Disney World MAgic Kingdom Ragtime piano player

[rparolin]

You know Disneyworld, everything is top-notch, and this guy is the absolute best for a ragtime/oldtime pianist. If Disney had a Chopin exhibit, he would have Van Cliburn (or someone like him). But this guy is the undisputed best for the style of piano he plays. I brought my family to Disney and plodded dutifully thru the attractions. Ho-Hum. But when I came across this guy, I could have stayed there all day. A few frosty beers would have completed my revery.

[coyotepey]

ummm disney is an awesome place to work for performers ....

[LegendsXXboy]

What is the title of the song?

[Qwiklaff]

@LegendsXXboy The Cascades

[LegendsXXboy]

@Qwiklaff thank you !!

[bigpianoguy]

I'm a ragtime piano player too; I've played "Somewhere My Love" in Vladivostok & "California Here I Come"in L.A..and drank with Al Hirt on Bourbon Street in New Orleans. Why? Because I have to, I suppose. Disneyland? Oh yeah, you're livin' the dream, kid; play on! (Someone's got it confused; a great piano player can turn a dive in a forgotten corner of the world into a legend, if the stars are lined up or whatever floats yer boat.)

[08262016]

I've been there many times and the music is better if you can stand right by him

[JeremySheer]

@08262016 they took away the piano at Disneyland......pisses me off it sits in the walt disney museum......because the piano installed by walt in 1955 became a liability.....thats why there are no more pioanos player videos since 2007.....

[RIIICHAAAARD]

@JeremySheer  The piano in Disney World is still played today, though.

[PotterMarauder]

hahaha i saw that exact same guy when i was there in 2004 XD

[HouCuseChickie95]

My kids finally got to see Jim for the first time back in December. We'll hopefully get to see him again in August :) Every time I've ever seen him, he just looks so happy- and isn't that the most important thing!?!?!

[Rainmanxxl1967]

Even a good pianoplayer like him will never play for a wider audience than at Disneyland I suppose

[BettyAlexander]

If he likes what he does and gets an ok salary then good for him. I do hope he gets paid well because he plays great. I remember visiting disney world and listening to him play in person. He was teriffic. Enjoy yourself Jim.

[Runningreat]

Jim is actually sort of a legend down there. There are people who have seen him over the years, even as kids and who are now taking their own kids to see him. And don't be fooled...They (Disney) treat Jim better than you think! : )

[PrivateRyan798]

memorized? impressive!

[DisneyWorldAddict214]

he looks like hes having a really good time :)

[Mikjawful]

He looks like a happy guy. :)

[FlAuthor]

Piano Player name is Jim. I remember him playing in 1977 when I started in Security. He may actually be one of the 1971 original cast members. Most ragtime piano players are popular for a while then disappear. Jim always has a captive audience and that is what a musician dreams for. Play it again, Jim!

[elmaranon]

This is NOT sad! This is awesome. I am sure he enjoys (enjoyed) his work at DWMK!

[gdw1910]

It's Jim Omahundro, he hasnt changed in 25 years! Still playing up a storm.



[ReturnOfTheStienway]

hahahahaha uhhh ohhh!!!

[111RaginCajun]

It's the Cascades by Scott Joplin!!!

[Sushiman808]

I bet hes getting paid with peanuts at disney ... a shame ..

[TheOpinionatedPerson]

This is surely the best job in the world :'/

[quesadiya]

he is awesome :)

[reedy111111111111111]

ive got some ragtime sheet music my dad used to compose but i dont play piano so i dont no what it sounds like

[RenatoMarinoHenz]

This guy is amazing, seeing this guy live is even better!

[pianoplayer106]

wow!! Crayzy but sooo amanzing ilove it

[kidnflorida]

What I love about him is that you can ask him to play ANY song and he can play it. He is just a true musician. Totally Awesome!

[km2711]

I've seen jazz or ragtme piano players along MAIN ST USA--sometimes near the Bakery...or, in that alley-way where some tables are setup for eating

[Kieili]

I have never seen this when I've been tehre D;

Where in the park is it located?

