Perfessor Bill Edwards - Concert Information

BILL EDWARDS

CONCERT INFORMATION

PURPOSE AND GOALS

As a scholar of Ragtime and a performing preservationist of Ragtime piano and Old-Time music I have many definitive goals in mind. First and foremost is to entertain all that come to listen. The music itself is entertainment to many, but the performer needs to strive to enhance that music and inject his best qualities into it. This will ultimately generate more interest in both the music and the performer, and provide good word of mouth for both as well. What I do on the stage is not really a lecture, not so much a seminar, and not strictly a musical show; rather, I would call it an entertainment.

With that in mind, I provide what I call "Enlightenment through entertainment." I prefer the term enlightenment over education due to many pre-conceived notions the public may have towards sterile stage presentations. I would rather have people leaving performances either humming tunes that they heard, marveling at the complexity of the music, or, at the very least saying "I never knew that before." By preserving our musical past we are enhancing a great part of our nationalism, as well as a fresh understanding of history achieved through an entertaining perspective. One of the desired effects of this involves stimulating the interest of a new generation of musicians and participants who will keep Ragtime/Old-Time music alive, just as others have kept the tunes of Mozart, Bach, Handel, and even Gabrieli fresh and in front of the public.

Finally, I would like to set in motion the continued interest of those who would endeavor to learn more about Ragtime music and its many lingering influences, both musical and non-musical. This is continually achieved by a series of musical seminars (not lectures), each tailored to a different aspect of the music, or its effects. While each is entertainment in its own right, these carefully researched presentations are intended as educational tools and enhancements of musical and social studies. They also provide an opportunity for participants to both contribute and to inquire about specific interests. While it may be educating, I would still lean towards the enlightenment aspect. An example of this paradigm made tangible can be found in the MIDI and Sheet music area of my website, RagPiano.com.

These are not particularly lofty goals; Just the offspring of my desire to do what I feel I do best, and share it with anyone who is willing to listen. It is a fulfilling method of receiving personal gratification by giving the same to others. Music is a language unto itself, one that evokes any known emotion, and can induce nearly any mood. But it is a language that even the non-fluent can understand and appreciate in the hands of the right interpreter.

Bill Edwards

703-729-7239 -

"PERFESSOR" BILL EDWARDS

CONCERT REPERTOIRE

PERFORMANCE PIECES

BILL will present many styles of music from the Ragtime Era and associated genres, such as Novelty and early Stride piano. Most of the songs and rags performed will be taken from the following selections:

Ragtime Piano

Maple Leaf Rag

1899

Scott Joplin

Swipesy Cakewalk

1900

Scott Joplin & Arthur Marshall

The Entertainer

1902

Scott Joplin

Weeping Willow

1903

Scott Joplin

Gladiolus Rag

1907

Scott Joplin

The Nonpareil

1907

Scott Joplin

Fig Leaf Rag

1908

Scott Joplin

Paragon Rag

1909

Scott Joplin

Magnetic Rag

1914

Scott Joplin

The Great Crush Collision March

1896

Scott Joplin

Efficiency Rag

1917

James Scott

Grace and Beauty

1909

James Scott

Muskoka Falls - Indian Idyl

1902

Joseph F. Lamb/Bill Edwards

American Beauty Rag

1913

Joseph F. Lamb

Ragtime Nightingale

1915

Joseph F.Lamb

Bohemia

1919

Joseph F. Lamb

Pastime Rags #1, 2, 3, 4, 5

1910s

Artie Matthews

Agitation Rag

1915

Robert Hampton

Mississippi Rag

1897

William Krell

Black and White Rag

1908

George Botsford

Hungarian Rag

1913

Julius Lenzberg

Russian Rag

1918

George L. Cobb

Music Box Rag

1914

Charles "Luckey" Roberts

Cannon Ball

1904

Joseph Northup

Peaceful Henry

1908

Harry Kelly

A Bag of Rags (with Silent Movies)

1913

W.R. McKanlass

Calico Rag

1914

Nat Johnson

Anoma

1910

Ford Dabney

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Porto Rico

1910

Ford Dabney

That Dawggone Rag

1913

Maurice K. Smith

Affinity Rag

1910

Irene Cozad

Aviation Rag

1910

Albert F. Marzian (as Mark Janza)

