List of compositions by Scott Joplin explained

The following is a complete list of musical compositions by Scott Joplin (November 24, 1868 – April 1, 1917).

Scott Joplin was born in Arkansas in around 1867, just outside Texarkana, and was a street performer before settling in Sedalia, Missouri, St. Louis, Missouri, and finally New York City where he died in 1917. He was an American composer and pianist, who achieved fame for his ragtime compositions, and was dubbed "The King of Ragtime." During his career, Joplin wrote over 40 original ragtime pieces, one ragtime ballet, and two operas. One of his first pieces, the "Maple Leaf Rag" (1899), has been recognized as the archetypal rag and influenced subsequent rag composers for thanks to its rhythmic patterns, melody lines, and harmony.

His finances were precarious throughout his career, despite a steady income from the "Maple Leaf Rag." Joplin had the majority of his works published by John Stark of Sedalia, Missouri, although he did use other lesser-known companies including his own "Scott Joplin Music Publishing Company." His first opera, A Guest of Honor, was lost after an unsuccessful tour in 1903. After the 1953 death of his widow, Lottie, a number of manuscripts of unpublished work were lost and no copies of them are known to exist.

When Joplin was learning the piano, serious musical circles condemned ragtime because of its association with the vulgar and inane songs of Tin Pan Alley. As a composer, Joplin refined ragtime, developing it from the dance music played by pianists in brothels in cities like St. Louis. This new art form, the classic rag, combined Afro-American folk music's syncopation and nineteenth-century European romanticism, with its harmonic schemes and its march-like tempos, in particular the works of John Philip Sousa. With this as a foundation, Joplin intended his compositions to be played exactly as he wrote them – without improvisation. Joplin wrote his rags as "classical" music to raise ragtime above its "cheap bordello" origins and produced work which opera historian Elise Kirk described as "...more tuneful, contrapuntal, infectious, and harmonically colorful than any others of his era."

Many inconsistencies can be found among Joplin's own titles, his subtitles, and titles printed on the covers of sheet music. For the editor of the collected works this reveals publishers' "editorial casualness" as well as a view that dance-steps in the genre could be interchangeable.[1] Many of the works cannot be dated with certainty, and the pieces were not always submitted for copyright registration. In many cases the publication date is the only suggestion of when a piece was composed.[2] __TOC__

