George Gershwin: Music in the heart of noise

Event type: Monthly meeting
Date: Mon 14 Oct 2024
Time: 10:00am - 12:00pm
Venue: St Margaret’s United Reformed Church, N3 1BD
George Gershwin
Credit: Forest51690CWikimedia Commons

February 2024 marked the centenary of Rhapsody in Blue, the work that earned George Gershwin (1898–1937) the title of ‘the man who made an honest woman out of jazz’.  In the months that followed, the rhapsody would make its way around the world. It was heard everywhere – played by orchestras, dance bands, bar room pianists, and by George himself at party after party, as well as in concerts and a subsequent studio recording. At age 26, his worldwide fame had begun – but what happened later was not always easy.

Speaker Stewart Maugham will recount the life of George Gershwin in a talk illustrated with pictures, stories and sound recordings. Stewart is a member of the NLU3A committee, and he first gave this talk to NLU3A’s American History group.