TimesUnion.com: Scott Joplin wrote operas 'The Guest of Honor' and 'Treemonisha' as well as Ragtime

[Scott Joplin Piano Rags; Joshua Rifkin, piano; Nonesuch 79159 (1990)]

Albany Times Union

Musical monarch

Museum at St. Louis home of the 'King of Ragtime,' Scott Joplin, tells story of the life of a musical pioneer

By Michael Schuman Special to the Times Union

Sunday, July 24, 2011

“At the turn of the 20th century, ragtime was what jazz, rhythm and blues, and hip-hop would be in later decades: cutting-edge music played in not so savory places and an art form that respectable people said was going to be the end of Western civilization as they knew it.

“And nobody wrote and played ragtime as well as a Texas-born itinerant musician named Scott Joplin. The only home where Joplin lived that still stands is a humble yet handsome, brick structure on Delmar Boulevard in St. Louis. It is open as a state historic site, serving both as a tribute to Joplin and perhaps the nation's most significant monument to this truly American musical genre. The bottom floor is a mini-museum devoted to ragtime and the early recording industry; the top floor is a recreated turn of the century flat, furnished like Scott Joplin and his wife Belle might have had it during their residency.”

“Joplin tackled more ambitious projects beyond single ragtime tunes. He composed an opera, 'The Guest of Honor,' to commemorate Booker T. Washington's dinner at Teddy Roosevelt's White House. It was performed throughout the Midwest and prairie states in 1903, although some music halls refused to accept the fact that a black man could write an opera and credited 'The Guest of Honor' to 'Scott Joplin's Minstrel Company.' Unfortunately, the sheet music has been lost, so it can never again be performed.

“A second Joplin opera, 'Treemonisha,' tells the story of a post-Civil War black couple who adopt a baby girl who grows up to become a teacher and leader. No music publisher thought it would be a commercial success, and Joplin was unable to sell it. He self-produced and performed it once in 1912, but 'Treemonisha' was soon forgotten -- that is, until 1972 when it was performed in Atlanta. It was later performed on Broadway, and in 1976, Joplin was posthumously awarded a special Bicentennial Pulitzer Prize for his contributions to American music.” [Scott Joplin is profiled at AfriClassical.com]

Rick Benjamin: 'Treemonisha book is being created by the famous artist Chris Ware'; Record Label is New World Records

[Rick Benjamin's Paragon Ragtime Orchestra]

Scott Joplin (1867-1917) is profiled at AfriClassical.com. Yesterday AfriClassical posted: “Paragon Ragtime Orchestra & Singers have just finished recording Scott Joplin's 1911 masterpiece 'Treemonisha'”

Today Rick Benjamin thanks us and offers additional information on the forthcoming 2-CD set of Scott Joplin's opera Treemonisha:

"Thanks Bill:

And if you'd like, you could add that the label releasing this is New World Records (http://www.newworldrecords.org) and that the accompanying Treemonisha book is being created by the famous artist Chris Ware. Thanks for helping us get the word out!

Best regards,

RB

http://www.paragonragtime.com/

Anita Johnson, Paragon Ragtime Orchestra & Cheyney U. Concert Choir in Scott Joplin's 'Treemonisha' April 21

[Anita Johnson; Paragon Ragtime Orchestra in Treemonisha]

Cheyney University

“Scott Joplin's Treemonisha

Time: 8:00 PM – TBA

Date: Thursday, April 21

Location: Marian Anderson Music Center

Description: Metropolitan Opera soprano Anita Johnson joins members of the Paragon Ragtime Orchestra and the Cheyney University Concert Choir in a concert performance of 'Treemonisha' with a new orchestration by Rick Benjamin. General admission: $30”

BravoBroadway.com
Anita Johnson

“A native of Ypsilanti, Michigan, Anita Johnson received a Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance from the University of Southern California and a Master of Music in Voice Performance as well as K-12 Music Certification from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. After graduating from the University of Michigan, Ms. Johnson became a member of Opera Music Theatre International under the direction of Jerome Hines, performing extensively throughout New Jersey. An elementary school teacher in the New Jersey Public School system and a pre K-12 teacher at the Harlem School of the Arts, she has created many performance opportunities for children, including children’s operettas and a multi-media performance of international music. Under the auspices of the Virginia Opera Company, Ms. Johnson created and performed a unique one-woman show entitled 'ABC’S: American Black Composers’ Contributions to Our Musical Heritage ©.'”

