useful ragtime videos

Subject: useful ragtime videos
From: leeneia
Date: 21 Feb 18 - 04:10 PM

I'm trying to play ragtime, and I came across something interesting. Go to YouTube and do a YouTube search (2nd box down) for this name:

ragtimeDorianHenry

Henry's videos play the music while showing you the notes. This is helpful, because timing ragtime is far from intuitive. I fell in love with one called the Tobasco Waltz (note spelling). So I did a search and found a MIDI of it. Worked on it with Noteworthy Composer, eliminating repeats and working out the chord names. Now I'm learning it on the piano.

I suspect that many famous players are not timing the music right. They are regularizing it, making it sound like conventional tunes. (It's hard to overcome years of habit.) Or else they play it right, but they go so fast you can't hear the distinctions. So I added a drum track to my MIDI and slowed it to 60. Now I can tell how the notes are supposed to relate to one another.

I once bought a book of old ragtime pieces, and all of them except one said "Not fast" at the start. The exception was quite complicated, and it said "Don't fake it."

But even if you don't intend to play the music, it's intriguing to see and to listen at the same time. Try it.

Subject: RE: useful ragtime videos
From: leeneia
Date: 22 Feb 18 - 06:05 PM

Ragtime can be played on other instruments than piano, such as fiddle, uke, guitar and accordion. Bertie Wooster played it on a banjolele.

Subject: RE: useful ragtime videos
From: GUEST,.gargoyle
Date: 23 Feb 18 - 09:53 PM

Thank you Leeneia,

I enjoy Ragtime, and play it on an ancient piano.

Traveling on a train, in the mid 60's I encountered a chap that was traveling to Chicago for a meeting of -The Maple Leaf Society. "

He spun glorious tales of days when every cross country passenger train included a club-car with live piano.

Sincerely,
Gargoyle

Subject: RE: useful ragtime videos
From: leeneia
Date: 24 Feb 18 - 01:25 PM

Hello, Gargoyle. Nice to hear from you. And how nice it would be if there were more real pianos around, as in the days of yore.

How ancient is your piano? Mine was made in 1906.

Back later.