Scott Joplin: Maple Leaf Rag

Dario Ronchi plays the Maple Leaf Rag to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Scott Joplin's death.
If you liked this video don't miss my latest performance: The Entertainer by Scott Joplin to the following link!
• Scott Joplin: The Ente...

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Hi everyone, if you liked this video don't miss my latest performance: The Entertainer by Scott Joplin to the following link! kzbin.info/www/bejne/j6uThIl5f7lpm8k&ab_channel=DarioRonchi

[@johnchessant3012]

very nice

[@kayhathaway6956]

Wowweeee!!!!! You are a master pianist!!!!!!!!!

[@kristinezurenko]

Wonderful!

[@adriantoogenuine]

You’re so talented! I want to practice this on my friends piano 🎹!

[@carinacoetsee2334]

You play it perfectly! Thank you.

[@mountaineerdragger]

I'm a 70-year old fourth year piano student. Last week my piano teacher handed me my lesson book and said she had assigned a new piece to me, but she didn't want me to know what it was until I got home. This was it. I almost fainted when I saw the sheet music. I'm hammering it out (very slowly) and am enjoying the learning process. When I grow up, I want to play Maple Leaf Rag just like you do!

[@druefreeman439]

I'm so impressed that you are taking on this challenge at 70 and arrived at this point after only 4 years of lessons. I think you might have a future in music, son ;-). Good for you!

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thanks! You will do!

[@elisabethscott20]

This is wonderful, I hope you're still going strong ❤️

[@wmobberley4416]

Yes! Go for it! For years I only could play the first and second parts but baulked at learning part three. However, I am so glad I eventually did learn it because it is SUCH fun to play. Persevere through all of it, especially part three. You won't regret it. Everything suddenly clicks and you realise that it may be hard to read but one you get into the swing of it, it is not as hard to play as it first seems to be because you begin to recognise the sequence of patterns in the keys you are playing and not the sheet music. Wonderful stuff.

[@hmxr715]

When you grow up?

[@annprice5999]

One of the best performances I’ve heard of this piece: no rushing, clean as a whistle, every note and color coming through. Bravo.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

So many thanks!

[@gb-jg1ud]

Best performed/played version I have heard. It's so rare to find someone who can play it at the correct "marching" speed and not hammer away on a sprint. Your superb tempo ...with the high quality piano ...you can actually hear each note and its intensity and the pedal ..it seems to hang in the air long enough to hear and visualize each one. Bravo!

[@jimbrent8151]

Concur

[@Tr33fiddy]

Check out Tom Brier.

[@basementbuckeye3789]

You should hear it syncopated if you haven't already. It's looser/swinging beat is probably closer to the way it was actually performed in the saloons Joplin originally played in. Most people who learn it now, including myself play in a classical piano matching time signature but playing it with a swing beat is actually pretty fun but also more challenging.

[@annprice5999]

This *is* syncopated. That’s sort of the point of ragtime.

[@susanholler2128]

I agree! Many people play ragtime as if it’s a contest of who can play it the fastest!

[@slifer4912]

I swear I heard this song randomly through my childhood. I don’t remember a single time I willingly chose to listen to this, yet I’ve heard it a million times. I didn’t even know the name of the song

[@MrAgent11421]

The notes are nice crisp and clear. An excellent performance.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thank you!😉

[@jeandesaulniers9711]

@dave4248 Thanks Steinway & Sons...

[@jerryhenry662]

in tune

[@Mortimer50145]

I was brought up on the classic Joshua Rifkin recordings, and to my mind Dario's bass accompaniment is just *slightly* too stacatto for my liking. But perhaps I'm being picky. The tempo is just right. The likes of Tom Brier can play Maple Leaf Rag at machine-gun rate (and in every key under the sun) which is a prodigious achievement - but Dario's (and Joshua's) renditions are music.

[@cush6827]

It is called Soul-less

[@olddoggeleventy2718]

One of my all-time favorites. Not rushed as so many players do and the tone of the Steinway is magnificent. Thank you sir for your years of hard work and study as well as the talent to perform for us.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thank you for your time and interest. Cheers

[@skrie]

exactly. I love this tempo. It's crystal clear and wonderful.

[@gb-jg1ud]

@@skrie perfection

[@dharman7021]

I'm a 70-year old fourth year piano student. Last week my piano teacher handed me my lesson book and said she had assigned a new piece to me, but she didn't want me to know what it was until I got home. This was it. I almost fainted when I saw the sheet music. I'm hammering it out (very slowly) and am enjoying the learning process. When I grow up, I want to play Maple Leaf Rag just like you do

[@Moon_Fire_Water]

"I know a fine way to treat a steinway, I love to run my fingers o'er the keys, the ivories, and with the pedal I love to meddle..."

