George Gershwin

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Biography

Born: 1898   Died: 1937   Country: USA   Period: 20th Century
In a career tragically cut short in mid-stride by a brain tumor, George Gershwin (1898-1937) proved himself to be not only one of the great songwriters of his extremely rich era, but also a gifted "serious" composer who bridged the worlds of classical and popular music. The latter is all the more striking, given that, of his contemporaries, Gershwin was the most influenced by such styles as jazz and blues.

Gershwin's first Read more major hit, interpolated into the show Sinbad in 1919, was "Swanee," sung by Al Jolson. Gershwin wrote both complete scores and songs for such variety shoes as George White's Scandals (whose annual editions thus were able to introduce such songs as "I'll Build a Stairway to Paradise" and "Somebody Loves Me").

After 1924, Gershwin worked primarily with his brother Ira as his lyricist. The two scored a series of Broadway hits in the '20s and early '30s, starting with Lady Be Good (1924), which included the song "Fascinatin' Rhythm." 1924 was also the year Gershwin composed his first classical piece, "Rhapsody in Blue," and he would continue to work in the classical field until his death.

By the '30s, the Gershwins had turned to political topics and satire in response to the onset of the Depression, and their Of Thee I Sing became the first musical to win a Pulitzer Prize. In the mid '30s, Gershwin ambitiously worked to meld his show music and classical leanings in the creation of the folk opera Porgy and Bess, with lyrics by Ira and Dubose Heyward. The Gershwins had moved to Hollywood and were engaged in several movie projects at the time of George Gershwin's death. Read less

Featured George Gershwin CDs & DVDs:

Findlay in Blue - Piano Music of Gershwin, Gottschalk & Gould / Findlay Cockrell
Findlay in Blue - Piano Music of Gershwin, Gottschalk & Gould / Findlay Cockrell
Release Date: 05/14/2013   Label: Albany Records  
Catalog: 1414   Number of Discs: 1
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American Piano Concertos - Gershwin, Et Al / Paul Barnes
American Piano Concertos - Gershwin, Et Al / Paul Barnes
Release Date: 10/24/2006   Label: Albany Records  
Catalog: 878   Number of Discs: 1
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Ravel, Gershwin, Bernstein, Glazunov / Nakarjakov, Markovich
Ravel, Gershwin, Bernstein, Glazunov / Nakarjakov, Markovich
Release Date: 09/07/1993   Label: Teldec  
Catalog: 77705   Number of Discs: 1
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Gershwin Among Friends / Keller, Ridenour, Ordman, Et Al
Gershwin Among Friends / Keller, Ridenour, Ordman, Et Al
Release Date: 02/03/1998   Label: Albany Records  
Catalog: 274   Number of Discs: 1
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Gershwin, Ravel: Piano Concertos / Grimaud, Zinman
Gershwin, Ravel: Piano Concertos / Grimaud, Zinman
Release Date: 11/25/1997   Label: Erato  
Catalog: 19571   Number of Discs: 1
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Work: Porgy and Bess: Bess, you is my woman now

