The Favorite (1904) - Scott Joplin (With Sheet Music / Score)

Details

Description

Despite being officially in print by early 1904, "The Favorite" is said to be possibly composed in 1899, (as per American composer, Brun Campbell, who had reportedly spent time with Joplin during that time) sold to the small publishing house of A.W. Perry that same year, even before John Stark's acquisition of the Maple Leaf Rag. Why it came out 5 years later remains a bit of a mystery to this day, especially given Perry's status as somewhat of a niche publisher with a good national reach.

However, it can be speculated that Perry might have been reluctant to release a rag too quickly during the time period, should the growing genre of "Ragtime" turn out to only be a fad. Therefore, it was possibly tucked away until Joplin's fame was growing (he had left Sedalia by this time) and someone remembered or rediscovered this acquisition. It is clearly developed beyond the cakewalk writing style that was still dominant by the turn of the century, with the A section including an unusual repeated triplet figure, making it a standout from the start.

In the B section, the figure in measures 5 through 8 indicates future possibilities that Joplin would later implement in pieces like "The Ragtime Dance" (composed shortly thereafter), and even "Euphonic Sounds." As for the trio, the melody by itself is very sparse, so a bit of flow has been added to enhance the left hand throughout the performance, formally closing with what is clearly a march movement tagged with the last four measures of the trio. The wedding of the cover to the title may not be entirely logical just as with a number of Ragtime works of the era, since "The Favorite" could just as easily refer to horse racing as in The Easy Winners, published in 1901.

After all, it was a common practice for the music publishers themselves to name the works instead of the composer in certain scenarios, so the name within itself may have just been out of the need for a eye-catching title, just as the same case with James Scott's "Frog Legs Rag" which would appear on shelves 2 years later.
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"The Favorite (Ragtime Two Step)" - Classic Piano Rag - Pattern: Intro A A B B A Trio Trio D D
Music by Scott Joplin, Published by A.W. Perry & Sons' Music Co. in 1904
Cover Artist: Unknown

Music description provided & written by Bill Edwards, learn more about it here:
https://web.archive.org/web/20220308214107/http://ragpiano.com/pbmusic_joplin1.shtml

Music performed by Guido Nielsen with his album "Scott Joplin: The Complete Works (Rags, Marches, Waltzes & Songs)"

℗ 2000 Basta Audio-Visuals
Producer: Piet Schreuders
Music Publisher: Basta Music
Performer: Guido Nielsen