Duelling Pianos

RHAPSODY FIRST PERFORMANCE

George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue,” the composer’s first full-fledged instrumental work and one of the most important American musical works of the 20th century, will be a highlight of the “Dueling Pianos” concert.  Here are a few facts about Gershwin’s masterpiece and its 1924 world premiere at Aeolian Hall in New York City.

THE VENUE.  With Gershwin himself at the piano, “Rhapsody in Blue” premiered at a concert billed as an “Experiment in Modern Music,” organized by jazz bandleader Paul Whiteman.  Through a program that traced the history of jazz, Whiteman sought to demonstrate that this relatively new form of music deserved attention as a sophisticated art form and, by extension, to broaden perceptions of what serious American music could be. 

THE BACKSTORY.  In late 1923, Whiteman asked Gershwin to compose a piece for the Paul Whiteman Orchestra, but Gershwin, busy with Broadway commitments, declined.  To Gershwin’s surprise, a New York Tribune article about Whiteman’s scheduled “Experiment in Modern Music,” published on January 4, 1924, concluded with the announcement: “George Gershwin is at work on a jazz concerto.”  Whiteman eventually convinced Gershwin to compose the piece and offered the services of Ferde Grofé, the bandleader’s chief arranger, to help.  Not only did Grofé bring experience to the project—Gershwin had never written for orchestra—he could also customize the score to match the talents of Whiteman’s musicians. 

INSPIRATION.  Gershwin found inspiration for Rhapsody while riding a train to Boston.  ““It was on the train, with its steely rhythms, its rattlety-bang. . .There I suddenly heard—and even saw on paper—the complete construction of the rhapsody, from beginning to end. . . . I heard it as a sort of musical kaleidoscope of America—of our vast melting pot, of our unduplicated national pep, of our metropolitan madness. By the time I reached Boston I had a definite plot of the piece...”

RHAPSODY TAKES SHAPE.  Gershwin composed the two-piano score for what he initially called “American Rhapsody” in less than one month at the age of 25, leaving the orchestration to Grofé.  It was Ira Gershwin, inspired by the paintings of James Whistler at a gallery exhibit and their abstract titles, who suggested “Rhapsody in Blue.”

THE EXPERIMENT IN MODERN MUSIC.  The New York Tribune announcement that Gershwin was composing a work for Whiteman’s concert attracted a large audience, to include members from classical music circles.  In attendance were composer and pianist Sergei Rachmaninoff, violinist and composer Fritz Kreisler, conductor Leopold Stokowski, violinist Efrem Zimbalist, and other musical luminaries.

CLARINET SOLO.  Russ Gorman, first-chair clarinetist in Whiteman’s orchestra, is credited with embellishing Gershwin’s original concept for the opening clarinet solo, now instantly recognizable as the beginning of Rhapsody of Blue. 

Hear Heather Adelsberger, Molly Orlando, Marianne Lauffer, and Peter Lauffer play “Rhapsody in Blue” and other selections composed and arranged for multiple pianos and keyboardists on Saturday, February 22 at 7:30 p.m. in St. Louis Church.  Free admission, no ticket required.  

notes by Karla Kastner