Scott Joplin : The Maple Leaf Rag and The Entertainer

Soulful songs called “spirituals” were also sung by slaves.  These expressed their strong religious beliefs as well as their desire for freedom. Elements of both work songs and spirituals are a part of the foundation of jazz. During the 1800’s, America became known as the “land of opportunity.” Many people immigrated to different American cities in search of fortune and a better life. With these immigrants came a variety of musical traditions as well, such as Irish gigs, German waltzes, and French quadrilles. The African American composer Scott Joplin combined these newly introduced European compositional styles with the rhythmic and melodic music of the black community. This became known as "ragtime."

Son of a former slave born in Texas, Scott Joplin would later become the King of Ragtime.   Growing up Joplin worked with a minstrel troupe, leading the band with cornet during the time of the World’s Fair. He would return to Sedalia, which would be known as his home base, to play first cornet in the Queen City Cornet Band with local black musicians. He played for countless dances and shows. He was a sought after musician that caught the eye of several businessmen that would publish some of his music. 
When someone today sits down to the piano and friends say, "play some ragtime" most of the worlds response would be to play 'The Entertainer'. Everyone seems to know it and love it, people sit down on the piano bench together and try to play this ragtime tune all the time. A beloved song to many is traced straight back to Scott Jolpin. This instrumental rag is full of syncopation, a strong rhythm that people have held onto through out the years. It is one of the most memorable elements of the song. The tone of the composition is firm and doesn't change from the original key whatsoever. Joplin does use accidentals and syncopations in the composition to make the piece more captivating. The tempo is written in a 2/4 time, which makes the piece up tempo. The melody is homophonic, which means that the elements are of the same rhythm even though they play different notes throughout the piece of music. The use of crescendo and decrescendo give "The Entertainer" a firm foundation and body that helps with the attention-grabbing aspect. Truly defining itself as a ragtime classic. 

Joplin’s Maple Leaf Rag was to become the greatest and most famous piano rags. The explosive popularity of this piece produced a half-million copies sold by 1909, with that continuing rate for the next two decades.  Joplin wasn’t the only composer of ragtime yet his musical imagination gave ragtime its finest expression. Backstory consists of the collaboration between Joplin and storeowner in Sedalia and publisher John Stark. Some stories even say Stark liked the music he heard one day in a nearby bar and stopped off for a beer. The Maple Leaf Rag was named after a short-lived Sedalia social club called the “Maple Leaf Club” where Joplin had been a solo performer.  The exact specifications to how the Maple Leaf Rag was published are hairy but we do know that Joplin signed a contract with Stark getting .25 minimum sale prices and one-cent royalty on each sale of Maple Leaf Rag. This song in specific had a profound influence on writers of ragtime music.  People today recognize this song and have a fond affinity for ragtime because of Scott Joplin. 

Here is a fun video showing how Scott Joplins, Maple Leaf Rag is still a favorite ragtime tune today! Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PP42w2Q07TY&feature=fvst