Location (grandparent | parent | this page): RodMer Arts Home Page | Rod's Rags | Beaver Rag (piano with flute descant) Program Notes

If you've already read the program notes immediately below, or want to skip them for now, you can click here to go immediately to:

• the computer-played MP3 and MIDI files, or
• the live-performance MP3 files

Table of Contents (TOC) of these Program Notes

• The Basics
  • Instrumentation
  • Duration
  • Composition date
  • Ragtime Elements
  • First performance
  • Computer performers (when human ones are absent)
  
  
• Structure notes
  
  
• Computer-played MP3 and MIDI files
  
• Live-performance MP3 files
  
  
• Score package
  

The Basics

Instrumentation

Duration

Composition date

This rag was originally composed around 1972 but the MIDI version was created 25 years later (in February 1997). The flute descant version was composed in May 2005.

Actually, it was the very first of a couple of dozen rags I composed back in the 70s. 'Beaver' seemed good as a Canadian name (I'd spent several canoe trips over the years hauling canoes over or around beaver dams up in Algonquin Park or Temagami). Also 'Beaver' was my son's nickname when very young. And finally, other Canadian symbols (such as the maple leaf) were already taken. In fact, Joplin's wonderful Maple Leaf Rag was the very first rag I learned to play and my introduction into the genre.

Ragtime Elements

The basic elements of ragtime are: (1) a steady underlying 4/4 beat, (2) syncopation in the melody, and (3) some characteristic (often chromatic) harmonies. The syncopation can be seen in certain accented notes where the accent comes in each case an eighth note in advance of the regular beat. Here (in a second window) are A Few Additional Notes on Ragtime

First performance

September 17, 2005 at a concert at our home ("SwallowHill") in Cobourg, ON, Canada:
Piano: Rod Anderson
Flute: Fred Cory (of Cobourg)

Computer performers (when human ones are absent)

Like all the MIDI files here, it is in General MIDI form. The General MIDI patches (on the 0-127 numbering system) are:

	Part	General MIDI patch
		name	#
	Piano	Acoustic Grand Piano	0
	Piano	Flute	73

How it sounds will depend on your own playback software.

On my own synth I used the following patches:

	Part	Sound Module	Patch
			name	#
	Piano	Roland RD500	Gr Piano A1	#0
	Flute	Roland XV-5080	Concert Flute	#103 in bank 9

This is what you hear on the mp3 files.

Structure notes

The structure follows the classical ragtime format perfected by that early genius of the form: Scott Joplin.

Intro AABBA CCDD

• where, as was common with Joplin, the CCDD parts are in the dominant key.

Specifically, in this rag the AABBA is in C major and the CCDD in G major.

Computer-played MP3 and MIDI files
(Click on icons below to play MIDI and/or download MP3 files)

Year	Title ... Instrumentation -- Movements ...... Excerpts	Min: Sec	Complete MP3 files (better sound)** file size	MP3 file excerpts (better sound)** file size	Complete MIDI files (not as good sound but quick)**
	The complete piece (computer-played):
1972-2005	Beaver Rag ... piano rag with flute descant	4:58	2.8 MB
	How the MIDI file sounds depends, of course, on your playback mechanism. On my computer, MIDI files are played by the QuickTime PlugIn and the piano is OK but somewhat pingy (especially on the trills) and the flute is very thin and beepy. In comparison, in the mp3 file (recorded from my sound-module patch) the piano sounds mellower and the flute warmer and breathier. Of course, if you have a synthesizer, you can download the MIDI file and set the piano to your own preferred patch -- but that's more work than downloading the complete mp3 file.
	Short excerpts (computer-played):
	...... Intro & Section A1	0:35		0.3 MB
	This mp3 excerpt of the Intro and Section A1 gives a marginally better piano timbre and a much better flute than the usual MIDI-playing plug-in.
	...... Section C2	0:41		0.4 MB
	This mp3 excerpt of Section C2 has again a marginally better piano timbre (particularly a more resonant bass) and a much better flute (warmer and less shrill) than the usual MIDI-playing plug-in.
	...... Section D2 to end	0:34		0.3 MB
	This mp3 excerpt going from the last half of Section D2 on to the end has again a marginally better piano timbre and a much better flute (warmer and less shrill) than the usual MIDI-playing plug-in.

** If you have a high-speed connection, forget about the MIDI files and just use the MP3 files (better). If you have a dial-up connection, consider the faster (but not as good) MIDI file only if the MP3 files seem to be taking too long to play or download.

Live-performance MP3 files
(Click on icons below to play and/or download MP3 files)

Year	Title ... Instrumentation ...... Excerpts	Min: Sec	Complete MP3 files (better sound) file size	MP3 file extracts (better sound) file size
	The complete piece (live performance Sep 17/05):
1972-2005	Beaver Rag ... piano rag with flute descant	4:44	2.7 MB
	Short excerpts (live-performance):
	...... Intro & Section A1	0:35	In this, and the following live-performance excerpts, the flute is perhaps a little more realistic (a real person breathing and blowing) than in the computer-played analogues above.	0.3 MB
	...... Section C2	0:41	At the end of this little section you can hear me (for shame) losing my memory of where I am and hitting a few wrong notes on the piano -- that's of course the trouble with live performances.	0.4 MB
	...... Section D2 to end	0:32	This final live section has perhaps a little more energy than its computer-played analogue above.	0.3 MB

Score Package
(Click on icons below to download pdf and rtf files)

Year	Title ... Instrumentation	Description	No. of score pages	Score (pdf file) file size	No. of text pages	Text (rtf file) file size
2005	Beaver Rag ... piano with flute descant	Complete score	not done yet
		Flute score	2	0.2 MB	3	28 KB
		Piano score*	6	0.3 MB	2	28 KB
* simply the original 1972 piano score

(you will need the free Stuffit Expander for decompressing the rtf.sitx files)