[@viccasaur]

Love Scott Joplin music, always makes me feel like I’m in a old western saloon.

[@pamtebelman2321]

And it's so sad that saloons and brothels were the only places his music could be appreciated in his early days.

[@pikachuchujelly7628]

Ragtime wasn't played in old western saloons. That's something Hollywood came up with. Ragtime's era was around 1890 to 1910 and was played mainly in bars in the South.

[@markoboyle3715]

The reason he was played in the old saloons was the invention of the player piano. Only a few, to this day, could play it properly, thank you for this fine performance.

[@cia5602]

@@pikachuchujelly7628You literally just described western saloons

[@pikachuchujelly7628]

@@cia5602 Yeah, saloons are pretty similar to bars and clubs, but the time period, location, and culture surrounding it is different. Ragtime wouldn't have been played in the saloons of the old west, which was the mid 1800s. Its origins are in cities like New Orleans and St Louis during the early 1900s. Ragtime developed mostly from marching music combined with the syncopated rhythms from cakewalk dances.

[@oldgypsytap]

Perfect....clean..crisp as Ragtime is supposed to be. This 90 year old should know : )

[@yehdssdgsdg7790]

I’m sure you’ve lived a full life full Of many stories to tell.

[@rosemarygeary649]

How many songs did Scott Joplin write?

[@eoin.]

@@rosemarygeary649 ?

[@nunyabiznez6381]

My grandfather, who would be 128 were he still alive, went to New York with an uncle in 1910 and heard Joplin playing at a venue I have not yet discovered. Grandpa was 16 at the time. He was so enthralled by Joplin's piano playing that he bought sheet music for as many pieces as he could find and when he returned he tried to talk my great grandfather into buying a piano. Great Grandpa compromised and bought a player piano and gifted Grandpa some Joplin piano rolls to go with it. Rumor has it that the rolls were cut by Joplin himself though the tubes they originally came in are no longer around so I can't confirm it and there is little useful information printed on the rolls. I remember my grandfather cranking up the player piano, turning a switch and away it went playing this, his favorite song. As little kids we'd dance or sit at the piano and pretend it was us who were making the music. My uncle got the player piano about 50 years ago and my Dad got the rolls. Dad died and I went off to college and when I got back I discovered Mom had relegated them to the landfill as "worthless junk" due to the inability to play them on any modern machine. A few years later I found out that my little brother had rescued them from the trash and kept them in a hidden cache in his bedroom and had forgotten about them until Mom sold the house. He gave them to me as a birthday gift the following winter. I've had them ever since. My point in all this is that this recording here on KZbin is very close to the piano roll I recall. I've not had access to a player piano in about twenty years but to me, the rolls are worth more than the piano. Hopefully one day I'll find one and hear it again.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

@@nunyabiznez6381 Thank you for your invaluable historical testimony on Joplin! I would be very pleased to have, if possible, more details on the Joplin concert of 1910, maybe you could talk to someone from your family (brothers or cousins) who knew about this fact told by your grandfather. I know that Scott Joplin, also to advertise his most recent pieces, used to perform on the piano in music stores where it was possible to buy the sheet music of the piece played on the piano. Maybe your grandfather had gone to listen to him to consider whether to buy the sheet music. Thanks

[@stuartholder2098]

This is the way that ragtime should be played. Not too fast with that wonderful base, particularly in the Maple leaf Rag. Thank you once again Dario.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thank you for wathcing and for the kind compliments!

[@davidelongo6438]

Actually, the right tempo for this particular piece by Joplin, one of his most fastest ones-we talking about a 2/4 American march tempo, indeed-, is exactly 120 bpm (about 1.25x), which isn't fast at all (like 144 or 152 bpm, for example), but a regular and steady one-listen to the band/orchestra cylinders of that era-. And this isn't just an opinion and a personal one, but the pure application of musical Philology. Also, Rag-Time is music historically written for dancing, not just listening to, as we use to do nowadays. And you can't improvise a lively two-step or cake-walk over a piece this slow. Of course, one person can say he likes this tempo, but saying it's the proper one, too... well, I'm deeply sorry, about this, but History and musical sciences tell us different things. To like one thing doesn't mean that thing's objectively good.

