Ragtime Vignettes 

I have never understood why Scott Joplin’s instructional  (1908) is conspicuously absent from most “complete” recorded anthologies of the composer’s piano music. School of Ragtime is an apt

A “dark horse” in the first volume of Ragtime Wizardry is the second-to-last selection, Bryan Wright’s Thompson Falls Rag. Arpeggios—many with double notes—abound in this

I met Christina Pepper (Austin) at this year’s Scott Joplin Festival in Sedalia, Missouri, and was deeply impressed by both her playing and her symposium

As a teenager I owned a cassette copy of Sidewalk Blues, a 1995 album of the now-defunct jazz group Elite Syncopation. I loved that recording,

Lucian P. Gibson is only known to have composed three works, one of which is The Cactus Rag, published by Stark Music Company in 1916.

Despite society’s abstinence from live music events in 2020, interesting Ragtime compositions were written during the Covid-19 pandemic, a testament to the music’s enduring appeal.

Imperial Rag, Max Morath’s first Ragtime composition, was written in 1954 and eventually included in Cripple Creek: A Ragtime Suite for Piano three decades later.

The opening section of Scott Joplin’s 1908 Sugar Cane is often compared to that of his earlier Maple Leaf Rag. Sugar Cane is “sweeter” and

I love the music of Larisa Migachyov! Her pieces are simple, direct, and pleasant. The picturesque, Lamb-influenced Hot Chocolate Rag (2008) is the perfect five

This Detroit classic from 1898 is one of the earliest and best examples of a Ragtime waltz. Though the influence of Scott Joplin’s Maple Leaf

Charles Leslie Johnson published his 1911 rag Cloud Kisser pseudonymously as Raymond Birch. Cloud Kisser is a lighthearted piece, yet has moments of surprising warmth

The Smoky Topaz, published in 1901 by Whitney Warner in Detroit. Her treatment of form in The Smoky Topaz shows her maturity as a teenage

Cleopatra Rag (1915) is one of twelve of Joseph Lamb’s piano rags published by Stark Music Company. In an advertisement for the piece, the publisher

This work—co-written with Scott Hayden in 1901—has continually been one of Scott Joplin’s most popular pieces. Many fine recordings exist of Sunflower Slow Drag. Richard

Jack Rummel is my favorite Ragtime composer; his Folk Ragtime and Bluegrass-influenced compositions bring me joy every time I play them. His Portrait of a

Scott Joplin’s ornate and harmonious Fig Leaf Rag is probably his most difficult piece to play. The B and C sections—with their right hand thirds

Composer and nightclub owner Tom Turpin (c. 1871-1922) is one of Ragtime’s most influential figures. Ragtime Nightmare from 1900 is the third of his six

Before his passing in 1982, Tom Shea was a key Ragtime figure, synthesizing several turn-of-the-century styles in his compositions. Prairie Ragtime: the Music of Tom

Adam Swanson’s boisterous, exuberant original rag The Strater Shuffle is a treat. Its thick chords and “walking” left hand tenths are sonically influenced by Tom

As a young teenager simultaneously learning the mechanics of piano playing and falling in love with Ragtime, I would have benefited greatly by being introduced

James Scott’s Honey Moon Rag—published in 1916 by Stark Music Company—is a rarely-played Classic Ragtime gem. It possesses many of the characteristics of Scott’s trademark

Paul Orsi is a very entertaining musician. His sheet music folio Paul Orsi: the Early Years contains six delightful pieces. The simple Sunrise Rag is

David Thomas Roberts’ 2008 Wendy—an overlooked gem in the key of D-flat—is categorically similar to his more recent Romantic Ragtime works (e.g. Nahyr, Victorian Gardens,