NewWorldClassics.com

“Scott Joplin’s opera, TREEMONISHA featuring Rick Benjamin’s Paragon Ragtime Orchestra”

“Joplin’s masterpiece is an optimistic snapshot of an African-·American community’s emergence from slavery. Led by the young woman Treemonisha, the townspeople reject the local conjurers’ superstitions, in favor of hard work and learning. The musical style speaks directly to modern audiences - from heartfelt arias to rousing ragtime choruses, and Joplin’s score snaps to rhythmic life in Rick Benjamin’s new, historically-informed orchestration. The production, originally from Opera Memphis, is a brightly-colored feast for the eyes. It has mostly traditional feel with some modern touches, with the emphasis on the characters’ human qualities.” [Scott Joplin (1868-1917) was a Ragtime and Classical composer who is profiled at AfriClassical.com]

Bay State Banner: Opera Boston & 'Mssng Lnks' in 'Emancipation Chronicles,' Workshop on Scott Joplin's 'Treemonisha'

[Scott Joplin's Treemonisha; Original Cast Recording; Polygram 435709 (1992)]

Arts grant brings history to Mattapan

BayStateBanner.com

Sandra Larson

“Middle schoolers at Mildred Avenue K-8 School in Mattapan have wrapped up a two-month grant-funded program of musical and historical enrichment. About 40 students participated in 'Emancipation Chronicles,' a workshop series led jointly by Opera Boston and Mssng Lnks, a Boston nonprofit that provides vocal training to underserved youth. The program was made possible by the Boston Public Schools (BPS) Arts Expansion Initiative, developed by BPS and managed by EdVestors, a Boston organization that channels private investment into schools. The initiative, which supplements the $16 million already in the BPS budget for arts, is serving an estimated 5,000 students in some 40 schools this year.

“For the Mildred Avenue School students, the extra funds paved the way for a series of workshops covering the music, themes and historical context of African American composer Scott Joplin’s opera 'Treemonisha.' Mssng Lnks Founder Sam Martinborough and professional musicians from Opera Boston came to the school each week in December and January to work with seventh- and eighth-graders enrolled in teacher Sheryl Pedone’s music classes.

“'Treemonisha' is set in the time of slave emancipation. Its message celebrates the value of education for blacks in the late-1800s South. Using the opera as a springboard, Martinborough created a curriculum combining vocal music with lessons on the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments, the constitutional amendments that abolished slavery in 1865, granted former slaves citizenship in 1868 and gave black males the right to vote in 1870.” [Scott Joplin (1868-1917) was a Ragtime and Classical composer and pianist of African descent who is profiled at AfriClassical.com]

Simon Estes and Carmen Balthrop Starred in Scott Joplin's 'Treemonisha' at Wolf Trap in July 1972

[From TOP: Carmen A. Balthrop, Louise Parker & Simon Estes]

The Scott Joplin (1868-1917) page at AfriClassical.com explains the opera Treemonisha was completed in 1910 but was first staged in January, 1972 in a concert performance orchestrated by T. J. Anderson. It was staged in Atlanta, Georgia by the Afro-American Music Workshop of Morehouse College and the Atlanta Symphony under Robert Shaw, conductor. The Wolf Trap Company staged a production in July, 1972:

"WolfTrapOpera.org

WTC 1972: Treemonisha

Scott Joplin’s Treemonisha was composed in 1910 but didn’t receive its first production until January 1972 (in Atlanta, GA), shortly after the piano/vocal score was rediscovered. In July of that same year, Treemonisha came to the Filene Center, in an orchestration by William Bolcom.