[@davidelongo6438]

@FinnCraftYT absolutely not, of course: all my adfirmations are just the result of my musical studies and debates with important musicologists like Marcello Piras, who also wrote various essays and articles about Scott Joplin, Rag-Time and Afro-American music in general.

[@williamjones4483]

@FinnCraftYT If he did copy and paste that, so what? The vast majority of people posting comments are not anywhere near professional typists and I am quite certain most of us do copy and paste to avoid the agony of trying to properly compose a comment and completely type it out error free.

[@staalman1226]

@@davidelongo6438 There is no objective exact tempo, at least other than what the composer writes the tempo as. Joplin himself did put one one of his pieces (not this one) that "ragtime should never be played too fast".

[@keve1212]

I have to agree with the others who have said this is the best rendition of Maple Leaf on KZbin.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

So many Thanks!

[@clasicradiolover]

My first time hearing this song. I love KZbin and the Internet. I can listen to Ragtime Clasic Rock Spanish Flamenco Mexican. I love all kinds now that I otherwise would never have known.

[@crischaves7958]

Hello

[@sailorconan]

Except the scott himself's performance, he is the best!

[@michaelshachat2289]

Yeah

[@francescopolo2621]

Well I’m not exaggerating if I say this is the BEST Maple Leaf Rag interpretation I ever heard. Perfect from every point of view - tempo, precision, dynamics, clearness, recording quality, piano sound (this Steinway is truly appropriate for this piece). Thank you, grazie!

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Grazie a te Francesco!

[@pamtebelman2321]

Agree 100%. I especially enjoy the tempo - it's the best for toe-tapping!

[@williamdillard413]

YES! But to be honest, it is a top line Steinway Grand and was never really intended to be performed on such instruments, LOL! Yes, I agree it's awesome.

[@O5680]

True original American classical music. I love it!

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thank you so much

[@pamtebelman2321]

Truly!

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Hello everyone, today I would like to tell you why I played the Maple Leaf Rag at that speed of execution, also in order to clarify many contrasts of opinions I see among you. It is true, Joplin did not indicate, at the beginning of the score, the metronome beats number, but nevertheless we read "Tempo di marcia" (March Time). We understand that most of the marches in binary time (2/4, 4/4 etc) did not reach high execution speeds, but they were not even too slow. The second factor that convinced me not to go too fast were Scott Joplin's words used in his "School of Ragtime" method, that I would like to share with all of you: "We wish to say here, that the" Joplin ragtime " is destroyed by careless or imperfect rendering, and very often good players lose the effect entirely, by playing too fast harmonized with the supposition that each note will be played as it is written, as it takes this and also the proper time divisions to complete the sense intended." Hoping to have been useful I wish you a good listening! Dario

[@andreamalaguti9370]

"Maple Leaf Rag" conveys the feeling of a leisure walk on a sunny and brisk April Sunday morning. You render it beautifully. Bravo!

[@MiSt3300]

You version is the only one I can hear on KZbin. Though other versions have players that have a very good technique, your version is the only one which doesn't make my ears bleed. The others are just too fast and loose all the perfect harmony that this piece has. Your version is the only one I can hear (; Thank you for being a professional and true pianist and not a show off like the others.

[@Schmoityface]

Amazing!

[@williamjones4483]

@@MiSt3300 "...make my ears bleed" An excellent way of expressing discomfort with a particular musical piece! I agree that this piece played in this manner is very comfortable to listen to. If I am not able to distinguish every note and/or instrument then I do not enjoy the music.

[@jchowjc]

Yes, although your's is slower than Joplin's, I have to say, "I feel your version." It's the only piece that I've learned where I actually felt my brain split, working independently. I'm self taught. Thank you. Absolutely beautiful!

[@MsBiggles51]

Perfect tempo. Brilliant. We can hear every note and every nuance of the dynamics. And it's a tempo you can march to and dance to, which was the intention of the ragtime. Most people just murder this piece by playing it far too fast. This was a breath of fresh air, so thank you.

[@pamtebelman2321]

Agreed, it's the perfect tempo!

[@ryantimm9748]

Oh agreed he got the tempo PERFECT. I can’t stand how people try to play it as fast as possible. I don’t enjoy that at all :/ this is the BEST performance of this song on KZbin hands down

[@paulathalmann7541]

I'm a 14-year old fourth year piano student. Today I hat my lesson and my teacher handed me out this peace. Than i heared it here on KZbin and I was shocked. How shut I play this peace? I didn't expect, that he give me after 4 years something like this. But when my piano teacher thinks i can play it, I can do it for sure.

