Here's another obscure piano tune, now in the library, which I've banjoised. It's one of those that sounds as though Steinberg may have been influenced by the banjo. It's a 'happy'  tune that fits the banjo well and is reasonably undemanding to play.  I haven't found out much about the composer other than he died in 1918.....Steve. 

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Thank you Steve for another goodie. 

Thanks Ian...I often wonder if any one has played any of my arrangements as I've had very little feedback from anyone. I'm working on 'The New York Rag' at the moment, it should be ready for posting in the next few days. 

By coincidence I received an email from NING regarding what you say about lack of feedback. I think that we are not the only NING site experiencing a degree of web weariness. If people do not wish to contribute or make posts it is up to them, but the end result will be that this site changes from being an interactive site to a plain website and there will be little point in it continuing.

RECEIVED TODAY FROM NING: 

Apathy: Why "not caring" is popular:

One of the realities in social media today is that most people simply do not care. It’s a social phenomenon that has nothing to do with technology. In a sense, a good way of looking at it is that people have a life, they’ve got better things to do than be online, and when they do most will usually not care for most of what they see. It’s the classic teenager apathy to say, “So what?!” to whatever. People do get turned on to some things, and that’s great- that’s what we as Ning Creators want. However, in most cases that has little to do with “social networking” or the value proposition you are trying to get across to attract some niche.

In fact, a prevailing attitude I see is people defining themselves by way of their selectivity… When people go online it is kind of the same idea. How many of us went into creating a social network like it was going to be so hot, and only to be applauded by crickets? It’s not that your site doesn’t have enough features or interesting content, it’s that people simply don’t care.

Well the results speak for themselves. You can get people to join your site, but what happens from there really depends on the quality of their passion, and quantity of sign ups is not a terribly amazing indicator of success. You’ve got to have some kind of pulse for the community- really be in tune with what people care about, and deliver that exceptionally well. What do I know? I know that most of the people in my community are not going to be impressed with the mere idea of a social network for them. There’s quite a lot of low hanging fruit I could easily populate my network with, but the people I want are the ones who share my apathy for the prevailing cheapness of the web.

There’s a process of maturation I think people go through as they spend more time on the internet. It gets harder to be impressed. For me, the effort that goes into proposing some online value to me does very little to influence my decision. I don’t care for poor quality, but even if it’s a pretty nice site am not inclined to care. Even if the person is very passionate, if it doesn’t resonate with me I’m usually clicking away. It doesn’t really matter to a lot of people what technology you are using or what you are trying to do online. What matters is the substance. Even if I see something that interests me, I’m not about to go jump into it, and I hardly ever sign up for anything anymore. You should really consider this is the mentality a lot of people have when they encounter the prospect of your site.

Why? Because not caring is popular. It’s social authority. It’s one of the reasons having a niche network gives you a competitive advantage in the emerging social media environment. Most people simply don’t care about social networking for its own sake, but they might be crazy about football. So what do you offer, a social network? I don’t think so, at least not as the main value. I think you need to put priority on delivering what people want- if you do football then deliver that. Do a great job with presenting engaging football media on your site, provide it unconditionally even if they don’t join, and allow them to get social with it if they happen to be inclined. In a nutshell, I wouldn’t go on about how great your social network concept is, wouldn’t get overly sophisticated with the site, or serenade people with how much you love football. Just give them what they want without the distracters they don’t care about. People will appreciate you for it!

hi steve , your hard work is not in vain . I have filed all your arrangements .Ive been working on octopus rag for a while now. Not easy for a newcomer to classic banjo. but it is just agreat tune .iwould recommend it to anyone out there .regards Alan.
Steve Harrison said:

Thanks Ian...I often wonder if any one has played any of my arrangements as I've had very little feedback from anyone. I'm working on 'The New York Rag' at the moment, it should be ready for posting in the next few days. 

