Gershwin, George
$395.00
Frameable card boldly signed by the immortal composer of “Rhapsody in Blue”, “An American in Paris”, “Porgy and Bess”, etc.
Description
Type: Signature
Description: (1898-1937) Ukrainian-Jewish-American Broadway, popular, and classical concert hall composer.
Left school at 15 to work for a Tin Pan Alley publishing firm. In 1919 he scored his first big hit with “Swanee”, popularized by Al Jolson. In 1924, George and lyricist brother Ira collaborated on musical comedy “Lady Be Good” (featuring “Fascinating Rhythm” and “Lady Be Good”), followed by “Oh, Kay!” (1926), “Funny Face” (1927), “Strike Up the Band” (1927 & 1930), “Show Girl” (1929), “Girl Crazy” (1930, with “I Got Rhythm”) and “Of Thee I Sing” (1931, 1st musical comedy to win a Pulitzer Prize). In 1924, he composed his first major classical work, “Rhapsody in Blue” for orchestra and piano, orchestrated by Ferde Grofé and premièred with Paul Whiteman’s concert band in New York.
While in Paris for a brief time, he wrote “An American in Paris” which premiered at Carnegie Hall Dec. 13, 1928, and quickly became part of the standard repertoire in the US and Europe. His most ambitious composition was “Porgy and Bess” (1935), called by Gershwin a “folk opera”, widely regarded as the most important American opera of the 20th century. Early in 1937, he developed a type of cystic malignant brain tumor and in Hollywood, working on the score of “The Goldwyn Follies”, he collapsed, dying at age 38 following surgery for the tumor.
Frameable 3 x 4 3/4 brown card boldly signed in person.
Condition: Very good
