George Gershwin
1898-1937


 

Gershwin was a great American composer who wrote a lot of music that is fun to hear. Listen to some of his famous pieces:

Rhapsody in Blue:
This version has an orchestra and pianist
Part I: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQPDG-T7BVM
Part II: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLyG5sqoOlg
 

Listen to a 5-piano version performed by The Five Browns (a group of 5 brothers and sisters who all play the piano):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bZ0gBBZnCI
This interesting recording is from 1927 and features Gershwin at the piano.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QxWxsK8_3s
 

While everyone knows Rhapsody in Blue, Gershwin wrote a lot of great music. Here is Prelude No. 1 for piano:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pm7cglQdXVU
Now listen to the same piece, but played on the violin with piano accompaniment:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NjMJRINJNTo

Three-Quarter Blues:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xGlL93R2Evw

Many of Gershwin's orchestral pieces have piano solo or piano duo versions. Listen to this one of An American in Paris
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCxBD5r1l-A
Here is another fun arrangement of this piece:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRZMJQnSw1s

Pianists play Gershwin's music with all different combinations of music. Here is a 4-piano arrangement of I Got Rhythm http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KV4DPRuSOz4

Beginner's Corner Listening Suggestions

A. Vivaldi: "Summer" from The Four Seasons - This is one of the most famous summer pieces. Listen to the beautiful violin playing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g65oWFMSoK0

W. A. Mozart: "Ah! Vous Dirai - Je, Maman" (variations on Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgNUXgNDuoM

G. Rossini: Overture to William Tell
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oATSrGrl4LY 

P. I. Tchaikovsky: Marche Slave
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oy-bDe6PBp0

Vibrato
Listen to vibrato on the violin and the voice:
Violin vibrato: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvZLYQ8MXdI

Voice vibrato: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ey8lZgnUfZc

There are lots of ideas about how to produce vibrato. It is something that singers and instrumentalist spend months and years developing. Can you hear how vibrato makes notes sound more interesting?

July Birthdays - Click on the names below to hear their music!
4 - Louis Armstrong (1900-1971) American jazz trumpeter
6 - Vladimir Ashkenazy (b. 1937) Russian-born pianist
7 - Gustav Mahler (1860-1911) Austrian late-Romantic composer and conductor
12 - Van Cliburn (b. 1934) American concert pianist
17 - Peter Schickele (b. 1935) American composer and arranger, the inventor of P.D.Q. Bach.
26 - Alexis Weissenberg (b. 1929) Bulgarian pianist

August Birthdays
22 - Claude Debussy (1862-1918) French composer.
25 - Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990) American composer, pianist, and conductor
31 - Itzhak Perlman (b. 1945) Israeli-American violinist (click here for more)

We'd love to hear from you!
  Do you have any ideas or thoughts about any other practice tip we have published this year? Let us know how they worked for you. Were you able to solve a problem spot or learn a tricky passage?

Perhaps you have your own practice tips that you'd like to share with other readers. Write to us and we'll include the best ones in the magazine or on the website.

We also accept original artwork, music, poems, jokes and stories. Submissions that don't appear in the magazine might make it into the Kids Corner.

email: editor@pianoexplorer.net or send a letter to Piano Explorer, 200 Northfield Road, Northfield, Illinois 60093