aworks :: "new" american classical music

Rhapsody in Blue (1924). George Gershwin /david schiff/

I've started reading David Schiff's Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue, from 1997. Despite the form of my blog, I can find it hard to slog through a book about a single work. But so far, it's interesting.

He opens by describing how United Airlines pad $300,000 per year to use the music in their advertising, on the plane, and at O'Hare airport. I don't remember this but he mentions how Delta Airlines used a tune from Rakhmaninov's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, maybe due to it's similarities to Gershwin's Russian/American sounds.

He describes how Rhapsody in Blue gets criticized for being just a sequence of tunes. Still:

The fact that the Rhapsody has outlived many works whose compositional credentials have never been questioned raises an interesting aesthetic issue: if a music work continues to be played for three generations after its premiere just how flawed can its form be?

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Rhapsody in Blue (1924). George Gershin /united airlines, again/

For those watching the Olympics in the United States, be prepared to see the United Airlines ad "Sea Orchestra" (over and over and over):

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aworks: prior rhapsody in blue posts

Rhapsody in Blue (1924) George Gershwin /without romanticism/

Mick LaSalle asks what current works will be seen as emblematic of our era. Ok, apparently the just released film Speed Racer won't be it. He also suggests that Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue took awhile to settle in to its current benign esteem:

The above clip, a shortened version of the piece from the 1930 movie THE KING OF JAZZ, is especially interesting, because it shows how people saw RHAPSODY IN BLUE in its time -- not as romantic as we see it, more decadent, more snappy, more arch. It's worth checking out.

Check out the YouTube clip from his post, if for no better reasons than seeing a giant piano, a surprise entrance by the orchestra, and a horn section that shows little body movement.

Speaking of non-romanticism, I still enjoy the Eugenie Russo piano performance of Copland's El Salon Mexico, shorn of the original's orchestral cushioning.

Rhapsody in Blue (1924). George Gershwin

Heather writes about "skinny jeans" and how music need not always be presented in its purest form:

But those models, so long held up as measures of greatness, don't fit everyone. Don't make people wear jeans they really don't want to wear. Shouldn't we applaud musicians who've found other niches, who've found a way to work that fits comfortably and allows them to bring their creative interests to life? Who cares if it's "pure" or "multi-media" as long as the work "fits" the performer!

Two recordings from last night echo that sentiment. First is Eumir Deodato's 1970s jazz-pop take on Rhapsody in Blue and then Charles Ives' Variations on "America" from the Patriotism, Diversity And The Pioneer Spirit CD. In both cases, one can argue the inspiration is true to the artist and as a result, has merit as art, even as it blends with entertainment.

Rhapsody in Blue for Piano and Orchestra (1924). George Gershwin

George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue for Piano and Orchestra (1924) is one of the best segments of the Disney film Fantasia 2000.  About life in New York City, it's an amusing, stylistic animation.  Seeing this also helps reclaim the work from the grasp of being used as the theme for United Airlines. 

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September 11, 2003

Why me? was playing Rhapsody in Blue for Piano and Orchestra during a public radio pledge drive when the first 9/11 attack occurred.

It was a beautiful Tuesday morning. Nothing eventful ever happens on a Tuesday. Nothing eventful should ever happen on a Tuesday.

My public radio station was approaching the midpoint of our fall fund drive. I was hosting the morning classical music show. Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue was on. Beautiful. Thrilling. That would get the phones ringing, I thought.

It was 8:51 am. Workers in New York City had already died.