This is The Festival Roundup as printed in our June 2017 issue, the most recent roundup can be found in our menu.
SCOTT JOPLIN RAGTIME FESTIVAL (Sedalia, MO) – May 31-June 3
More than 6,000 people attend the Scott Joplin Ragtime Festival each June, turning downtown Sedalia into a turn-of-the-20th century party. This year the festival at the Liberty Center commemorates the centennial of Joplin’s death with a stellar lineup of symposia focusing on the composer and his timeless music. The festival is staged at the historic Hotel Bothwell, which opened in 1926. The Katy Depot Historic Site, one of the largest train depots between Kansas City and St. Louis, is only a mile away. The festival stages several free concerts, while some are ticketed. Seminars include discussions of Joplin’s use of counterpoint and ensemble-thinking, the etymology of rag into ragtime, and a look at sheet music covers and photos from the composer’s short life. You can learn the steps to the dances such as_the Grizzly Bear, Turkey Trot, Bunny Hug, and Camel Walk, and audience members are invited to show off their piano-playing skills.
This year’s featured presenters and performers are Paul Asaro, Jeff Barnhart, Ed Berlin, Mimi Blais, Bryan Cather, Danny Coots, Richard Dowling, Bill Edwards, Marty Eggers, Andrew Greene, Frederick Hodges, Fred Hoeptner, Brian Holland, Ivory&Gold, Jazzou Jon
