Sacramento Ragtime Society Newsletter
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SACRAMENTO RAGTIME SOCIETY NEWSLETTER press release by Chris Bradshaw STING, featuring a full score of ragtime he 11th Annual Sutter Creek Ragtime hits, will be shown at The American Ex- TFestival, officially set for August 14-16, change Hotel, on Main Street. Take in the promises to set time back 100 years as musi- movie and order up a marvelous meal cians take their talents to five venues along while you are at it? Sutter Creek's Main Street. Then, spend Thursday the 13th, shop- This year, two pre-festival events are ping the shops, munching at a favorite eat- scheduled and everyone is welcome. On ery, and stopping by the Emporium for a Wednesday, August 12, a free movie, THE late afternoon ice cream treat before am- bling over to the Greenhorn Creek Golf Resort, 711 McCauley Ranch Road in Angels Camp where Keith Taylor will host an evening of rag- time music by some of the festival fa- vorites. Known as the jewel of the small ragtime festivals, the Sutter Creek In This Issue festival promises the best in ragtime, novelty, stride and boogie-woogie. Events include Silent Movie Night, the Festival theater Concerts, a youth concert, a strolling barber- shop group, some mighty ragtime en- sembles, such as the Carl Sonny See Sutter Creek continued on page 6 by Chris Bradshaw ment. The good news is that even for non- ecently, Omar Brubaker put an enti- performers, active music listeners are also R cing article into my hands that had to fueling their brains. Grey matters! do with playing the piano and how good it One advantage of playing the piano is for the brain. That got me to thinking over most other instruments is that you get and the next thing I knew, I was hopelessly the benefit of cross-brain activity as you try up to my elbows reading internet brain re- to put your left and right hands together. search studies pertaining to music. I In ragtime you have the steady 2/4 rhythm thought it fair game to extrapolate a few in the left hand while your right hand nuggets from the research that might apply dances to syncopated rhythms. The mental to ragtime. workout of playing both hands together Music is a so powerful that the mental also benefits in strengthening coordina- exercise you get from learning a new piece tion. One suggestion from my reading is helps a brain of any age to grow. Research that playing each hand separately before states that the some brain areas of expert combining them will speed up the learning musicians can be up to 5% larger than process. those who have never picked up an instru- See Continued on page 4 SACRAMENTO RAGTIME SOCIETY By Tom Brier he June SRS session had two defining characteristics. First, it James Shawcross, piano Twas held on the hottest day of a heat wave, and despite the Original Rags Scott Joplin, 1899 best efforts of the air conditioner, things still got a little warm, par- Jumpin’ Jazz Cat Randall Faber & Nancy Faber ticularly on the stage. Second, it was held on a day when most of Ragtime Prelude Bach, arr. Martha Mier the regular musicians were either out of town or otherwise occu- Blues for Delores Martha Mier pied. So, even though the usual audience of listeners braved the When the Saints Go Marching In Traditional heat to attend the meeting, the musical festivities were carried on Lazy River Hoagy Carmichael & Sidney Arodin, 1931 a mere eleven shoulders. On the other hand, this also meant each Jazzy Spanish Song person could play a lot more than at the typical meeting. This en- Jose Pedilla, arr. Martha Mier abled the ever-enthusiastic James Shawcross to run through the “Sugar” Willie Erickson, piano & *vocal; Edd Burhans, *vocal; rest of his repertoire and delight us with a couple of “reruns” from Tom Brier, *upright piano prior meetings. The Partita No. 3 in C Flat MinorNicolai Shostakovich, arr. Johann We were also treated to the boogie-woogie stylings of Ken Sebastian Bach Hall, making his second appearance at SRS. *Mairzy DoatsMilton Drake, Al Hoffman, & Jeffy Livingston, 1943 Many thanks to Deborah Gale for keeping the meeting run- ning smoothly in Petra Sullivan’s absence, and to Bob and Bon- “Sugar” Willie Erickson, tuba; Cleve Baker, piano; Tom Brier, nie Gonzalez for the use of their sound system. Now here’s what upright piano was played: Coquette Gus Kahn – Carmen Lombardo & John W. Green, 1928 Tom Brier, piano Ken Hall, piano or *upright piano The Scorcher George Rosey, 1897 Dinah Sam M. Lewis & Joe Young – Harry L. Akst, 1925 Orion Neil Blaze & Tom Brier, 2008 *Avalon Al Jolson & Vincent Rose, 1920 Cookie-Cutter Rag Tom Brier, 2008 Some Of These Days Shelton Brooks, 1910 Cleve Baker, piano James