Baltimore Rag — Mandolin Tab

Mandolin tab and sheet music with synced audio · Tom Kelley and Dick Roger · Key of C · 120 BPM · 4/4 time · Ragtime · Intermediate

Chords used in this arrangement: C, F, D, G, G7.

Baltimore Rag was published back in 1952 by Tom Kelley and Dick Rogers through Shapiro Bernstein, one of Tin Pan Alley's most storied publishing houses. This puts this tune right in the middle of ragtime's mid-century revival, a time when the genre was clawing its way back into the spotlight after jazz had nearly buried it. What's neat is that rags like this one were originally conceived as piano music, but the genre itself grew out of banjo and fiddle syncopation, so landing it on mandolin is actually a homecoming of sorts. In C, it sits comfortably on the neck, and at 120 BPM you've got just enough speed to feel the bounce without it running away from you. Keep that right-hand attack crisp and rhythmic, because in ragtime that "ragged" snap is the whole point. Enjoy this mandolin tab version of Baltimore Rag.

This page includes mandolin tablature, standard music notation, and a chord chart — printable as PDF and playable in sync with the original recording. Change the key, slow the tempo down, and loop the bars you want to practise.