Description
Dedicated to P. G. Lowery, a cornet player and bandmaster who toured with Black circus bands, this rag was published by John Stark in 1902. The dedication reflects how ragtime was spreading through wind bands as much as through pianos.
Subtitled "A Ragtime Two Step" and set in C major, it changes character sharply from strain to strain. The right hand is often written in full chords, and the note count is high for a Joplin rag. A middle strain moves to F major, where the sound softens a degree.
Those thick right-hand chords are what make this an intermediate piece: the top note of each has to be lifted clear of the rest, and played at a uniform strength the chords become a succession of blocks with no melody visible in them. Left hand accurate in its leaps, right hand singing on top — once that division of labour is clear, the rag becomes three-dimensional.
Ragtime pieces centered on Scott Joplin's syncopated rhythms — a lively American genre that helped pave the way for jazz.
Browse all songs in Ragtime →Sheet Music
Sheet music provided by Mutopia Project
About the Composer
Scott Joplin (1868-1917)
Scott Joplin was an African American composer born in Texas, known as the "King of Ragtime." Blending syncopated, buoyant rhythms with sophisticated harmony, he brought the genre to national prominence with the enormous success of "Maple Leaf Rag." This site includes 18 of his works, such as "The Entertainer" and "Elite Syncopations."
View all works by Joplin →