I'm so glad that Tom and Frederick make "poor" tempo decisions. It really brings out the energy in tunes like this. I feared for the structural integrity of the piano Tom played this on in verybigrifle's upload though.
There's a great video recently posted showing this particular tamer's art. Search for "What Does the Middle Pedal Do?" In it, Dr Hodges demonstrates his impeccable technique -- something you and I and anyone who's seen him in person has noticed but which might not be obvious to the average video viewer.
In fact, when one listens to this closely, one can hear that, even through the speed of this particular rag, Frederick is still able to use the sostenuto pedal to hold particular bass/tenor notes. No one who is "obsessed with speed above anything else" would have developed that kind of refined technique.
caesar001x: I said this because it seems like all I've seen on YouTube is his fast things. It seems like all these ragtime festivals are dominated by lots of speed and not much of anything else. Why must ragtime always be so fast?
Let me rephrase my statement: Hodges is certainly capable of playing slow but both he and Tom Brier are absolutely obsessed with speed above anything else. Or perhaps Keeper1st is obsessed with speed and it is all he seems to upload?
The vast majority of ragtime is peppy, and you're apparently just missing the slower numbers when they do turn up (e.g., Frederick playing "Who Let the Cows Out" posted last week, or the guys playing "Singin' in the Rain" posted two weeks ago).
A slow rag is a rare thing. Clarence Woods described his "slow and soft" Sleepy Hollow Rag as being a "novelty" (before the word "novelty" got used to label the acrobatics of the following decade).
They're not obsessed with speed, but with history.
If you want a good, short sampling of the ragtime festivals, watch the two parts of "West Coast Ragtime Festival 2006" and you'll hear that there are indeed slower numbers in the mix. Likewise for the "Sutter Creek Ragtime Festival 2006" video compilation (the video that started it all in terms of "professional" ragtime performers on YouTube).
I just listened to My Blue Heaven. I guess the general beat is slow but the runs are very fast. What I'm trying to say is that both Hodges and Brier seem to make poor tempo decisions. Human ears can only take so much blazing speed until it all starts sounding the same. I'm not saying to play everything "slow" but rather they would vastly improve their musicianship if they didn't race through everything. The difference is as small as driving 80 mph rather than 100 mph.
If they make "poor tempo decisions" then so did everyone in the history of ragtime, from pianists to roll arrangers. They are among the few people today with the ability to re-create the styles heard on old recordings, arranged rolls and reproducing rolls.
I am not a fan of historical performance as a means in itself. I don't like most roll recordings and it is a mistake to assume all players in the 1910's or 20's (as in any time period) were necessarily good musicians. Historicists nowadays tend to assume players back then had some special powers that nobody has today, which is a silly assumption. Yes, it is true that even performers in Jopin's time could have made poor tempo decisions.
Dear Bach Scholar, please shut up and go buy Frederick Hodges' excellent CD "Turn On the Heat" available from Stomp Off Records, and marvel at the many SLOW tunes, in addition to all the MEDIUM and fast ones!
OK, then check out Frederick's video entitled "Frederick Hodges at the piano with a Cole Porter Medley" posted by Youtube user tdub1941. If you disregard the high-pitched camera whine, you will find he plays with a wide variety of tempos and dynamics.
P.S. I will be posting a video of me playing a slower tune "Drift-Wood" on my own page soon... watch for it.
Also, it's not just speed that I'm talking about, but the general sound. Peppy or not, one should always strive for a pleasing sound from the piano, called "cantabile", which Joplin often indicated in his music. I hear almost none of this from Tom and maybe just a little more from Frederick. I have yet to hear either one of them play a truly cantabile melody. I wish I could hear Frederick play something like Solace with no added fast runs and with feeling because I do admire his playing.
Unfortunately, my camera's gain control evens out the volumes, so isn't the best for capturing such things. I suppose the one of Tom playing "Perryville" is the best bet.
Then you again have missed a whole bunch (including one posted last week). In fact, he plays some tunes slower than one would expect to hear them (e.g. Temptation Rag, Carolina Shout). The most impressive video of those I've shot ("tdub1941" has a lot more of Frederick) is also the slowest: My Blue Heaven.
This one is fast because it's The Lion Tamer -- not The Kitten Cuddler!
You might enjoy Frederick's dissertation "Is Ragtime Classical Music?" on his website (click "Blog" on the left side).
I just read "Is Ragtime Classical Music". It is very interesting and nicely written. My opinion is somewhere in between in that I am opposed to sterile classical-type interpretations (i.e. Rifkin), but on the other hand ragtime is after all *music* and music (regardless of popular, classical, or whatever) comes in all types of speeds and emotions. Calling all ragtime "happy, joyful, and playful" as Hodges does is just as overly-generalizing as treating it all seriously.
I disagree; get his CD "Turn On the Heat" on the Stomp Off label, and you will find plenty of slow, sensitive ballads to go along with the faster, hotter numbers.
I'm so glad that Tom and Frederick make "poor" tempo decisions. It really brings out the energy in tunes like this. I feared for the structural integrity of the piano Tom played this on in verybigrifle's upload though.
Harmonyww 6 months ago
Disclaimer: The Lion denies that this arrangement is any indication of the Tamer's art...LOL
TheKnabe 2 years ago
There's a great video recently posted showing this particular tamer's art. Search for "What Does the Middle Pedal Do?" In it, Dr Hodges demonstrates his impeccable technique -- something you and I and anyone who's seen him in person has noticed but which might not be obvious to the average video viewer.
Keeper1st in reply to TheKnabe (Show the comment) 2 years ago
In fact, when one listens to this closely, one can hear that, even through the speed of this particular rag, Frederick is still able to use the sostenuto pedal to hold particular bass/tenor notes. No one who is "obsessed with speed above anything else" would have developed that kind of refined technique.
