Musical Practice and Performance Stack Exchange
Musical Practice and Performance Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [ragtime]

For questions related to the ragtime style, a proto-jazz genre that flourished around 1900 with the music of composers like Scott Joplin.

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How to Write A Ragtime Piano Piece?

I tried writing a ragtime piece several months ago and wasn't successful. What defines the ragtime style? Are there known go-to theoretical resources that discuss how to compose ragtime music? My favorite ragtime artist is Scott Joplin. So that's…
Stan Shunpike
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Did Beethoven "invent" ragtime with Piano Sonata No 32 Op 111?

I had an interesting question. It is common knowledge that ragtime came about as a genre with Scott Joplin. However, I am curious if anyone has any information about Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 32 in C minor, Op. 111 and any connection to the works…
Andrew the Programmer
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Difference between One-Step and Two-Step Rags

I would like to know the actual difference between one-step and two-step rags. So far I thought that a one-step is a rag, where the melody is mostly written in quarter and eighth notes, so there are only up to four notes in most measures, like in…
Andy
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Are there scales and chord progressions particularly used in Rag music?

I am interested in the underlying scale and chord structures of ragtime music . For example, I was reading in my book Jazzology last night that ii-V-I progressions are frequently used in Jazz. I am interested in the corresponding ones for ragtime…
Stan Shunpike
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Ragtime - Pedal or not to pedal?

I would like to know if you would usually use the pedal for the stride bass in ragtime songs or not? I heard that some people pedal the stride bass to make the jumps more fluent and others don't do it, to give it a more staccato feel. But since the…
Andy
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Notate swing for the treble staff only?

First a general question: I'm arranging a ragtime piece and would like to know if you generally play rags with swing in the melody or not? In my case I'll go with swing anyways, because in this piece it sounds a lot better with swing than without,…
Andy
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Part of the notes sound off (Scott Joplin - The Entertainer sheet music for Piano)

I am practicing Scott Joplin - The Entertainer, based on this score from 8notes.com. It all sounds fine, except for this segment: The red marked segment sounds off when I play it. It sounds nothing like the sound file on 8notes.com. Is there maybe…
Leonore
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Notable musical features of Ragtimes?

I've been into playing ragtimes recently, especially of Scott Joplin. I've read in several books where they vaguely relate ragtimes as one of the early forms of Jazz. What aspects of ragtimes make them special and separate them from classical music?…
Victoria
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How do I play this part in 'Peacherine rag'?

I'm trying to learn Peacherine rag, but I can't understand how to read this part: To be more precise, I want to understand: Why the first note on the bottom part has two legs? Why is it specified again that the high g (top part) is a sixteenth…
ChiP
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How do I start learning to play ragtime on the guitar?

I would really like to learn how to play ragtime on the guitar. As a teenager I took guitar lessons. I learned to sight-read and basic chords, but not much beyond that. Years later, I am learning again on my own and would really like to play music I…
user89449
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What type of modulation goes from D♭ to A?

In Scott Joplin's Gladiolus Rag near the end there is a brief modulation from D♭ to A then back to D♭. I know a composer can modulate to any key at any time as he likes, but I suspect this is a common pattern in ragtime and perhaps even some…
J. Lenthe
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2/4 vs 4/4 time signature in Dixieland Jazz

I'm teaching on the IB Music Diploma Programme and am looking at an examiner's markscheme for a question about the Dixieland jazz piece "Tiger Rag" (similar to this version: ) on a past listening exam paper. In the markscheme, the examiner states…
John MC
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Guitar: difference between Folk and Ragtime strumming

First, please excuse me in advance for I am not a pro musician. Playing music is only a hobby for me. I'm learning how to play the acoustic guitar like Mark Knopfler in his solo career. In this interview (3:36), Mark says that he began with a Folk…
user44769