Stephanie G. Mathis Gershwin’s contribution, “Rhapsody in Blue,” went on to become one of the most famous works of the 20th Century. The song was also featured in films like Woody Allen’s Manhattan and Disney’s Fantasia 200. It played during the opening ceremony of the Los Angeles Olympics and on United Airlines’ safety videos.
Nearly two decades have been spent researching and writing this piece. I don’t think “Rhapsody,” as a static piece of music, is stuck in the past. It’s constantly evolving and has evolved over time.
Programming “Rhapsody’ for concerts is a double-edged sword. It is still a popular choice among audiences a century after its premiere, and it almost always leads to a sold out show. Scholars are beginning to view the work as an abridged version of Harlem’s vibrant Black music culture.
The cobbled together hit
Whiteman asked Gershwin to compose “Rhapsody”, sometime around late 1923. The composer, however, forgot about the assignment and didn’t realize it until he saw the concert in a newspaper published on January 4, 1924.
Gershwin was forced to write quickly in order to fit everything into his hectic schedule. The manuscript evidence indicates that Gershwin only worked on this piece for 10 days over a period of several weeks.
Gabriel Hackett/Archive Photos/Getty Images
He relied on familiar melodies and harmonies as well as rhythms and musical structure that had already gained him recognition for his work. As the early jazz sound, infused with blues and improvisation, of Black musicians like Louis Armstrong, made its way up north, this music became increasingly influenced. Gershwin was also in contact with and influenced by some of the greatest Harlem stride piano players of that time, such as James P. Johnson, and Willie’ The Lion’ Smith.
Despite its rapid assembly, “Rhapsody in Blue” sold thousands of copies of sheet music and hundreds of thousands of records. Gershwin himself performed the piece on tour, which also contributed to its success.
The piece was criticized for its success, namely that Gershwin had appropriated Black Music.
Black musicians feel ignored
It is not just a 21st century critique from music historians. Some Black artists were upset even back then.
They chose to do so in their art, rather than by announcing it in print.
Bessie starred as a blues singer in the 1929 short film “St. Louis Blues,” which is based on a song by W.C. Handy. The film features a cast of all-black actors, including members from the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra as well as the Hall Johnson Choir. This 15-minute movie is accompanied by instrumental and vocal versions of Handy’s song. There is one notable exception.
Smith plays Bessie, a lover who is not returned by a sly gambler named Jimmy. After a falling out in the previous scene, Jimmy and Bessie reconciled themselves in a nightclub. They embrace on the floor while dancing to “St. St. Louis Blues” is playing on the dance floor.
Jimmy, unbeknownst of the Bessie’s love, picks Bessie’s pocket and pushes her mercilessly back to her bar stool. Jimmy’s newly acquired bankroll is displayed, and the opening glissando clarinet of “Rhapsody in Blue”, begins. In this 20-second cue, Jimmy proudly backs out of the club while bowing and tipping his hat as if he were a performer thanking the audience for their ovation.
The short film “St. Louis Blues takes a subtle jab at Gershwin after 14 minutes.
The subtext is obvious when Gershwin introduces his famous piece: just as Jimmy robbed Bessie in the movie, Gershwin allegedly stole jazz from the Black Community.
The publisher Perry Bradford described the work by saying that it was “not a Rhapsody in Blue but a Rhapsody in Black & White (Black Notes on White Paper).
The “black notes” are more than the score. Johnson shows how a Black musician might approach rhapsody.
Blue in the middle of the screen
Gershwin described “Rhapsody”,”, as a musical kaleidoscope for America – our vast melting pot.”
The “melting-pot” metaphor has the problem of asking immigrants to abandon their cultural practices and identity in order to assimilate with the majority population.
Whiteman tried to make jazz more feminine in his musical experiment of a century back at Aeolian Hall.
The concert program stated: “Mr. Whiteman will, with his orchestra and other associates, show the incredible strides that have been made since the days of discordant Jazz.
