The rarely-performed 'Antoinette - March and Two-Step' may be the only surviving fragment from Joplin's 1903 opera 'A Guest of Honor,' whose music and libretto were lost due to the touring company's bankruptcy.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Joplin and his peers used a richer harmonic, melodic, and cultural vocabulary in ragtime than is often recognized, incorporating influences from vocal, dance, theatre, and orchestral music.
Historical Context
Ragtime emerged against a backdrop of societal tensions in the early 20th century, including white responses to the increasing roles of Black and immigrant Americans, health crises, and America's isolationist foreign policies.
Compositional Technique
Joplin's 'Bethena - A Concert Waltz' is idiosyncratic, with recitative-like transitions between its four sections, suggesting impatience with the strict AABBCCDD structure of classic piano rags.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Joplin's solo rags, such as 'Bethena' and 'Reflection Rag,' often express unusual emotional tensions, unresolved yearnings, sadness, mystery, and hope, which are absent from his collaborations.
Composer Biography
Scott Joplin, known as the 'King of Ragtime Writers,' was gifted with perfect pitch and toured as a lead singer, violinist, and cornet player.
Composition History
Joplin incorporated two of Louis Chauvin's compositions into 'Heliotrope Bouquet,' giving Chauvin primary credit and royalties, because Chauvin had never learned music notation.
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