Can ragtime replace classical?

[countrymath]

As i said lots of times, i want to be a popular musician, playing lots of diferent styles. I know that classical music is very good for technique, but I only like the most famous pieces, like Fantaisie Impromptu, moonlight sonata, etc...

I find very hard to find a repertory that I really like.

I've been listening to ragtime and I discovered that I like it very much. I wanna know if Ragtime piano can replace classical music for techique gain.

Thanks

[lostinidlewonder]

Would help for you to play Waltzes since the LH leaps that you do in ragtime are found in the Lh of this style. Rag doesn't focus very much on arpeggio/scale patterns which classical music develops a great deal, so you miss out a lot on that. The chords and the progressions you find in Ragtime are also less various than what you find in classical. Rag is a small style, classical is quite broad by comparison with lots of different. So rag can teach you some classical tools but you really have to study classical music to appreciate it, you can't approach it completely side on, but certainly you can in parts!

If you study all rhythmic forms in non-classical music however, I believe it can equip you to learn classical music form more readily. I know this from meeting exceptional Jazz pianists who never/rarely play classical but can if they have to.