An overwhelming success
“The audience packed a house that could have been sold out at twice the size,” wrote Edwin Olin Downes. He was reporting on the audience’s reception of George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue performed for the first time on the afternoon of 12 Feb 1924, at the Aeolian Hall in New York City. [1]
Written in a hurry
Promoted as a educational event, the “Experiment in Modern Music”, the circumstances that made the Rhapsody in Blue to be written in a hurry were entirely out of the good relationship of three people, Paul Whiteman, an immensely popular leader of the Palais Royal Orchestra, Ira Gershwin, and his brother George Gershwin. Ira Gershwin was George’s strongest supporter and music advocate.
What happened?
Apparently, “at one point in time George Gershwin, had mentioned his desire to write a serious piece incorporating jazz and pop elements to Paul Whiteman, whose dance band was (then) among the most popular in America. Nothing more came out of this until Jan 3, 1924, when Whiteman announced an eclectic concert was to take place at the New York City’s Aeolian Hall, with the bold purpose of displaying American music in all its varieties.
Whiteman went on to proclaim that George Gershwin was “at work on a jazz concerto” [1] which would receive its premiere at the event. The latter’s brother Ira Gershwin drew George’s attention to the newspaper article next day. Gershwin protested that he know nothing of this forthcoming event and that worse, the Whiteman concert was slated for 12 Feb — just 5 weeks away. [2]
Despite the confusion, Whiteman apparently persuaded Gershwin to accept his commission. He said that all Gershwin “had to do was was supply the piano score. Ferde Grofe, Whiteman’s brilliant in-house arranger, would be able to orchestrate the work tailored4] to the band’s line-up” [3]
In the premiere that followed it was noted that “because he was so pressed for time, Gershwin added several piano solos that he could improvise throughout the piece. This left several blank pages in Whiteman’s score with the indication to “wait for nod” from George so that Whiteman could then cue the orchestra to following the solos.” [4]
Ira Gershwin’s contribution
George Gershwin’s original title for the piece was “American Rhapsody” but, by chance, “Ira has been to an exhibition of Whistler’s paintings and saw the painter’s Nocturne in Blue and Green of the Thames at Chelsea. Why not call the new piece Rhapsody instead, he suggested.” The rest is history. George Gershwin’s American Rhapsody became Rhapsody in Blue.[3]
Song creation enabled by strong relationships
George Gershwin decided to call the piece a “rhapsody rather than than a concerto. Though the work uses a solo piano alternating with an ensemble like that of a concerto, Rhapsody in Blue also has the features of a rhapsody with its one-movement, free-form concentration.”
During the work composition, George Gershwin found “inspiration from two different sources. The first occurred to him while traveling via train to Boston. The rhythm and sound of the train as it swiftly moved along the track inspired several themes from the beginning of his piece.”[5]
“I heard it [the train] as a sort of musical kaleidoscope of America — of our vast melting pot of our incomparable national pep, our blues, our metropolitan madness.” [5]
Gershwin’s second source of inspiration came “at a friend’s party while he played around on the piano. Though not thinking of his Rhapsody at the time, he subconsciously composed the climax to the work. He didn’t realize at first how perfectly what he improvised on the piano fit into the piece until his brother Ira, insisted that he incorporate it into his composition.”
Finally, “the famous, opening clarinet solo of Rhapsody in Blue was inspired by clarinetist Ross Gorman, who played in Whiteman’s orchestra. Gershwin had always been impressed by Gorman’s ability to play a two-octave glissando on his instrument and used the clarinetist’s skill to begin his new work.”
Rhapsody in Blue — A music masterpiece
George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue is no doubt his best piece of music produced. The many written accounts describing the genesis and developmental process of this piece of music that are available in the Internet allow us to put together yet another aspect of music making namely, the relationships of people and things that were interwoven to result in such a good piece of music produced — Rhapsody in Blue. Enjoy this joy of living.
References
- Anonymous. “Rhapsody in Blue by George Gershwin, performed for the first time. URL: www.history.com/this-day-in-history/rhapsody-in-blue-by-george-gershwin-performed for the first time. Accessed 04-10-2021.
- Anonymous. George Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue. URL: www.classicalnotes.net/classics/gershwin.html. Accessed 04-10-2021
- Anonymous. Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue — the story behind a hastily composed masterpiece. URL: https://www.classicfm/composers/gershwin/guides/story-behind-gershwin-performed-for-first-time. Accessed 04-10-2021.
- Jessica Lorey. George Gershwin’s American Sound. Clef Notes, 2014. http://wgucmusicblog.blogspot.com/2014/07/georgeshwins-american-sound.html
- Jessica Lorey. Inspiration behind Rhapsody in Blue. Clef Notes, 2014. http://wgucmusicblog.blogspot.com/2014/07/inspiration-behind-rhapsody-in-blue.html
- Sound recording of Rhapsody in blue played at the pace written by George Gershwin in 1925. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTOJXxTypuU
Dr LG Goh
Dr GOH Lee Gan is a retired Associate Professor in the Department of Family Medicine, National University Health System. He has an interest in learning and teaching how we can age well everyday (AWE).
