancing; also a dance characterized by such a step."
D.8 All of the tap technique books cited above describe a shuffle as "a brush for-
ward, and a brush back", except Zelia Raye, who describes a "Forward and Back
Tap", none of which fit Webster's definition or Knust's notation. Also the
timing in Knust's examples is questionable.
D.9 If Sheila had consulted my Fundamentals of Tap
Dancing, which was presented at ICKL 1969, she
would realize that Ex. 4a) for a forward brush
is a simplified version of 4b). As the emphasis
of that ICKL paper was on timing, the complete
detailed notation was not followed through in
every example, but the folding and unfolding of
the ankle, or actual movement of the foot, which
is the action which produces the sound is indica-
ted in the first examples. Ex. 4a) and b) are
taken directly from the 1969 paper. Today I
would write the detailed version as 4c) and for
the shuffle 4d), the simplified shuffle 4e). In
any case, there is one instantaneous contact,
and not a slide. This type of detail might ex-
plain the vertical impact during the fluent move-
ment.
D.10 But I shudder to see the notating of such intri-
cate detail in tap dance. Granted, for a re-
search project, this might be necessary, but
hardly for notating tap dance for the reader to
perform. As Kurt Jooss pointed out at the 1975
ICKL Conference, if we get too detailed we are
denying the everyday use of notation and defeat-
ing our system. As a glossary or detailed ana-
lysis can point out, many things must happen to
produce a clean, clear sound, but let's not
clutter our scores with such details, nor mess
up tap technique by writing slides, which a con- e)
scientious reader would strive to produce."
Billie continues with further comments on Sheila's presentation, but let us
deal first with this material which was the focal point of the monthly meeting of
the London Labanotators group on March 14th, 1980. The following comments rep-
resent the consensus of that meeting and are presented here in the hope of help-
ing to shed further light and provide a solution.

E.I Billie's most interesting discussion illustrates the ambiguity of words and
the need for clear, specific terminology. The very word "brush" itself is
misleading, since in everyday life it presupposes a slight duration of con-
tact. "Hit" does not, and so the definition "Brush - hit the floor..."
(4) The LabanotatoY, Issue No0 33, 1981

Definitions of Brush (continued)

given by Hoctor (para. B3) seems a contradictiono In para. B4 the words "as
the foot swings forward" suggests a curved movement. The description in para,
B5, "A broader movement than a forward tap" given to describe "FORWARD BRUSH",
suggests more duration of contact than "FORWARD TAP" which is described as
"strike the ball of the foot sharply,, . „" Use of the word "sweeping" at the
end of para. D4 suggests continued contact, even if minute.
E o*o From our discussions with Tap people, we gather that there are different
schools of thought as to just how tapping should be done. Billie's descrip-
tion certainly suggests detailed use of the foot (ankle) which must result
from specialized training. Let us take it, then, that there are two specific
points of view on this. In our ntoation we have the means of writing the dif-
ferent techniques, we can be very specific in our movement descriptions. What
then is the simple notation of Ex, Ib) to represent in movement?
E.3 As with many other instances which we have encountered in recent LN meetings,
there is a definite need for a general statement, a statement which does not
give exact performance, and which is open to interpretation, and is intended
to be open to different interpretations. As Billie points out, it takes trai-
ning to perform Ex, Ib) in her way, what of the untrained person, the folk
dancer, the amateur, the villager dancing on Saturday night, where exact per-
formance is very open to choice?
E.4 If Ex. Ib) is taken as the general statement, then
the specific performance can be spelled out in the
text or given in a glossary, Ex. Ic) shows a very
brief sliding action. Ex, Id) shows an immediate
release of the contact.
E.5 The use of the small, neat effort signs might be
helpful, i.e. flick: \ for the curved> momentary
brush, and dab: /^ for the hit and 'away1.
E.6 Billie's original ICKL paper dealt with timing as
part of a larger investigation of timing. We
would like to question the 'where* in the matter
of the placement of the contact hook(s). In Ex,
le) the leg starts below the hip and the contact
comes at the start of the forward movement, as in
Billie's Ex, 4a) b), etc,, thus hitting the floor
virtually under the hip. In Ex, If) the contact
takes place half way to the destination. It could
occur at the end of the movement, as in Ex, Ig),
remaining on the ground, or coming off as in Ex.
Ih). And, of course, there can be more than one
contact as the leg moves forward (or whatever the
direction may be). This discussion is only
brought up because of the variations met in the
tap examples written by Billie and Shelia for Ig) h)
these discussions.

