George Gershwin – The Life of an American Composer
George Gershwin was the son of Russian Jewish parents who moved to the United States around 1893. He studied music at an early age and wrote his first song in 1916 and his first Broadway musical, La La Lucille, in 1919.
For the next 14 years, audiences could always count on a Gershwin musical playing on Broadway. His first real hit was the 1919 song "Swanee" that became a trademark of AI Jolson. His first orchestral composition, Rhapsody in Blue, made its debut in 1924 and was inspired by both jazz and traditional orchestral music. Working with his brother Ira (who wrote most of the lyrics to the songs), he worked on many large-scale projects such as musicals and film scores. George also continued to work on orchestral music and completed An American in Paris in 1928. His opera Porgy and Bess is still the only opera by an American composer to become part of the repertory.
Famous Gershwin musicals include Funny Face, Strike Up The Band, Girl Crazy, and Of Thee I Sing. Gershwin's songs are memorable for evoking the essence of the 1920s and many are renowned as 20th century classics. Among his most famous songs are "Embraceable You", "I Got Rhythm", "Someone To Watch Over Me", and "Summertime".