Scott Joplin Music

This CD is a mixed bag. Rifkin's interpretations are marked by two unpleasant characteristics. First, he insists upon inserting his own extraneous notes to the score. These are small additions such as passing notes and modest embellishments that are added in the repeat of a part. Though small, these additions are sometimes corny and so far out of style for ragtime that damage to the piece is irreparable. The most annoying improvisation is in the Entertainer (third part in F) which I found so offensive that for several years I refused to play this CD.

The second unpleasantness is the very slow tempo. It is well known that Joplin frequently marked on the score the instruction "not fast" but this is generally understood as an instruction to hold back the ambitious pianist who who wants to show off by playing fast. But Rifkin's tempo borders the unbearable: his interpretation of the Entertainer lasts an unbelievable 5:25 min! Much of the effect of harmonic variation is lost at this low tempo. Other pieces, such as the calm Solace and the Heliotrope Bouquet, do not suffer as much under the slow tempo --although they could benefit from a faster beat-- and the Maple Leaf rag is in fact pleasant, as in most other recordings it is usually too fast. The band renditions by the Southland Stingers are fun, though I would have liked to hear Bethena in its original piano score.

Another reviewer has suggested that Joplin's libretto for Treemonisha is somewhat--ummm--less than profound. This may be superficially true, but I also submit the libretti of any number of 19th-century European operas as exhibit A that Treemonisha is, by comparison, an engaging and credible tale.

By 21st-century standards, the story of Treemonisha may appear silly. One should bear in mind, however, that Joplin was born in the American south (Texas) before 1870, and in a time when many newly-freed African-American former slaves were just beginning to cope with living outside plantations where they had been enslaved. Many turned to superstition, some based roughly on folk-memory of African religions, as a means to order their society. Joplin saw this first-hand as a child, and certainly knew and thought about the phenomenon.

Thus, what may appear hopelessly silly to us in the 21st century has a great basis in the truth of life for African-Americans in the American south immediately post-Civil-War. Joplin uses stories he heard or witnessed to make his own point: that the only way out of ignorance and superstition is through education.

Taken in this light--which is the only fair way to judge the libretto, by the way--the story of Treemonisha is an important cautionary tale for future descendants of slaves in America.

There is another interesting point to be noted. It is Treemonisha, an 18-year-old young woman, whom the community of former slaves--including most members of the superstitious cult--choose as their leader. It is NOT either of her parents. It is NOT an older member of the community, or a male. In what had been a primarily matriarchal society and, given the cruelties of slavery, a very unstable one, it is an obviously intelligent and forward-looking FEMALE who is chosen to lead her community. Moreover, she is chosen because she is the best-educated member of the community, and commits herself to leading her followers intellectually, rather than through superstition, force, or fear.

I submit that there is much modern society could learn from thoughtful consideration of this story.

A major problem many encounter when first hearing or seeing Treemonisha is their expectation of a "ragtime" opera, whatever that might be. While he is best known today for his piano rags, Joplin is a far more complex person and composer than that.

Treemonisha is exactly what it claims to be: a 19th-century opera by a Black American composer. While Joplin certainly makes good use of vernacular elements (as did almost every composer of 19th-century European operas), his opera bears a much closer resemblance to its European counterparts than it does to, for instance, popular stage musicals of his day.

This is OPERA, writ large. It is, to be sure, clearly American, clearly not the product of a conservatory-educated composer, clearly not written to a "standard" libretto. But it IS an opera, and a very nearly unique one.

Beyond that, Treemonisha is completely charming and endearing. It has memorable arias, ensembles, and choruses. It works very well as theater. It teaches an admirable lesson. And I defy ANYONE to listen to it a time or two and not come away humming several melodies for months or even years.

The performance is stunning. Schuller's re-orchestration of Joplin's lost full score is superb, and based in a scholarly and emotional understanding of Joplin's compositional methods. Would that this opera would become more common in performance by major houses!

Another very important aspect of Treemonisha is that there is never a moment when there is not something interesting and often innovative happening during the performance. This is as gripping as any cop show on TV or detective page-turner at your local bookstore. Once you start listening to Treemonisha, you pretty much have to FINISH listening to Treemonisha, even if you know how it ends.

If you think Scott Joplin wasn't anything more than an itinerant performer of some catchy popular music at the turn of the 20th century, this piece should cure your blindness very quickly.

Oh--by the way--Joplin's piano rags are intended to be played PRECISELY as they appear on the printed page, and Joplin wrote some specific instructions about how this should be accomplished. In this respect, the piano rags bear much more resemblance to Chopin's Etudes than they do to Hoagy Carmichael's songs. Using the rags as a basis for improvisation is fine, but it is not Joplin.

I listened to the ragtime opera "Treemonisha" with zest, not having heard it for about 30 years, when I first listened to a broadcast on BBC Radio. The whole performance is very well recorded and the finale, in particular, sums up the strength and poignancy of the story line: the vulnerablility but ultimate determination of Treemonisha, as she leads the crowd in a ragtime dance, and puts in place the men whose superstition and aggresson have tried to outwit her and her companions.

My one criticism is the singing of Monisha, Treemonisha's mother. The soprano has far too much vibrato in her voice - I speak as someone who has had voice training. All the other voices seem very balanced in this respect and I feel that the CD is well worth buying.

