William Turk was an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 ragtime

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:...

, who played in the early 1900s in Texas

Texas

Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

. He was reputably so obese that he could not put his left hand in front of his stomach. So he invented techniques playing with his left hand to the side. This is rumoured to be where boogie woogie and stride piano

Stride piano

Harlem Stride Piano, Stride Piano, or just Stride, is a jazz piano style that was developed in the large cities of the East Coast, mainly in the New York, during 1920s and 1930s. The left hand may play a four-beat pulse with a single bass note, octave, seventh or tenth interval on the first and...

playing came from.

The piano sound was originally imitating the sounds of a train and a chainsaw, as it was within the logging camps that he was born. The genre of music initially was known as Dudlow Joe, after one of the early pioneers, only later to become known as boogie woogie.