GEORGE GERSHWIN

American composer George Gershwin, one of the foremost composers of the 20th century, is easily recognizable from the very first chords. It is those memorable melodies, swinging rhythms, jazz intonations and colourful orchestral palette that have prompted such a great success. During his short life, the composer built bridges between jazz and serious music. The songs, Rhapsody in Blue, symphonic opus An American in Paris, opera Porgy and Bess make up the main part of his creative legacy. Gershwin’s Lullaby reveals a slightly different side of the composer – sensitive, subtle, dreamy. The opus was composed in 1919, while attending private lessons of theory and harmony with the Hungarian-American composer and pedagogue Edward Kilenyi. Gershwin employed the quartet’s melodies in his one-act jazz opera Blue Monday. Its manuscript was later forgotten and first published only after the composer’s death. The main melody of Lullaby is treated freely throughout the work. The listener gets fascinated by its simplicity, meditative quality and sincerity.