Scott Joplin The Entertainer

Bridget Mermikides takes us back to the soundtrack of the 1973 Oscar-winning movie The Sting and arranges this iconic 1902 piano rag by the king of ragtime, Scott Joplin.

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One of the most extraordinary and seminal figures in the history of American music is the multiinstrumentalist, teacher and composer,Scott Joplin (≈1868-1917). Although some dispute remains over his birthdate and place, it’s likely he was born in Texas in 1868 (or 1867) where he was raised in a family of railway labourers. He first encountered music from his father (a freed slave and violinist), and his mother (a singer and banjo player). A dedicated music student, Joplin gathered musical training wherever he could, and with the family’s limited time and funds, he received tuition on guitar, mandolin, piano and singing. From the age of 11 to 16 he took lessons from a local music professor Julius Weiss – a German-born Jew. Weiss (who, due to his background was a recipient of severe race attacks) saw promise in the young Joplin and developed the boy’s knowledge