MusiLLection

The Jazz Age shaped artists and musicians alike. This painting by Lyonel Charles Feininger reflects the spirit of the era that inspired Gershwin’s music. George Gershwin first achieved fame as a songwriter, yet from the very beginning of his career he aspired to compose what was then considered “serious” concert music. That ambition took shape decisively when conductor and impresario Paul Whiteman commissioned him to write a work for a so-called “jazz concerto.” The result was Rhapsody in Blue , a groundbreaking piece for piano and orchestra that instantly transformed Gershwin into a cultural phenomenon. Just one year later, in 1925, Gershwin received a new and more demanding commission—this time from New York conductor Walter Damrosch—for a full-length concerto in the European tradition. Working simultaneously on the Broadway shows Tell Me More and Tip Toes , Gershwin composed what he initially titled the New York Concerto , later known as the Piano Concerto in F Major . The conc...

George Gershwin, whose music bridged popular song and classical tradition with effortless originality . The musical journey of George Gershwin is singular in both scope and intensity. Few composers have moved so effortlessly—and so successfully—across such diverse musical worlds: Tin Pan Alley, Broadway, Hollywood, concert halls, and opera houses. In a remarkably short lifetime, Gershwin achieved a level of recognition that spanned popular and classical domains without ever diluting his artistic voice. As a songwriter, Gershwin emerged at precisely the right historical moment. He captured the spirit of American popular music as it was coming into its own, shaping it with instinctive melodic flair and rhythmic vitality. As a composer, he elevated that same musical language, granting it formal coherence and artistic ambition while preserving its immediacy and emotional directness. Gershwin possessed a keen awareness of Western European compositional techniques, yet his musical heart b...

In the 1920s, Paris exerted a powerful fascination on American artists—writers, painters, and musicians alike. George Gershwin was no exception. Like his contemporary Cole Porter, he was drawn to the city’s energy, elegance, and modern spirit. While Porter celebrated Paris mainly through song, Gershwin turned to the symphonic orchestra and composed his most ambitious orchestral work, An American in Paris , as a musical reflection of his own experiences in the French capital. The work was first performed in 1928 at Carnegie Hall in New York under the direction of Walter Damrosch. Twenty years later, it inspired the celebrated Hollywood film An American in Paris , starring Gene Kelly, further cementing the piece’s place in cultural history. A symphonic poem An American in Paris is conceived as a symphonic poem . Rather than narrating a fixed story, Gershwin evokes images, sounds, and emotional states associated with the city, filtered through the perspective of an American visitor....

George Gershwin at the piano, shaping an unmistakably American musical voice that bridged jazz, Broadway, and the concert hall. George Gershwin ’s creative output occupies a unique place in 20th-century music, dissolving the boundary between concert hall, Broadway, and popular song. His works reflect an unmistakably American voice—urban, rhythmic, lyrical—where jazz idioms coexist naturally with classical forms. Together, these works illustrate the extraordinary breadth of George Gershwin ’s musical imagination—equally at home in symphonic form, musical theatre, and song—shaping a legacy that remains central to both classical and popular music traditions. The following selection outlines Gershwin’s most significant and influential works, grouped by genre. Orchestral Works Rhapsody in Blue Piano Concerto in F Major An American in Paris Second Rhapsody for piano and orchestra Cuban Overture Variations on "I Got Rhythm" Piano Works Three Preludes Musicals Theatre George White...

The Three Preludes for Piano distill George Gershwin ’s musical language into a compact, brilliantly contrasted triptych. Originally conceived as part of a larger cycle, the three pieces ultimately form a perfectly balanced set: two energetic, rhythm-driven outer movements framing a slower, more introspective center. Together, they offer a refined synthesis of jazz idioms, blues expression, and classical pianistic clarity. Ι. Allegro ben ritmato e deciso The opening prelude is sharply rhythmic and immediately engaging. Its syncopated drive and playful lyricism evoke Latin American dance rhythms—particularly the rumba—while remaining firmly rooted in jazz. Crisp articulation and percussive energy give the music a sense of urban vitality, characteristic of Gershwin’s early concert style. ΙΙ. Andante con moto e poco rubato The second prelude, the most frequently performed of the three, unfolds as a subtle reimagining of the blues. A slow, languid melody floats above gently repeating left...

A scene from the first performance of Porgy and Bess in New York, 1935. Porgy and Bess stands as George Gershwin ’s boldest and most ambitious artistic statement: a singular attempt to create an American opera by fusing classical dramatic form with the idioms of jazz, blues, and African American musical tradition. The result is a work of extraordinary tension and originality, still unmatched in its scope and cultural impact. Gershwin had long been fascinated by what was then called “Black music.” The pulsating rhythms and expressive directness of jazz reached the ears of American society in the early decades of the 20th century, but Gershwin sensed something deeper beneath its surface. For him, this music carried the emotional core of American life itself. While many songs in Porgy and Bess draw heavily on jazz language, his true ambition went further: to compose a serious opera rooted in African American experience. Already celebrated as a songwriter, Gershwin recognized in 1926 ...