[@MultiBadger32]

You teacher will no doubt have a practice plan. But my advice would be to do a lot of one-handed practice, to the point of being bored by it. Then put the hands together extremely slowly, getting the syncopated rhythm fully accurate. Then speed up a bit and start thinking about dynamics and shaping. It's tempting to jump ahead - because most talented players can reasonably quickly do a poor version it at pace that sounds impressive to drunks in a pub. But that normally results in rhythmic and technical errors that then have to be unlearned!

[@whoisthisnoyes]

@@MultiBadger32i do not understand so i will see myself out from u smart asses

[@PiotrBarcz]

If you want to take on Joplin in particular, get familiar with counterpoint and Baroque music because Joplin's structuring is very similar to it. If you can play Baroque well then with some familiarizing with the ragtime style you can play Joplin's work very well. This is why Joshua Rifkin is considered one of the best interpreters of Joplin's music.

[@Vitaly_Koshkin]

браво ! просто здорово! на мой взгляд самое лучшее исполнение этой композиции многие почему то играют в более высоком темпе - не понимаю зачем? Очень ненавязчиво эмоционально и грамотно исполнено после того как услышал моментально самому захотелось выучить Спасибо

[@natalieb6193]

The sound of that Steinway!

[@susanbooth2717]

The skill and talent of the musician!

[@richardwang6866]

Both!

[@phyllispetras2181]

those fabulous bass strings!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@smoothlady1983]

Groovy!!!!!!!

[@smudger671]

It's way too closely miked.

[@franciscomojica6129]

Extraordinary performance. I think you did great honor to Scott Joplin. You should feel proud of carrying this ragtime rhythm in your blood and passing it on to future generations. Congratulations!

[@zuzannawisniewska4464]

Listening in May, 2023.. An excellent performance. Perfect. I love Scott Joplin.Great.

[@nobodysbusiness8791]

I've heard several different people play Maple Leaf Rag on KZbin. So far this the best performance I've heard yet. I also appreciate the Steinway piano and high definition recording equipment you obviously use. Well done, sir.

[@robinvsdk]

He played it very well. Most people who play this miss half the notes and make it sound very messy. I do miss the swing, he doesn't really play it with emotion.

[@pamtebelman2321]

Agreed, it's really nice!!

[@craigaungle2391]

best of the best

[@joeolander4350]

That big Steinway really delivers those bass notes the way he wants.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Yes!

[@marcolorenzetti4807]

👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

[@smudger671]

It's very closely miked. A bit too close for my taste.

[@jeandesaulniers9711]

@@smudger671 As far as I'm concerned,there's no other way than Steinway...

[@smudger671]

@@jeandesaulniers9711 What's that got to do with being closely miked?

[@robhughes7763]

I love the way this piece is played, I’m currently trying to learn it and always keep coming back to yours for reference, as it’s the best version on the net... sounds fantastic... thank you.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thank you so much!

[@mrgrapefruit1757]

im 15 years old, and ive been learning this piece for about a week and just started the third second, im so excited to finish it and play it

[@sophdog1678]

"The Maple Leaf will make me the king of ragtime composers" - Scott Joplin Scott, you are the king. You will always be the king. Not even one person in a hundred could name any of the others. I sure can't.

[@EwanGamingnintendoclubcouk]

For me, Tom Brier comes extremely close

[@oliviasenes7478]

@@EwanGamingnintendoclubcouk really close, he literally reads sheet music in one stare lol

[@user-zh6mh2zk4h]

This was the first-ever million-selling song. Available as sheet music, piano rolls, and Victrola cylanders. Crazy!

[@brucekuehn4031]

This came out in 1899. Just for perspective, that was the year Duke Ellington was born.

[@eileenebraxton6175]

This is the best version on the Internet. Wonderfully played!

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thank you very much!!

[@brokentoedspoon]

For sure, Super clean and neat!!

[@Antoine-dk5fs]

Perfect tempo. Wonderful 👍😀👏👏👏

[@originunknown3209]

Absolute perfection, played to utter perfection! Joplin is outstanding, one of the greatest composers for the pianoforte!!!!👌👌👌👌👌👌👌👌👌👌👌👌

[@dankr7009]

Love this rendition. It's not too fast and the notes were crisp and the pedal was just enough. I use this video to improve my own playing of this piece.

[@mathadden6209]

I have listened to many versions of this on KZbin and this is by far my favourite. I love the tempo, the precision and the quality of the sound. So many of the others seem rushed.

[@johne6081]

That's because they are.

