That Mysterious Rag
"That Mysterious Rag" is a song by Irving Berlin and Ted Snyder written in 1911.[1] It was one of the earliest Berlin songs to become a commercial success[2] with recordings by Arthur Collins & Albert Campbell and by the American Quartet being very popular in 1912.[3]
Composition
According to Howard Pollack in a biography of
- Did you hear it? Were you near it?
- If you weren't then you've yet to fear it;
- Once you've met it you'll regret it,
- Just because you never will forget it.[6]
The American Quartet recorded the piece in a generic accent.[5] The musical structure also avoids characteristic ethnic overtones. As Hamm explains:
There is no trace of syncopation beyond a single 3+3+2 pattern in the chorus, no minor tonality, no reference to one ethnic group or another. The most arresting moment, the cross-relation at the beginning of the verse, has no specific ethnic (or any other) connotation.[5]
"That Mysterious Rag" is the first instance of a change that Berlin employs consistently from 1912 onward: a generic style lacking in specific ethnic connotations whose audience is no longer solely the working class, but whose reach includes patrons of the
Performance and reception
Berlin performed the piece during September 1911 wearing a coat and tails, receiving star billing at the Hammerstein Victoria Theatre owned by Willie Hammerstein at Times Square.[8] Berlin refused calls for encores and received a favorable review from Variety.[8] Erik Satie used "That Mysterious Rag" in 1917 for his ballet Parade.[4] The song remained popular for more than a decade.
References
- ^ "That Mysterious Rag (bibliographic notes)". Duke University. Retrieved 2008-09-20.
- ^ David Ward (1973). T. S. Eliot Between Two Worlds: A Reading of T. S. Eliot's Poetry and Plays. Routledge. pp. 99. Retrieved 2008-09-17.
That Mysterious Rag TS Eliot.
- ISBN 0-89820-083-0.
- ^ a b Howard Pollack (2006). George Gershwin: His Life and Work. University of California Press. pp. 47โ48. Retrieved 2008-09-20.
That Mysterious Rag.
- ^ a b c d e f g S. Charles Hamm (1997). Irving Berlin. Oxford University Press US. pp. 86โ92. Retrieved 2008-09-17.
I Want to go back to Michigan Irving Berlin.
- ^ ""That Mysterious Rag" (sheet music)". Ted Snyder Co., Music Publishers. Retrieved 2008-09-21.
- ^ a b Richard Crawford (2001). America's Musical Life: A History. W. W. Norton & Company. pp. 550โ551. Retrieved 2008-09-21.
That Mysterious Rag.
- ^ ISBN 9780786752522. Retrieved 2008-09-21.