Gershwin: I Got Rhythm (from Girl Crazy & An American in Paris)

Jenny Lin’s latest release on the Steinway & Sons label is a spectacular collection of showtunes arranged by Greg Anderson, Marc-André Hamelin, Stephen Hough, Dick Hyman, Stefan Malzew, Christopher O’Riley, André Previn, Stephen Prutsman, David Saperton, Cy Walter, Alexis Weissenberg and Earl Wild.

Including new commissions and world premiere recordings, this is Steinway’s top priority release for 2012!

Jenny Lin's previous release on the Steinway & Sons label, Silent Music, was chosen as one of the best albums of the year by the New York Times in 2011.

Get Happy includes brand-new arrangements by Marc-André Hamelin (David Raskin’s “Laura”), Stefan Malzew (“Eliza in Ascot” from My Fair Lady) and Greg Anderson (Cole Porter’s “So In Love”).

World premiere recordings include Christopher O’Riley’s gorgeous arrangement of “Johanna” from Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd and Alexis Weissenberg’s exquisite version of “Lover” from the Rodgers & Hart musical film, Love Me Tonight.

First release to include all four of Stephen Hough’s arrangements of the music of Rodgers & Hammerstein.

Bonus track for iTunes of Uri Caine’s arrangement of “Honeysuckle Rose by” Fats Waller.

Captured in high quality audio for the first time, the glorious music from the golden age of Hollywood – the MGM film musicals. The scores have been painstakingly restored and arranged by conductor John Wilson and are performed here by the John Wilson Orchestra.

John Wilson is one of the most astute and knowledgeable musicians about the whole Hollywood film music genre. Over a period of years he has presented programmes throughout the UK and in other countries exploiting his skill, knowledge and musicianship in this genre. The 2009 BBC Prom celebrating 75 years of MGM Musicals, televised and watched by 3.5 million took John Wilson’s lifetime’s work to a new level of recognition. In the USA his arrangements and orchestrations have been played by the Chicago Symphony, Boston Pops, National Symphony of Washington and Cleveland orchestras. When not championing film music revivals around the world he is active as a Classical orchestral and operatic conductor with all the leading UK orchestras and across Europe, Australia, and is a keen advocate of British “light music” composers.

Acclaimed duo partners Jon Manasse and Jon Nakamatsu turn their attention to American composers in this jazz-inflected programme of music for clarinet and piano.

Bernstein’s sonata was his first published work. It is a stylish blend of neo-classical formalism and Bernstein’s keen understanding of popular sensibilities. Gershwin is represented here in two arrangements by James Cohn: firstly the evergreen Preludes for piano, followed by a transcription of the iconic song ‘I Got Rhythm’ from the musical Girl Crazy as the disc’s encore. Also featured are two world premiere recordings – John Novacek’s 4 Rags for 2 Jons, a modern take on the style made popular by Scott Joplin, and jazz clarinetist Paquito D’Rivera’s The Cape Cod Files, written in celebration of the 30th anniversary of the Cape Cod Chamber Music festival, of which Jon Manasse and Jon Nakamatsu are Artistic Co-Directors. Individually, Jon Manasse and Jon Nakamatsu have developed vast repertoires and lengthy discographies. Jon Manasse has served as the principal clarinetist of The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, the orchestra of the American Ballet Theater, the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra at Lincoln Center and New York City’s Orchestra of St. Luke’s. He is currently on the faculty at the Juilliard School, the Eastman School of Music and at Lynn Conservatory. Jon Nakamatsu was the Gold Medalist in the 10th Van Cliburn Competition and maintains a rigorous touring schedule.

This release of five new titles in the American Classics series is devoted to the music of George Gershwin.

Arguably the best-known of all 20th-century composers, George Gershwin's music encompasses with equal skill both the classical and popular genres. He was born Jacob Gershowitz in Brooklyn, New York City, in September 1898 to immigrant Jewish parents. He died at the early age of 38 from a tumour in the brain.

Gershwin started to show an interest in music from about the age of ten and, although receiving some piano tutelage, was largely self-taught in composition. It was only later in his career that he received some formal instruction in composition.

Gershwin's first employment was as a song plugger for a New York music publishing company. His first song was published in 1916 and a year later he had his first commercial successes with the rag Rialto Ripples. This was followed, in 1919, by his first big international hit, Swanee. Now established as a successful composer of popular songs, between 1919 and 1933, Gershwin produced, in collaboration with his elder brother Ira, some of the most successful Broadway musicals.

In 1924 he was commissioned by the band leader, Paul Whiteman, to produce what was to be his first 'serious' composition, the Rhapsody in Blue. This was followed a year later by the Piano Concerto in F and, in 1928, by An American in Paris. His opera Porgy and Bess was first performed on Broadway in 1935.

These five releases present a comprehensive view of Gershwin's music from the Three Preludes for solo piano to the Piano Concerto, taking in a good selection of the show songs and improvisations.

The Dickinsons, who flourished from the late 1960s to the early 1990s, performed works by Copland, Carter and Thomson for the composers themselves and their performances, which are captured on this disc, including the Cage cycle, were first recordings, as is Copland's late piano piece Night Thoughts. As such, it is an important and historic release for those interested in American music.

‘Thank you so much for sending me your excellent recording. I have listened to the performances with the greatest pleasure. Your playing is absolutely topflight, and your sister’s command of the Gershwin style, let alone all the others, is superb.’ William Schuman

This collection includes pieces from “Gershwin at the Keyboard” (Originally called George Gershwin’s Songbook), as well as some of his piano preludes. Containing some of the composer’s most popular songs from shows and musicals, we have favourites such as Fascinating Rhythm, The Man I Love and ‘S Wonderful. Waagaard is an Associate Professor at the Norwegian Academy of Music.

The Venezuelan Brass Ensemble came into being in 2003 from Venezuela's state youth orchestra system (FESNOJIV) under the patronage of José Antonio Abreu and Thomas Clamor. This unique, state-sponsored system comprises some 200 children's and young people's orchestras and about 100 music centres, spread all over the country. In the meantime, thanks to this work, numerous successful youth ensembles have emerged. Leading the way is the “Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra of Venezuela”, where most of the members of the “Venezuelan Brass Ensemble” come from.