Learn The Blues - What Is Ragtime Blues Guitar Anyway?

Every one knows the name Scott Joplin, an African American man born in Texas, USA in 1868. For most people his name is synonymous with ragtime, as a musical genre, and ragtime piano in particular.

If he were alive today, he would be a very rich man indeed, as his music is used extensively on film sound tracks and many other purposes (who can forget the ragtime piano music throughout that great film 'The Sting' with Paul Newman and Robert Redford?)

Before looking about ragtime guitar, we need to explore the origin of the original ragtime piano music.

Joplin learned piano at an early age and left home to make a living as a musician. For a colored man, this inevitably meant playing any places that would pay him. During his early years, he played in mostly brothels and bars. However, being classically trained, he yearned to compose and eventually have his music recognized as serious work.

Combining his training in European classical piano with his innate instincts, and proud African ancestry, he developed a style of music that was complex, but much more rhythmic with a complicated beat. This rhythmic feel was dubbed 'syncopation' and became ragtime, possibly after a popular dance amongst the negro community at that time, the 'rag'. Thus, ragtime piano was born from two cultures.

Although the rhythm was complex, the bass notes had a characteristic sound, which alternated between two bass notes (with other notes in between, of course). At that time, bands of 'minstrel' musicians traveled around to entertain in small towns, often incorporating banjo and guitar. Although very diverse, the two opposites could be identified as the dark, intense blues guitar music of the delta and Piedmont.

Piedmont style of picking was ideal for dancing, had an up beat tempo, syncopated tempo and was developed from the ragtime style of playing piano. Guitarists at that time tried to mimic the complex piano sounds, which was difficult, as the guitar had a limited number of strings! (Later on, in the early electric era, the guitar tried to copy the sound of the saxophone.)

Certain guitarists realized that the picking thumb could alternate between two or more bass strings, while the fingers pick a melody - , often called the 'happy blues' was born.

Several artists developed this style and became very successful, notably Blind Blake (see photo), Blind Boy Fuller, Blind Willie McTell and many others. Other guitarists incorporated the style into their repertoire in order to vary their appeal.

In general, none of these played to the same skill level as Blake, Reverend Gary Davis and Blind Willie Walker.

See the video below - Blind Blake's 'Too Tight Blues'.

In the video below, I perform an original piece in the ragtime style called Arielle's Rag. To add some interest, the guitar tablature is displayed at the bottom of the screen and changes as the music moves along. Guitarists can freeze the clip when needed, to read the tab and get some idea of what I try to do in this tune. Note how the bass notes double up and 'jump' from one string to the next within the structure of the alternating bass pattern. This technique is found in several artist's styles, but is exemplified in the playing of Blind Blake, who will be the subject of a future hub. Blake's work is a must for any student guitarist who wants to learn acoustic blues.