Frank P. Banta had a background not as colourful and diverse as his rival in recording Fred Hylands. Banta's background did consist of classical training, as can clearly be heard on the ONE piano solo surviving to this date on records by Banta.
To what has been passed down, young Frank worked at a piano factory in the late 1870's and early 1880's, getting the newly-finished pianos up to reasonably good pitch before the hardcore tuners finished them up. This must have been a hard job for a youth, as he clearly only gained a love for the piano from doing this. So in this, he must have received his lessons in his early teen's, quite a few years later than Hylands did.
Banta was no child prodigy, but did have a reasonably good ear from childhood(mind you, I did NOT say he had perfect pitch!). His talents started to get out into the performing world by 1892, when he formed a small orchestra, of which made a few records surprisingly, here is one of these historic and rare records:
(hmm, I wonder who announces this one, could it be Banta himself? We will never know...)
This cylinder is from around 1893 to 1895, so that is very early for Banta's experience with the phonograph.
This early experience must have caught the attention of Vess L. Ossman, as he became a recording artist in 1893, and that same year, he came upon the young orchestra director/pianist Banta. This is where the whole partnership of Ossman and Banta began, and I explained this in greater detail in an earlier post. Ossman adored Banta's playing, it was not yet time for Rag-time, but he played many precursors to Rag-time, as the cylinder above is an example of Pre-Ragtime. Not long after the partnership was formed, in late-1895, the very exclusive staff of Edison's phonograph company took in the young and fit Banta as their house pianist. He was an immediate hit with the "regulars" at Edison. But at Edison, the staff did not group together as friends and go off and do things as one.
So in many ways, Banta missed out on the fun that the boys at Columbia were out doing(kicking up trouble and such!), but clearly he was well-loved by the Edison staff, and they payed him well, as they should have. Banta kept a good relationship with the strict and stiff managers of Edison, and that's saying quite a lot, as he was an eager Ragtimer by 1898.
By 1899, Banta could be heard on hundreds of Edison cylinders, many of which he would be playing Ragtime. Here is a great example below:
(taking some things from Freddy are we Mr. Banta...)
This cylinder above is particularly an interesting example of Banta's Ragtime. He was not the most creative spirit in the world, nor was he the loudest piano player. But all of those quick and wonderfully executed runs he does represent his classical training. So unlike Hylands, one can hear all of Banta' background in his playing, and one can identify his inspirations easier than when hearing Hylands.
This one below is not a Ragtime piece, but it is a very interesting cylinder with Banta accompanying Dan W. Quinn from March of 1899:
Hear those deep octaves!
(sounds an awful lot like Hylands...)
The playing is too light and straight to be Hylands though, but I still argue with my ears about which one I'm hearing here...
It's alright, they probably knew each other and stole little things from one another secretly, as fellow musicians do.
Banta was loved by them all at Edison, and when some of the Columbia boys' contracts began to wear off, they started coming in to Edison to record, and find their own friend Frank P. Banta at the piano for them.
He only gained a better friendship with the Edison boys after 1900, as he was in more than he was prior to 1900.
The days were long at the studios, and by night shows with various vaudevillians were typical. Not all of these shows were with Vess Ossman though.
Banta kept coming into the studio until late 1903, even with a newborn daughter and a seven-year-old son, but he had acquired some type of food poisoning, which then combined with the deadly asthma he had been said to have had for at least ten years before. All of these things took the life of the 33 year old Frank P. Banta in late 1903.
From what I've heard, most of the recording artists who ever associated with him mourned him for several months after his death. It is amazing to think, how much Banta missed in ragtime after his death, he died at the end of the first era of Ragtime, and he missed the next two eras.
I hope you enjoyed this!
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