A quite unusual piece, indeed. Scott Joplin's score is wonderful, despite the fact that the story line couldn't be sillier. It talks about superstition, evil spirits, witchcrafting and staff like that. Besides, it's a soap opera (as all serious operas are, indeed)in the most melodramatic sense of the word. However, musically speaking, it sounds wonderful, being the brief but intense "Aunt Dinah Has Blowed de Horn" and the final "A real Slow Drag" my favourite tracks. The music sounds pure Joplin in several instances, although it is the operatic touch rather than the ragtime strain what predominates. The recording is first class and the voices, terrific. I highly recommend this classic to rare-piece collectors and ragtime fans.

First of all, the opera itself:

I am one of those people who know nothing about music, have noone to show off for, and see or listen to opera - mainly operetta, really - only to be entertained. For me, this is a great work. Unlike one of the reviewers of another edition, I didn't find the libretto silly. I suppose one of the differences is that he is probably an urban American, while I live in the wilds of nowhere. For me, the battle between ignorance and superstition and their exploitation, on the one hand, and progress and simple decency, on the other, is still part of daily life. I fight Treemonisha's battle with her.
Another reviewer also found the stagecraft flat. Well, our family put on our own production of Treemonisha - Yes, we still do home-made amateur theatricals - and we had a ball. We especially enjoyed the kidnapping of Treemonisha and the final dance.

Now for this production:

Once again, it depends on what you're looking for. For me, this one is just fine. My only complaint is about Ben Harney's overly emotive Zodzetrick: it appears that Mr. Harney is convinced that he is the reincarnation of Sir Henry Irving; he would obviously be happier singing Wagner, and we would also be happier if he did so.

Although this is far from pure ragtime, it is pure Joplin; if you like Joplin, you will like this opera and this recording.

Scott Joplin (1867/68 -- 1917) was one of the earliest composers with the ambition of combining African-American and classical musical forms. He is best-known for his ragtime compositions for the piano, but he also worked in more ambitious genres. By 1910, Joplin had composed his second opera, "Treemonisha". (The score of an earlier opera, "Guest of Honor" has been lost.) He spent much of the rest of life in an unsuccessful attempt to have Treemonisha staged and performed. The opera lay dormant until the mid-1970s when with the revival of interest in ragtime, Treemonisha was staged and performed by the Houston Lyric Opera Company and received a posthumous Pulitzer Prize in 1976. Treemonisha was made into a movie and presented on television but, unfortunately, it has again largely faded from public sight. The work receives performances from time to time by music festivals and schools and by small opera companies.

Joplin wrote the libretto as well as the music for Treemonisha. The story is set around 1884 in a rural African American community near Texarkana, Arkansas. (Just before my rehearing of Treemonisha, I passed through Texarkana on the train en route to Dallas.) The story shows Joplin's vision of how rural African Americans could advance after the Civil War by combatting superstition and by hard work, good leadership, and, most of all, a commitment to education. Importantly, Joplin's story teaches the virtue of forgiveness and of not holding grudges.

The heroine of the opera is an 18 year old woman, Treemonisha, who had been found as an infant under a tree and raised as a daughter by Monisha and her husband Ned. Monisha and Ned sent Treemonisha to a white woman for education, as the community had no schools, and Treemonisha returns as the only member of the community who can read and write. As the opera opens, Treemonisha foils the efforts of a conjurer, Zodzetrick, to sell a "bag of luck" to Monisha. In response, the connjurers kidnap Treemonisha and are about to throw her into a wasp nest when she is rescued by a townsman, Remus, disguised as a scarecrow. The conjurers in turn are captured by field workers and taken to the town where at Treemonisha's urging, they are forgiven and released. Treemonisha is acknowledged as the leader of the community and she and Monisha lead the people in a ragtime dance "Marching Onward".

This 2-CD set of "Treemonisha" on Deutsche Gramophon was first released in 1976 with the initial enthusiasm over the opera and reissued in 2005 at a budget price. Gunther Schuller, who orchestrated Joplin's piano score, conducts with Carmen Balthorp singing the role of Treemonisha and Betty Allen singing Monisha.

With its music and storyline, the opera is a mixed success. The most successful numbers are those in which Joplin stays closest to a folk idiom, particularly the finale, "A Real Slow Drag" ("Marching Onward"), the conclusion to Act II, "Aunt Dinah has Blowed de Horn", the Ring Dance "We're Going Around" from Act I, and the number for a well-meaning but shallow itinerant preacher, Parson Alltalk, "Good Advice" from Act I. I thought the Prelude to Act III also worked well as a musical number, while the overture to the entire opera was less successful. Many of the remaining numbers, for Monisha and for male soloists Remus and Ned, seem to be based more closely on European opera. Joplin composed some lovely music in these sections, but they lack the spontaniety and verve of the dances and the more folkish sections of the score.

Treemonisha remains a landmark in American Opera, and Joplin's intended crowning achievement of his career. The opera's vision of uplift and forgiveness remains inspiring, even with the crudeness of the plot. Joplin's life goal of raising African American music to the stature of American classic was realized in part by his opera. An understanding of Treemonisha is essential to understanding Joplin's artistic aims and his achievement. It is fortunate that this recording of Treemonisha is again available to introduce the listener to Joplin's opera.

Robin Friedman

1. Sugar Cane Rag
2. Rose Leaf Rag
3. Pleasant Moments
4. The Cascades
5. Sunflower Slow Drag
6. Antoinette
7. Scott Joplin's New Rag
8. Swipsy Cake Walk
9. Gladiolus
10. Eugenia
11. Augustine Club Waltzes
12. Searchlight Rag
13. Leola
14. Country Club
15. Something Doing
16. Euphonic Sounds
17. The Chrysanthemum