Browse 26-50 of 69 Available Recordings
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  • 26.
    Symphonic Brass - Verdi, Bizet, Gershwin, Et Al
    Symphonic Brass - Verdi, Bizet, Gershwin, Et Al
    Label: Naxos   Catalog: 8570726 Release Date: 11/20/2007   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Sir William Walton,  Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky,  John T. Williams,  George Gershwin  ... 
    Conductor:  Nicholas J. Childs
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Black Dyke Mills Band
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  • 27.
    Classic Fm Relax
    Classic Fm Relax
    Label: Universal   Catalog: 4800249 Release Date: 10/30/2007  
    Composer:  George Gershwin,  Sir Edward Elgar,  Felix Mendelssohn,  Jules Massenet  ... 
    Performer:  Maria Isabel Siewers,  Jian Wang,  Göran Söllscher,  Patrick Hawes  ... 
    Conductor:  William Boughton,  David Zinman,  Frank Perkins,  Barry Wordsworth  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  English Symphony Orchestra,  Netherlands Chamber Orchestra,  Her Majesty's Royal Marines Band  ... 
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  • 28.
    Gershwin: Piano Transcriptions Of Songs
    Gershwin: Piano Transcriptions Of Songs
    Label: Membran / Scandinavian Classics   Catalog: 220545 Release Date: 04/26/2007   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  George Gershwin
    Performer:  Lars Boje Jensen
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  • 29.
    Heifetz - It Ain't Necessarily So - Legendary Classic And Jazz Studio Takes
    Heifetz - It Ain't Necessarily So - Legendary Classic And Jazz Studio Takes
    Label: Deutsche Grammophon   Catalog: 000719002 Release Date: 10/10/2006   Number of Discs: 2
    Composer:  Jascha Heifetz,  Hermann Lohr,  Benjamin Godard,  Cecil Burleigh  ... 
    Performer:  Jascha Heifetz,  Bing Crosby,  Emanuel Bay,  Milton Kaye
    Conductor:  Victor Young,  Salvador Camarata
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Orchestra
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  • 30.
    For You, For Me - Songs Of Copland, Etc / Bruce Hubbard
    For You, For Me - Songs Of Copland, Etc / Bruce Hubbard
    Label: Emi Classics   Catalog: 31553 Release Date: 10/04/2005   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Leonard Bernstein,  Irving Berlin,  Stephen Sondheim,  Jerome Kern  ... 
    Performer:  Bruce Hubbard,  Marvis Martin
    Conductor:  Dennis Russell Davies
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Orchestra of St. Luke's
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  • 31.
    Lebendige Vergangenheit - Robert Merrill Vol 3
    Lebendige Vergangenheit - Robert Merrill Vol 3
    Label: Preiser Records   Catalog: 89592 Release Date: 08/31/2004   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  George Monro,  Traditional,  Anonymous,  Jay Livingston  ... 
    Performer:  Robert Merrill,  Leila Edwards,  Roberta Peters,  Dorothy Kirsten  ... 
    Conductor:  Hugo Winterhalter,  Henri René,  Charles Sanford,  H. Leopold Spitalny  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Hugo Winterhalter & His Orchestra,  Henri René Orchestra,  Orchestra  ... 
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  • 32.
    Expanded Edition - Humoresque / Isaac Stern
    Expanded Edition - Humoresque / Isaac Stern
    Label: Sony Classical Masterworks   Catalog: 92741 Release Date: 08/03/2004   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Claude Debussy,  Alexander Borodin,  Antonín Dvorák,  Aaron Copland  ... 
    Performer:  Isaac Stern
    Conductor:  Milton Katims,  Frank Brieff,  János Rolla
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Columbia Symphony Orchestra,  Franz Liszt Academy Chamber Orchestra
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  • 33.
    Eastman Wind Ensemble At 50
    Label: Warner Brothers   Catalog: 001 Release Date: 06/22/2004   Number of Discs: 3
    Composer:  Makoto Ozone,  George Gershwin,  Donald Hunsberger,  Sergei Prokofiev  ... 
    Performer:  Makoto Ozone,  Nicole Cabell,  Daniel Spiotta,  Thomas Rosenkranz  ... 
    Conductor:  Donald Hunsberger
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Eastman Wind Ensemble
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  • 34.
    Gentle Dreams - The Best Of Julian Lloyd Webber
    Gentle Dreams - The Best Of Julian Lloyd Webber
    Label: Philips   Catalog: 4761296 Release Date: 01/13/2004   Number of Discs: 2
    Composer:  Antonio Carlos Jobim,  Rolf Lovland,  Johann Sebastian Bach,  Andrew Lloyd Webber  ... 
    Performer:  Julian Lloyd Webber,  Fionnuala Sherry,  Lee Ritenour,  Dave Grusin  ... 
    Conductor:  Steven Mercurio,  Barry Wordsworth,  Nicholas Cleobury,  Yehudi Menuhin  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Bossa Nova,  National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland,  Secret Garden  ... 
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  • 35.
    Jewels Of The Night / Bellavente Wind Quintet
    Jewels Of The Night / Bellavente Wind Quintet
    Label: Mcchamber Music   Catalog: 3555 Release Date: 07/15/2003   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Francis Poulenc,  Claude Arrieu,  Maurice Ravel,  Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Bellavente Wind Quintet
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  • 36.
    The Voice Of Opera - Berganza, Carreras, Di Steffano, Et Al
    The Voice Of Opera - Berganza, Carreras, Di Steffano, Et Al
    Label: Decca   Catalog: 000024602 Release Date: 05/13/2003   Number of Discs: 2
    Composer:  Benjamin Britten,  George Gershwin,  Richard Strauss,  Richard Wagner  ... 
    Performer:  Peter Pears,  Roberta Alexander,  Simon Estes,  Helen Donath  ... 
    Conductor:  Benjamin Britten,  Leonard Slatkin,  Sir Georg Solti,  Eugen Jochum  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Royal Opera House Covent Garden Orchestra,  Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra,  Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra  ... 
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  • 37.
    Tango Song And Dance / Mutter, Previn, Orkis
