Miri Titiana, Pedagogie muzical, Anul III

George Gershwin
George Gershwin was one of the most significant American composers of the 20th
century, known for popular stage and screen numbers as well as classical compositions. Born
on September 26, 1898, in Brooklyn, New York, George Gershwin dropped out of school and
began playing piano professionally at age 15. A composer of jazz, opera and popular songs
for stage and screen, many of his works are now standards. Gershwin died immediately
following brain surgery on July 11, 1937, at the age 38.
George Gershwin was born Jacob Gershowitz and he was the son of Russian-Jewish
immigrants. George began his foray into music at age 11 when his family bought a
secondhand piano for Georges older sibling, Ira. He began studying with the piano teacher
Charles Hambitzer, and apparently impressed him. Throughout his 23-year career, Gerswhin
would continually seek to expand the breadth of his influences, studying under an incredibly
disparate array of teachers, including Henry Cowell, Wallingford Riegger, Edward Kilenyi
and Joseph Schillinger.
After dropping out of school at age 15, Gershwin played in several New York
nightclubs and began his stint as a song-plugger in New Yorks Tin Pan Alley. To earn
extra cash, he also worked as a rehearsal pianist for Broadway singers. In 1916, he composed
his first published song, When You Want 'Em, You Can't Get 'Em; When You Have 'Em,
You Don't Want 'Em. From 1920 to 1924, Gershwin composed for an annual production put
on by George White. After a show titled Blue Monday, the bandleader in the pit, Paul
Whiteman, asked Gershwin to create a jazz number that would heighten the genres
respectability. Writing at a manic pace in order to meet the deadline, Gershwin composed
what is perhaps his best-known work, Rhapsody in Blue.
During this time, and in the years that followed, Gershwin wrote numerous songs for
stage and screen that quickly became standards, including Oh, Lady Be Good! Someone
to Watch over Me, Strike Up the Band, Embraceable You, Lets Call the Whole Thing
Off and They Cant Take That Away from Me. His lyricist for nearly all of these tunes
was his older brother, Ira, whose witty lyrics and inventive wordplay received nearly as much
acclaim as Georges compositions.
In 1935, a decade after composing Rhapsody in Blue, Gershwin debuted his most
ambitious composition, Porgy and Bess. The composition, which was based on the novel
Porgy by Dubose Heyward, drew from both popular and classical influences. Gershwin
called it his folk opera, and it is considered to not only be Gershwins most complex and

Miri Titiana, Pedagogie muzical, Anul III

best-known works, but also among the most important American musical compositions of the
20th century. Following his success with Porgy and Bess, Gershwin moved to Hollywood
and was hired to compose the music for a film titled Shall We Dance, starring Fred Astaire
and Ginger Rogers. In the beginning of 1937, Gershwin began to experience troubling
symptoms such as severe headaches. Doctors would eventually discover that he had
developed a malignant brain tumor. On July 11, 1937, Gershwin died during surgery to
remove the tumor. He was only 38.
George Gershwin a fost unul din cei mai importani compozitori americani ai
secolului XX, cunoscut pentru produciile scenice i tv pop dar i pentru compoziiile sale
clasice. S-a ncut pe 26 septembrie 1989 n Brooklyn, New York. A ntrerupt coala la vrsta
de 15 ani i a nceput studiul serios al pianului la vrsta de 15 ani. A compus jazz, oper i
cntece populare, pentru scen i ecran, multe din lucrrile lor fiind acum hituri. A murit
imediat dup o operaie pe creier, pe 11 iulie 1937, la vrsta de 38 de ani.
S-a nscut sub numele de Jacob Gershowitz fiind vaiatul unor rui-everi imigrani.
George a nceput drumul su n muzic la vrsta de 11 ani cnd familia sa a cumprat un
pian la mna a doua, pentru fratele su mai mare, Ira. A nceput studiul cu profesorul de pian
Charles Hambitzer pe care l-a impresionat. Pe parcursul celor 23 de ani de carier ai si
Gershwin a cutat permanent s i extind aria cunotinelor sale i a influenelor, studiind
cu o palet incredibil de divers de profesori inclusiv Henry Cowell, Wallingford Riegger,
Edward Kilenyi i Joseph Schillinger.
Dup ce a renunat la coal la vrsta de 15 ani, Gershwin a cntat n mai multe
cluburi de noapte din New York i a nceput s lucreze ca i song-plugger (vindea partituri)
n Tin Pan Alley din New York. Pentru a ctiga bani n plus a lucrat de asemenea ca i
pianist de repetiii pentru cntreii de pe Broadway. n 1916 a compus primul s ctec
publicat, When You Want 'Em, You Can't Get 'Em; When You Have 'Em, You Don't Want
'Em. n perioada 1920-1924 Gershwin a compus pentru produciile anuale puse n scena de
George White. Dirijorul Paul Whiteman i-a cerut lui Gershwin, dup un un show intitulat
Blue Monday, s creeze un numr de jazz care va crete respectul pentru acest gen. Scriind
ntr-un ritm alert pentru a se ncadra n termenul limit, Gershwin a compus ceea ce probabil
este cea mai cunoscut lucrare a sa, Rhapsody in Blue.
n aceast perioad precum i n cea care a urmat, Gershwin a scris numeroase cntece
pentru scen i ecrane care au ajuns rapid hituri, inclusiv including Oh, Lady Be Good!
Someone to Watch over Me, Strike Up the Band, Embraceable You, Lets Call the

Miri Titiana, Pedagogie muzical, Anul III

Whole Thing Off and They Cant Take That Away from Me. Libretistul s pentru aproape
toate aceste creaii a fost fratele su mai mare, Ira, a cror versuri inventive au primit aproape
aceleai ovaii ca lucrrile lui George.
n 1935, dup un deceniu de la compunerea Rapsody in Blue a avut loc debutul
celei mai ambiiose compoziii ale lui George. Porgy and Bess. Lucrarea, care a fost bazat
pe romanul Porgy al lui Dubose Heyward a avut att influene populare ct i clasice.
Gershwin a numit-o opera folc a sa, i este considerat nu numai cea mai complex i
cunoscut lucrare a lui Gershwin dar i una din cele mai importante lcompoziii americane ale
secolului XX. Dup succesul cu Porgy an Bess, Gershwin s-a mutat la Holywood i a fost
angajat s compun muzica pentru un film intitulat Shall we dance, cu Fred Astaire i
Ginger Rogers. La nceputul anului 1937, Gershwin a nceput s aibe simptome precum
dureri de cap acute. Doctorii n final vor descoperi c are o tumoare pe creier malign. Pe 11
iulie 1937 Gershwin a murit n timpul operaiei pentru ndeprtarea tumorii. Avea doar 38 de
ani.