The Strenuous Life
by Scott Joplin (1868–1917) · Early modern · Intermediate
Versions
| Version | Level | Key | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intermediate · Level 3 | 3 of 5 | C major | 3:04 |
The player above plays the first 20 seconds. Learn all 3:04 of The Strenuous Life in the PianoKite app: every version, both hands or one at a time, Wait mode on every bar, play-along at 50, 75 or 100% and per-bar feedback. Get early access.
- Era
- Early modern (1890–1930)
- Mood
- Calm · slow and peaceful
- Versions
- 1
About this piece
The Strenuous Life is a calm early-20th-century piece by Scott Joplin (1868–1917). There is one arrangement: Intermediate (level 3 of 5), 3:04 long, in C major. In the app's library you'll also find it in the Ragtime collection.
About Scott Joplin (1868–1917): American composer known as the King of Ragtime. The Maple Leaf Rag (1899) and The Entertainer (1902) made syncopated piano music famous.
How to play The Strenuous Life on piano
- Split the piece into sections and learn them one at a time, hands separately first.
- Loop the bars that keep going wrong. The app's per-bar feedback shows exactly where they are, so you don't waste time on the bars you already know.
- Move up the play-along speeds in steps, 50% then 75% then 100%, only when a section is clean at the current speed.
- The left hand jumps between a low bass note and a chord. Practise just the jumps, looking ahead to where your hand lands, until they're automatic.
- Short daily sessions beat one long weekly one. Ten focused minutes a day is enough to make steady progress.
In the PianoKite app you can learn it with your own digital piano over Bluetooth or USB, or with any piano through the microphone: the score scrolls past a playhead, the keys light up, and every bar gets a score so you can see what's learned. See how it works. New to the piano? Start with the beginner lessons. Get early access.
License and credits
Typeset by Benjamin Bloomfield for the Mutopia Project. License: Public Domain. Source: Mutopia Project.
Both the composition and the source file are in the public domain.
Text events such as lyrics were removed; the notes are as published. The player on this page plays the first 20 seconds.
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