Ragtime

:This is an article about Ragtime music. For other uses of the word "Ragtime" see: Ragtime (disambiguation).

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Ragtime is an American musical genre, enjoying its peak popularity around the years 1900–1918. Ragtime is a dance form written in 2/4 or 4/4 time, and utilizing a walking bass, that is, the bass note played legato on the 1-3 beats with a staccato chord played on the 2-4 beats. Much ragtime is written in Sonata form, with four distinct themes and a modified first theme appearing in the work. Ragtime music is syncopated, with the melodic notes landing largely on the off-beats.

Related Topics:
American - 1900 - 1918 - Walking bass - Legato - Staccato - Sonata form - Syncopated

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The etymology of the word ragtime is not known with certainty. One theory is that the "ragged time" associated with the walking bass set against the melodic line gives the genre its name.

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