Scott Joplin is one
of those rare, transcendent composers
who in the popular consciousness fully
embodies an entire genre. While he had
ambitions to expand his musical influence,
writing two operas and some folk ballet
music, it is fair to say that his success
outside ragtime was limited. Conversely,
outside the brilliancy of Scott Joplin,
the whole genre of ragtime seems to
have been left to the past. Much like
Bob Marley in the realm of Reggae, if
one comes upon a piano rag that seems
familiar, there is virtually no chance
that it was not written by Scott Joplin.
Thus it seems natural to collect his
best known rags into a single recording,
which is done here with better than
average success.
The temptation for
most performers when playing ragtime
music is to accelerate the performance
tempo in order to show off some level
of playing virtuosity that these pieces
could lend themselves to, but is actually
quite out of character. Alexander Peskanov,
the pianist on these recordings, largely
resists that particular temptation and
gives solid performances throughout.
The Maple Leaf Rag, one of those
omnipresent tunes in Western Culture,
leads off the disc with an exuberance
that seems to characterize the entire
genre. The next several pieces show
the proper restraint shown by someone
who has educated themselves in the genre.
Pine Apple Rag feels hurried
at times, as if Peskanov really wanted
to get to his favorite parts then linger
lovingly over other passages. However
his performances of Heliotrope Bouquet,
Solace: "A Mexican Serenade",
and Pleasant Moments: "Ragtime
Waltz" are among the better
examples of what characterizes a good
ragtime performance. The music is treated
with respect and admiration, not simply
tossed off like so many notes.
Aside from The Maple
Leaf Rag, the other pieces likely
to be familiar to most listeners are
Original Rag and The Entertainer:
‘A Ragtime Two-Step’ and The
Easy Winners, both of which figured
prominently into the soundtrack of the
classic 1973 movie The Sting.
Each of these is performed well, in
a fashion that is both familiar and
appropriate to the style. The Entertainer
is probably the most famous rag ever,
and as such could have been performed
with an eye on remaking it, or perhaps
been given a less-than-enthused performance.
Luckily it is given the same respect
and care accorded the rest of the album,
and the end result is a fine performance.
The Easy Winners also sounds
much as it did in the movie rendition,
which is probably a good thing.
The overall result
of this album is an appreciation for
the music of Scott Joplin. Alexander
Peskanov does well recreating the music
of the ragtime era. If one has any desire
to find a good collection of ragtime
music or to further explore the music
of Joplin, this would be a good place
to start.
Patrick Gary
Alexander Peskanov, piano