At the dawn of the century, Ragtime music popularized by Scott Joplin became the rage in North America. Ragtime is a style of lively, syncopated music filled with counterpoint and harmonic contrasts. Typically, the bass notes establish the beat and the the melodic notes fall unexpectedly on and off beat, creating an energetic and original sound. The musical style has its roots in African American traditions on Southern plantations, such as "Coon songs" and "Cakewalks" which were often accompanied by vibrant music reminscent of African dances. Even before the Edwardian era, ragtime had begun to sweep across the Mississippi Valley in the late 1890s, predominantly driven by African American pianists such as Theodore Northrup and W.H. Krell. Joplin, known affectionately as the "King of Ragtime", borrowed from the classic styles of composers such as Johann Sebastian Bach and Louis Moreau Gottschalk to create a renowned musical tradition that reached its height of popularity in the late 1910s. Joplin's most popular rags are titled "The Entertainer" and "The Maple Leaf Rag." Many late 19th century couples dances persisted into the 20th century, with new waltzes evolving (e.g. the slower Boston Waltz and the Hesitation waltz involving the ocassional single step to three beats), new polka's fashioned, new varsovienna turns devised and even new schottisches being invented (e.g. the Scotis espanol or 'Spanish Schottische', popular for a short time on the continent after the first world war). By and large, however, the age of these couples dances was over. Freed from the constraints of the tight corsets, long skirts and puffed sleeves, a new generation of dancers started to strut and sway to new rhythms. The two-step was followed by the one-step and such ragtime novelties as 'the Turkey Trot', 'Bunny Hug', and 'Grizzly Bear'. These dances in turn were followed by ballroom versions of the South American tango and maxixe, and then after World War I by the Charleston, Fox Trot and Lindy Hop. People did not need dance manual to learn these dances. They could learn from viewing of a Hollywood movie, practice to a phonograph record or radio broadcast, and/or simply improvised on the spot. For those wanting to learn the most elegant variations there were always dance classes. The great era of dance manuals came to an end, though people such as the exhibition dancers Irene and Vernon Castles tried to bring some civility back into the ballroom with chapters in their own manuals on 'Grace and Elegance', 'Proper Dancing' 'Costumes for Women' and 'Proper dance music'.