    Tango Song And Dance / Mutter, Previn, Orkis
    Label: Deutsche Grammophon   Catalog: 000005802 Release Date: 04/08/2003   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Gabriel Fauré,  Fritz Kreisler,  George Gershwin,  Johannes Brahms  ... 
    Performer:  Anne-Sophie Mutter,  Lambert Orkis,  André Previn
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  • 38.
    Fantasy In Blue - Purcell, Gershwin / Shaham, Bernfeld, Etc
    Fantasy In Blue - Purcell, Gershwin / Shaham, Bernfeld, Etc
    Label: Atma Classique   Catalog: 22253 Release Date: 01/01/2003   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Henry Purcell,  George Gershwin,  William Croft
    Performer:  Rinat Shaham
    Conductor:  Jay Bernfeld
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Fuoco en Cenere Ensemble
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  • 39.
    Richard Baker's Favourite Violin Music
    Richard Baker's Favourite Violin Music
    Label: Upbeat Classics   Catalog: 136 Release Date: 11/04/2002   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  William Kroll,  Sir Edward Elgar,  George Gershwin,  Josef Suk  ... 
    Performer:  Leland Chen,  John Lenahan
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  • 40.
    It's Wonderful - Tribute To George Gershwin / Hendricks
    It's Wonderful - Tribute To George Gershwin / Hendricks
    Label: Emi Classics   Catalog: 5570492 Release Date: 11/06/2001   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  George Gershwin
    Performer:  Ira Coleman,  Ed Thigpen,  Geoffrey Keezer,  Barbara Hendricks
    Conductor:  Paul Bateman
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Guildhall String Ensemble
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  • 41.
    Elmar Oliveira Plays Favorite Encores
    Elmar Oliveira Plays Favorite Encores
    Label: Artek   Catalog: 7 Release Date: 04/24/2001   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Manuel de Falla,  Victor Herbert,  George Gershwin,  Maurice Ravel  ... 
    Performer:  Robert Koenig,  Elmar Oliveira
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  • 42.
    The Best Of Gershwin
    The Best Of Gershwin
    Label: Naxos   Catalog: 8556686 Release Date: 02/20/2001   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  George Gershwin
    Performer:  Kathryn Selby,  Leon Bates
    Conductor:  Richard Hayman
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Richard Hayman Orchestra,  Slovak State Symphony Orchestra
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  • 43.
    Americana / Leila Josefowicz
    Americana / Leila Josefowicz
    Label: Philips   Catalog: 462948 Release Date: 10/10/2000   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Charles Chaplin,  George Gershwin,  Stephen Foster,  Traditional  ... 
    Performer:  Leila Josefowicz,  John Novacek
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  • 44.
    Gershwin: 13 Songs / Barcelona Clarinet Quartet
    Gershwin: 13 Songs / Barcelona Clarinet Quartet
    Label: La Ma De Guido   Catalog: 34 Release Date: 08/19/2000   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  George Gershwin
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Barcelona Clarinet Quartet
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  • 45.
    Best Of Brodsky Quartet / Bjork, Elvis Costello, Et Al
    Best Of Brodsky Quartet / Bjork, Elvis Costello, Et Al
    Label: Teldec   Catalog: 28404 Release Date: 01/18/2000   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Sir Edward Elgar,  Claude Debussy,  Dmitri Shostakovich,  Maurice Ravel  ... 
    Performer:  Michael Thomas,  Jacqueline Thomas,  Ian Belton,  Paul Cassidy  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Brodsky String Quartet
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  • 46.
    Organ Improvisations - Wayne Marshall
    Organ Improvisations - Wayne Marshall
    Label: Delos   Catalog: 3228 Release Date: 12/07/1999   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Leonard Bernstein,  Vincent Youmans,  Jule Styne,  George Gershwin  ... 
    Performer:  Wayne Marshall
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  • 47.
    "dear Rogue" - Wagner, Gounod, Et Al / Lawrence Tibbett
    Label: Pearl   Catalog: 48 Release Date: 05/18/1999   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Gioachino Rossini,  Ruggero Leoncavallo,  George Gershwin,  Carl Loewe  ... 
    Performer:  Lawrence Tibbett
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  • 48.
    Historic Gershwin Recordings
    Historic Gershwin Recordings
    Label: Rca Victor Red Seal   Catalog: 63276 Release Date: 10/13/1998   Number of Discs: 2
    Composer:  George Gershwin
    Performer:  Morton Gould,  Lawrence Tibbett,  Helen Jepson
    Conductor:  Arthur Fiedler,  Morton Gould,  Alexander Smallens,  Leonard Bernstein
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Boston Pops,  Morton Gould Orchestra,  Orchestra  ... 
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  • 49.
    Gershwin: Porgy And Bess (Selections), Blue Monday / Kunzel
    Gershwin: Porgy And Bess (Selections), Blue Monday / Kunzel
    Label: Telarc   Catalog: 80434 Release Date: 05/26/1998   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  George Gershwin
    Performer:  Kirk Walker,  Marquita Lister,  Thomas Young,  Gregg Baker  ... 
    Conductor:  Erich Kunzel
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Central State University Chorus,  Cincinnati Pops
    CD: $16.99
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  • 50.
    The Only Opera Cd You'll Ever Need
    The Only Opera Cd You'll Ever Need
    Label: Rca   Catalog: 68823 Release Date: 10/14/1997   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Engelbert Humperdinck,  Gioachino Rossini,  Ruggero Leoncavallo,  Richard Wagner  ... 
    Performer:  Anna Moffo,  Helen Donath,  Roberta Peters,  Robert Merrill  ... 
    Conductor:  Kurt Eichhorn,  Erich Leinsdorf,  Lorin Maazel,  Eugene Ormandy  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Munich Radio Symphony Orchestra,  Metropolitan Opera Orchestra,  Orchestra  ... 
    CD: $3.99
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