The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1915-11-01

Dat Va SVhtb0 tht6 uptthtttVh 40
not enough. Ragtime has Its
flavor that no definition can i'm
prison. No one would take the
syncopation of Haydn symphony
to be American ragtime. Ger
tainly not" replies the indignant
musician Nor the syncopation of
any recognized composer. But II
this is so, then ragtime is new.
You can't tell an American COM
poser's "art-song" from. any me-
diocre art-song the world over,
Permit me to pass over the few
notable exceptions.) You can
distinguis American ragtime from
the popular music of any nation
and any age.
In the first instance the love of
ragtime Is a purely human mat
ter. You simply can't resist 1t.
l remember hearing a negro quar-
tet singing waiting for the
Robert e. Lee in a cafe. and |
felt my blood humping in tune,
my muscles twitching to the
rhythm. l wanted to paraphrase
shakespeare
1.-THE man who hath no ragtime
in his soul,
Who is not moved by syncopated
sounds"
and so on. II any musician does
not feel in his heart the rhythmic
complexities of "The Robert E.
Lee" I should not trust him to
feel in his heart the rhythmic
complexities of Brahms. This
ragtime appeals to the primitive
love of the dance-a special sort
of dance in which the rhythm of
the arms and shoulders conflicts
with the ryhthm of the feet, in
which dozens of little needles of
energy are deftly controlled in
the weaving of the whole. And If
musicians refuse to recognize it,
as they once refused to recognize
Russian folk-music, they criticize
not ragtime, but themselves.
But ragtime is also good" in
the more austere sense of the pro-
fessional critic. | cannot under
stand how a trained musician can
overlook its purely technical ele-
ments Of interest. 1t has carried
the complexities of the rhythmic
subdivision of the measure to a
point never before reached in the
history of music. 1t has estab-
lished subtle conflicting rhythms
to degree never before attempt
ed in any popular or folk-music,
and rarely enough in art-music.
1t has shown a definite and natur-
al evolution-always a proof of
vitality in a musical idea. 1t has
gone far beyond most other pop
ular music in the freedom of in
ner wolves Eyes, I mean poly
phony) and of harmonic modu-
lation. And it has proved its
adaptability to the expression of
many distinct moods.
Only the trained musician can
appreciate the significance of a
style which can be turned to
many distinct uses. There is the
sentimental manner" and the
emotional manner" and so on;
but the style includes all the
manners, and there have not been
so many styles in musical history
that tbax, on,,Jdp,t ha opupfa1 on
few peoples fingers.
1t may be that | am deceived
as to the extent of ragtime's
adaptabi,ity. But I think of the
rollicking fun of 1.-THE Interna-
tional Rag" the playful delicacy
of "Everybody's Doing It," the
busting laziness of waiting for
the Robert e. Lee" the sensual
poignancy of La Seduction" tan
go, and the tender pathos of 1.-The
Memphis Blues" Each of these
pieces has its peculiar style-in
the narrower sense--deftly car
ried out. And | know that we are
dealing here with set of musi-
cal mate "ials which have no more
than commenced their job of ex-
pressing a generation.
We must admit that current
ragtime is deficient on the melo-
die side. Some of the tunes are
strong, but many of the best rag
| time pieces have little beyond
their rhythmic energy and inge-
nuity to distinguish them. IL we