Piedmont blues refers primarily to a guitar style, which is characterized by a fingerpicking approach in which a regular, alternating thumb bass string rhythmic pattern supports a syncopated melody using the treble strings generally picked with the fore-finger, occasionally others. The result is comparable in sound to ragtime or stride piano styles. Blues researcher Peter B. Lowry coined the term, giving co-credit to fellow folklorist Bruce Bastin. The Piedmont style is differentiated from other styles, particularly the Mississippi Delta blues, by its ragtime-based rhythms.
"In the convict camp in Greene County, Georgia", 1941. Buddy Moss is playing guitar; other men unidentified.
Ragtime, also spelled rag-time or rag time, is a musical style that had its peak from the 1890s to 1910s. Its cardinal trait is its syncopated or "ragged" rhythm. Ragtime was popularized during the early 20th century by composers such as Scott Joplin, James Scott and Joseph Lamb. Ragtime pieces are typically composed for and performed on piano, though the genre has been adapted for a variety of instruments and styles.
Cover for "La Pas Ma La" sheet music (1895). Words and Music by Ernest Hogan
Joseph Lamb's 1916 "The Top Liner Rag"
The keys of this player piano from 1885 are controlled by musical information in the center piano roll.
Sheet music cover for "Spaghetti Rag" (1910) by Lyons and Yosco Spaghetti Rag (1910), by Lyons and Yosco