2, IBE OF DOIBLE HORIZONTAL LINES

Billie has contributed a question which has been on the minds of many. Amongst
our colleagues, east and west, there are different usages. What are the differen-
ces, do they matter, which way is the best?
Billie writes:
F,.l When a sectional repeat occurs in the middle of a count or measure (i.e. not
at a bar line) what do we call the second line that must be drawn with the re-
peat line that extends outside of the staff?
 The Labanotator, Issue No. 33, 1981 (5)

Use of Double Horizontal Lines (continued)

Line "s" is "start of movement' Lines "b" are bar lines. «-3
What is "c"? I have just not found a logical explanation
when students ask why the second line is needed. We used
to say all repeats are surrounded with double bar lines,
and many years ago, each section (or dance) started and
ended with double lines. The 1954 text states "double
C
lines at the beginning and end of the section are exten- .
ded out ." The 1970 text says "extended horizontal
lines enclose the section", meaning one line at the begin- «- 0
ning and one line at the end of the sequence. Do you un-
derstand my question? Do we have a rule about what sur-
rounds a repeated section?
2) I
Let us go back and see how all this developed..
F.2 In Laban's 1928 book he used double lines
at the base of the notation, before the
starting position, Ex. 2a). At the Jooss-
Leeder School in 1936-40 bar lines were
used, Ex. 2b). For sectional repeats these
lines were doubled and the habit was to 2a)1930 2b) 1936 2c)
make them coincide with the bar lines, Ex.
2c). Later it was realized that the repeat
should start on paper wherever it started
in the movement, even if this was on an up-
beat or in the middle of a measure.
F.3 Knust's and Szentpal's short bar lines were
adopted by LN and at the same time the
double horizontal lines for 'start of ac-
2d)
tion', Ex. 2d). In Ex. 2d) the start of
action coincides with the bar line, thus
the lower line, S, is the start of action,
while B, the 2nd line, is the bar line.
When start of action does not coincide with
the bar line, it is written as in Ex. 2e).
88 = start of action; B the bar line.
F.4 It has been observed that some European
colleagues use the double line at the start
of each new staff, Ex. 2f). What is the
2f)
reason for this? Why is it needed? A sin-
gle line is considered enough in LN.
F.5 For sectional repeats only a single line is
extended, Ex. 2g). This is much easier to
see than the old way of Ex. 2c). The prac-
tice was established that when such a re-
peat coincides with a bar line, the exten-
ded line is written just above at the start
and just below at the finish. Thus, sec-
tional repeats were "enclosed in double
lines".
F.6 What then of the instances where the repeat
does not coincide with a bar line? Billie
has only mentioned one bothersome example.
What about the examples where the repeat
comes immediately after a double 'start-of-
action' line, as in Ex. 2h)? 2h)
(6) The Labanotatopj Issue No. 33, 1981

Use of Double Horizontal Lines (continued)

And when two sectional repeats meet at a bar
line, as in Ex. 21), are three lines needed?
Does one write symbols through the space ta-
ken up by the three lines, or stop before
and start again after, which can look like a
gap intended for a spring? Knust's 1979
book provides good examples of this problem
in 809b, c, and d.
F.7 For students it has always been confusing to know
which comes first, the short or the long line.
J
What, they ask, is the logic? Ex. 2k) provides a
further complication by having the recommended
(but seldom used?) thickened lines for the 1st
and 2nd ending. F is the first thickened line
1
and G the second. Inbetween these two we have E,
2j)
the upper extended repeat line and B, the bar
line.
When there are three such lines in a row,
what happens to detailed notation which has
to be written there? There is obviously a
visual problem. Does anyone really like
all these lines? Are they really needed
either logically or visually?
F.8 Maria Szentpal and her colleagues decided
that there was no need for double lines,
single repeat lines were clear, and so they
simplified by using only the single exten-
ded line as in Ex. 2m). This is true also—— - 2k)
when two sectional repeats come one after
the other, as in Ex. 2n), (only partial
staff shown).
F.9 Instead of Ex. 2i), some have tried the
more simplified version of Ex. 2o), in
which the extended lines 'overlap'. If
they occur at a bar line, which is the bar —
line? Maria's use of Ex. 2n) overcomes
2m) 2n)
this problem. Is it hard to read? Is
there anything unclear about it? Have you
had trouble in reading Maria's scores?
Should we adopt this simplified usage?
At the March 14th Labanotator meeting 75%
were in favour of using single lines. The
proposal was to see how easily scores read
written the one way and the other.
2o)
3. SECTIONAL REPEATS JOR -GROUP SCORES
The following was not brought up by Billie, but follows the general subject
and so is being introduced here. The problem has been met in reading scores.
What is meant can be figured out in either way of writing, but we found the pro-
cess of reading was slowed down.
G.I When working with a score which has two or more staves
linked together, one has to make the decision where to
put sectional repeats so they are readily understood.
One solution is to put the repeats beside each separate
staff, as in Ex. 3a). Some people feel this provides
too many repeat signs; they prefer Ex. 3b) .
3a)
 The Ldbanotator, Issue No. 33, 1981

Sectional Repeats for Group Scores (continued)

G.2 Ex. 3b) looks more compact than 3a) when only two
staves are being used. What about three or more
staves? Sectional repeats may start in the middle
of a page; are the connecting horizontal lines to
be drawn all the way across all the staves as in
Ex. 3c)? 3b) B

B
3c) 3d)
B B
3e)
G.3 What would you assume to be the meaning of Ex. 3d)? Do the extending lines
joining the two staves automatically mean the repeat for A applies also to
B? If it happens in mid-staff, as in Ex. 3e) would it be understood? This
same basic example could occur also with multiple staves.

