Page 1 of 1

Tell me about Ragtime - The Musical

Posted: Tue Jul 20, 2021 7:33 pm
by LeoInFL
The performing arts organization I play with will be putting on Ragtime - The Musical later this year. I glanced at the writeup on Wiki and it says it's a small-ish ensemble with 2 bone parts (tenor & bass).

Has anyone played this before? Which bone part is 'better'?

Thanks!

Re: Tell me about Ragtime - The Musical

Posted: Wed Jul 21, 2021 12:58 pm
by BHolleyBrass
I played the tenor book about ten years ago and it's up there in my top favorite shows. It's a pretty long show and definitely worth a watch and listen. The novel is interesting, too.

We only had one trumpet, one tenor, and a horn in the brass and I think the "canned band" filled the missing parts. That's how we usually have to do it at the performing arts magnet high school where my wife teaches. Funds *usually* only allow us to use six or seven people in the pit.

Re: Tell me about Ragtime - The Musical

Posted: Tue Aug 03, 2021 2:14 pm
by MBurner
This was one of my more favorite books that I played when I still lived in NYC. I played the tenor book, and it had some good meat, and was really enjoyable (unlike some musicals that will remain nameless). If you’re paired down as far as pit size, definitely do the tenor book- it lines up more melodically and with the rest of the brass. I used a large bore tenor as I was also prepping auditions, but if I could do it again, I’d use a .525 with a trigger.