[@a_blaser]

Wow, I love this performance. The amount of pause/slowing just before the new section at 1:48 is perfect! It really lifts and carries the listener on. Thanks for sharing.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Many thanks!

[@hedgewizard1]

Thank you for sharing your wonderful talent. My mother is dead now, but I remember when I was growing up I would hear piano music in the middle of the night. I'd come upstairs to the music room. I'd see mom playing without any lights on in the room. She she was feeling sad or stressed, she'd play from memory songs that she had learned when she was younger. One of those was the Maple Leaf Rag. I close my eyes as I listen to your performance and I can see her--fifty years ago. Memories are incredible things. Thank you for that memory.

[@TechHowden]

This is the only version I've found that plays at the proper original speed in high quality, thanks so much for making this.

[@barrypope4358]

I absolutely love this. I listen to it everyday! It lifts me when I get tired and weary.

[@jeff31xx]

Simply fantastic. Definitely the most beautiful rendition I've ever heard of this song as others have commented. I could watch your hands stride those keys for hours, and the Steinway sound is glorious. Scott would be all smiles I'm sure. Do post more Joplin covers. Great job!

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thank you! Ok in my next videos there will be Joplin again 😉

[@CurmudgeonBoy]

So beautifully played with feeling. So many people just to try show off how fast they can get through it. Brilliant and inspiring to this novice pianist.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thanks!

[@user-sp5bz2uq8b]

Amazing to think Joplin wrote his rags on a basic upright piano! What would he have thought listening to it played on a grand piano?? It's a shame really but great credit to ronchi and marvin hamlisch for keeping his music alive today!! Most of today's artist's are plonkers who can't even read a note 🎵 of music and use the piano as a prop!! True ragtime will never die because of Scott Joplin, simple.❤❤😊😊!

[@PiotrBarcz]

Joplin had access to grands I'm pretty sure.

[@user-sp5bz2uq8b]

​@@PiotrBarczI suppose so but still incredible!!

[@PiotrBarcz]

@@user-sp5bz2uq8b Indeed!

[@TheAvenstar]

I have to admit it: This is the best MLR I've ever heard! Not a single embellishment. Not too fast. To prove you're human I caught a single slipped note at 2:57. Absolutely fabulous. Thanks for posting.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thank you

[@stueyphone]

The wrong note sounds kinda nice

[@chund.s.9730]

@@stueyphone agree

[@aidenduval1492]

​@@stueyphone beauty of rag my friend

[@T-J-S]

​@@stueyphoneTrue

[@jameslapham4326]

I truly enjoyed this performance. It is genuinely a celebration of this marvelous piece, not just a chance for the pianist to show off. Thank you, Mr. Ronchi.

[@maryrubin9072]

Superb! This is the best I've heard! Most recordings sound like someone banging out notes, adhering to an unnaturally rapid tempo, with no phrasing or idea where the music is headed except to the end! You take your time to enjoy the ride, and I love the humor in your phrasing! To me it almost sounds like old friends reminiscing about their times together - reliving the moments and laughing! I just love this!!

[@tensorific]

The most polished rendition of this piece on all of KZbin!

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thank you so much!

[@wadefite]

I think this is the best rendition I have heard.

[@Schmoityface]

Why all the down-votes?! This is fabulous.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

So many thanks!

[@harvv5706]

fair point,is played well,dont feel very rag to me but is still good

[@pandapirate25yearsago33]

r/thisisnotreddit r/she'sgotapoint

[@tylerking2554]

@@Dario_Ronchi I love you

[@funnyuser2796]

says the redditor

[@hedgiegal3340]

Absolutely beautiful to see a concert pianist playing this. Scott Joplin was truly a genius.

[@user-sv2oj5um1q]

Scott Joplin did not want his music to be associated with bars like they are now, instead he wrote them to be beautiful pieces of classical music. The rest of the world has forgotten, but you have not. Thank you, from a 16 year old who is just a few lines into the Trio (part 3)

[@nottinghillad]

I hear a lot of Scarlatti in Joplin...

[@rickydumas9994]

Hardly 'classical', more an African-American polka. His intention was to lift ragtime music from its "cheap bordello" origins, to be played as written without improv. Dance music it certainly was, he even wrote a ragtime ballet - and an opera which unfortunately was lost when his possessions were seized due to an unpaid bill.

[@PiotrBarcz]

Joplin wanted ragtime to be treated seriously like classical music, this is true.

[@ritchiesmall5324]

It sounds just right to me - each note crisp and separate. I have never heard a better version.