[Duke2106]

@Kieili He sits outside of Casey's Hot Dogs, at the end of Main Street on the left.

[plucknpick]

IMHO this fellow plays pretty true to form Ragtime. I love it. His style is a treasure!

Great Presentation!

[gulgul2006]

I can play and ragtime is my favorite, but I could never play in public like that... GOD how nerve racking.. especially if I was WORKING... going to a bar piano while people are eating is one thing... being on the clock to do it is worse.. this guy's got some serious chops...

[MusicFeedsYourSoul]

Will he ever let guests play? They do at Disneyland, and you get a certificate that says "I tickled the ivories with Ragtime Robert" and there's a place for your name on it.

[runswithbilly]

what about now that robert isn't there anymore?

[MusicFeedsYourSoul]

Does he ever let guests play the piano, like they do at Disneyland?

[CJohnston079]

The Cascades, great piece!

[pedrofarpas]

o wrote this song?

[lagier8]

scoot joplin

[OB3SITY]

this is the guy i wanted to record, but i didnt have my camera at the time. i recorded a guy that made fur elise "more fancy"

[JAJAVELEZ]

He's awesome!! He's been there since November, 1983!!

[Xw0LveS89]

wow.... how did u know that ?? u been there lots of times ?? ??

[emaytee]

might as well have a player piano instead of a piano player.

[jvictorguedes]

Man, this is Jim!!!

He is fantastic!!! I used to work right close of the piano... Used to listen to him almost everyday!

he is a genius!

[wheelstot]

Don't shoot the piano player, the guy is so dang good he can make himself sound like a machine! I've seen the many videos posted and hands down this guy mops the floor with dynamics when he wants to do that also.

[readyboingo]

Then roll over Beethoven because at the rate he plays you wouldn't know what dynamics are squeezed in there. The man is great, and I hope to see him play this Feb.

[aaqaaqaaqaaqaaqaaqaa]

He hits ALL the notes but lacks dynamics..like a player piano.

[romi116]

trés sympa !

very nice

[MusicalYoshi]

Man! Ragtime is so cool! But hard to perform. :(

[tdenusa]

That's how ragtime shouldn't be played. Rinky dinky. Ugh.

[chicostacos4]

Why? It's very suiting.

[ryanski77]

Typical boring ragtime purist snob.

[Croter8ment]

thats not how ragtime shouldn't be played; mind-fryingly fast is how ragtime shouldn't be played. rinky dinky is acceptable

[theguydressedinwhite]

what's the second song he plays?

[TheNilvarg]

Oh my God. I can't believe he's still there. I have a bunch of pictures from one of my first WDW vacations when I was 5 or 6 (1990), and my dad took a picture of him looking right at the camera.

He hasn't aged a bit.

[MissAmarante]

-eye twitch-

When I went to Disney World, he was kind of rude to me.

I enjoyed his playing, though.

I appreciate the beauty in his playing.

-has played for fourteen years-

[hicaesar]

I highly doubt that he was intentionally rude to you... Jim is one of the nicest people I have ever met in my life.. really, and I have talked with him ALOT. I am not saying he didn't appear rude to you, perhaps he was distracted by something or what not, but I can just about assure you he was not trying to be rude.

[ncent240890]

cool..

i wish i could

[ElynLovesyou]

his name is Jim. He rocks. He doesn't get the recognition he deserves at Disney. people don't grasp his talent. :) love him.

[HaLoDrUmMeR6617]

lol ur not gonna b leve it but i kno a 12 year old that can play this exactly its crzy he did it infront of our class on a field trip

[chicostacos4]

I doubt that.

[unamidu88]

I'm fond of the ragtime, I love it

[Gabe40xl]

it's so cool how this piano sounds so bright! the hammers are like condensed or melted down, or some kindove glue or something to make it bounce off faster...not too sure he told me once, but i forgot. there are also like 2 heaters inside the piano to keep it from weathering.

