In the liner notes for her CD, Taslimah Bey – Live!, released on Ragtime Legacy in 2001, Taslimah writes: “I began researching ragtime in 1983, in an effort to learn about African-American composers in the early 20th century. The music was so exciting, so rich, and so representative of the double-consciousness of Africans in America, that I became determined to bring it to the attention of the public. In 1985, I presented the 'Ragtime Legacy,' a lecture/concert on the compositions of early ragtime composers, including Scott Joplin, Jelly Roll Morton, Artie Matthews, Eubie Blake and James P. Johnson. In 1986, I formed 'Taslimah’s Ragtime Band,' which featured my band arrangements of ragtime pieces by these composers.” [Scott Joplin and James P. Johnson are profiled at AfriClassical.com]
Taslimah Bey (Detroit News / Michelle Andonian)
July 11, 2013
Peppy style was first American popular music to take off globally
Andrea Daniel - Special to The Detroit News
“It’s
hard to listen to ragtime and be in a bad mood,” says Detroit pianist
Taslimah Bey, one of several pianists performing during the fair who
specialize in ragtime.
Ragtime, known for
its syncopated, bouncy piano style made popular by pianist Scott Joplin,
is an absolutely fascinating form of music, says Jim Johnson senior
manager of Creative Programs at The Henry Ford.
“Ragtime
hit at a time of American history when the last vestige of Victorian
America is finally getting pushed aside, and it’s making the way for the
modern jazz era,” Johnson says.
...
Today, ragtime festivals
take place all over the country, but what makes Greenfield Village’s
fair unique is the setting, says Johnson.
“It’s
layered on top of what Greenfield Village is everyday in the summer,”
he says, “which is tons of different things going on throughout the
entire village, including historic baseball games, the carousel is
running, the steam locomotive, the Model T rides. And they all buzz
right through the middle of the fair. It’s great stuff.”
Bey agrees.
“It’s
just a wonderful venue for a ragtime festival,” she says. “Because it’s
from that era, and it’s a historical type of music. I love the way they
combine the history with the entertainment.”
Bey
says ragtime is energetic, but mixed with a blues element that doesn’t
remain sad. She considers the history of the people and the lives of the
people who composed ragtime.
“It was 30 to
40 years after emancipation, and I like to think of it as they were
sort of celebrating coming through such a rough period,” she says.
The
two-day fair includes performances by ragtime pianists “Perfessor" Bill
Edwards, John Remmers, Bill Meyer, Daniel J. McCarthy, Brent Beggs,
Mary Pitcher, Carolyn Dicks and Jerry Perrine.
The Henry Ford/Greenfield Village20900 Oakwood Blvd., Dearborn
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