Scott Joplin Super Hits

Scott Joplin (Composer), Scott and Daniels, Charles N. Joplin (Composer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Composer: Scott Joplin, Scott and Daniels, Charles N. Joplin
• Audio CD (August 8, 2000)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B00004W5AK
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #308,981 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Joplin played like Joplin plays., November 8, 2000

By 

M KIRK-DUGGAN "Reverse Mike" (El Cerrito Fellowship, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Scott Joplin Super Hits (Audio CD)

Based on the previous review, I purchased this CD, and it is great. To begin with, I have the complete New England Conservatory, Red Book, and Joshua Rifkin Joplin LPs, and strongly recommend them. But, enjoyable as they are, their languidness is not what Joplin intended. I also have some piano rolls of several rags as played by Joplin, and the tempo is race track fast. Which is exactly the manner in which Biggs uses the pedal harpsichord to render these rags. Joplin intended these rags to be a Fourth of July parade, not a soft dreamy summer night, and Biggs fullfills the promise. So I like both the Rifkin "Entertainer/[movie]Sting" versions, and I love this recording. Of particular delight for me are Joplin's Paragon and Pine Apple Rags. And of course, do not miss the Houston Opera recording of "Treemoshina." Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy.

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars E. Power Biggs: The Easy Winner, September 22, 2000

By 

Timothy T. Allen (San Francisco, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Scott Joplin Super Hits (Audio CD)

Classical musicians have been featured playing ragtime since Joshua Rifkin's bestselling albums of the late 1960's. Many of these classically-influenced performances were appealing, but at the same time seemed a little stiff, a little pedantic, like badly played Handel. In contrast, E. Power Biggs, the Bach organ virtuoso, makes Scott Joplin really live. He opens up some intriguing new dimensions in this collection of rags, recorded in 1973.

Biggs performs the music on the pedal harpsichord--which would seem to be an unlikely choice--but the percussive quality of the harpsichord makes the syncopations clear and crisp. The magnificent instrument used, made by John Challis, has a range of timbres, and Biggs combines and varies these so the different pieces each have their own character. The bass is played on foot pedals, and the left hand plays the chords on the off-beat. The right hand plays the melody on a separate keyboard, assigned a different voice for clarity. It sounds less like a baroque performance than a ragtime string band--something like the mandolin-guitar-string bass combinations of the ragtime era.

While Biggs maintains the syncopations of the pieces, there is not a strong African American feeling. He doesn't rag that thing. But he has a wonderful ear for the chorale-like harmonies in Joplin, and a natural sense of the phrasing of the pieces that brings out the structure. He slows just a little at the final chord that marks the end of each melodic strain, and then picks up the tempo in the next strain, as if the piece was getting its second wind. These tempo changes are subtle, but the effect is very satisfying. Along with the tonal variations, the phrasing helps keep this somewhat-formulaic music from sounding all the same.

The pieces performed will be familiar to Joplin listeners: Maple Leaf Rag, of course, and the usual selections such as Original Rags and The Easy Winners. The approach is different enough that hearing the standard rags does not seem like covering old ground. On the other hand, it is sad that Biggs, like the rest of the classical world, overlooked all the other ragtime composers, and the related early jazz of musicians like James P. Johnson or Willie "The Lion" Smith (who composed the 12th Street Rag). It would have been very interesting to hear what Biggs would have done with these more complex works.

But, at the same time, the familiarity of this collection of music is one of its strengths. It's the same old stuff, but not the same old way, and the quality of playing easily surpasses almost all the recordings in this genre. If you like ragtime, and are open to an innovative approach t by one of the century's greatest keyboard players, this CD will bring a spring to your step.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The most distinguished Joplin playing., December 23, 2002

By 

David B "Piano David" (GOUROCK, Renfrewshire United Kingdom) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Scott Joplin Super Hits (Audio CD)

I was delighted to find this LP recording re-issued on CD.
E. Power Bigg's stylish and refined playing on his own mighty and meaty pedal harpsichord is a delight. He brings the right blend of joi-de-vivre and sophistication to the music. How pleased Joplin would have been to hear his music played by a musician of this renown on an instrument of this quality.
Rifkin's piano recordings are fine, and very faithful. But E. Power Biggs brings an extra something, in addition to being faithful to Joplin's notes. Infectious, and a delight.