[skyeyes79]

Hammers are constructed of felt, so adding a hadening agent to them, either lacquer or thumbtacks produces the "honkey-tonk" sound that you hear -- sounds more like lacquer to me. It is very appropriate for ragtime music.

[stuartsa]

Joplin's _Cascades_ seems so new...

[ChrissyPDQ]

This guy, Jim, came to my karaoke show last night in Massachusetts. I KNEW he looked familiar and as soon as he told me he'd been playing ragtime piano on Main Street in Disneyworld for 25 years, I knew EXACTLY who he was! I sang When You Wish Upon a Star and he tipped me $30! He's very sweet and amazingly talented!

[jonhdoes141]

I think this is the same guy I saw when I visited a while back. Nice guy and incredibly talented. Watching/listening to him play was one of the highlights of the visit.

[kb4uf]

I just talked to him this weekend. He remembers me because I am a fellow ragtime piano player. I always get him to pull out some oddball Joplin or Jelly Roll Morton tunes. I haven't stumped him yet!

[Gabe40xl]

I go to Magic Kingdom just to see him, he said he remembers me because of my smile, and he remembers voices (:

[bartssue]

Makes me want to go back to Disney World. What a way to make a living!

[peace2baby]

It's Jim! I met him at my first visit to The Magic Kingdom last year, he's a sweetheart! I got a beautiful picture of him smiling and playing-- a great pleasure to meet him! Thanks Jim! I'll come back someday! And thanks to this poster for the great video!

[JSinuYasha]

I met this guy while i was in the magic kingdom with my school band for the music festival, he's a really cool dude lol! he's super nice! i forgot the name of the song he was playing at the time tho...all i remember was that it was crazy fast!

[coryhello]

Where is he from?

[str84ever]

Wheres ROD MILLARRRRRRRRR?

[pianoman1984]

I don't think it sounds that great, there's no feel to the music....

[Twizzledoc187]

What are you talking about? There's so much FLAVOR in that song its ridiculous! You try to play it!! I LOVE rag music and Maple leaf in ITSELF is no easy piece to play.

[crazyhorz]

Who cares about the late Rod Miller, this guy is awesome! I'm sure more people have heard him play and touched by his music than Miller. Wish I could be him.

[Morahman7vnNo2]

He'll Never Replace Rod Miller.

[ctcreature]

WHO IS ROD MILLER?!?!?!*heavy hyperventilation*

[TheAwesomeBlossom]

The guy before this guy

[FLSON]

Rod Miller is a great ragtime pianist, but I like this guy's playing better.

[maskedracoon2]

this is sad

a guy like him should be famous

but instead he's stuck in a dead end job a disney land

what a shame

[Qwiklaff]

You really consider playing for millions of guests a year a dead end job? Not me...a lot of people would consider that a dream job, making people happy by doing something you love :).

[maskedracoon2]

but he's not making them happy as much a temporarally amused

if he wanted to make people happy why not play a hospitles and old folks homes or play for charity?

[silvercrew1]

because Disney is a place of dreams and magic and if that is what he wants to do then he will do it, not everyone wants to be famous, I wana work at Disney World someday no matter what I do

[Ben123planes]

@silvercrew1 i'm planning to do my gap year over the pond working at disney

[aozacki]

@Qwiklaff

bit late to comment, but Disney takes pretty good care of its employees and a lot of the performers work at the park for time off from in between productions

[AnotherSchmoe]

@maskedracoon2

I disagree. Anonymously wearing a Mickey costume at Disney could be considered a "dead end Disney job". Playing piano like this for millions of people and seeing the smiles on the kids and adults alike would be so worth it.

[TheJediCharles]

@maskedracoon2

It's sad and a shame that you think it's sad and a shame.

[BucketheadLS1]

@maskedracoon2 Disney must treat him right, because he's been there going on 20 years.

[swedishtsinaip]

yo, this guy's amazing! I hope I will get as good as him.

[chicostacos4]

You will if you stick to it.

[ArchieWW]

Very good indeed.

