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Chart-topping American pianist Lara Downes reflects on the music of Scott Joplin through a 21st-century lens, revealing it's many layers of genre-blurring subtlety and nuance. Joplin is revered as The "King of Ragtime". He's acknowledged as a classically-trained composer of concert music whose ambitions were denied in his own time. He was both of those things, and more - an innovator who merged traditions and histories to make music at the crossroads of the American future. His story is ready to be retold. The fullness of Joplin's artistry shines through in Downes' open-hearted interpretations, heard in arrangements that transcend historical boundaries. The album is book-ended with music from Joplin's opera Treemonisha, and features a fluid suite of rags and drags that include collaborations with mandolinist Joe Brent, the Brooklyn Youth Chorus, and baritone Will Liverman in the world premiere recording of the heart-wrenching ballad A Picture Of Her Face. In Lara's words: "There's a multi-faceted, timeless beauty to this music - a world of emotion and expression waiting to be experienced and embraced. I'm profoundly moved by Joplin's innovative creative vision, the depth of his blended musical roots, and the breadth of what grew from them."
Scott Joplin (1867-1917)