Happy Birthday, Mr. Joplin

[jayem]

Scott Joplin, the King of Ragtime, was born 150 years ago today. He was almost completely forgotten until ragtime was rediscovered in the 70s. For my money, he's one of the greatest American composers of all time.

This is one of his best. Some beautiful melodies almost worthy of Chopin. Definitely more than saloon music.

 

[Sabertooth]

Many people don't know the means of how his works were preserved. He had recorded them to player piano rolls. A computer was made to read them as a player piano would and voila!

I have these two on my MP3 playlist.

The Entertainer

Maple Leaf Rag