![]() ![]() With Joplin’s massive success, Stark decided that if he were going to sell more ragtime music, he would focus on publishing classic rag. The “Maple Leaf Rag”, Joplin’s first work published by Stark, is considered one of the first hit songs on sheet music and sold over 500,000 copies in the first 10 years of its publication (4). For Stark, this was the first Black and first ragtime composer he conducted business with (3), and this proved to be extremely profitable. In 1898, he first began submitting scores to publishing companies, but it wasn’t until meeting John Stillwell Stark, a white music publisher and music store owner, and playing for him in his store in 1899 that he entered a publishing contract. Like many composers of classic rag, Joplin was initially a jig pianist who then ventured into classic rag. Cover art and first page of Stark Music Co.’s version of Joplin’s “Rag-Time Dance”. Arguably the most famous classic rag composer was Scott Joplin, with his “Maple Leaf Rag” being the most popular of his works (3). Classic rag was published as sheet music and was not intended to be improvised off of it was designed to be played exactly as written. It wasn’t until 1895 when the first ragtime tune, “La Pas La Mas”, was transcribed and actually published, starting a new subgenre within ragtime known as classic rag (2). As a result, they would play in the clubs, saloons, and other social spaces around the perimeter of the fair, which is where their music thrived (1). During the Chicago World Fair, many Black jig piano players were hired to play music written by white composers at Fair events, but they were not allowed to play their own music. This early ragtime was referred to as jig music, and was all but shunned by white populations. Known by such a name due to its highly syncopated nature (which was originally referred to as “ragging the time”), ragtime emerged initially in the Mississippi Valley as bar, cabaret, and club music played by “piano-thumping… black piano professors” (1) that was mostly improvisatory. Although it declined, ragtime music was never forgotten and still lives on today.Ragtime is a genre of music created by Black pianists that was popular between 18. Ragtime eventually reached its decline around the 1920s when jazz started to emerge as the primary genre in the United States. In this time, white people exploited African American music and culture and profited off of the music and actions that they were doing. ![]() These lyrics were typically sung in a Negro Dialect and performed by whites in blackface. White people began to write songs and dances inspired by ragtime called “coon songs” and “cake walks” that had denigrating lyrics about black people. However, ragtime seemed to mainly exist in southern and mid-western states, but primarily in Missouri.Īlthough ragtime was popular among African Americans, the general marketing scheme was not always that positive for the community. The popularity and demand for ragtime also heavily boosted sales of pianos and the ranks of the recording industry in mainly southern states. Typically ragtime songs were fast and bouncy due to the syncopated rhythm. In general, the left hand played the easier part, while the right hand was responsible for the syncopated rhythm. A syncopated rhythm meant that the emphasis was placed on the off beat rather than the first or 3rd beat in the measure. What made ragtime different, was the idea of syncopation. People could easily purchase the sheet music and play it in on their personal pianos at home. It was easily accessible to “regular” people because the music was sold in sheets. Ragtime was primarily played on pianos but a vocal sub-genre did exist. The genre of Ragtime was a uniquely American genre created and mainly performed by African Americans in the time period of 1896- 1920. Tina Turner: The Queen of Rock ‘n’ Rollįollowing the era of Negro Spirituals and folk music, a new era emerged.“First Ladies of Gospel: The Clark Sisters”.Beyonce Giselle Knowles-Carter: A Transcendent Musical Icon.Representations-of-African-American-women-in-blues.The Songs of Black Women Folk Music Politics and Everyday.Feminism – A Multidisciplinary Bibliography.BMS Training Video – Intro to Elementor.BMS Training Video – How to use the website.Johnson’s Office Hour MWF 12-1 or by Appointment ![]()
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