His young piano student, Martin Niederhoffer, who works as a bookkeeper at Waterson, Berlin, and Snyder Music Publishers, convinces him to try to get. Before he dies, he wants to provide for his wife and to secure his place in musical history. Tracing the life of the ‘King of Ragtime’ has challenged biographers the paper trail, beyond. The Entertainer is one of the most well-known ragtime pieces in history. Joplin, who died in 1916, would have been delighted by all the attention. I believe that Scott is a wonderful role model and can inspire kids to make music. Its 1916, and times running out for Scott Joplin. In 1983, Joplin’s face appeared on a US postage stamp. Joplins musical activities in Sedalia brought him in contact with the source of ragtime-piano playing in African-American social establishments. In many ways it is the personal fulfillment of a lifelong dream. Like Foster, Joplin was born into a musically talented middle class family. Joplin was born in Missouri in 1868, just four years after Stephen Foster’s death. Joplin's courageous spirit, and the musical poetry that flowered from it-all in the face of ever-present adversity-inspired me to create this book. The refinement and popularization of ragtime was the result of the efforts of America’s first great African-American composer, Scott Joplin. Some early piano rags are entitled marches, and 'jig' and 'rag' were used interchangeably in the mid-1890s. Patiently working my way through “The Entertainer”, “Maple Leaf Rag” and others, something was awakening inside me his music seemed to be filled with stories. A distinctly American musical style, ragtime may be considered a synthesis of African syncopation and European classical music, especially the marches made popular by John Philip Sousa. Here was the music that, up until now, I had only heard on the radio. There had always been music in our house, but now sitting down to a keyboard-despite pressing all the wrong notes-became just as much fun as drawing and painting.Ībout a year later, everything shifted again when my eager fingers landed on the music of Scott Joplin-and seemingly overnight, my world changed from sepia to technicolor.Įven at that young age, I felt at once a deep and abiding connection to Joplin and his music. I’ve been drawing pictures and writing stories for as long as I can remember, but when I started taking piano lessons in the 6th grade, a door swung wide open. While his father tried to convince young Scott Joplin to work with him on the railroad that provided reliable work for African American men, Scotts heart. My name is Stephen Costanza and I’m an illustrator/author of picture books.
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