List of compositions by Scott Joplin
The following is a complete list of musical compositions by Scott Joplin.
Scott Joplin was born in Arkansas in around 1867, just outside Texarkana, and was a street performer before settling in Sedalia, Missouri, St. Louis, Missouri, and finally New York City where he died in 1917. He was an American composer and pianist, who achieved fame for his ragtime compositions, and was dubbed "The King of Ragtime". During his career, Joplin wrote over 40 original ragtime pieces, one ragtime ballet, and two operas. One of his first pieces, the "Maple Leaf Rag" has been recognized as the archetypal rag and influenced subsequent rag composers for at least 12 years thanks to its rhythmic patterns, melody lines, and harmony.
His finances were precarious throughout his career, despite a steady income from the "Maple Leaf Rag". Joplin had the majority of his works published by John Stark of Sedalia, Missouri although he did use other lesser-known companies including his own "Scott Joplin Music Publishing Company". His first opera A Guest of Honor was lost after an unsuccessful tour in 1903. After the death of his widow, Lottie, in 1953 a number of manuscripts of unpublished work were lost and no copies of them are known to exist.
When Joplin was learning the piano, serious musical circles condemned ragtime because of its association with the vulgar and inane songs of Tin Pan Alley. As a composer, Joplin refined ragtime, developing it from the dance music played by pianists in brothels in cities like St. Louis. This new art form, the classic rag, combined Afro-American folk music's syncopation and nineteenth-century European romanticism, with its harmonic schemes and its march-like tempos, in particular the works of John Philip Sousa. With this as a foundation, Joplin intended his compositions to be played exactly as he wrote them – without improvisation. Joplin wrote his rags as "classical" music to raise ragtime above its "cheap bordello" origins and produced work which opera historian Elise Kirk described as "...more tuneful, contrapuntal, infectious, and harmonically colorful than any others of his era."
There are many inconsistencies between the titles of compositions, their subtitles and their respective cover titles, which was seen by the editor of the collected works as reflecting "an editorial casualness" on the part of the publishers, and indicating a genre in which many dance-steps could be performed interchangeably. Many of the works cannot be dated with certainty and the pieces were not always sent to the Copyright Office for copyright registration. In many cases the publication date is the only indication of when the piece was composed.
| Title | Style | Year | Form | Keys | Comments | Notes |
| Please Say You Will | Song | 1895 | Intro Vs1 Ch Intro Vs2 Ch Intro Vs3 Ch | Bb | Lyrics by Scott Joplin. | |
| A Picture Of Her Face | Song | 1895 | Intro Vs1 Ch Coda Vs2 Ch Coda | F | Lyrics by Scott Joplin. | |
| March | 1896 | Intro AA BB CC DD E D2 E D2 | Dm/F/F/Bb... | |||
| Combination March | March | 1896 | Intro AA Trans. BB Trans. CC DD | Bb/Bb/Eb/Eb | ||
| Harmony Club Waltz | Waltz | 1896 | Intro AA BB CC DD EE FF GG A B | Bb/Bb/Gm/Bb/G/C/F/Bb/Bb | ||
| Original Rags | Rag | 1899 | Intro AA BB CC Abbr.Intro A DD EE | G/G/C/G/D/G | Arranged by Charles N. Daniels, although this involvement is doubtful. | |
| Maple Leaf Rag | Rag | 1899 | AA BB A CC DD | Ab/Ab/Ab/Db/Ab | ||
| Swipesy Cakewalk | Cakewalk | 1900 | Intro AA BB A CC DD | Bb/Bb/Bb/Eb/Bb | With Arthur Marshall. | |
| Peacherine Rag | Rag | 1901 | Intro AA BB A CC DD | Eb/Bb/Eb/Ab/Ab | ||
