Scott Joplin (November 24, 1868 – April 1, 1917) was an influential American composer and pianist, renowned as the "King of Ragtime." He composed over 40 ragtime pieces, a ragtime ballet, and two operas. One of his earliest and most famous compositions, the "Maple Leaf Rag," became a defining piece of the ragtime genre. Joplin believed ragtime was a form of classical music intended for concert halls, rather than the honky tonk style often associated with saloons.

Joplin was born into a musical family in Texas, with his father, Giles Joplin, a former slave, and his mother, Florence Givens, a freeborn African-American. He grew up in Texarkana, Texas, and later moved to Texarkana, Arkansas. His family provided him with a basic musical education, and he began traveling the American South as a musician in the late 1880s. The 1893 World's Fair in Chicago significantly boosted the popularity of ragtime music.

In 1894, Joplin settled in Sedalia, Missouri, where he worked as a piano teacher and began publishing music. The success of "Maple Leaf Rag" in 1899 brought him fame and financial stability. He later moved to St. Louis and then to New York City in 1907, seeking to produce a new opera. Unfortunately, his first opera, "A Guest of Honor," was lost due to financial difficulties.

Joplin's health declined due to neurosyphilis, leading to dementia, and he died in 1917, marking the end of the ragtime era. His music experienced a revival in the 1970s, notably through Joshua Rifkin's album and the film "The Sting," which featured his compositions. His second opera, "Treemonisha," was produced in 1972, and Joplin was posthumously awarded a Pulitzer Prize in 1976.