Don't despair Steve,

Many will look, a few will play a few bars and some will go on to master the tune; you must take pleasure in the fact that you have made the music available. At my time of life, and having been involved with the banjo since 1961 ish and also being interested in all kinds of music, I have now got to the stage where I am not  able to get really enthusiastic about new music, whether it is printed, recorded, videoed or whatever, but I do occasionally hit on something - last year I discovered Anna Moura the wonderful Portuguese singer and also, much to my surprise, because I have never been a great fan of the lady opera singers, I came across Amelita Galli Curci who struck a chord with me.

I have had a look at most of the ragtime compositions over the years, I am a great ragtime fan, (incidentally, take a look at Craig Ventresco and Meredith Axelrod on Youtube - they are wonderful ragtime guitarists), but I have my core of favourite ragtime pieces and rarely find anything new which captures my imagination, like any musical genre, it has its characteristic twists and turns, which, if heard too often, begin to pall. 

I have arranged a few pieces of ragtime for the banjo, here are some of the items which I think fit on the banjo very well:- Maple Leaf Rag, The Entertainer, Something Doing, The Ragtime Dance, Weeping Willow, Smiler Rag, Solace, Calliope Rag, Temptation Rag, Black and White Rag and a few others which I cannot remember off hand. 

Others such as Original Rags sound as if they should fit on the banjo but to my ears, don't quite make it.

There were a lot of what I call 'fake' ragtime compositions, put together when the genre was at its peak,  a lot of them are more famous than the real thing - Alexander's Ragtime Band, Everybody's Doing It etc. but I don't like these and don't play them, but that is just me.

It is the old story, we all like different things, some people like the guitar playing of Jimmy Hendricks, some like Rap music, I have no quarrel with this, but I don't share their enthusiasm.

When I look at a piece of ragtime music, I look for originality and how well the piece fits on the banjo; if it is a good tune (in my opinion) but doesn't really suit the banjo, I might play it in the privacy of my own home but I wouldn't foist it on to the public ear.

The main thing is to enjoy what you're doing and if others like your musical efforts, that is your reward, unfortunately, many will enjoy the fruits of your labours but will not acknowledge your effort.



Steve Harrison said:

Thanks Ian...I often wonder if any one has played any of my arrangements as I've had very little feedback from anyone. I'm working on 'The New York Rag' at the moment, it should be ready for posting in the next few days. 

 Hi Richard, thanks for your reply...what I enjoy most is searching out the more obscure tunes and giving them a fresh look. There's more than enough to keep me going in the various digital archives. I'm only a year away from  drawing my O.A.P. and doing these arrangements keeps the old grey matter in good working order. Time has also played its part with my fingers and although I can still play most of what I used to do, my speed and accuracy is not what it once was....all the best...Steve. 

chard William Ineson said:

Don't despair Steve,

Many will look, a few will play a few bars and some will go on to master the tune; you must take pleasure in the fact that you have made the music available. At my time of life, and having been involved with the banjo since 1961 ish and also being interested in all kinds of music, I have now got to the stage where I am not  able to get really enthusiastic about new music, whether it is printed, recorded, videoed or whatever, but I do occasionally hit on something - last year I discovered Anna Moura the wonderful Portuguese singer and also, much to my surprise, because I have never been a great fan of the lady opera singers, I came across Amelita Galli Curci who struck a chord with me.

I have had a look at most of the ragtime compositions over the years, I am a great ragtime fan, (incidentally, take a look at Craig Ventresco and Meredith Axelrod on Youtube - they are wonderful ragtime guitarists), but I have my core of favourite ragtime pieces and rarely find anything new which captures my imagination, like any musical genre, it has its characteristic twists and turns, which, if heard too often, begin to pall. 

I have arranged a few pieces of ragtime for the banjo, here are some of the items which I think fit on the banjo very well:- Maple Leaf Rag, The Entertainer, Something Doing, The Ragtime Dance, Weeping Willow, Smiler Rag, Solace, Calliope Rag, Temptation Rag, Black and White Rag and a few others which I cannot remember off hand. 

Others such as Original Rags sound as if they should fit on the banjo but to my ears, don't quite make it.

