May Frances Aufderheide Kaufman (May 21, 1888 – September 1, 1972) was an American composer of
ragtime
Ragtime, also spelled rag-time or rag time, is a musical style that flourished 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 ...
music.
She was probably the best known among female ragtime composers.
She received training in
art music
Art music (alternatively called classical music, cultivated music, serious music, and canonic music) is music considered to be of high phonoaesthetic value. It typically implies advanced structural and theoretical considerationsJacques Siron, ...
and visited Europe on a
grand tour
The Grand Tour was the principally 17th- to early 19th-century custom of a traditional trip through Europe, with Italy as a key destination, undertaken by upper-class young European men of sufficient means and rank (typically accompanied by a tu ...
, yet decided to compose in ragtime.
May Aufderheide was a member of the
Indianapolis ragtime community that included Paul Pratt,
Cecil Duane Crabb,
J. Russel Robinson,
Will B. Morrison,
Julia Lee Niebergall
Julia Lee Niebergall (15 February 1886 – 19 October 1968) was a musician and ragtime era composer.
Early life and education
Niebergall was born in Indianapolis, Indiana to a family of musicians. Her father played double-bass, her sister ...
, and
Gladys Yelvington
Gladys E. Yelvington (Parsons) (November 29, 1891 – February 11, 1957) was a ragtime composer and friend of May Aufderheide and Julia Lee Niebergall. She was born in Elwood, Indiana to Asa and Alice Yelvington.
She composed and performed as a si ...
. The popularity of her first published rag, "Dusty", convinced her father, Indianapolis loan broker John H. Aufderheide, to enter the music publishing business forming the firm J. H. Aufderheide Music Publisher.
Songs
She went on to compose and publish "Richmond Rag", "The Thriller", "Buzzer Rag," "Blue Ribbon Rag", "A Totally Different Rag," "Novelty Rag", and "Dusty Rag," plus a number of waltzes and other songs including "I'll Pledge My Heart To You," and a song version of "A Totally Different Rag" with lyrics by Earle C. Jones. Other songs include: "I Want A Patriotic Girl" with Bobby Jones, "I Want A Real Lovin' Man" with Paul Pratt, and "Dusty Rag" with
J. Will Callahan.
Marriage
She married Thomas M. Kaufman, son of architect
William S. Kaufman
William S. Kaufman (1849–1916) was an American architect known for designing a number of public buildings, primarily in Indiana and Ohio.
Life and work
Kaufman was born in Union County, Indiana to Elias and Mary (Rhodes) Kaufman, who were Penn ...
in 1908, the year her first rag was published and moved to
Richmond, Indiana
Richmond is a city in eastern Wayne County, Indiana. Bordering the state of Ohio, it is the county seat of Wayne County and is part of the Dayton, OH Metropolitan Statistical Area In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 36,812. Situ ...
where her husband was an architect in practice with his father.
She stopped publishing early due to family difficulties with an alcoholic husband and a troubled adopted child.
The family moved to California in 1947 where they lived in a home called "Rose Villa", designed by May's husband, on the grounds of the
Huntington Sheraton Hotel in Pasadena. Though she spent the last several years of her life using a wheelchair due to debilitating arthritis, she outlived her husband and daughter, dying in
Pasadena, California, aged 84. She is interred next to her husband in Mountain View Mausoleum in
Altadena, California
Altadena () ("Alta", Spanish for "Upper", and "dena" from Pasadena) is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in the Verdugo Mountains region of Los Angeles County, California, approximately 14 miles (23 km) from the downto ...
.
Gallery
File:The Buzzer Rag.jpg, Cover page for the sheet music of "The Buzzer Rag", 1909.
File:Blue Ribbon Rag 1.jpg, Cover page to the sheet music of "Blue Ribbon Rag", 1910.
See also
*
List of ragtime composers
A list of ragtime composers, including a famous or characteristic composition.
Pre-1940
* Felix Arndt (1889–1918), "Nola" (1916)
* May Aufderheide (1888–1972), "Dusty Rag" (1908)
* Roy Bargy (1894–1974), "Pianoflage" (1922)
* Harry Belding ...
References
* ''Rags and Ragtime'' by Jasen and Tichenor, Dover, 1978.
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aufderheide, May
1888 births
1972 deaths
American women composers
American composers
Musicians from Pasadena, California
Musicians from Indianapolis
Musicians from Richmond, Indiana
Ragtime composers
Songwriters from Indiana
Writers from Richmond, Indiana
Songwriters from California
20th-century American women musicians
20th-century American musicians