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The following years were spent teaching public school music in Oregon and California. Teaching provided the money and the time to pursue his real interest, composing and playing piano. The major turning point in his career was in 1972 when Eubie Blake played the Stars and Stripes by Sousa. This rag was quickly copied and two more rags, Maple Leaf and Alexander's Ragtime Band were memorized. Taylor was hooked. His performances now included ragtime.
Other performers were enlisted to play ragtime orchestrations and sing ragtime songs. The annual "Ragtime In Review" program was initiated at this time. Taylor began playing at festivals from the first festival in Sedalia to the West Coast festivals. Records, cassettes and published music followed. With his conservatory training, he could play any conceivable ragtime style, however, his personal piano styling was not to emerge until the late seventies when he heard performances by Jim Hession. An original ragtime sound was then created, combining the technical aspect of Hession's playing with the atonal or modern structures that Taylor was acquainted with as a composer. This style may be described as "eclectic ragtime,” borrowing music from jazz, pop and classical. Being esoteric in nature, it does not follow the "mainstream" of ragtime but it is highly original.
In order to spend more time with his music, Taylor and his wife Nancy bought a historic ranch in the Blue Mountains of Haines, Oregon where he now freelances as a musician, teacher and piano tuner. Adhering now to a self-sufficient life style, he feels his music leaning towards a more improvised style, departing from traditional ragtime concepts. He also feels that ragtime is a valid art form which should and will expand into new musical structures and sounds.
His most recent project involves composing and performing original scores for old time silent movies.
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