| Sunflower Slow Drag | Ragtime Two Step | 1901 | Intro AA BB A Trans. CC DD | Bb/Bb/Bb/Eb/Eb | ||
| Augustan Club Waltz | Waltz | 1901 | Intro AA BB CC DD Coda | Bb/Bb/Gm/Bb | ||
| I Am Thinking Of My Pickaninny Days | Song | 1901 | Intro Vs1 Ch Vs2 Ch | Bb | Lyrics by Henry Jackson. | |
| Ragtime Two Step | 1901 | Intro AA BB A Trans. CC DD | Ab/Ab/Ab/Db/Db | |||
| A Blizzard | Unknown | 1901 | – | – | Lost – unpublished. Mentioned in Indianapolis Freeman, November 16, 1901. | |
| Cleopha | March and Two Step | 1902 | Intro AA BB A CC DD | F/F/F/Bb/Bb | ||
| A Breeze From Alabama | March and Two Step | 1902 | Intro AA BB CC Trans. DD Trans. BB | C/C/Ab/F/C | ||
| Elite Syncopations | Rag | 1902 | Intro AA BB A CC DD | F/F/F/Bb/Bb | ||
| Ragtime Two Step | 1902 | Intro AA BB A CC Trans. DD | C/C/C/F/C | |||
| March Majestic | March and Two Step | 1902 | Intro AA BB CC D C D C | G/G/C... | ||
| Ragtime Two Step | 1902 | Intro AA BB A Trans. CC DD | C/G/C/F/F | |||
| Song | 1902 | Intro A B CC Trans. DD EE | Bb/Gm/Bb/Eb... | Lyrics by Scott Joplin. | ||
| Something Doing | Ragtime Two Step | 1903 | Intro AA BB A CC DD | F/F/F/Bb/Bb | With Scott Hayden. | |
| Weeping Willow | Ragtime Two Step | 1903 | Intro AA BB A CC DD | G/G/G/C/C | ||
| Little Black Baby | Song | 1903 | Intro Vs1 Ch1 Vs2 Ch2 | Bb | Lyrics by Louise Armstrong Bristol. | |
| Palm Leaf Rag | Rag | 1903 | Intro AA BB CC Trans. AA | Bb/Bb/Eb/Bb | ||
| A Guest of Honor | Ragtime Opera | 1903 | 2 acts | N/A | Lost. | |
| Dude's Parade | Opera Excerpt | 1903 | – | – | Lost – unpublished. Excerpt from A Guest of Honor. Announced in the Indianapolis Freeman, September 12, 1903. | |
| Patriotic Patrol | Opera Excerpt | 1903 | – | – | Lost – unpublished. Excerpt from A Guest of Honor. Announced in the Indianapolis Freeman, September 12, 1903. | |
| Maple Leaf Rag | Song | 1904 | Intro Vs1 Ch Int1 Intro Vs2 Ch Int2 Intro Vs3 Ch | Eb | Lyrics by Sydney Brown. A simplified arrangement not produced by Joplin. | |
| Concert Rag | 1904 | Intro AA BB CC DD | G/G/C/C | |||
| Ragtime Two Step | 1904 | Intro AA BB A CC DD | Bb/Gm/Bb/Eb/Eb | |||
| Rag | 1904 | Intro AA BB Trans. CC DD | C/C/Bb/Eb | |||
| Afro-American Intermezzo | 1904 | Intro AA BB A CC DD C | Bb/F/Bb/Eb/Cm/Eb | |||
| Bethena | Concert Waltz | 1905 | Intro A Trans. BB Trans. A Trans. CC Trans. DD EE Trans. A Coda | G/Bb/G/F/Bm/D/G | ||
| Binks' Waltz | Waltz | 1905 | Intro AA BB A CC A Coda | Bb/Gm/Bb/Eb/Bb | ||
| Sarah Dear | Song | 1905 | Intro Vs1 Ch Vs2 Ch | F | Lyrics by Henry Jackson. | |
| The Rosebud March | March and Two Step | 1905 | Intro AA BB CC Trans. AA | G/G/C/G | ||
| Leola | Two Step | 1905 | AA BB A CC DD | Ab/Ab/Ab/Db/Ab | ||
| You Stand Good with Me, Babe | Song | 1905 | – | – | Lost – unpublished. Announced in Indianapolis Freeman, July 22, 1905. | |
| Eugenia | Rag | 1906 | Intro AA BB A C D C D C | Bb/Bb/Bb/Eb... | ||
| Stop-Time Two Step | 1906 | Intro AA BB CC | Bb/Eb... | |||
| Antoinette | March and Two Step | 1906 | Intro AA BB C D C D C | G/G/C... | ||
| Good-bye Old Gal Good-bye | Song | 1906 | Intro Vs1 Ch Ch Vs2 Ch Ch | F | Music by H. Carroll Taylor, lyrics by Mac Darden, arranged by Joplin. | |
| Snoring Sampson: A Quarrel in Ragtime | Song | 1907 | Intro Vs1 Ch Vs2 Ch | C | Music & lyrics by Harry La Mertha, arranged by Joplin. | |
| Ragtime Two Step | 1907 | Intro AA BB CC DD | Bb/Bb/Eb/Eb | |||
| When Your Hair Is Like The Snow | Song | 1907 | Intro Vs1 Ch Vs2 Ch | C | Lyrics by Owen Spendthrift. | |
| Gladiolus Rag | Rag | 1907 | AA BB A CC DD | Ab/Ab/Ab/Db/Db | ||