[@joshslater2426]

1:49 It’s just so satisfying and empowering when the piano kicks in with full force. Excellent cover mate.

[@hjm5885]

exciting !

[@frithjof1690]

I am 16 years old an during quarantine i didn't know what to do so I played the piano for a very long time every day. And now I am finally able to play this beautiful rag time. I listen to this version of it to know how it should sound and I just love it.

[@99MarcC]

It's so nice to hear someone not only play the song, but feel the song. I could listen to this on repeat for days.

[@gregmann8981]

I can't count the times I've heard well meaning artists obliterate this piece. FINALLY, an artist who gets across the feeling that Scott Joplin was trying to convey. Well done maestro!

[@saskaleb]

did you hear the reconrding of joplin playing? nothing to compare; this guy is too slow and too carefull for rag

[@gregmann8981]

@@saskaleb Sorry but you're outnumbered here bud.

[@ramalhuseynov4312]

@@gregmann8981 Outnumbered doesn’t mean wrong

[@gregmann8981]

@@ramalhuseynov4312 If you like to bask in the delusion of having some special insight or quality that everyone else in here who commented doesn't possess then yeah, you're right, we're all wrong.

[@ramalhuseynov4312]

@@gregmann8981 Never said he is correct but just because someone is outnumbered doesn’t mean they are necessarily wrong

[@Gaviid]

Thank you Dario Ronchi. This is my favorite recording of Maple Leaf Rag.

[@user-sp5bz2uq8b]

Yeah, best I've ever heard! Wish I could play like that ❤😊😊!! Joplin would have agreed 💯!!

[@earlhaywood4372]

The best rendition this piece I've heard ( I play this piece myself ) , it was played respectfully to the composer's written instructions, not exarated or comically over syncopated but with decorum befitting the respect of a music composer be it , Beethoven, Bach , Tchaikovsky, or SCOTT JOPLIN. Thank You Sir. May God Bless You Sir .

[@thedealer777]

It is magically invigorating when a crafted master musician plays on a masterfully crafted instrument.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

what beautiful words. Thank you very much!

[@rattywoof5259]

Brilliant articulation, every note spot on, total clarity - he lets the music speak for itself. Terrific performance.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Many thanks!

[@clasicradiolover]

I love Ragtime! When I was in Elementary school we went to Carolina Beach, NC to visit some friends of my mother's. They had a player piano. Played the Entertainer and I was hooked. I got them to play it over and over. That was 46 years ago maybe.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Your story is very fascinating! Ragtime, and in particular Joplin's, has a powerful magnetic force: it went out of fashion for over 20 years at the end of the nineteenth century and then returned in the 70s until today. I think it will never be forgotten and indeed I hope Scott Joplin finds the right place in music history, because I believe he is still one of the most underrated authors ever. Cheers

[@michaeledwardharris]

@@Dario_Ronchi My father started playing in the 40's and got really into ragtime around the 70's. The first 18 years of my life at home were characterized by Scott Joplin blaring through the house on a nightly basis. My father is coming to my house this very weekend and I'm going to video record him playing on my piano. I can't wait to show my daughter, who has never heard him play, what a true, old school master of the piano sounds like. For the record, he sounds like you!

[@ericandsarahsmom1000]

I've listened to other performances of this piece, and I always come back to this one. The lovely tone of the Steinway is another reason. Marvelous, Dario!

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thank you!!

[@silvanozorzenon4286]

Un interpretazione perfetta come tempo ritmica sfumature di suono di un brano famoso non facile da capire e rendere nello spirito dell'epoca senza farsi travolgere come spesso accade da eccessi di velocità a discapito della qualità

[@lewismoss3760]

Especially the 3rd section. This guy makes the piano quite literally sing with passion

[@pamtebelman2321]

Truly!

[@oracleoracle2655]

Loved it. My favorite rendition of this tune. Have not heard any other version I like as well as this one. Excellent!

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thank you so much!

[@johne6081]

Not to take anything whatsoever away from this fine performance, but if you like it, check out Joshua Rifkin and Cory Hall, my other two favorite interpreters of MLR.

[@paulkesler1744]

Great performance & pristine sound -- he plays every note without "slurring," yet it still swings. A winner!

[@davidmckenzie420]

I taught myself piano back in the 70's, just so I'd be able to play this great song. I practiced it for a solid year. And one day, I played it with only 2 mistakes. I felt such a victory...Bucket list item, I guess, as I didn't continue to pursue the piano...Anyway, what a talent Joplin was!