There were a lot of what I call 'fake' ragtime compositions, put together when the genre was at its peak,  a lot of them are more famous than the real thing - Alexander's Ragtime Band, Everybody's Doing It etc. but I don't like these and don't play them, but that is just me.

It is the old story, we all like different things, some people like the guitar playing of Jimmy Hendricks, some like Rap music, I have no quarrel with this, but I don't share their enthusiasm.

When I look at a piece of ragtime music, I look for originality and how well the piece fits on the banjo; if it is a good tune (in my opinion) but doesn't really suit the banjo, I might play it in the privacy of my own home but I wouldn't foist it on to the public ear.

The main thing is to enjoy what you're doing and if others like your musical efforts, that is your reward, unfortunately, many will enjoy the fruits of your labours but will not acknowledge your effort.



Steve Harrison said:

Thanks Ian...I often wonder if any one has played any of my arrangements as I've had very little feedback from anyone. I'm working on 'The New York Rag' at the moment, it should be ready for posting in the next few days. 

Hi Alan..thanks for your comments..I haven't looked at Octopus Rag for some time so I must revisit it. The problem I have is that I've been spending more time arranging than I have playing recently. If you like Octopus, have a listen to The New York Rag which should be in the library soon.....all the best..Steve.
Alan Sims said:

hi steve , your hard work is not in vain . I have filed all your arrangements .Ive been working on octopus rag for a while now. Not easy for a newcomer to classic banjo. but it is just agreat tune .iwould recommend it to anyone out there .regards Alan.
Steve Harrison said:

Thanks Ian...I often wonder if any one has played any of my arrangements as I've had very little feedback from anyone. I'm working on 'The New York Rag' at the moment, it should be ready for posting in the next few days. 

Your wish is my command Steve!  I have now added your arrangement of "The New York Rag" to the MUSIC LIBRARY.

Thanks Ian..it's a tune I hadn't heard before but sounds quite good on the banjo with some interesting open chord runs in the second part. I have almost recovered from my knee surgery and should be back at work in September so I won't have as much spare time for my arranging.....Steve.

thereallyniceman said:

Your wish is my command Steve!  I have now added your arrangement of "The New York Rag" to the MUSIC LIBRARY.

Hi Steve, iwas wondering if you have ever transcribed the Radetzky march by Strauss.I would think it would be just right for the banjo.

Steve Harrison said:

Hi Alan..thanks for your comments..I haven't looked at Octopus Rag for some time so I must revisit it. The problem I have is that I've been spending more time arranging than I have playing recently. If you like Octopus, have a listen to The New York Rag which should be in the library soon.....all the best..Steve.
Alan Sims said:

hi steve , your hard work is not in vain . I have filed all your arrangements .Ive been working on octopus rag for a while now. Not easy for a newcomer to classic banjo. but it is just agreat tune .iwould recommend it to anyone out there .regards Alan.
Steve Harrison said:

Thanks Ian...I often wonder if any one has played any of my arrangements as I've had very little feedback from anyone. I'm working on 'The New York Rag' at the moment, it should be ready for posting in the next few days. 

Hi Alan.. we could all do the last night of the proms with that one...I'll have a look at it...Steve.

Alan Sims said:

Hi Steve, iwas wondering if you have ever transcribed the Radetzky march by Strauss.I would think it would be just right for the banjo.

Steve Harrison said:

Hi Alan..thanks for your comments..I haven't looked at Octopus Rag for some time so I must revisit it. The problem I have is that I've been spending more time arranging than I have playing recently. If you like Octopus, have a listen to The New York Rag which should be in the library soon.....all the best..Steve.
Alan Sims said:

hi steve , your hard work is not in vain . I have filed all your arrangements .Ive been working on octopus rag for a while now. Not easy for a newcomer to classic banjo. but it is just agreat tune .iwould recommend it to anyone out there .regards Alan.
Steve Harrison said:

Thanks Ian...I often wonder if any one has played any of my arrangements as I've had very little feedback from anyone. I'm working on 'The New York Rag' at the moment, it should be ready for posting in the next few days. 

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