Tag Archives: Kaelyn Gray

Congrats to Kaelyn Gray’s Code Name Vivaldi tap routine!

The GiantRenowned tap choreographer extraordinaire Kaelyn Gray recently had her Code Name Vivaldi tap routine win StarSystems’ 2016 Louisville Regional’s best routine in the 13 & over category.

After receiving the award, Kaelyn knew that, while it had a great soundtrack, it really needed a better ending. In order to deliver the ending she wanted (normally not possible, since this song, by The Piano Guys, fades out instead of ending strong), I employed virtual software instruments to re-create an entire orchestral string section consisting of violins, violas, cellos, and double-basses, along with a squadron of drummers on marching toms, a two-story tall upright piano installed in a Manhattan skyscraper, and a Concert Grand piano in an Austrian concert hall.

Here’s what Kaelyn had to say after she got the result back:

“Throwing a shout-out to THE Morriss Partee…..dang he is amazing at his job.

Yesterday I had a piece debut for the first time, a dark tap piece that I had never seen in costume (or even began the cleaning process for that matter) so I was a little worried it would blow up in my face…..Plus, I edited it myself and it was an original fade-out song which I really hate for tap, so I put a very lack-luster ending note on there that was just displaced and boring.

The kids ending up smashing it and it ended up the top scoring 13 and over routine of the weekend (Happy surprise!) I thought if it was going to be that good it definitely deserved a stronger ending…..so I messaged Morriss Partee and not even an hour later my email had a new edit ….. GUYS. Holy cwap. He literally manufactured the same instruments in the song, using 3 different grand pianos, an orchestra of violins……he went ahead an “polished” the entire track for me to make it sound sparkly and new again, since I had sped up the music tremendously to fit the speed of my taps. The new ending is perfection and intense!!!!

I love people who are passionate at what they do and share it! Thanks so much Morriss for being there for me and for delivering nothing but the best!!! GOOOO MORRISSSSSS!!!! ‪#‎kickballchangejazzhand‬ “

— Kaelyn Gray, tap choreographer
Expressions Dance Theatre, Crescent Springs KY
& founder Tap Dance Tutorials/#bringtaptothepeople
February 8, 2016

Honored to be an Advisory member to Y.P.A.D.

YPAD-Circle-SealThe organization Youth Protection Advocates in Dance (Y.P.A.D.) recently came to my attention via tap dancer Kaelyn Gray. Kaelyn was upset by some dance routines displayed on YouTube where very young dancers (younger than 10 years old) are seen performing with overly sexualized costuming, music, and choreography.

Y.P.A.D’s mission is to educate dance teachers about the lasting psychological harm of creating overly sexualized routines for young boys and girls. Y.P.A.D. founder, Leslie Scott, has been conducting educational workshops for dance studios for several years.

It is with great honor for me to announce that I have been selected to join the advisory panel of Y.P.A.D. It’s an excellent fit for me since I am a parent, and as a musician/audio engineer, one of the most common requests for music editing that I receive is to remove objectionable language from otherwise great songs. I am also honored to help spread the word about this excellent and needed organization, whose mission is to protect young people in the dance world.

My profile and background is located on Y.P.A.D.’s web site here: Morriss’ background

I hope that one day, all dance studios will become Y.P.A.D. certified, and all dance competitions will become so as well. It’s time to end over-sexualization of young girls and boys in the dance world.

To help avoid inappropriate material from being used for students’ dance routines, nearly all songs in my Legitmix catalog have had all of their objectionable lyrics removed or obscured. Oftentimes, while some lyrics may technically be clean enough for the radio, they are not clean enough to use as foundations for dance routines by youngsters. Here is where these clean songs can be found:

Squirrel Trench Audio catalog on Legitmix

Hip Hop in particular often has music with explicit lyrics. Here is a subdivision of the clean music I have available on Legitmix:

Clean music for hip hop

The most popular song to date has been my clean version of Uptown Funk. More full-length clean songs can be found here:

Get more remixes at Legitmix