G'day from Australia.
I am an award-winning multi-genre composer, graphic artist, programmer, teacher, and author, based in his home city of Melbourne, Australia. My compositing styles range from neo-classical, jazz, ragtime, and musical theatre to electronic, avant-garde, post-avant-garde, and experimental music.
Born in 1947, I grew up an only child in a musical household. My mother was a talented singer, my father an accomplished amateur pianist, composer of popular music, and internationally renowned travelling telepathist known as Argus The Boy Prophet. I started learning piano at the ripe old age of 16 and started composing when I was about 20.
In 2016 I received the senior prize in Australia's most prestigious piano composition competition the Jean Bogan Prize.
I taught piano at two schools for 18 years. During that time, I wrote many easy piano pieces for my students, and I am in the process now of publishing many of those pieces and writing new pieces for publication here at Sheet Music Plus www.sheetmusicplus.com.
I have composed 20 classic rags. Although the rags are classic rags, I have taken the liberty to not be too strict in the structures. However, the rags are very much modeled after the Scott Joplin rag structures. Some of the rags are quite bold and adventurous harmonically.
I am in the process of uploading the rags to Sheet Music Plus for your enjoyment. The rags are quite difficult technically, but I feel that it will be well worth the effort to get the rags under your fingers.
When then 20 rags have been uploaded, I would like to start a yearly competion for pianists of all ages to learn the rags and play them, possibly in an online youtube video competition, or perhaps in a yearly competition at a yearly event where other piano rags are being performed. My idea is that there would be two levels, one for the under 18 years of age and the other level for the pianists over the age of 18. A cash prize would be awarded to each winner in each level, and the pianists would receive a small trophy. All entrants who perform one of the rags would receive a certificate of appreciation. That is the plan at the moment, and we will see what eventuates once all the rags have been uploaded.
If you decide to play the rag you might like to create a youtube video and let me know at paulcopelandzzz@hotmail.com so that I can place a link at my youtube channel.
Best wishes to you in your music making, and hooroo for now.
Paul Copeland