If you want to play Gershwin then please get some ‘attitude’
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The music of George Gershwin has to rate as one of the 20th centuries greatest gifts; Rhapsody in Blue, Porgy and Bess and, of course, An American in Paris - to name just a few of his works.
He was a musician, who in his youth, was fascinated and totally absorbed by the cultural melting pot that was the America of the early 1900’s - and these influences made they way into the music he was to compose; the jazz of New Orleans, the African-American idioms, black folk music - he combined them all to create the form of American music which is so evocative of those times, even today.
So, with great excitement I watched An American in Paris performed on the Proms last night - the BBC Concert Orchestra gave a commendable performance of this marathon piece - but, and I always hate to say this, but I was sooo disappointed with ‘the trumpet solo’.
You know the one. On the original soundtrack recording from the film this very short piece, just comprising a few bars, is played by trumpeter Uan Rasey - and he plays it with every fibre of his being. It is bluesy, gutsy, is loaded with attitude and cool. It is one of the most memorable pieces on any film soundtrack. Gershwin wrote the solo with Louis Armstrong in mind - but I feel that Rasey put his stamp on it and made it his own.
When Gershwin’s close friend, pianist Oscar Levant, heard the soundtrack played back during recording he said that Gershwin - who had died some fifteen years earlier - would have simply adored the way Rasey played that part.
Which brings me to last night…
The trumpet player simply played it as though it was nothing more than a set of notes to get rid of - no cool, no attitude, no punchy-gutsy feeling whatsoever. When you hear Rasey play it on the soundtrack it hits you right in the solar plexus - that lady last night, who I am sure is a wonderful classical musician, did nothing with those wonderful bars of music whatsoever.
She played the notes - Gershwin wrote them to be felt…and not just by the audience.
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