[Kruschevs]

Good, but not as good as the immortal Rod Miller ^_^

[rollingbass]

Yeah I like the mirrorstyle piano and this old rag

[figleaf101]

he's fantastic, though he's playing too fast... Scott Joplin meant his rags to be played quite a bit slower than this...

[wurlitzerplayer]

That's not necessarily true. In Joplin's "School of Ragtime" it was indicated that tempos should be slow, but that was for the learning process -- so not to screw up the syncopation. It was common that ragtime tempo was picked up significantly by the experts, even Joplin himself ... it is a lively genre of music and should be played as such.

[chicostacos4]

Yes. They actually would have competitions to see who could play his most popular piece, "The Entertainer", the fastest in in the most variations.

[plucknpick]

The only thing better than Disny Ragtime is the Bluegrass and Fiddle players!

[Scarhand138]

i could sit there and watch this guy play all day long

[AnnyaMoon]

Me too!

[woohooandrew]

me three

[vivanorge]

do not desturbe the player!!all thoug every body does he plays like a hero!!

[unterschiet]

I agree bugsycline! j'adore, ça ressemble vraiment à du joplin: c'en est même impressionnant... et déroutant!

[bugsycline]

and to think guys like eubie blake were playing stuff like this 100 years ago, it still amazes and entertains

[UserNigoz]

You, sir, make a LOT of people happy!

[jtfraijo]

awesome....this guy has it made...he gets to do what he loves all day everyday....i want a job like this

[SusHiShoup]

You saw the real Rod miller phantom? id kill to see that guy play.

[dmagickingdom]

hooray jim!!! cool to see him on youtube...i work with him!! really awesom playing the piano...brightened my day at casey's when i saw him come out!

[mdepfl]

"He is very friendly, so if you are ever at Magic Kingdom, drop by Caseys Corner and say Hello to Jim."

Ditto to that - he's really nice and welcomes interaction with the audience. Ask him to play Kitten on the Keys - its a HOOT!

[bkgangstapianist]

CASCADES!!!!

[thepianomaniac]

Hey, is the Cascades really supposed to be played swing? I thought it was to be played straight. What is the correct way?

[ragtimemax]

There is no "correct way". It's definitely a matter of opinion, and it depends greatly on who you ask. Listening to early cylinders, discs, and piano rolls of ragtime piano, performances are stylistically diverse. That's part of what's so great about ragtime piano - every player and composer has their own distinct approach.

[wurlitzerplayer]

It can be played either straight or swing -- it was actually pretty common with some rags to be played swing. IMO, either way is correct as long as the syncopation is not lost.

[shamammal]

mitee fine piani playin there

[0othephantomo0]

look at the kids in these videos - standing there in a daze - MAGIC.

[kb0407]

I spoke to this piano player at WDW back in 1992. His name is Jim and he is from California. He told me that he cant read music,he plays totally by ear,(very talented). I have stopped by to see him several times since 92,most recently July 06. He is very friendly, so if you are ever at Magic Kingdom, drop by Caseys Corner and say Hello to Jim.

[0othephantomo0]

I was lucky enough to see the great Rod Miller at CA back in 98 - it changed me

[MuN5tR]

i saw that guy when i went in march 2007!! =D

[trainridethoughts]

i love these guys. they're amazingggg

[keainansen]

wow

[frigger2]

he chops his playing to much

[magicman205]

Thats what you are supposed to do. I work on Main Street in the Emporiom and my friend has this job. It is required to chop. That makes it sound a lot more Ragtime and takes place in that time peirod.

[dvddude2010]

chops his playing to much. what a crock he plays just fine.i dont see you at disney world playing rag time

[useminemc58]

omg thats the same guy that ive always seen every year ive been to wdw since i was younger. hes been there since the 80s. he knows my family and all cause we come there so much!!!

[titansgo2319]

He was playing some Disney songs when I went there.

[quesomepeace]

haha Haz1500 ur mad right!!

[Haz1500]

Lol everyone has names like ragtime101 and ragtime master and stuff...

