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TeachingRagtimecourtesy of carolmatzpiano.comTeaching Ragtime Packetcourtesyof Packetcarolmatzpiano.comTeaching RagtimebyCarol Matzcarolmatzpiano.com 2015 CAROL MATZ PUBLISHING
2015 CAROL MATZ PUBLISHINGTeaching Ragtime Packet courtesy of carolmatzpiano.comcarolmatzpiano.comTeaching Ragtimeby Carol MatzRagtime in ContextIn the 1970s, there was a major ragtimerevival, partly due to the popular movieThe Sting. This revival was great for pianoteachers and students since it opened upa whole new genre to further explore. Thesoundtrack to The Sting featured many ScottJoplin pieces, including “The Entertainer,”“The Easy Winners,” and “Solace.” The greatMarvin Hamlisch created orchestrations ofmany of the ragtime pieces featured in thefilm. His versions are in a rather up-tempo,staccato style, which is an interpretationthat has stuck in a lot of people’sminds whenever they think of ragtime.However, I want to emphasize that mostof Joplin’s rags have a tempo marking thatsimply says “Not fast,” with no metronomemark. Ragtime developed from marches,which are usually around 120 beats perminute. (Think of Sousa’s “Stars and StripesForever” as an example). You might usethis march tempo as a guideline, but ragscan be played slower than this, especiallywhen Joplin indicates Slow march tempo.In addition to tempo, another ragtimeperformance issue to think about is the useof pedal, which is a bit controversial andhas no “right answer,” since pedal is notindicated in the score. Most rags, in theiroriginal form, contain numerous octaveto-chord jumps, and many performers usepedal to bridge this jump (pedal down on theoctave, up on the chord). In any case, pedalis appropriate in slower ragtime pieces, suchas Joplin’s “Solace.” In mid-tempo rags,it’s up to the performer whether the pieceshould be staccato or more lyrical. Ragscan be beautiful pieces when interpretedlyrically. If you’re interested in hearingsome wonderful interpretations, you might“The Easy Winners” cover (1901)listen to the Joplin recordings by pianistJoshua Rifkin (especially his recordings of“The Entertainer” and “Gladiolus Rag”).The most defining characteristic ofragtime is a syncopated melody against asteady left-hand accompaniment. To helpstudents work on common syncopationsfound in ragtime, I’ve created the “RagtimeExercises” pages found in this PDF. Theseexercises help students develop rhythmiccoordination between the hands, whichis essential for ragtime performance.In addition to the exercises, I have also included an Early Intermediate to Intermediatearrangement of the Joplin piece “The EasyWinners.” Please enjoy using these freematerials in your studio! (Photocopying foryour own students is allowed, but please,no mass distribution or sharing online.) 2015 CAROL MATZ PUBLISHINGCarol Matz
Teaching Ragtime Packet courtesy of carolmatzpiano.comRagtime Exercisescarolmatzpiano.comby Carol MatzOverviewSyncopation is an accent, or stress, on an upbeat, which is normally a weak beat. It is oneof the most characteristic elements of ragtime, but it can be tricky for students to feel.The following exercises help develop rhythmic coordination between the hands, usingthree common syncopations.Practice StepsBe sure that students practice the following exercises slowly, eventually building to amoderate tempo. Ragtime should not be played quickly.12For each exercise, have the student practice hands separately first.3Have the student practice both variations of each exercise. The firstvariation uses blocked chords in the LH. The second variation usesbroken chords.Before putting the hands together, have the student play the right-handmelody while the left hand taps quarter-note beats on his or her lap.Exercise 1 Eighth notes tied between measures# 4 œ œ œ. œ. œ œ œ œ œ. œ. œ œ œ œ. œ. œœ& 4œ wF. œ. œ. œ. œ. œ. œ.œ.œœ. œœœœœœœœœ? # 4 œœ œœ # œœ œœ œ œ œ œœœ œœ œœ œœœ4Variation 1 (LH blocked chords)5135125135# 4 œ œ œ. œ.& 4F? # 44 œ œœ. # œ.12135œ œ œ œ œ. œ. œ œ œ œ. œ. œœœ.œœ.œœœœ œ. œ œ. œ œ. œ œ. œVariation 2 (LH broken chords)55551213wœœ. . œ12(Syncopation exercises based on Scott Joplin’s School of Ragtime.) 2015 CAROL MATZ PUBLISHING
Teaching Ragtime Packet courtesy of carolmatzpiano.comRagtime Exercises, page 2Exercise 2 Quarter note on the upbeat#4 œ& 4 JF? # 4 œœœ.4œ œ œ. œ.JVariation 1 (LH blocked chords)3œœœ. # œœœ. œœœ.135135# 4 œ œ œ œ.& 4 JJF? # 44 œ œœ. # œ.œ.œœ œJJœœ. œœ.œ œ2125Variation 2 (LH broken chords)355œœ.œœ œJJ.œ œœ2512œ. œ.œœ.œj œ j œ. œ.œœw1œœ.œœœ.œœœ.œ135œ. œ.œœ.œœœ.œœœ. . œ12j œ j œ. œ.œœw1.œ œœœœ.œ.œœ. œ13œœ. . œ12Exercise 3 Eighth notes tied between beats 2 and 3Variation 1 (LH blocked chords)œ.#4 œ œ œ œ& 4 œœF. . . .? # 4 œœœ œœœ # œœœ œœœ4œ œ œ œ œ œ œ.œ125135Variation 2 (LH broken chords)œ œ œ œ œ œ œ.5131355œœ.œ135œ.#4 œ œ œ œ& 4 œœF .? # 4 œ œœ # œ œœ.4 �œœœœœ. œœ.œ œœ.œœœœœ.œœ. œ œ.œ.œœ.œœ112213 2015 CAROL MATZ PUBLISHINGœœ.œœœ.w1œœ. . œ12w1œœ. . œ12
Teaching Ragtime Packet courtesy of carolmatzpiano.comThe Easy Winnerscarolmatzpiano.com(A Ragtime Two Step)Scott JoplinArranged by Carol MatzNot fastŒ& b 44 œ œ œ œ œ œ œj œ j Œœœœœ œœœœF? b 44Ó Œ œ œ œ œ Œ œ œ œ œ115131441& b . .f?bœ. œ. œœ.Œ21.œ.œ. œ.œ.œ.1. ‰ œ œ œ œ.œœœ#œJ413œ.324œ.œ.7.œœ œ œ œ nœ œœœ#œ‰ J‰&bJ œ œ œ œ œ # œ œœ.?bœœŒ œ- Œœ.œ.œœ.4132?bœ.31425. ‰ œ œ. œ. œ.œœbœ& #œJ41513101332œ.1 5œ œ ‰ œ n œ œ œ.J.4œœ.15œœ.13œœ.15 2015 CAROL MATZ PUBLISHINGœœ.œ. 21œ. . .œ.1œ.œ.œ.œ.3œ.œ.œ.Œœ.
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Exercises” pages found in this PDF. These exercises help students develop . rhythmic coordination between the hands, which is essential for ragtime performance. In addition to the exercises, I have also in- cluded an Early Intermediate to Intermediate arrangement of the Joplin piece “The Easy Winners.” Please enjoy using these free materials in your studio! (Photocopying for your own .
