George Botsford (1874–1949) was an American composer of ragtime, the lively, syncopated music that accompanied the urban boom in the United States at the turn of the 20th century. Belonging to the second generation of composers of this style and less famous than Scott Joplin, he nonetheless remains an essential figure in American popular music.

Born on May 9, 1874, in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Botsford grew up in a country undergoing rapid change, marked by the expansion of cities, leisure activities, and music publishing. Attracted to the piano and composition from an early age, he turned to accessible music, intended as much for bourgeois salons as for theaters and sheet music sold in large numbers.

Settling in New York, he established himself as a prolific composer of ragtime, marches, waltzes, and music for the theater. His style is distinguished by great rhythmic clarity, infectious energy, and a keen sense of melody. Unlike some highly virtuosic ragtime pieces, Botsford's favor efficiency, momentum, and the immediate pleasure of playing.

His most famous work, Black and White Rag (1908), was hugely successful and became one of the most widely broadcast ragtime pieces in history, particularly in the 20th century thanks to radio, records, and later television. This piece perfectly illustrates Botsford's artistry: alternating contrasts, an irresistible beat, and a style that naturally invites dancing.

George Botsford composed hundreds of pieces, often intended for a wide amateur audience. He belonged to a generation of musicians who made a living from publishing their works in a musical world that was now linked to the cultural industry. Without seeking scholarly depth, he helped to establish the language of ragtime and ensure its lasting popularity.

He died on February 25, 1949, leaving behind the image of an inspired craftsman of American music. George Botsford remains today an essential reference in ragtime, a symbol of a joyful and rhythmic era when popular music became a true social phenomenon.

Frédéric Cellier

Along his university studies (DEA in musicology, University of Paris IV-Sorbonne), Frédéric Cellier was awarded three first prizes and a development prize at the CNR of Nice and won first prize at the International Competition of Musical Execution - soloist category – of Stresa (Italy).

He is the laureate of the Fondation de France and the Yehudi Menuhin Foundation and accredited teacher at the CNR of Nice, the CNR of Marseille, and at the CRR Olivier Messiaen of Avignon (France).

Frédéric Cellier is the interpreter of Francis Poulenc’s Sonata for clarinet Bb and piano with Jean-Michel Damase, Jean Françaix or Gabriel Tacchino, as well as his own arrangements for clarinet and harp of Erik Satie's Gymnopédies and Gnossiennes with the great French harpist Elizabeth Fontan-Binoche, and for clarinet, piano, and string orchestra of George Gershwin's Rhapsody in blue for Wynton Marsalis or under the baton of Adrian Gershwin, grandson of the composer.

Founder and artistic director of STRADIVARIUS Editions, he is the author of light music pieces played around the world and a considerable number of arrangements of all styles and for all instruments, acclaimed by many personalities in the music world, including Michèle Auric, Jean Françaix, Adrian Gershwin, Wynton Marsalis, Yehudi Menuhin, Madeleine Milhaud, Manuel Rosenthal, Gabriel Tacchino, and Ornella Volta.

"Frédéric Cellier has produced a number of adaptations of Georges Auric's works with such talent and precision that I consider them a natural addition to his chamber music catalogue."
Michèle AURIC - Georges Auric's widow

"To Frédéric Cellier, excellent musician and tireless arranger."
Jean FRANÇAIX - Composer and pianist

"Arranging a musical work is always a delicate and risky exercise, because it requires both modifying it so that it can be played by the desired instruments and preserving its very essence. But that is exactly what Frédéric Cellier has done, preserving the nuances, subtleties and soul of the original works while breathing new life into them.
His arrangements give all the musicians the chance to perform these compositions specially revisited for their instrument, and make music lovers rediscover them in a new light."
Adrian GERSHWIN - George Gershwin’s grandson

"Congratulations for your beautiful new orchestration and rendition of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in blue."
Wynton MARSALIS - Trumpet player, composer, bandleader, general and artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center, New York

"It is outstanding that Frédéric Cellier has managed to transpose Saxophone Marmalade from the saxophone to the clarinet. I thank him for it and wish its great and deserved success. "
Manuel ROSENTHAL - Conductor, composer and Maurice Ravel’s pupil

"I am very happy to tell you how much I appreciated your transcription of the Capriccio, based on Francis Poulenc's Le Bal Masqué. It perfectly reflects the spirit and verve of the score for two pianos that I had the opportunity to play and record with Jacques Février, and it was a great pleasure for me to premiere it in Montpellier."
Gabriel TACCHINO - Pianist, Francis Poulenc’s specialist

"I must tell you that I really like your transcriptions and that I think the tone of the instruments you have chosen suits perfectly our beloved composer."
Ornella VOLTA - Musicologist, president of the Erik Satie’s Foundation