Richard Egan (composer)
Encyclopedia
Richard Allen Egan Jr. is a ragtime
pianist
, composer
, transcriber, and arranger.
's music through the film The Sting
in January 1974. He subsequently began to teach himself to play ragtime. He is considered to be one of the foremost musicians in the sub-genre of Folk Ragtime
.
Egan's first public performance occurred on 28 April 1985 as a contestant in the Rosebud Ragtime Piano Competition at Fontbonne College in St. Louis. Facing a single competitor, he won the Age 19-25 division. With the support of Trebor Jay Tichenor
and daughter, Virginia Tichenor, he performed at ragtime festivals on the Goldenrod Showboat
on the St. Louis levee from 1985 to 1989. Egan joined the board of directors of The Friends of Scott Joplin House in March 1989 and assisted in opening the Scott Joplin House State Historic Site
in October 1991. He served as president of The Friends of Scott Joplin House from 1996 to 1999, directing the change in the organizational name to The Friends of Scott Joplin in 1997. As president, he oversaw the establishment of St. Louis’ monthly Ragtime Rendezvous on 2 November 1997, the commencement of an annual youth piano competition on 15 May 1999, and the erection of a monument on the grave of ragtime patriarch Tom Turpin
on 12 September 1999. From 2006 to 2010, he served as chairman of the Friends of Scott Joplin competition committee.
Ragtime
Ragtime is an original musical genre which enjoyed its peak popularity between 1897 and 1918. Its main characteristic trait is its syncopated, or "ragged," rhythm. It began as dance music in the red-light districts of American cities such as St. Louis and New Orleans years before being published...
pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
, composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, transcriber, and arranger.
Bio
From the ages of 8 to 12 Richard took rudimentary piano lessons from a local church organist, reaching the second year level of studies by his fourth year. He quit lessons, avoided the piano for two years, until he was introduced to Scott JoplinScott Joplin
Scott Joplin was an American composer and pianist. Joplin achieved fame for his ragtime compositions, and was later dubbed "The King of Ragtime". During his brief career, Joplin wrote 44 original ragtime pieces, one ragtime ballet, and two operas...
's music through the film The Sting
The Sting
The Sting is a 1973 American caper film set in September 1936 that involves a complicated plot by two professional grifters to con a mob boss . The film was directed by George Roy Hill, who previously directed Newman and Redford in the western Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.Created by...
in January 1974. He subsequently began to teach himself to play ragtime. He is considered to be one of the foremost musicians in the sub-genre of Folk Ragtime
Folk ragtime
Folk ragtime is a subgenre of ragtime, a distinctly American music. It is thought to have originated with illiterate itinerant African American piano players, who learned the syncopated music not formally, but through their peers. Folk Ragtime as a form stayed active until the early 1920s, when...
.
Egan's first public performance occurred on 28 April 1985 as a contestant in the Rosebud Ragtime Piano Competition at Fontbonne College in St. Louis. Facing a single competitor, he won the Age 19-25 division. With the support of Trebor Jay Tichenor
Trebor Jay Tichenor
Trebor Jay Tichenor is a recognized authority on Scott Joplin and the ragtime era. He has collected and published others' ragtime piano compositions and composed his own. He has authored books about ragtime, and both on his own and as a member of The St. Louis Ragtimers, has become a widely known...
and daughter, Virginia Tichenor, he performed at ragtime festivals on the Goldenrod Showboat
Goldenrod (showboat)
On December 24, 1967, the Goldenrod Showboat is a designated U.S. National Historic Landmark. She was placed on the ‘Threatened Historical Landmarks’ list in 2001....
on the St. Louis levee from 1985 to 1989. Egan joined the board of directors of The Friends of Scott Joplin House in March 1989 and assisted in opening the Scott Joplin House State Historic Site
Scott Joplin House State Historic Site
Scott Joplin House State Historic Site in St. Louis, Missouri, preserves the Scott Joplin Residence, the home of composer Scott Joplin from 1900 to 1903. The house and its surroundings are maintained by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources as a state historic site.The house was designated...
in October 1991. He served as president of The Friends of Scott Joplin House from 1996 to 1999, directing the change in the organizational name to The Friends of Scott Joplin in 1997. As president, he oversaw the establishment of St. Louis’ monthly Ragtime Rendezvous on 2 November 1997, the commencement of an annual youth piano competition on 15 May 1999, and the erection of a monument on the grave of ragtime patriarch Tom Turpin
Tom Turpin
Thomas Million John Turpin was an African-American composer of ragtime music.Tom Turpin was born in Savannah, Georgia, a son of John L. Turpin and Lulu Waters Turpin. In his early twenties he opened a saloon in St...
on 12 September 1999. From 2006 to 2010, he served as chairman of the Friends of Scott Joplin competition committee.
Sheet Music
- Brun Campbell: The Music of "The Ragtime Kid", a book of transcriptions published in 1993 by Morgan Publishing.
- Ragtime and Folk Piano, a book of compositions and arrangements published in 1997 by Morgan Publishing.
- Camp Meeting Number 1 by Blind Boone, which Egan transcribed in 2004 and published for the John W. Boone Heritage Foundation.
Recordings
- From the Land of Ragtime, recorded for the Piano Joys label in 2000.
- A Circle of Friends, recorded in 2002 for The Friends of Scott Joplin. Egan contributed 2 tracks to this compilation.
- Lowland Forest, recorded for the Piano Joys label in 2005.
- Missouri Romp, recorded in 2007 for a 2008 release on the Piano Mania label.