[ragtimemax]

I've transcribed part of Mr. Omohundro's rendition of the piece. YouTube will not allow me to post the link to my transcription, but email me at ragtime_max [at] hotmail [dot] com if you want the PDF. I must say, this is BY FAR my favourite rendition of Cascades I've heard to date!

[advarcher]

he is playing a mix(it seems) of the cascades rag by scott joplin.

[TheRagtimePrince]

And as regards Joplin's 1916 recording, you may known that at this stage of his life, Joplin was at death's door and was barely capable of playing the piano. And as for the embellishments, he adds the occasional extra note, he doesn't turn it on it's head as this pianist does. Not to say this pianist is bad, he's fantastic. But still, you see Joplin's music as Jazz, I see it as Classical, we're not going to agree. Enough said.

[ragtimemax]

This could merit further discussion, but would not apply to this video, so let's keep any further debate off of YouTube. Agree to disagree.

[TheRagtimePrince]

Have you read The King of Ragtime by Edward Berlin, I'm guessing not, or else you would have known that Marshall's testimony was often inaccurate, Joe Jordan was nothing better than a vaudeville singer and Charles Thompson recalled that Joplin was a very substandard player taking that Charles Thompson was a self taught jazz pianist who wouldn't have had the education to appreciate music that doesn't fly at 150 beats per minute.

[TheRagtimePrince]

No this is a jazz interpretation of Joplin who aspired to be viewed as a Classical composer, not your typical vapid jazz pianist. I've spoken to you already about your "Hamburger Rag", kudos on the name by the way, very imaginative.

[ragtimemax]

Does Mr. Omohundro have a website or a CD out? This IS my favourite interpretation of Cascades. Brilliant.

[ragtime101]

I would love to hear the full version of this on a decent piano. I hope he records a CD someday. I think if Jim really thought about what he was doing (rather than just play for fun all the time, like at Disney) he would be REALLY great. His arrangements are very inventive.

[TheTokyoDude]

His name is Jim Omohundro.

[parrdr3]

Good place for a quick lunch.

[wjd88]

i met this guy last year when i was on band trip. He is a super nice guy. I saw him playing "sting" and it was amazing

[DivaOstrich]

How fun! Very Entertaining and takes me back to Main Street. Thank you!

[PeetMoloko]

good old child hood

[TheRagtimePrince]

Excellent playing, although he forgets that Joplin didn't write jazz, he wrote syncopated music which he considered Classical and it is because of hackneyed performances like this that Joplin's music is still not considered in the main as Classical music.

[ragtimemax]

This is not a jazz rendition of a Joplin piece. This is a top-notch interpretation of the Joplin piece that falls under the style of ragtime embellishment. You are kind of putting words in Joplin's mouth by saying he considered ragtime Classical. Both testimony from Joplin's associates (Arthur Marshall, Joe Jordan, Charles Thompson etc. ) and the single true recording of Joplin at the piano (his 1916 Unirecord piano roll of MLR) confirm that Joplin himself was an embellisher.

[ragtimemax]

This is not a jazz rendition of a Joplin piece. This is a top-notch interpretation of the Joplin piece that falls under the style of ragtime embellishment. You are kind of putting words in Joplin's mouth by saying he considered ragtime Classical. Both testimony from Joplin's associates (Arthur Marshall, Joe Jordan, Charles Thompson etc. ) and the single true recording of Joplin at the piano (his 1916 Unirecord piano roll of MLR) confirm that Joplin himself was an embellisher.

[xXxSp3ncExXx]

How long will he go on for!!! Lolz......very very nice though. I wish i could play as good as him...im gettin there though..=]

[vilemk10]

I met this guy and talked to him about Joplin. He taught me all about the old player pianos and how Joplin and others would record stuff for them.

[Keeper1st]

Some nice improvisations on The Cascades there. It's a shame that most people don't realize that this music actually is played in places other than Disney theme parks, on better pianos, and by many very talented performers.

[Ichimaru91]

most of the scott joplin rag are played. Good :)

[beeryce88]

borvo

[peh123123]

pretty good

[chanfle78]

the cascades

[tito1982angus]

que Buena!