RAGTIME might have had its heyday almost 100 years ago, but it is far from being dead and forgotten, according to the director of The Ken Colyer Trust New Orleans Jazz Band.

In fact, Alan Robinson says the roots of most 20th Century music has its origins in ragtime.

"Blues music is about a good man feeling bad, gospel music is a bad man feeling good and ragtime is a good man feeling good," said Mr Robinson.

After ragtime burst onto the scene around the turn of the century it became a key ingredient in the creation of jazz, he said.

Although jazz took over the music scene in the 1920s, ragtime had a resurgence in the 1950's spawning skiffle, which in turn lead to British Rock and Roll.

"Also in the 1950s ragtime was being played by Ken Coyler, Britain's first home grown jazz musician," said Mr Robinson, whose band pays homage to Colyer in its title.

"He was playing The Entertainer long before it appeared on the soundtrack to The Sting.

"He also introduced skiffle into the British music scene. And then skiffle turned into British rock music with the Beatles.

"America dominated music from about 1840 until 1962 when the Beatles came along."

But ragtime might still be on the rise, as Mr Robinson claims current music has become stale and people are after something new.

"A lot of music in the charts at the moment is just repetitive and doesn't have a melody, and at the moment, I think there is a void.

"I think people are tired of synthesised sounds and there is a growing interest in real music."

There are a number of theories about where the name ragtime time comes from, including musicians playing among rags of wood in saw mills.

"Ragtime is based on a syncopated rhythm which became known as ragged time," said Mr Robinson.

The Ken Coyler Trust New Orlean's Jazz Band's show Ragtime Resplendant pays tribute to the likes of ragtime greats such as Scott Joplin.

"Ragtime was the music played in saloons but now Scott Joplin is listed alongside classical composers like Chopin," he said.

"We play these concerts all over the country. At the moment we've got 60 dates scheduled including the Purcell Room in London."

Ragtime Resplendant, Huntingdon Hall, Friday, November 8 at 8pm. Tickets £10, concessions £9 from the box office on 01905 611427.