Lucky Number Rag by Ron O'Dell

I wrote this in 2008. I often had been coming up with ideas in 7/8 but never got around to writing anything. Then one day I had this first strain in my head while at work, thinking it was a typical 2/4 piece. After work, I sought to write it down and only then discovered that I was a beat short -- the phrase repeated after seven beats instead of eight. But it wasn't 7/8 time; it was more like 7/4.

So I added an extra beat to the phrases to make it properly 2/4 time and then wrote a second strain. Then I went to save it and wondered what title it should have. I noticed that I had set the metronome on the scoring program to 88, which happens to be my lucky number (has been since before I knew there were 88 keys on a standard piano).

That made me think about seven being the traditional Western lucky number and how I'd originally had thought up the opening strain in a seven-beat motif. So I decided to restore the first strain to its original form -- in 7/4 -- and that I would end the piece in 7/8.

It's not the most interesting melody I've ever come up with for 7/8, but it's what I came up with at the time. It makes for a proof of concept anyway. I like the feel of that rhythm. There's a few rags that are in 5/8, where the bass line is "oom pah pah oom pah / oom pah pah oom pah" but I like the almost-tango feel of 7/8's "oom pah pah oom pah oom pah / oom pah pah oom pah oom pah".

Anyway, it all makes for a rather experimental ragtime piece, with the first strain in 7/4, the second and third strains in 2/4, and the final strain in 7/8. And for good measure, I add four flats to the key signature at the third strain instead of the traditional one. It's not unheard of, but it's certainly unusual.

This is just my MIDI file of the tune playing on a PianoDisc-equipped Mason & Hamlin upright owned by YouTube's "sutterchip" Chip Lusby.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• ragtime
• strange
• rhythm
• odd
• beats
• piano
• rag
• pianodisc

[amazing763]

I wanna hear Tom play it. Indeed, I wanna hear Tom play just about everything.

[CooCurrent]

88 keys on the piano? Very original, which is very hard considering the amount of ragtime and music in general that has been written. Good luck with finishing this piece. Really great, sounds like a sort of stop time theme throughout, with the small pauses. Great!

[Kingdomcritics12]

YEAH! :D really nice! You are amazing, man ^^