GEORGE GERSHWIN



George Gershwin (1898-1937), an American composer, became famous for his musical comedies, popular songs, symphonic works, and the opera «Porgy and Bess». His «Rapsody in Blue» is probably the best-known orchestral piece by an American.

Gershwin was born in Brooklyn, New York, of Russian immigrant parents. He began writing popular songs at 15, but he studied composition and orchestration all his life. His dual ambition was to be a successful popular composer and to follow in the footsteps of the great masters.

In 1919, Gershwin wrote his first successful popular song, «Swanee». This was a tremendous hit as sung by Al Jolson. In the same year, Gershwin worked on a string quartet with a blues theme called «Lullaby».

Gershwin rose to fame on Broadway in the 1920's. His sparkling musical comedies include «Lady, Be Good» (1924), «TipToes» (1925), «Oh, Kay!» (1926), «Funny Face» (1927), and «Girl Crazy» (1930). Gershwin then turned to......

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Title: George Gershwin
Approximate Word Count: 293
Approximate Pages: 2 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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