John Nakanshi – Syncopation

Initiator Artist: John Nakanshi
Artwork Title: Syncopation
Size:
Medium: Acrylic
Price:  $250

Responder Author: John Barry
Writing Title: Syncopation
Size: 11″ x 17″
Price:  Donate to favorite charity

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Some pundits claim that it’s Bob

who started the rapping job

with his 1965  

accents-altering schmooze

’bout “Subterranean” blues.

In their claim they have stated:

It’s untamed, syncopated,

do-re de-/re- regulated; 

some syllables mated

with stress; some breath-bated.

But, let’s take a trip back

down the musical drag,

change lanes  from rap to rag—

the genre’s king, Scott Joplin,

apostate who assaulted

arranged aural orthodoxy 

of the time, mostly in 2/4.

Says The Arts and The City:

ragtime’s syncopation

and rhythmic drive 

made it come alive.

Its freshness expressed the

intensity and energy 

of urban America.

Filling the rag-rap gap: jazz.

Baker could croon a boozy blues,

“There Will Never Be Another You”…

make phalanxes of fans swoon.

But in some urban 

subterranean clubs where he’d begun,

Chet fractured tempo’s syntax

and swung it with his trumpet.

 

Copyright © 2024 by John A. Barry