Scott Joplin (1868-1917). American composer and musician
Scott Joplin was an American composer and pianist. He pioneered the idea that ‘ragtime’ music should be considered classical music, and believed it deserved to be performed in concert halls. Joplin grew up in Arkansas, learning music from local teachers and making a living early on as a touring musician in a ragtime band. He achieved great financial success and notoriety after his Maple Leaf Rag (1899) became famous, and this continued with his The Entertainer. In 1903, he wrote and toured an opera, A Guest of Honor, which has since been lost, and his second opera Treemonisha (1911) remained unstaged due to lack of funds and his declining health due to neurosyphilis. The opera wasn’t performed professionally until 1975 by Houston Grand Opera.
Joplin’s wonderfully catchy melodies and rhythmic energy captivated Kenneth MacMillan in 1974 when he created the ragtime ballet Elite Syncopations. Also in 1974, Barry Moreland used music by Joplin to create The Prodigal Son, in Ragtime for London Festival Ballet, described as a ‘pop ballet’ by The New York Times, as Joplin’s music helped spark syncopation and rhythmic excitement into classical dance in popular culture.