Scott Joplin
November 24, 1868 – April 1, 1917
Known as the “King of Ragtime,” Scott Joplin took banjo and piano music out of the brothels and raised it to a true art form. Born in Texas to a former slave father, Joplin tought himself how to play on a piano of a local white family. He was soon studying under a German instructor. All of these experiences helped him develop a sound that was truly unique. In 1899, his “Maple Leaf Rag” was published and went on to become one of the most popular instrumentals of all time, a true American standard. Another of his tunes, “The Entertainer” turned a new generation on to his music and helped spark the ragtime revival of the mid ’70s. Featured in the Paul Newman/Robert Redford film, The Sting, the song started receiving heavy airplay which helped its opening to become on of the most recognizable in pop music history. Joplin was just 48 when he died of what has been reported as the result of syphilis.
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