| Searchlight Rag | Rag | 1907 | Intro AA BB A CC DD | Bb/Bb/Bb/Eb/Eb | ||
| Lily Queen | Ragtime Two Step | 1907 | Intro AA BB A CC DD | C/C/C/F/F | By Arthur Marshall, edited by Joplin. | |
| Rose Leaf Rag | Ragtime Two Step | 1907 | Intro AA BB A CC DD | C/C/C/F/F | ||
| Heliotrope Bouquet | Slow Drag Two Step | 1907 | Intro A BB A CC DD | G/G/G/C/C | With Louis Chauvin. | |
| Fig Leaf Rag | High Class Rag | 1908 | Intro AA BB A CC DD | Bb/Bb/Bb/Eb/Eb | ||
| Sugar Cane | Ragtime Two Step | 1908 | AA BB A CC DD | Bb/Bb/Bb/Eb/Bb | ||
| Sensation | Rag | 1908 | AA BB A CC D | G/G/G/C/C | By Joseph F. Lamb, arranged by Joplin. | |
| Pine Apple Rag | Rag | 1908 | Intro AA BB A CC DD | Bb/Bb/Bb/Eb/Eb | ||
| School Of Ragtime – 6 Exercises for Piano | Exercises | 1908 | AA; BB; CC; DD; EE; FF | C | ||
| Pleasant Moments | Ragtime Waltz | 1909 | Intro A BB A CC A Coda | G/D/G/C/G | ||
| Wall Street Rag | Rag | 1909 | Intro AA BB CC DD | C/C/F/F | ||
| Solace | Mexican Serenade | 1909 | Intro AA BB A CC DD | C/C/C/F/F | ||
| Country Club | Ragtime Two Step | 1909 | Intro AA BB A CC DD | C/C/C/F/F | ||
| Euphonic Sounds | Syncopated Novelty | 1909 | Intro AA BB A CC A Coda | Bb/Bb/Bb/F/Bb | ||
| Paragon Rag | Rag | 1909 | Intro AA BB A CC DD | G/G/G/C/C | ||
| Stoptime Rag | Stop-Time Rag | 1910 | AA BB A CC DD EE D FF GG | C/Am/C... | ||
| Pine Apple Rag | Song | 1910 | Intro Vs1A Vs1B Ch Vs2A Vs2B Ch | Eb | Lyrics by Joe Snyder. | |
| Treemonisha | Opera | 1911 | 3 acts, 27 chapters | N/A | ||
| Felicity Rag | Ragtime Two Step | 1911 | Intro AA BB CC Trans. DD | C/C/C/F/C | With Scott Hayden. Likely composed before 1903. | |
| Lovin' Babe | Song | 1911 | Intro Vs1 Ch Vs2 Ch | G | Lyrics by Al. R. Turner, arranged by Joplin. | |
| Scott Joplin's New Rag | Rag | 1912 | Intro AA BB A CC Trans. D A Coda | C/Am/C/C/Em/C | ||
| Kismet Rag | Rag | 1913 | Intro AA BB A CC DD | C/G/C/F/C | With Scott Hayden. Likely composed before 1903. | |
| A Real Slow Drag | Opera Excerpt | 1913 | Intro A B1 B2 Trans. CC B1 B2 Coda | Bm/F/Bb/F | Revised excerpt from Treemonisha. | |
| Prelude to Act 3 | Opera Excerpt | 1913 | A B CC A Coda | G/Bb/C/G | Revised excerpt from Treemonisha. | |
| Silver Swan Rag | Rag | 1914 | Intro AA BB A CC Intro A | Bb/Gm/Bb/Eb/Bb | Originally published only on piano roll. Sheet music published in 1971. | |
| Magnetic Rag | Rag | 1914 | Intro AA BB CC Trans. DD AA Coda | Bb/Gm/Bb/Bbm/Bb | ||
| Frolic of the Bears | Opera Excerpt | 1915 | Intro A B1 B2 C Trans. A B1 B2 C Trans. A Coda | Em | Revised excerpt from Treemonisha. | |
| Morning Glories | Song | 1915 | – | – | Lost – incomplete, and unpublished. Announced by the composer in the Indianapolis Freeman newspaper, September 4, 1915. Seen by biographer Rudi Blesh in 1950. | |
| Syncopated Jamboree | Vaudeville Act | 1915 | – | – | Lost – unpublished. Announced in the Indianapolis Freeman newspaper, September 18, 1915. | |
| Pretty Pansy Rag | Rag | 1915? | – | – | Lost – incomplete, and unpublished. | |
| Recitative Rag | Rag | 1915? | – | – | Lost – incomplete, and unpublished. | |
| For The Sake Of All | Song | 1915? | – | – | Lost – incomplete, and unpublished. | |
| If | Musical Comedy | 1915 | – | – | Lost – announced in the New York Age September 7, 1916. | |
| Symphony No. 1 | Symphony | 1916? | – | – | Lost – announced in the New York Age September 7, 1916. | |
| Piano Concerto | Piano Concerto | 1916? | – | – | Lost – unpublished. | |
| Reflection Rag | Rag | 1917 | Intro AA BB CC DD EE | Bb/Gm/Bb/Eb/Eb | Published posthumously by Stark, likely from much older unpublished manuscripts. |