Guest artists included Simon Estes (as Ned), and the Wolf Trap Company filled out the cast and chorus. Soprano Carmen Balthrop – now a cornerstore of the DC-area opera scene and a professor at the University of Maryland – was among the young artist hopefuls in the cast."

“Washington Savoyards brings Scott Joplin’s 1910 opera 'Treemonisha' back to Washington”

[Piano Rags; Roy Eaton, piano; Sony SBK 833 (1995)]

Savoyards.org
Scott Joplin's TREEMONISHA
Feb 19-21, 26-28; Mar 5-7
Atlas Performing Arts Center
1333 H Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002
“The Washington Savoyards brings Scott Joplin’s 1910 opera Treemonisha back to Washington for the first time since it was performed during the Kennedy Center’s celebration of the Bicentennial in 1976. This rarely performed opera—which was never performed during Joplin’s lifetime—is a superb piece of American operatic literature which draws on African American traditions for both its story and its music, but is also deeply influenced by classical opera. Joplin posthumously received the Pulitzer Prize 1976 for his contributions to American music .

“The story : The Washington Savoyards production sets this opera in a Louisiana bayou. Treemonisha is an educated young African American woman who denounces the superstitions of her community. In retaliation, local conjurers kidnap her and take her into a swamp teeming with animals. Remus, her beau, rescues her at the last moment and they return home. A champion now of the community, Treemonisha triumphantly espouses education as the key to African American success.

“Why Treemonisha and the Washington Savoyards: Since moving to the Atlas Performing Arts Center in 2006, the Washington Savoyards has broadened its repertory to include musical theatre and light opera as well as its traditional repertory of Gilbert and Sullivan.” “Treemonisha will share in this mission and will have a diverse cast. Treemonisha is a too little-known treasure of the rich American cultural tradition—created by one of the great masters of the American cultural tradition. Treemonisha will be attractive to audiences: it is by Scott Joplin, it tells an African American and an American story, it lauds education, the music is elegantly stirring, and there are roles for every age group that will delight every age group—the swamp animals and alligators will be great fun for children of all ages.

“Artistic Director N. Thomas Pedersen was involved with initial productions of Treemonisha in the early 1970s and has long wanted to bring it to the stage again. The Intersections Festival provides the ideal setting for this to happen. The opera presents excellent opportunities for partnerships with not only our colleagues among the Atlas Arts Partners but also for reaching more deeply into the Washington area’s diverse artistic communities. For the Washington Savoyards, it is the perfect vehicle to demonstrate the Company’s deep commitment to casting that is ethnically and generationally diverse and to the belief that education and knowledge are keys to superb productions and to life.” [Scott Joplin (1868-1917) was a Ragtime and Classical composer and pianist of African descent who is profiled at AfriClassical.com]

Broadway Magazine: 'Tin Pan Alley Rage: Irving Berlin Plagiarist?'

[Photo from Roundabout’s Tin Pan Alley Rag by Joan Marcus.]

Broadway.tv/blog
“Tin Pan Alley Rage: Irving Berlin Plagiarist?
BROADWAY MAGAZINE—The new offering from Roundabout Theatre is Mark Saltzman’s Tin Pan Alley Rag, featuring the music and characters of Irving Berlin and Scott Joplin. The two men are unquestionably saints in the cannon of American popular music. However, there is more than a little suggestion that Mr. Berlin may have also been a bit of a sinner too. In Charles Hamm’s book, Irving Berlin Songs Of The Melting Pot: The Formative Years, it is put forward that Irving Berlin was accused of plagiarizing 'Alexander’s Ragtime Band' from Scott Joplin’s opera Treemonisha. Quoting Joplin’s widow from Hamm’s book: 'after Scott had finished writing [Treemonisha], and while he was showing it around, hoping to get it published, someone stole the theme, and made it into a popular song. The number was quite a hit, too, but that didn’t do Scott any good.'”