Panama

1911

Will Tyers

Temptation Rag (as a Tango)

1909

Henry Lodge

Castle House Rag

1914

James Reese Europe

The Chevy Chase

1914

Eubie Blake

Ragging the Scale

1915

Edward B. Claypoole

Canadian Capers

1915

Chandler, White & Cohen

Royal Garden Blues

1919

Clarence Williams & Spencer Williams

Grandpa's Spells

1923

Ferdinand "Jelly Roll" Morton

Kansas City Stomps

1924

Ferdinand "Jelly Roll" Morton

King Porter Stomp

1924

Ferdinand "Jelly Roll" Morton

The Fingerbreaker

1938

Ferdinand "Jelly Roll" Morton

The Crave

1938

Ferdinand "Jelly Roll" Morton

A Handful of Keys

1929

Thomas "Fats" Waller

Mule Walk

1924

James P. Johnson

Snowy Morning Blues

1923

James P. Johnson

Memphis Blues

1912

W.C. Handy

Lasses' Blues

1912

Leroy "Lasses" White

Dallas Blues

1912

Hart A. Wand

Dictys on Seventh Avenue

1949

Eubie Blake

Goldenrod Rag

1912

W.C. Handy

The Mechanic's Rag

1989

Marty Mincer

Tha Hanon Rag

1985

Bill Edwards

Blood on the Keys

1989

Bill Edwards

A Ragtime Nocturne

1989

Bill Edwards

The Ragtime Pamela

2000

Bill Edwards

The Wiener Schnitzel Rag

2002

Bill Edwards

The Tuxedo Cat Rag

2004

Bill Edwards

Ragtime Songs

Asleep in the Deep

1897

H.W. Petrie & Arthur J. Lamb

Hello Ma Baby

1900

Joe Howard & Ida Emerson

Under the Bamboo Tree

1902

Bob Cole

In My Merry Oldsmobile

1902

Gus Edwards

Please Let Me Sleep

1902

R. C. McPherson & James T. Brymn

Bill Bailey, Won't You Please Come Home

1902

Hughie Cannon

Hannah, Won't You Open The Door

1904

Andrew Sterling & Harry Von Tilzer

The Yankee Doodle Boy

1904

George M. Coan

Take Me Out To The Ball Game

1908

Jack Norworth & Albert Von Tilzer

Shine On Harvest Moon

1908

Jack Norworth & Nora Bayes

By The Light Of The Silvery Moon

1909

Edward Madden & Gus Edwards

Alexander's Ragtime Band

1911

Irving Berlin

King Chanticleer

1911

Nat D. Ayer & Seymour Brown

The Aba Daba Honeymoon

1912

Jack Norworth

Row, Row, Row

1912

William Jerome & Jimmie Monaco

Moonlight Bay

1912

Percy Wenrich & Edward Madden

By The Beautiful Sea

1913

Harry Caroll & Harold R. Atteridge

Sailing Down the Chesapeake Bay

1913

George Botsford & Jean Havez

He'd Have To Get Under

1913

Clarke, Leslie & Abrahams

Over There

1917

George M. Cohan

Blue My Naughty Sweetie Gives to Me

1919

Swanstone, McCarron & Morgan

The Alcoholic Blues

1919

Albert Von Tilzer & Edward Laska

Saloon

1920

Ernest R. Ball

Sweet Georgia Brown

1925

Maceo Pinkard & Ken Casey

Deep Henderson

1926

Fred Rose

St. James Infirmary Blues

1928

Joe Primrose

Mamies Blues (No. 219)

