Joplin's 150th

There's a debate about the birth year of Scott Joplin, the great American composer, pianist, and music teacher known as the 'King of Ragtime Writers.' Joplin's tombstone indicates 1868, however many scholars believe it was probably 1867. If the scholars are right, then 2017 marks not only the centennial of Joplin's death in 1917, but also the 150th anniversary of his birth.

In celebration of Joplin's superlative music and its vast influence, Composers Concordance presents the program 'Joplin 150' at Spectrum NYC. On Spectrum's acclaimed Steinway D, renowned pianists Marija Ilic, Tristan Cano, and Jacob Rhodebeck will perform several of Joplin's own compositions, plus contemporary compositions by Bruce Arnold, Charles Coleman, Dan Cooper, Peter Jarvis, Arthur Kampela, Gene Pritsker, Anton Rovner, and Sergio Valenzuela, among others. For a grand finale, the concert will culminate in a newly-composed suite for piano six-hands.