List

TitleStyleYearFormKeysNotes/SamplesReference
Please Say You WillSong1895Intro Vs1 Ch Intro Vs2 Ch Intro Vs3 ChBbLyrics by Scott Joplin.
A Picture of Her FaceSong1895Intro Vs1 Ch Coda Vs2 Ch CodaFLyrics by Scott Joplin.
March1896Intro AA BB CC DD E D2 E D2Dm/F/F/Bb...
Combination MarchMarch1896Intro AA Trans. BB Trans. CC DDBb/Bb/Eb/Eb
Harmony Club WaltzWaltz1896Intro AA BB CC DD EE FF GG A BBb/Bb/Gm/Bb/G/C/F/Bb/Bb
Original RagsRag1899Intro AA BB CC Abbr.Intro A DD EEG/G/C/G/D/GArranged by Charles N. Daniels, although this involvement is disputed.
Maple Leaf RagRag1899AA BB A CC DDAb/Ab/Ab/Db/Ab
Swipesy CakewalkCakewalk1900Intro AA BB A CC DDBb/Bb/Bb/Eb/BbWith Arthur Marshall.
Peacherine RagRag1901Intro AA BB A CC DDEb/Bb/Eb/Ab/Ab
Sunflower Slow DragRagtime Two Step1901Intro AA BB A Trans. CC DDBb/Bb/Bb/Eb/Eb
Augustan Club WaltzWaltz1901Intro AA BB CC DD CodaBb/Bb/Gm/Bb
I Am Thinking of My Pickaninny DaysSong1901Intro Vs1 Ch Vs2 ChBbLyrics by Henry Jackson.
Ragtime Two Step1901Intro AA BB A Trans. CC DDAb/Ab/Ab/Db/Db
A BlizzardUnknown1901Lost – unpublished. Mentioned in Indianapolis Freeman, November 16, 1901.
CleophaMarch and Two Step1902Intro AA BB A CC DDF/F/F/Bb/Bb
A Breeze From AlabamaMarch and Two Step1902Intro AA BB CC Trans. DD Trans. BBC/C/Ab/F/C
Elite SyncopationsRag1902Intro AA BB A CC DD F/F/F/Bb/Bb
Ragtime Two Step1902Intro AA BB A CC Trans. DDC/C/C/F/C
March MajesticMarch and Two Step1902Intro AA BB CC D C D CG/G/C...
Ragtime Two Step1902Intro AA BB A Trans. CC DDC/G/C/F/F
Song1902Intro A B CC Trans. DD EE [FF GG HH GG]Bb/Gm/Bb/Eb...Lyrics by Scott Joplin.
Something DoingRagtime Two Step1903Intro AA BB A CC DDF/F/F/Bb/BbWith Scott Hayden.
Weeping WillowRagtime Two Step1903Intro AA BB A CC DDG/G/G/C/C
Little Black BabySong1903Intro Vs1 Ch1 Vs2 Ch2BbLyrics by Louise Armstrong Bristol.
Palm Leaf RagRag1903Intro AA BB CC Trans. AABb/Bb/Eb/Bb
A Guest of HonorRagtime Opera19032 actsN/ALost.
Dude's ParadeOpera Excerpt1903Lost – unpublished. Excerpt from A Guest of Honor. Announced in the Indianapolis Freeman, September 12, 1903.
Patriotic PatrolOpera Excerpt1903Lost – unpublished. Excerpt from A Guest of Honor. Announced in the Indianapolis Freeman, September 12, 1903.
Maple Leaf RagSong1904Intro Vs1 Ch Int1 Intro Vs2 Ch Int2 Intro Vs3 ChEbLyrics by Sydney Brown. A simplified arrangement not produced by Joplin.
Concert Rag1904Intro AA BB CC DDG/G/C/C
Ragtime Two Step1904Intro AA BB A CC DDBb/Gm/Bb/Eb/Eb
Rag1904Intro AA BB Trans. CC DDC/C/Bb/Eb
Afro-American Intermezzo1904Intro AA BB A CC DD CBb/F/Bb/Eb/Cm/Eb
BethenaConcert Waltz1905Intro A Trans. BB Trans. A Trans. CC Trans. DD EE Trans. A CodaG/Bb/G/F/Bm/D/G
Binks' WaltzWaltz1905Intro AA BB A CC A CodaBb/Gm/Bb/Eb/Bb
Sarah DearSong1905Intro Vs1 Ch Vs2 ChFLyrics by Henry Jackson.
The Rosebud March March and Two Step1905Intro AA BB CC Trans. AAG/G/C/G
LeolaTwo Step1905AA BB A CC DDAb/Ab/Ab/Db/Ab
You Stand Good with Me, BabeSong1905Lost – unpublished. Announced in Indianapolis Freeman, July 22, 1905.
EugeniaRag1906Intro AA BB A C D C D CBb/Bb/Bb/Eb...
Stop-Time Two Step1906Intro AA BB CC [DD EE FF]Bb/Eb...
AntoinetteMarch and Two Step1906Intro AA BB C D C D CG/G/C...
Good-bye Old Gal Good-byeSong1906Intro Vs1 Ch Ch Vs2 Ch ChFMusic by H. Carroll Taylor, lyrics by Mac Darden, arranged by Joplin.
Snoring Sampson: A Quarrel in RagtimeSong1907Intro Vs1 Ch Vs2 ChCMusic & lyrics by Harry La Mertha, arranged by Joplin.
Ragtime Two Step1907Intro AA BB CC DDBb/Bb/Eb/Eb
When Your Hair Is Like The SnowSong1907Intro Vs1 Ch Vs2 ChCLyrics by Owen Spendthrift.
Gladiolus RagRag1907AA BB A CC DDAb/Ab/Ab/Db/Db
Searchlight RagRag1907Intro AA BB A CC DDBb/Bb/Bb/Eb/Eb
Lily QueenRagtime Two Step1907Intro AA BB A CC DDC/C/C/F/FBy Arthur Marshall, edited by Joplin.