G.4 In the following examples from a recent

score, are the repeats clear? Is a gene-
ral ruling needed, or is it up to the no-
tator to choose the method which best
suits each instance? The London Labanota-
tors agreed that for each particular score
it would be best to leave the decision to
the writer. The density of the notation
may make such repeats easier or harder to
read. In following the movement of one
person, it is helpful to have the repeat
placed adjacent to that staff. Immediate
recognition may be vital during the pres-
sures of quick reference, particularly in
demonstrating fluent reading to illustrate
the practicality of our system!
2« (*)'
3f) GDKIEC PNMOH

Repeat Signs - Kinetography Style

In the examples used here the set of repeats established by Knust are used.
These are explained below for the benefit of Labanotators. This whole question
of unification of repeat signs needs to be sorted out. The difficulty is that
there is merit in each way and the pros and cons need to be fully discussed with
revealing examples.

3g) LN 3h) KIN LN KIN

 (8) The Labanotator, Issue No. 33, 1981

(40)
(38)

34

(39)
(57)

3'=.

H I K
L M N

3k)

In this example it is hard at first to see the repeat particularly if one is read-
ing the centre staves. The meas. numbers at the extreme left are an immediate
clue, but in reading HIK etc. do you find your eye looking for the other repeat in-
dication on the left of the entrance meas. (no.33)? Would a line drawn all the way
across all staves at the start of 33 and at the end of 34 help?

C PMF GIRO
N l ES H K DO

Ex.3m) is hard on the eye because of the gap in the centre which is there in anti-
cipation of the division into four groups for the transition into the pose of meas.
394. The layout is aesthetically pleasing, but other possibilities also exist.
 The Labanotator3 Issue No. 33, 1981 (9)

4. SECTIONAL REPEATS - RESTATEMENT OF MATERIAL

Billie continues:
H.I "In a repeated sequence, such as Ex. 4a), how do we
get an arm gesture back to the starting position on
the first count of the repeat? This is a common oc-
curence which I find ignored or assumed in many of
the older scores. Must we use a 2nd beginning as
shown on p. 354 of the text?"
H.2 Movement oriented people assumed that Vepeat to the
other side1 meant that the movement should be symmet-
rical and so you make whatever adjustments are neces-
sary to accomplish that.
H.3 Symbol oriented people state that what is on the page
is to be taken literally, if a movement is not indi-
cated, it should not happen. There are examples
where the notation lends itself to two logical inter-
pretations based on the above points of view. Most
dancers will go by the movement logic and make the
needed adjustment. However, it is Wise to leave no-
thing to chance and to repeat the arm position, as in
Ex. 4b). As Billie is a mover, she did not spot the
fact that she will need to repeat the middle level
support on ct. 1, to rise from the demi-plie on ct. 4.
H.4 The reader seeing these repeated symbols will be mo-
mentarily puzzled, but will realize at once that a
repeat is involved. It is when turns occur, as in Ex.
4c) that one has to have a 2nd beginning to be com-
pletely 'symbol' accurate. The 'mover* will know
that a turn must take place at the end of ct. 4 to
face QT for the symmetrical repeat, but the symbols
do not say so. The whole question of 2nd beginnings
will be dealt with in more detail soon. Jude Siddall
has unearthed some lovely (horrid?) examples from the
National Dances she has been recording.
H.5 Ex. 4d) shows another example of a notation sign ap-
pearing where it does not seem to be needed. The
chest starts normal, yet a 'return-to-normal' sign
appears at the start of count 1. This is to cancel
the arching back which occurs on ct. 4. For such in-
stances the caret is placed after the © sign to give
the message "refer forward to what is coming". How-
ever, if this "extra" writing was omitted from a score
what would you assume that the writer meant?

READERS' COMMENTS
Readers' comments on recent issues have been collected and will be featured
in the next issue. Comments would be given in each subsequent issue if it were
possible for all of you to respond at once, but many factors are responsible for
the delay in responses coming in, so it seemed best to collect them and present
a re-discussion on each particular topic.
We are very grateful to those who send in items for the Labanotator and in-
vite all to do so. Do you have a problem? Are you struggling to solve it by
yourself when perhaps it is an old problem already sorted out? Many notators
feel they are working in isolation. The Labanotator is here to dispel that iso-
lation, it is only the finding of the time to read it, to study the problems and
respond that are responsible for any isolation. Now more than ever we need con-
stant communication, particularly on details, and particularly among the profes-
sionals.
(10) ~The Labanotator^Tssue No. 33,

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Discussions in the Labanotator represent the thinking of experienced practition-

ers on choices in movement descriptions, uses of symbols, rules, etc. and are
not official in the sense of decisions concerning formal adoption of any item,
point of view or usage. Official adoption or changes will be clearly stated as
such.