Shawcross, piano Red Rambler Rag Julia Lee Niebergall, 1912 12th Street Rag Euday L. Bowman, 1914 Dream Again Pete Clute & Bonnie Otto Satin Doll I’d Give A Dollar For A Dime Andy Razaf & Eubie Blake, 1940 Johnny Mercer – Duke Ellington & Billy Strayhorn, 1953 Soft Shoe Shuffle Pete Clute RASPBERRY JAM BAND RASPBERRY JAM BAND Tom Brier, piano; George Preston, euphonium and *vocal; Mary Tom Brier, piano; Mark Meeker, tuba; George Preston, euphoni- Preston, violin; Julia Riley, flute & piccolo; Kitty Wilson, percus- um and *vocal; Mary Preston, violin; Julia Riley, flute & piccolo; sion Kitty Wilson, percussion Redneck Rag Brian March Alabama Jubilee Jack Yellen – George L. Cobb, 1915 *If I Had You *Bagdad Jack Yellen – Milton Ager, 1924 Ted Shapiro, Jimmy Campbell, & Reg. Connelly, 1928 Cleopha Scott Joplin, 1902 Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans? Happy Feet Jack Yellen – Milton Ager, 1930 Eddie De Lange – Louis Alter, 1946 *You’re A Grand Old Flag George M. Cohan, 1906 *Radio Bob Marcus, 1969 Super Mario World 2 – Yoshi’s Island Koji Kondo Cleve Baker, piano If Someone Would Only Love Me Tom Brier, piano; *Kitty Wilson, washboard; **“Sugar Willie” Harrison Smith – Ben Garrison, 1930 Erickson, upright piano Chauncey’s Theme (aka Little Enough) Turk Murphy *Gustavo Tango L. Anton Triné, 2004 Medley: You Were Meant For Me Broadway Rag James Scott, 1922 Arthur Freed – Nacio Herb Brown, 1929 The Gateway To Michigan J. Paul Wait You Are My Lucky Star **The Entertainer Scott Joplin, 1902 Arthur Freed – Nacio Herb Brown, 1935 Get This Walter Blaufuss, 1913 The Lion Tamer Rag Mark Janza, 1913 Huskin’ Time George L. Cobb, 1914 Razor Blades Tom Brier, 1994 SACRAMENTO RAGTIME SOCIETY By Nan Bostick Okay, so here's my list of things new Add your sustain pedal only when you can 'm not a piano teacher, but a week ragtime players (and plenty of profession- play the entire rag accurately with a steady Idoesn't pass without someone asking me als) should try to avoid: tempo and are ready to concentrate on for hints on learning ragtime. I find myself highlighting your phrasing and adding repeating the same advice over and over, so 1) Emulating a current artist: Observe more expression. maybe it's time I make a list. I admit to a and learn from today's professional players, 4) Learning a new rag by playing it over particular historical bent–I do my best to but skip thinking “I want to play like and over from start to finish: This guaran- be true to the composer and to attempt to him/her.” Won't happen and shouldn't. tees a perennially uneven performance. perform ragtime authentically. I avoid We love that you buy our CDs and sup- Play the entire piece once or twice just to swinging ragtime like the plague, particu- port our gigs, but copying a modern artist's determine which sections or passages make larly the classic rags. A little swing might be style hardly leads to confidence (much less you stumble. Then practice only those chal- okay for later rags, like the fox-trot rags of authentic ragtime playing). Sure, be in- lenging parts, nothing else, avoiding play- the mid teens (when jazz was beginning spired by others. Whenever I watch Mimi ing the entire rag until you can perform and dancers loved those dotted sixteenth Blais or Brian Holland or Morten Gunnar the hard parts with same comfort as the and thirty-second note riffs), but as a rule, Larsen perform, I want to race home to easier parts. if you plan to swing Joplin or Joseph Lamb the piano to smooth out runs, practice play- From the start, it's important to figure rags, call yourself a jazz player and don't ex- ing a true pianissimo, or work on phras- out why those challenging parts cause you pect to be favored by most ragtime produ- ing. difficulty. Chances are it's fingering. I al- cers. 2) Looking miserable while you play: ways begin by finding a comfortable and lo- I do improvise a little, but I always cre- It's not that hard to smile while you're play- gical fingering. If I see a twisted, rather ate improvisations based on ideas gleaned ing, but so many performers look as if than flat, relaxed hand, I try a different fin- from vintage ragtime piano rolls and old re- they’re in pain. Audiences can't help feel- gering. If I find I'm using the same finger cordings. During ragtime's heyday, more ing uncomfortable, or even bored, if you to play two consecutive notes in a run people heard ragtime from the band shell look miserable (or nervous) at the piano. (sometimes unavoidable in ragtime, espe- than from a piano, so I like to know which They can forgive a whole lot of goofs so cially with the thumb), it's a huge clue that instruments, violins? trumpets? piccolos? long as you make it look fun.