1938

Ferdinand "Jelly Roll" Morton

Novelties and Show Pieces

The Midnight Fire Alarm

1900

Harry J. Lincoln

The Burning Of Rome

1902

E.T. Paull

Charleston Rag

1899

Eubie Blake

Lion Tamer Rag

1913

Mark Janza

The Entertainer's Rag

1910

Jay Roberts

Rattlesnake Rag

1917

Ethwell Hansen

Too Much Mustard

1911

Cecil Macklin

12^th Street Rag

1914

Euday Bowman

Tiger Rag

1917

Shields & LaRocca

Kitten on the Keys

1921

Zez Confrey

Nickel in the Slot

1923

Zez Confrey

Rufenreddy

1918

Roy Bargy & Charley Straight

Pianoflage

1922

Roy Bargy

Jim Jams

1922

Roy Bargy

Alabamy Bound

1925

Henderson, DeSylva & Green

Honky Tonk Train Blues

1924

Meade Lux Lewis

Harlem Strut

1921

James P. Johnson

St. Louis Blues

1914

W.C. Handy

California, Here I Come

1924

Meyer, DeSylva & Jolson

Chopinata

1927

Clement Doucet

Poet and Peasant Overture

1846

Franz Von Suppe

Hungarian Dance #5

1872

Johannes Brahms

Skoda Lasky (The Beer Barrel Polka)

1939

Vejvoda, Timm, Zeman & Brown

"PERFESSOR" BILL EDWARDS

CONCERT INFORMATION

General Format for the Stage Show
"Music and Mischief of the 1900's"

ACT ONE

Curtain or Lights up on First Song

Early Rag, March or Galop

Initial Introduction

Introduce as "Perfessor" Bill Edwards, Professional Purveyor of Pleasingly Pianistic Pyrotechnics. Short discussion of pre-ragtime music (1880-1897) and how and why ragtime came into existence. Punctuate the point with a couple of brief examples of 1890's songs (mostly weepy and pathetic). Move on to "New music for a new century."

Early Examples

One early rag and one early ragtime song.

The Ragtime Life

Quick description of itinerant pianists, their influences and influence, and how they survived travel in the 1890's. One or two jokes about ragtime pianists.

Classic Ragtime

Two classic rags in contrasting styles: Mississippi Valley, New York, Sedalia, New Orleans, etc.

Venues of Ragtime and Old-Time

Where was it played and by whom. Examples include in the home (by mother), in the music store (by sister), in the bars (by brother), at haughty-taughty social gatherings (by father), and in the districts (by very happy pianists). More jokes about playing ragtime.

Common Ragtime

One simple or popular rag and one early sing-along piece.

The Competitive Edge

Description of ragtime competitions and cutting contests. If a pianist is available for a cutting contest an example will be staged using the Maple Leaf Rag or another well known piece. Otherwise, A competition style rag will played (with panache and lots of flash).

INTERMISSION

ACT TWO

Classical Interlue

Open with a rag based on a well-known classical tune.

Popular Song

Demonstrate an immensely popular song of the era, complete with band track.

Indigenously American

Tell how popular song evolved from ragtime, and how both comprise the first truly American form of serious music. Add anecdotes about Tin Pan Alley publishers and sales tactics.

Make Us Laugh

One example of comic song. Two if one gets applause.

Is It Still Funny?

Convey some tasteful humor and jokes from and about the era. The use of obscure references and demeaning racial slurs be discussed but no offending examples will be given.

Audience Participation and "Oh Yeah" Songs

Two well known songs with not so well known verses. After trying to fit the verse to a song title the audience says "Oh Yeah" upon hearing the chorus.

New-Fangled Inventions

Player pianos and nickelodeons are highlighted with musical examples of how mechanical music sounded. Show a silent movie clip while playing an associated rag.

The Maturation of American Music

Briefly discuss the evolution of rags into jazz and common popular music. Include at least one flashy example of such.

Ragtime's Final Curtain

A fine example of a beautiful classic rag by one of the "big three" rag composers. Exit from the stage.

If they applaud long enough

Or if the doors are locked! One barn burner encore. Final Curtain.

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"PERFESSOR" BILL EDWARDS

CONCERTS AND SEMINARS

Alternate Formats, Seminars and Discussions

Some alternate presentations are available for seminars or specialty groups. Listed are the subjects and a brief synopsis. All discussions include a generous helping of related music, and opportunities to ask questions or interject insight and comments.

THE ECONOMICS OF RAGTIME

This session explores the role that ragtime and its contemporaries played in boosting the economy after the Silver Panic and subsequent depression of the 1890's. Topics include the industries of piano manufacturing (steel, lumber and milling), sheet music (Tin Pan Alley and publishing plants), player pianos and roll production, jobs for women (selling, playing and composing), new roles for blacks, the resurgence of vaudeville, the spread of public performance venues, mechanical forms of performance, and the effects of the unexpectedly large increase in alcohol production and consumption. The talk focuses on the period up to the end of the Great War" and the beginning of constitutional prohibition.

