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American Songbook Series: George Gershwin

Presented by Pioneer Place Theatre Company at Pioneer Place on 5th

February 27, 2013

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One of Central Minnesota's most-beloved performers, Andrew Walesch, is about to take us on a unique musical journey through the American Songbook. The four-part series will feature the music of George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, and Rodgers & Hart. The shows will run for one night only in the months of February, March, April, and May and a four-concert pass is available now. Single show tickets will NOT go on sale until mid-January, but series passes are on sale now for $76, a savings of $8 off the single ticket price!
At the age of fifteen George Gershwin dropped out of school and then pursued music full time. In 1918 he composed and wrote his first song Swanee as a "Tin Pan Ally" composer. From that first song his fame grew and his music became more popular. He continued to write more music and worked with his brother Ira, who wrote the lyrics to go with George's music. Much of his music was written for theater, where he had many hits including the political satire Of Thee I Sing (1931), the first musical comedy to win a Pulitzer Prize. He also wrote jazz songs, such as I Got Rhythm and Somebody to Watch Over Me. One of his most famous pieces, Rhapsody in Blue was written for the piano, a jazz band, along with an orchestra. George Gershwin was one of the first composers to combine these different areas of music and infuse them together to make a classical/ jazz sound. Throughout his career he continued with the combination of the piano and orchestra to make wonderful music like An American in Paris and The Second Rhapsody. One of his most famous operas, considered a masterpiece ahead of its time, is Porgy and Bess, is an American Folk Opera based on the novel and play by Dubose and Dorothy Heyward.