A Latin percussion section usually takes a large compilation of instruments, but for legendary tap dancer Savion Glover, it takes only two – his feet.
Hundreds of dance fans flooded the CFA Thursday night to watch the production of Solo In Time and to see "the greatest tap dancer who ever lived" take the dance floor.
The entire performance was designed to capture the essence of the "flamenco" theme as Glover strived to "allow one to hear the dance versus see the dance," a message he spread frequently throughout the night.
Glover's tap shoes were the basis for the numerous percussive sounds generated in the flamenco, echoing the rhythms of Latin percussion. Glover used the inside of his feet to make drastic heavy sounds mimicking tom-toms and used the balls of his feet to speed up and emulate a drum roll.
With great vigor and energy, Glover stomped the stage and used the bottom of his feet to provide heavier sounds, imitating a bass drum. Sliding and dragging his heels to elongate the sounds, and clicking his feet together to provide a lower pitch, Glover proved that the use of instruments is overrated. During one of his pieces, he even used his hands and fists to play rhythms, showcasing a bongo-type sound.
To make the various sounds used in the dance pieces performed, Glover draws upon many motivations.
"I'm motivated by life itself. I'm motivated by anything that breathes," said Glover. "The art form is bigger than me, it's bigger than us. It's far beyond any type of show business. The opportunity to share the energy with people is what I'm into more than show business."
A guitarist, bassist, and singer accompanied his "percussion," and Glover highlighted the important parts of the instrumentation. When the guitar became louder, he added emphasis to the guitar solo, keeping each rhythm syllabic and separated.
"I loved it. It was amazing and beautiful. I wanted to see it all my life," said Cornelius Newman, 30, of Buffalo. "It was very inspirational and encouraging."
Marshall Davis, Jr. from Glover's dance company, Bare Soundz, performed alongside Glover. They performed in unison as well as overlapping different beats to add more variation to the percussion sounds. The duo engaged in a "tap off" where they took turns showing off what they could do with their feet.
Glover's continuous smile when talking to his fellow performers kept the performance feeling informal throughout. It was a friendly gathering of humble passion for performance, coupled with the quest for improvement and being completely satisfied with it.
"Once I'm satisfied, then I'm done with what I've set out to accomplish. I hope not to reach that point while I'm here on this earth," Glover said.
This legendary tap dancer is a unique performer and does not have a set method of choreography. Glover does not use set lists when performing and considers himself an improvisationalist.
Glover danced through 12 pieces without intermission, eliciting audience amazement.
"The energy level was incredible. The audience [became] exhausted faster than he did," said Mike D'Ambrosio, 62, of Amherst.
The audience rose to a standing ovation after the show to encourage Glover like he had encouraged them.
"My masterpiece is not finished yet. Unlike a painter, they have a beginning, middle, and end. I just have a beginning," Glover said.
Just like that, he will continue to paint the percussion masterpiece with his tap shoes and his rhythm.
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