Rose Leaf RagRagtime Two Step1907Intro AA BB A CC DDC/C/C/F/F
Heliotrope BouquetSlow Drag Two Step1907Intro A BB A CC DDG/G/G/C/CWith Louis Chauvin.
Fig Leaf RagHigh Class Rag1908Intro AA BB A CC DDBb/Bb/Bb/Eb/Eb
Sugar CaneRagtime Two Step1908AA BB A CC DDBb/Bb/Bb/Eb/Bb
SensationRag1908AA BB A CC DG/G/G/C/CBy Joseph F. Lamb, arranged by Joplin.
Pine Apple RagRag1908Intro AA BB A CC DDBb/Bb/Bb/Eb/Eb
School of Ragtime – 6 Exercises for PianoExercises1908AA; BB; CC; DD; EE; FFC
Pleasant MomentsRagtime Waltz1909Intro A BB A CC A CodaG/D/G/C/G
Wall Street RagRag1909Intro AA BB CC DDC/C/F/F[3]
SolaceHabanera / Mexican Serenade1909Intro AA BB A CC DDC/C/C/F/F
Country ClubRagtime Two Step1909Intro AA BB A CC DDC/C/C/F/F
Euphonic SoundsSyncopated Novelty1909Intro AA BB A CC A CodaBb/Bb/Bb/F/Bb
Paragon RagRag1909Intro AA BB A CC DDG/G/G/C/C
Stoptime RagStop-Time Rag1910AA BB A CC DD EE D FF GGC/Am/C...
Pine Apple RagSong1910Intro Vs1A Vs1B Ch Vs2A Vs2B ChEbLyrics by Joe Snyder.
TreemonishaOpera19113 acts, 27 chaptersN/A
Felicity RagRagtime Two Step1911Intro AA BB CC Trans. DDC/C/C/F/CWith Scott Hayden. Likely composed before 1903.
Lovin' BabeSong1911Intro Vs1 Ch Vs2 ChGLyrics by Al. R. Turner, arranged by Joplin.
Scott Joplin's New RagRag1912Intro AA BB A CC Trans. D A CodaC/Am/C/C/Em/C
Kismet RagRag1913Intro AA BB A CC DDC/G/C/F/CWith Scott Hayden. Likely composed before 1903.
A Real Slow DragOpera Excerpt1913Intro A B1 B2 Trans. CC B1 B2 CodaBm/F/Bb/FRevised excerpt from Treemonisha.
Prelude to Act 3Opera Excerpt1913A B CC A CodaG/Bb/C/GRevised excerpt from Treemonisha.
Silver Swan RagRag1914Intro AA BB A CC Intro ABb/Gm/Bb/Eb/BbOriginally published only on piano roll. Sheet music published in 1971.
Magnetic RagRag1914Intro AA BB CC Trans. DD AA CodaBb/Gm/Bb/Bbm/Bb
Frolic of the BearsOpera Excerpt1915Intro A B1 B2 C Trans. A B1 B2 C Trans. A CodaEmRevised excerpt from Treemonisha.
Magnetic RagSong1915?--Lost – unpublished. Seen by biographers Rudi Blesh, and Harriet Janis in 1950.
Confidence RagRag1915?--Lost – incomplete, and unpublished. Seen by biographers Rudi Blesh, and Harriet Janis in 1950.
For the Sake of AllSong1915?Lost – incomplete, and unpublished. Seen by biographers Rudi Blesh, and Harriet Janis in 1950.
Morning GloriesSong1915Lost – incomplete, and unpublished. Announced by the composer in the Indianapolis Freeman newspaper, September 4, 1915. Seen by biographers Rudi Blesh, and Harriet Janis in 1950.
Syncopated JamboreeVaudeville Act1915Lost – unpublished. Announced in the Indianapolis Freeman newspaper, September 18, 1915.
Pretty Pansy RagRag1915?Lost – unpublished. A copy was given by the composer to Martin Niederhoffer. Seen by biographers Rudi Blesh, Harriet Janis, and performed by James P. Johnson in 1950.
Recitative RagRag1915?Lost – unpublished. Seen by biographers Rudi Blesh, Harriet Janis, and performed by James P. Johnson in 1950.
IfMusical Comedy1916Lost – unpublished. Announced as completed in the New York Age September 7, 1916.
Symphony No. 1Symphony1916Lost – incomplete, and unpublished. Announced in the New York Age September 7, 1916.
Piano ConcertoPiano Concerto1917?Lost – incomplete, and unpublished.
Reflection Rag (Syncopated Musings)Rag1917Intro AA BB CC DD EEBb/Gm/Bb/Eb/EbPublished posthumously by Stark. Likely composed in 1907.

Bibliography

. Rudi Blesh . Brodsky Lawrence . Vera . Vera Brodsky Lawrence . Scott Joplin Complete Piano Works . Scott Joplin: Black-American Classicist. 1981. New York Public Library . 0-87104-272-X.

Further reading

Notes and References

  1. [Vera Brodsky Lawrence]
  2. Index p. 325, Scott Joplin Complete Piano Works, New York Public Library, 1981.
  3. Web site: Edwards. Bill. Rags and Pieces by Scott Joplin (1906-1917). RAGPIANO. 16 March 2017.