THE ORIGINS OF AMERICAN POPULAR SONG

Interspersed with both well known and obscure musical examples, this seminar focuses on two different areas. One is the publishing and selling of songs and rags by serious composers, and their unending efforts to keep their music from being both trivialized and plagiarized. The other shows how many songs and performers were created and packaged by Tin Pan Alley publishers, and some of the unusual tactics used to really "sell a song" to the public. Peripheral subjects include the use (or lack thereof) of verses, lyrical content, copyright laws and related problems, competition among music merchants, and the methods used for printing the music, as well as the artists who designed the covers.

THE ART OF THE RAG

Designed for musicians of all abilities, this is a scholarly look at the elements of ragtime. Topics include roots of ragtime and similar folk music, different regional styles of ragtime, varied performance and composition styles, a detailed structural analysis of at least two different rags, varied examples of syncopation and its applications, and how to learn and ultimately perform ragtime. This is a highly participatory discussion that is geared for groups of less than 100 dedicated (or at least very curious) musicians.

HONKY TONK PIANO

A review of the period between the original ragtime era and the revival of the 1970s, this successful presentation covers everything from ragtime used in Disney animations of the 1930s to the many honky-tonk piano artists who appeared in the 1950s, and subsequently helped to save the music from extinction. This talk includes many sound examples, a PowerPoint presentation for visual context, and a review of some of the best and worst album covers of that time. There is also a brief discussion of the changes in technology in 1948 that allowed ragtime to be presented on LP for the first time.

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SHEET MUSIC COVER ART AND ARTISTS

Music sold well in the ragtime era in part because it was also visual art. This discussion follows early text lithography to the first colorful attempts of E.T. Paull that set a higher standard for sheet music covers, plus some of the best and worst of the ragtime era. It also covers some of the more prominent artist of the time and how their covers not only give us a peek into the social aspects of the ragtime era, but also forecast future artistic forms. This is very visual with both PowerPoint and real examples.

TALES FROM TIN PAN ALLEY - A.K.A. HEARTBREAK HOLLOW

A look into the beginnings and growth of Tin Pan Alley, and many stories of heartbreak plus a few of triumph as the music business became an industry in the early 20th century. Musical examples aboung, plus humorous anecdotes surrounding many well-known songs. Also, a look at the publishing business itself, and the foibles many faced when trying to self-publish their works. This is a good overview of life during the ragtime era with litte knowledge of the music required in order to appreciate it.

THE OFFSPRING OF RAGTIME

There is a lot of music in this one. It includes many examples of ragtime and the different directions that ragtime split into. These include the Blues (a direct parent of Swing and Rock & Roll), Traditional Jazz (the rage of the twenties and the synthesis of Dixieland), Popular Song (responsible for much of today's pop music forms), and Folk and Country music (later merged with Western style songs) into the 21^st century. This presentation is great for music history classes and secondary school music assemblies, as many of them are astonished to discover that today's music isn't all that new.

SOUNDS OF THE SILENTS

This can range from a short discussion of what it took to accompany a silent film back in the early 20th century to simply a showing of various short comedies. The discussion part, if utilized, covers famed composers who wrote for film folios, dynamic performers known for their accompaniments, various instruments used, and a look at a number of theater configurations from the town hall to the giant cinema. Films are pulled from such comedians as Buster Keaton, Charles Chaplin, Harold Lloyd, Stan Laurel, Monty Banks, and many others. All have been pre-screened with nothing objectionable, so good for the family. Shows can be adjusted, but three shorts (21 min each) with music and songs in-between is recommended, and titles can be changed for several different performances.

COME ON AND HEAR

A short show that is geared towards younger students and can be tailored for any age groups from 6 to 18, this is a fast paced entertainment that includes many examples of Ragtime, Popular Song, and stories of everyday life in the Ragtime Era. Much of the playing includes some visual antics and can readily hold the attention of most age groups for 45 minutes to one hour.