Ossman`s 'Ragtime Medley' Transcribed

[Shawn McSweeny]

The Clifford Essex score for 'Ragtime Medley' doesn't represent Ossman's remarkable c. 1898 Columbia performance - found here : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0iJ84t7Fhg .

For a more faithful score, the recording was edited to reduce noise, enhance signal and reduce tempo by nearly half, while preserving score pitch. Transcription was done measure by measure. The result is considerably closer to Ossman's performance.

PDFs in DOT and TAB notation are below. The notation markings - positions, important open strings and right hand fingering - are my suggestions. Feel free to find your own. A digital playback of the transcription is also provided.

Note : This post follows a November, 2024 Discussion where concern was expressed for the titles of the medley's component strains. In an attempt to preserve the performance while repudiating its original context, the strains are identified in the score by composer surname only.

[Shawn McSweeny]

Here's the TAB :

[Jody Stecher]

Well done!  And thanks.

[Shawn McSweeny]

Hi Jody,  My hope is Ossman's arrangement will get played some, but if not, at least it's been preserved. 

[thereallyniceman]

First Class, Shawn!  Preserved it will be.

Thank you again for all the time and effort put into these works for everyone to share.

Ian

[Richard William Ineson]

Well done Shawn, Ossman was a phenomenal banjo player and I suppose that Clifford Essex had to trim Ossman's  arrangements down to make them accessible to his customers. Does anyone know if any of Ossman's original arrangements of his recording output still exist?

[Shawn McSweeny]

Richard, I think you have it exactly right on CE's approach to his published Ossman scores.

As for any Ossman's originals :  Recording artists at that time were required to provide the studio with a copy of their arrangement. The ledgers from the top US recording studios of that era have survived and are in the hands of enthusiasts affiliated with DAHR (Discography of American Historical Recordings)   https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/ . However DAHR is silent regarding arrangements. I suspect that over the years, as recordings were dropped from studio catalogues, stacks of aging arrangements were discarded. 

In light of that, I've transcribed a few other Ossman recordings (fairly accurately) and can post them here, if interested. 

[Jody Stecher]

Are you sure it was the studio and not the record company that required the written arrangement?  Did any record company own their own recording studio in 1898? My impression is that most companies rented available rooms and used portable equipment at first. Columbia Records did not have their own studio until 1948.   I can see why a record company would want to have a written arrangement and would have the power to demand it. But would an independent studio have such authority?  Would a hotel that rented a room have the authority or even the interest?  And what about people that got recorded who did have written arrangements?  What about blind recording artists?   Something may be missing from the narrative here. 

Shawn McSweeny said:

Richard, I think you have it exactly right on CE's approach to his published Ossman scores.

As for any Ossman's originals :  Recording artists at that time were required to provide the studio with a copy of their arrangement. The ledgers from the top US recording studios of that era have survived and are in the hands of enthusiasts affiliated with DAHR (Discography of American Historical Recordings)   https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/ . However DAHR is silent regarding arrangements. I suspect that over the years, as recordings were dropped from studio catalogues, stacks of aging arrangements were discarded. 

In light of that, I've transcribed a few other Ossman recordings (fairly accurately) and can post them here, if interested.