Monday, May 3, y
Jazz History Chapter 2
Ragtime
- A genre and style of music (mainly for solo piano) that originated around the 1890's
- Originally played by blacks in saloons, dance halls in the south and midwest
- Ragtime would thrive from the 1890's through to the 1910's
- Important: Ragtime is a largely "composed" genre. As we will see, jazz and blues
( which share some features with ragtime ) rely heavily on improvisation.
Musical Style
: The right hand typically plays the main melodic ideas in a heavily syncopated style.
: The left hand usually provides a march like regular beat. This helps to ground the rhythmic virtuosity of the melody.
: Syncopation: Rhythmic patterns in which the normally weak beats are stressed. This
: Ragtime pieces were often played on player pianos.
: Player pianos proved to be a passing fad. As ragtime's popularity gave way to jazz and blues, the desire for player pianos faded
: Player piano: A modif i ed piano that plays piano rolls
Scott Joplin
: Born in Texas. His father was a former slave and played the violin. His mother sang and played the banjo.
: Joplin's father left when he was very young. He learned to play the piano by accompa: nying his mother into domestic jobs.
Joplins Maple Leaf Rag
: This piano piece (rag) is arguably Joplin's most famous. It sold an estimated one mil- lion copies of sheet music.
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: Joplin worked with a white publisher. Normally, the publisher would purchase the rights to the song for a set fee however Joplin's situation was slightly abnormal since he did in fact receive royalties.
: Joplin was intent on promoting ragtime as a sophisticated genre: In other words, to el- evate ragtime from its traditional negative associations with popular culture.
: Indeed, Joplin wrote a study manual called the school of ragtime and then wrote an opera based of f of ragtime.
Treemonisha
: Joplin wrote the opera for an all-black cast.
: In an era dominated by segregation, and the lack of music schools who accepted
blacks for classical study, Joplin found it impossible to secure a publisher and perfor
mance run.
: Joplin eventually paid for a performance of the opera himself. However it was under rehearsed and vanished immediately.
: In 1976 Joplin's Treemonisha was recognized as a great musical achievement and historical text. As such, Joplin received the Pulitzer prize in music posthumously in 1976 (60 years after his death)
James Reese Europe
: African american pianist and bandleader
: 1910: Europe founds the clef club (social club, booking agency, union for black musi. cians in NYC)
: Europe became very popular with the social elite and played concerts at ballrooms, dance halls and even carnegie hall
: 1916: Enlists in an all black regiment of the New York National Guard
: Because he was forbidden to serve along whites, he was transferred to the French
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