[@SlimShady40]

Absolutely wonderful performance. Bravo 👏🏻

[@zakaryjaynicholls9867]

This is beautiful, very crisp and clean, performance of a ragtime classic. A lot of easy to miss notes are very audible, an excellent performance all round.

[@zuzannawisniewska4464]

It's very nice to watch and listen to, I love Scott Joplin. Beautiful music ...

[@phyllispetras2181]

I play this every day for sheer courage and those bass strings!!!Dario, we all love your playing!!!

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Many many thanks!!!

[@oracleoracle2655]

Excellent! This is how ragtime should be played...not too fast, with that great base. Absolutely love this version.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Many many thanks!!

[@iot577]

My 13 year old son starting to learn this piece for fun. He has just completed his grade 5 exam on piano and loves playing piano 🎹 . Beautifully played, Dario!!

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Many thanks and best wishes to your son!

[@superdot36]

An excellent version. Cero improvisation. Wow! One of the best I have heard.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thanks!

[@robinlawrence2438]

Definitely the best performance of Maple Leaf Rag I have ever heard! Please keep uploading! Love it, love it, love it!

[@Dario_Ronchi]

So many thanks!! 😊😊 keep on following me. Cheers

[@daverose4789]

You can really hear the superb articulation at this tempo. Perfect. Stunning performance in every way :-)

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thank you very much!

[@giginigro]

Mamma mia, perfetta! Bravissimo la sento almeno 10 volte al giorno. Super

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Grazie mille!!😊😊

[@patriciaazarias5258]

Have heard this version approximately 20 times. Dancing to it every time. THE BEST!!!

[@nathanpgraf]

Clearly, this man is a professional pianist. He must have a degree in music from Juilliard in New York or the Royal Academy in London. Maple Leaf Rag is not a piece that a novice or amateur can simply perform. This performance is concert hall worthy and it sent shivers down my spine.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thank you so much!!

[@islaadele1212]

I've only ever heard this played quicker, but I think I prefer this tempo. You have more time to appreciate little textural ripples that fly by otherwise. Very crisp.

[@CorePathway]

The version played by Joplin himself clocks in at 2:46, but I like this tempo better, maybe because the joy lasts longer!

[@PiotrBarcz]

@@CorePathway Joplin never recorded this tune.

[@tamasjambor6750]

Gut, gut, ich mag dies Lied! Danke, dass du es mit uns verteilt hast!

[@CameronK665]

Wow! By far the best interpretation I've heard. Great tempo, great color, great everything. Bravo!!

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thanks for your kind compliments and for watching!

[@phyllispetras2181]

The best on KZbin

[@Dario_Ronchi]

@@phyllispetras2181 Many many thanks!!

[@mickeydrago9401]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/pn6kpX9to8RgqMU So you heard the version from the piano roll played by Scott himself? This video recording of course has better sound and a better piano and is more accessible and I would say easier to play... I would argue this is an improvement... But that may well be because Scott Joplin is too good for most all of us I do appreciate the greater range of softer and harder keystrokes in this version..

[@Dario_Ronchi]

@@mickeydrago9401 I am sorry to give you bad news but that roll, even if it is "played by Joplin", reports heavy editing that in fact leaves nothing of Joplin's execution of 1916, but there is another one (www.youtube .com / watch? v = pIDAA7zjrSs) that has not been modified and makes us understand more or less how the Maple Leaf Rag was played by its author. You will feel that the second theme is executed exactly at the lower octave, as it is written on the score. The sad thing is that the execution is very imprecise and arrhythmic, unfortunately due to the desperate health conditions of Joplin who in fact died a few months after the recording of this last roll. Dario

[@matildevalsecchi9485]

Ma che meravigliaaaa! Come si fa a non spiccare il volo su queste note accarezzate con una tale leggerezza e maestria. 🦋🎶🎵🍃

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Molte grazie!😉

[@cfmpam498230]

I think Scott Joplin is the grandfather of American music as since his time all American artists have used his music in their songs with everything from blues, country, pop & rock !!! If your old enough you can pick out at least 6 segments of maple leaf rag alone that has been in numerous songs you have heard over the decades and that is just one of his songs !!!

[@Andrew_M_Ward]

I just found this (I'm always late to the party) ASTOUNDING !!! the dynamics and sensitivity combined with graceful interpretation (just amazing) giving new life to this piece Truly Master Work Sir Dario

[@pamtebelman2321]

Perfection!