“The suggestion that Berlin plagiarized Alexander’s Ragtime Band is not a new one. In Edward Berlin’s book King of Ragtime: Scott Joplin and His Era, it is pointed out that as early as 1911, there were reports that Joplin was angry with Irving Berlin. By 1916, Berlin came out publically and addressed rumors around the song, though he didn’t address the Joplin connection directly. Hmmm. Come on and steal, come on and steal Alexander’s Ragtime Band?! [Full Post] [Scott Joplin (1868-1917) was a Ragtime and Classical composer and pianist of African descent who is profiled at AfriClassical.com]

Comment on WeblogBahamas.com Post on Dr. Cleveland Williams & Scott Joplin's 'Treemonisha'

[Treemonisha Poster from Bahamas.com]

Earlier today, AfriClassical posted: “Cleveland Williams, Bahamian Baritone, Directs Scott Joplin's 'Treemonisha' in Nassau”. The following comment was also made today on WeblogBahamas.com: “William J. Zick said...It is inspiring to hear of the performances of Scott Joplin's "Treemonisha" in Nassau, starting July 6, 2009, under the direction of Dr. Cleveland Williams, the Bahamian baritone. The Scott Joplin page at AfriClassical.com explains "Treemonisha" was first staged in January, 1972 in a concert performance. It was staged in Atlanta, Georgia by the Afro-American Music Workshop of Morehouse College and the Atlanta Symphony under Robert Shaw, conductor. The opera concludes with "A Real Slow Drag". On January 30, 1972 The New York Times published a review by Harold C. Schonberg which said, in part: "This slow drag is amazing. Harmonically enchanting, full of the tensions of an entire race, rhythmically catching, it refuses to leave the mind. Talk about soul music!" I invite readers to visit the Scott Joplin page at my website.”

ArtZone.co.za: Cape Town City Ballet to dance in the Caribbean

[Cape Town City Ballet]

ArtZone.co.za

“South Africa's Premier ballet company has been invited to dance in Martinique. Professor Elizabeth Triegaardt, Executive Director of the Cape Town City Ballet (CTCB) is pleased to announce that the company has been invited to participate in an exciting cultural collaboration arranged by the Paris-based Foundation Sphere, on the French island of Martinique in the Caribbean. The invitation was initiated by Keith Mackintosh, Artistic Co-ordinator for CTCB, through the Monte Carlo based producer Patricia Panton. It will involve some of CTCB's dancers performing in the Scott Joplin opera called Treemonisha. Performances take place in the Atrium in Fort de France, the capital of Martinique, in early March.

“Triegaardt is delighted that this invitation comes in the company’s 75th anniversary year, as it continues the tradition of the company performing on the international stage. In recent years the CTCB has performed in China and Ireland and individual guest dancers have been invited to perform with companies and festivals in America, Hong Kong and Zimbabwe. The group, headed by Mackintosh, will include six dancers namely Celeste George, Noluyanda Mqulwana, Wendy – Lee Michaels, Manie Irving, Xola Putye and Warren May, together with Artistic Director Robin van Wyk who will oversee the choreographic aspect. The group leaves for Martinique, via Paris, directly after their three performances of La Sylphide at the Masque Theatre in Muizenberg in February.” [Full Post]

Comment on Learning Theremin to Play Scott Joplin's 'A Real Slow Drag' from 'Treemonisha':

[Scott Joplin's Treemonisha; Original Cast Recording; Polygram 435709 (1992)]

Earlier this week, AfriClassical posted “Learning The Theremin To Play 'A Real Slow Drag' From Scott Joplin's 'Treemonisha'". We received this comment from Rashida Black, Founder/Executive Director of The Myrtle Hart Society, http://www.MyrtleHart.org: “A friend of mine suggested that I watch Clara Rockmore perform Claire de Lune on Youtube a couple of years back. It was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen--like sign language mixed with Arabic and Turkish dance, she manipulated energy with her hands to produce the most amazing soprano sound. One of the most spellbinding things I've ever seen. What an instrument. Thanks, as always, for sharing. Rashida”  In response to Rashida's suggestion, we found Clara Rockmore's performance of Clair de Lune on theremin on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSzTPGlNa5U