Ragtime remastered II

This is the second (and last) part of a recording held for a radio program. As I noted in the earlier post, the sound quality is somewhat compromised (wouldn't recommend their sound engineer) but I did my best to get it to an acceptable level.

The remaining pieces are: "Honey Moon Rag" by James Scott, "The Black Cat Rag" a true rarity this one by Frank Wooster & Ethyl B. Smith. Also two Joplin rags, "Felicity Rag" and the infamous "Elite Syncopations".

But that's not all, there are bonus tracks as well. Since the tape was rolling during the sound checks, here are my warm-ups: Bach "Invention No. 8 in F major, BWV 779", a Chopin "Etude in G-flat major Op. 25 No. 9" and a Debussy prelude (Book 1) "La fille aux cheveux de lin".

Enjoy the music.

Joplin - Elite Syncopations

Joplin - Felicity Rag

Scott - Honeymoon Rag

Wooster & Smith - Black Cat Rag

Chopin - Etude in G-flat major, Op. 25, no. 9

Bach - Invention No. 8 in F Major, BWV 779

Debussy - La fille aux cheveux de lin

 

Monica, thanks for taking the time to listen.

Yes, that's why I included them. As long as you find them suitable sound-wise and there is no performance problems, yes, by all means.

Wow, you got me fairly alarmed here. I didn't know this prelude was a personality assessment tool. I hope you are not holding any dark findings on me after this. Are there any other pieces serving the same purpose?

 

It never before occurred to me how much Chopin's Op.25 No.9 sounds like ragtime
A good performance though a bit short on poetry - where's the butterfly ? I did not like the accelerando towards the end. There were a couple of wrong notes which probably could have been avoided.
The Bach Invention seems a bit staid and over-reverberant, although there's nothing really wrong with it.
The Debussy is very calm, cool, and collected. You have a tendency to accent the lowest not of the downward notes, apart from that a very good performance. It could perhaps be a bit more rapt and less literal.

The rags find you very much on home territory. I am no expert on this music (or any other, for that matter :lol: ) but they sound darn good to me. Perhaps not the last word in digital accuracy, but they capture the spirit admirably.

 

@monica

And you call this a small glimpse?

This would be very interesting indeed. And highly creative for anyone taking part. Consider me in if and when you do this again.


@chris
You've got a way with comments. That's for sure. The objective reviewer's feel. This means you either listen very carefully or you got a natural talent. You are right and to the point in everything you noticed.

You know, I've never felt like a classical pianist. As a matter of fact, I've never been one officially. When I play classical pieces, I always think myself as an intruder in the classical artists' club. An outsider. An invader in their ranks.
But then again, the exceptional music of Bach, Chopin, Mozart and their sense of musical freedom drives me to try my own shot. Sometimes immature or unrefined or against the 'politically correct' but nevertheless, my own.

Thanks for listening. I am having a great time with you guys.

 

Both, actually

That's good to hear. I hope you'll stay on.

 

Thanks for listening musicusblau. I appreciate your comments.

And you're right, the Invention is a rather flat performance, isn't it?
You know, I usually play the Inventions (this one in F major, D minor, A minor and E major being my favourites) as exercises. I take a deep breath and play from beginning to end. Like 'musical pills'. Bach puts so much music in very small space, you can literally fill yourself up with musical energy after a few bars. Chopin's etudes have a similar 'energiser' effect but are more difficult to play and keep always handy.
I guess if I play Bach in the context of a performance, I will adopt a more meticulous approach.