[@jeffbeeba419]

Most Steinway & Sons concert pianos can play this without the help of a human. Dario, I speak in jest of course, your playing is nothing short of phenomenal. Brilliant tempo, flawless. I love this song and will be looking from you. :)

[@Dario_Ronchi]

In fact, it was a phenomenal experience like driving a Ferrari. Thanks for the compliments, they're very welcome

[@stephenwilliamson5258]

@@Dario_Ronchi Just Fantastic your beautiful sounding performance Dario of Scott Joplin's Maple Leaf Rag. I just had to hear your performance over and over again. Thank you Graci!

[@carao3147]

Steinways are the best pianos out there. My grandma had one and had it refurbished in New York. Oh how I miss sitting next to her when she played

[@stevenkkh]

I like the each single note you play. So clear, no-missed and briliant!

[@derekdaniels8649]

A truly virtuoso performance! This is by far the best rendition of the Maple Leaf Rag I've ever heard. Congratulations Dario!

[@MRHEY]

virtuosa

[@user-sp5bz2uq8b]

I want the maple leaf rag played at my funeral!!😊 Because I won't be able to do it myself!!😅😅!

[@bonniesiegel9024]

That was Awesome, thank you!.

[@djcb4190]

We already know we are going to fucking live here for the rest of our lives.

[@carlad2346]

Wow! Well done!

[@jartocjanror6591]

Absolutely superb ! Truly brought out the beauty in it with your spirit . Fantastic job. You can feel the vibrance & the love as well as the time & the pain.

[@jartocjanror6591]

Please post more ragtime covers. It is life's treat to hear you play it. 😇🙏👑💕

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thank you very much, it is also a pleasure for me to see all my efforts appreciated!

[@johne7345]

Absolutely the right tempo. Right up there with my other favorite interpreters, Joshua Rifkin and Cory Hall. Well done, sir!

[@nc4tn]

Jartoc Janror And PERFECT on the sustains!!!!

[@johnmccormick1853]

@@johne7345 Tempo is critical in this number ... he nailed it, and with perfect expression!!

[@k0zan]

Ti faccio i miei complimenti Dario! Hai eseguito questo brano alla giusta velocità e senza metterci inutili abbellimenti, e fronzoli assolutamente non necessari. Il virtuosismo é anche questo.. Un'esecuzione impeccabile, BRAVO!

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Grazie mille Andrea, le tue parole sono molto apprezzate!

[@emilybunker3715]

What a beautiful performance; and the dynamics amazing

[@QuandtHenderson]

Magnificent piano and perfectly tuned and voiced. Wonderful rendition, excellent performance!

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thank you!!

[@lifelance555]

When I'm almost giving up on this song, I found this video. You inspired me to keep moving on since this is a beautiful song

[@blackrhino3442]

There really good tutorials on KZbin. Type in how to play .

[@michelleterblanche5636]

My bucket list is to this. Beautifully done Dario, I listen to this over and over

[@robertremington4659]

SIMPLY SUPERB PERFORMANCE !! THE ARTIST ADJUSTS THE PIANO SUSTAIN IN A PRECISE, UNIQUE TECHNIQUE BETWEEN STANZAS & EPISODES … THE REASON THIS VIDEO PERFORMANCE IS PERFECTLY PACED IS THE ARTIST’S MEASURED TEMPO ALLOWS FOR NUANCED FINGERING INSTEAD OF OVERRIDING, SLUSHY SUSTAINS DURING RAPID TEMPOS. BRAVO !!

[@Aaron-kq5kk]

I can't tell if it's Dario or the Steinway or the recording equipment... but this just sounds so crystal clear. Each note is deliberate is perfectly lands on my ears and makes me smile.

[@cwldoc4958]

It's Dario.

[@leons4088]

I agree with you. Each sound is perfect.

[@GGibert]

@@cwldoc4958 both

[@Thomasnmi]

All three are a partnership

[@v.dupont262]

Yes to all of that and his beautiful hands.

[@jlennon784]

This is an A+ performance. The video and audio are top notch. The tempo is perfect. The Steinway is like butter. So smooth.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thank you so much!!😀

[@andrewshaver5800]

Ragtime has such a distinct sound. Wonderful performance, Dario. Bravo!

[@dennischallinor8497]

Excellent rendition!!! I can just see the rich gentlemen and ladies with their huge hats doing the two-step on the starboard promenade deck of the Titanic. Great vid, thanks.

[@Dario_Ronchi]

Thank you!

[@MrSteeeevo]

The down votes are people who thought they could play this well, and then watched this clip. Brilliant!!