Rhapsody in BlueGeorge Gershwin

By: Mike McCann

George Gershwin BioBorn in 1898 as Jacob Gershvitz to Russian

Immigrant ParentsNot a real musical intuition until age 12 Dropped out of High School (1914) to join a Tin

Pan Alley publishing firm Left job in 1917 to work as a rehearsal pianist Really saw first success with Swanee Died young in 1938 as a result of a brain tumor

Gershwin’s Musical AccomplishmentsSwanee (1919)Rhapsody in Blue (1924)Concerto in F for Piano and Orchestra (1925)

An American in Paris (1928)

Porgy and Bess (1935)

Rhapsody in BlueCame to be rather randomly

Paul Whiteman and Aeolian Hall Ferde Grofe and Ross Gorman

Last second finish

Musical ElementsInstrumentation

Depending on the performance: Piano, Clarinet, Saxophone(s), Violin, French Horn, Trumpet, Tuba, and others

Main instruments are clarinet and piano

Harmonic Shifts and Changes in rhythm

Musical Elements (cont.) Forceful playingImprovisationJoy of Playing

Listening Almost irregular sections A-establishes the theme of the pieceBridge from intro to theme…short and cheerfulB-theme from introduction with clarinets backingC-Jazz theme, dynamic shifts…gives piece a lot of

excitementB-piano enters on a much lower note

Listening (cont.)A-piano provides the “bluesy” themeC-piano shifts to provide jazz theme from earlierD-warm version of the themePiano then plays repeated notes, as they get

faster with each noteD-main orchestra rejoins piano following solo

Listening (cont.)A-piano plays part A in what almost seems like an

angry tone

B-played again with repeated notes

A-conclusion that incorporates whole orchestra with piano to theme exciting ending

Pop CultureNew York CityBrian WilsonWoody AllenFantasiaOlympics

CriticsLeonard Bernstein: “not a composition at all, but a

string of terrific tunes, stuck together with a thin paste of flour and water”

Arthur Schwartz: “more intuition than tuition” Originality American?