Scott Joplin: piano pieces, easiest first
Scott Joplin was born in Texas around 1868; the exact date is not known. He trained as a pianist and composer, and in 1899 his Maple Leaf Rag made him famous: it sold widely as sheet music and earned him the name the King of Ragtime. He went on to write dozens of rags, including The Entertainer (1902), and an opera, Treemonisha. He died in New York in 1917.
For decades his music was half forgotten. In the 1970s it came back: The Entertainer was heard in the film The Sting (1973), and in 1976 Joplin was awarded a special Pulitzer Prize.
His rags are carefully written, elegant pieces: a syncopated tune in the right hand, its notes landing just before the beat, over a stride left hand that leaps between bass notes and chords.
Joplin in Octotune
Three rags: The Entertainer, the Maple Leaf Rag and The Easy Winners. All three are advanced, Octotune grade 7 of 8; The Entertainer's tune alone, with the Melody level, is a good project for an early intermediate player.
They are listed below.