Keeper1st in reply to Keeper1st (Show the comment) 2 years ago
Maybe, if you would familiarize yourself with Dr. Hodges body of work, you might wish to re-consider your statement.
caesar001x 2 years ago 3
caesar001x: I said this because it seems like all I've seen on YouTube is his fast things. It seems like all these ragtime festivals are dominated by lots of speed and not much of anything else. Why must ragtime always be so fast?
Let me rephrase my statement: Hodges is certainly capable of playing slow but both he and Tom Brier are absolutely obsessed with speed above anything else. Or perhaps Keeper1st is obsessed with speed and it is all he seems to upload?
BachScholar in reply to caesar001x (Show the comment) 2 years ago
The vast majority of ragtime is peppy, and you're apparently just missing the slower numbers when they do turn up (e.g., Frederick playing "Who Let the Cows Out" posted last week, or the guys playing "Singin' in the Rain" posted two weeks ago).
A slow rag is a rare thing. Clarence Woods described his "slow and soft" Sleepy Hollow Rag as being a "novelty" (before the word "novelty" got used to label the acrobatics of the following decade).
They're not obsessed with speed, but with history.
Keeper1st in reply to BachScholar (Show the comment) 2 years ago
If you want a good, short sampling of the ragtime festivals, watch the two parts of "West Coast Ragtime Festival 2006" and you'll hear that there are indeed slower numbers in the mix. Likewise for the "Sutter Creek Ragtime Festival 2006" video compilation (the video that started it all in terms of "professional" ragtime performers on YouTube).
Keeper1st in reply to Keeper1st (Show the comment) 2 years ago
I just listened to My Blue Heaven. I guess the general beat is slow but the runs are very fast. What I'm trying to say is that both Hodges and Brier seem to make poor tempo decisions. Human ears can only take so much blazing speed until it all starts sounding the same. I'm not saying to play everything "slow" but rather they would vastly improve their musicianship if they didn't race through everything. The difference is as small as driving 80 mph rather than 100 mph.
BachScholar in reply to Keeper1st (Show the comment) 2 years ago
If they make "poor tempo decisions" then so did everyone in the history of ragtime, from pianists to roll arrangers. They are among the few people today with the ability to re-create the styles heard on old recordings, arranged rolls and reproducing rolls.
Keeper1st in reply to BachScholar (Show the comment) 2 years ago
I am not a fan of historical performance as a means in itself. I don't like most roll recordings and it is a mistake to assume all players in the 1910's or 20's (as in any time period) were necessarily good musicians. Historicists nowadays tend to assume players back then had some special powers that nobody has today, which is a silly assumption. Yes, it is true that even performers in Jopin's time could have made poor tempo decisions.
BachScholar in reply to Keeper1st (Show the comment) 2 years ago
Dear Bach Scholar, please shut up and go buy Frederick Hodges' excellent CD "Turn On the Heat" available from Stomp Off Records, and marvel at the many SLOW tunes, in addition to all the MEDIUM and fast ones!
KawhackitaRag in reply to BachScholar (Show the comment) 2 years ago 2
OK, then check out Frederick's video entitled "Frederick Hodges at the piano with a Cole Porter Medley" posted by Youtube user tdub1941. If you disregard the high-pitched camera whine, you will find he plays with a wide variety of tempos and dynamics.
P.S. I will be posting a video of me playing a slower tune "Drift-Wood" on my own page soon... watch for it.
KawhackitaRag in reply to BachScholar (Show the comment) 2 years ago
Also, it's not just speed that I'm talking about, but the general sound. Peppy or not, one should always strive for a pleasing sound from the piano, called "cantabile", which Joplin often indicated in his music. I hear almost none of this from Tom and maybe just a little more from Frederick. I have yet to hear either one of them play a truly cantabile melody. I wish I could hear Frederick play something like Solace with no added fast runs and with feeling because I do admire his playing.
BachScholar in reply to Keeper1st (Show the comment) 2 years ago
Unfortunately, my camera's gain control evens out the volumes, so isn't the best for capturing such things. I suppose the one of Tom playing "Perryville" is the best bet.
Keeper1st in reply to BachScholar (Show the comment) 2 years ago
Hodges is another one of those pianists who only seems to be capable of playing really fast.
BachScholar 2 years ago
Then you again have missed a whole bunch (including one posted last week). In fact, he plays some tunes slower than one would expect to hear them (e.g. Temptation Rag, Carolina Shout). The most impressive video of those I've shot ("tdub1941" has a lot more of Frederick) is also the slowest: My Blue Heaven.
This one is fast because it's The Lion Tamer -- not The Kitten Cuddler!
You might enjoy Frederick's dissertation "Is Ragtime Classical Music?" on his website (click "Blog" on the left side).
Keeper1st in reply to BachScholar (Show the comment) 2 years ago
I just read "Is Ragtime Classical Music". It is very interesting and nicely written. My opinion is somewhere in between in that I am opposed to sterile classical-type interpretations (i.e. Rifkin), but on the other hand ragtime is after all *music* and music (regardless of popular, classical, or whatever) comes in all types of speeds and emotions. Calling all ragtime "happy, joyful, and playful" as Hodges does is just as overly-generalizing as treating it all seriously.
BachScholar in reply to Keeper1st (Show the comment) 2 years ago
I disagree; get his CD "Turn On the Heat" on the Stomp Off label, and you will find plenty of slow, sensitive ballads to go along with the faster, hotter numbers.
KawhackitaRag in reply to BachScholar (Show the comment) 2 years ago