| Gershwin, Ira | |
| Born | December 6, 1896 New York City |
|---|---|
| Died | August 17, 1983 (aged 86) Beverly Hills |
Ira Gershwin (6 December 1896 – 17 August 1983) was an American lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother, composer George Gershwin, to create some of the most memorable songs of the 20th century. Events 1060 - Béla I of Hungary is crowned king of Hungary 1240 - Mongol invasion of Rus: Kiev Year 1896 ( MDCCCXCVI) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year The City of New York Events 986 - A Byzantine army was destroyed in the pass of Trajan's Gate by the Bulgarians under the Comitopuli Year 1983 ( MCMLXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar) Events 1060 - Béla I of Hungary is crowned king of Hungary 1240 - Mongol invasion of Rus: Kiev Year 1896 ( MDCCCXCVI) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year Events 986 - A Byzantine army was destroyed in the pass of Trajan's Gate by the Bulgarians under the Comitopuli Year 1983 ( MCMLXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar) The United States of America —commonly referred to as the A lyricist is a Writer who specializes in Song Lyrics, usually paid for by a band to write a custom song(s A composer (literally meaning 'one who puts together' is a person who creates Music, usually in the medium of notation, for Interpretation and Performance George Gershwin (September 26 1898 &ndash July 11 1937 was an American Composer.
With George he wrote more than a dozen Broadway shows, featuring songs such as "I Got Rhythm," "Embraceable You," "The Man I Love" and "Someone to Watch Over Me," and the opera Porgy and Bess. Broadway theater, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 39 large professional theaters with 500 seats or more located " I Got Rhythm " is a song composed by George Gershwin with lyrics by Ira Gershwin, published in 1930 which became a widely-known Jazz standard "Embraceable You" is a popular Song, with music by George Gershwin and lyrics by Ira Gershwin. "The Man I Love" is a popular standard, with music by George Gershwin and lyrics by his brother Ira. "Someone to Watch Over Me" is a song composed by George Gershwin with lyrics by Ira Gershwin from the musical Oh Kay! (1926 where Porgy and Bess is an Opera, first performed in 1935, with music by George Gershwin, Libretto by DuBose Heyward, and
The success the brothers had with their collaborative works has often overshadowed the creative role that Ira played. However, his mastery of songwriting continued after the early death of George; and he wrote further hit songs with composers Jerome Kern ("Long Ago (And Far Away)", Kurt Weill and Harold Arlen. Jerome David Kern ( January 27, 1885 &ndash November 11, 1945) was an American Composer of popular music " Long Ago (and Far Away " is a popular Song from the 1944 Technicolor film musical Cover Girl starring Rita WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section --> Kurt Julian Weill ( March 2, 1900 &ndash April 3, Harold Arlen ( February 15, 1905 – April 23, 1986) was an American Composer of popular music
His critically-acclaimed book Lyrics on Several Occasions of 1959, an amalgam of autobiography and annotated anthology, is an important source for studying the art of the lyricist in the golden age of American popular song. The year 1959 ( MCMLIX) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.
Contents |
Biography
Ira Gershwin (born Israel Gershowitz) was reportedly shy as a young boy and spent most of his time at home reading. However, from grammar school through college he played a prominent part in several school newspapers and magazines. A grammar school is one of several different types of School in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries He graduated from Townsend Harris High School where he met Yip Harburg. Townsend Harris High School is a public magnet High school for the Humanities in the borough of Queens in New York City. Edgar Yipsel Harburg ( April 8 1896 – March 4 1981) best known as Yip Harburg, was an American Lyricist He graduated from City College of New York. The City College of The City University of New York (known more commonly as the City College of New York or simply City College, CCNY, or colloquially as While his younger brother began composing and “plugging” in Tin Pan Alley from the age of eighteen, Ira worked as a cashier in his father’s Turkish baths. Tin Pan Alley is the name given to the collection of New York City -centered music publishers and Songwriters who dominated the popular The Turkish bath (hamam from حمّام) is the Middle Eastern variant of a steam bath, which can be categorized as a wet relative of the It was not until 1921 that Ira became involved in the music business. Year 1921 ( MCMXXI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full 1921 calendar of the Gregorian calendar Alex Aarons signed Ira to write the music for his next show (ultimately produced by Abraham Erlanger), Two Little Girls in Blue, with co-composers Vincent Youmans and Paul Lannin. Vincent Youmans ( September 27, 1898 - April 5, 1946) was an American popular composer and Broadway producer His lyrics were well received and allowed him to successfully enter the theatre world with just one show.
It wasn’t until 1924 that Ira and George teamed up to write the music for their first Broadway hit, Lady, Be Good! Once the brothers joined together, their combined talents became one of the most influential forces in the history of American Musical Theatre. Year 1924 ( MCMXXIV) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Lady Be Good (title sometimes presented with an Exclamation point) is the title of a Broadway musical play that was written by Guy Bolton, Together, they wrote the music for over twelve shows and four films. Some of their more famous works include “The Man I Love”, “Fascinating Rhythm”, “Someone to Watch Over Me”, “I Got Rhythm” “Summertime” and “They Can't Take That Away from Me”. "The Man I Love" is a popular standard, with music by George Gershwin and lyrics by his brother Ira. "Fascinating Rhythm" is a popular Song written by George Gershwin in 1924 with lyrics by Ira Gershwin. " I Got Rhythm " is a song composed by George Gershwin with lyrics by Ira Gershwin, published in 1930 which became a widely-known Jazz standard " Summertime " is the name of an Aria composed by George Gershwin for the 1935 Opera Porgy and Bess. " They Can't Take That Away From Me " is a 1937 Song (see 1937 in music) written by George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin and introduced Their partnership continued up until George’s sudden death from a brain tumor in 1937. Year 1937 ( MCMXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.
Following his brother’s death, Ira waited nearly three years before writing again. After this interlude, he teamed up with such accomplished composers as Jerome Kern (Cover Girl), Kurt Weill (Where Do We Go from Here?), and Harold Arlen (A Star Is Born). Jerome David Kern ( January 27, 1885 &ndash November 11, 1945) was an American Composer of popular music Cover Girl is a 1944 American Musical film starring Rita Hayworth and Gene Kelly. WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section --> Kurt Julian Weill ( March 2, 1900 &ndash April 3, Harold Arlen ( February 15, 1905 – April 23, 1986) was an American Composer of popular music A Star Is Born is a 1954 musical Remake of the original 1937 film, directed by George Cukor and starring Judy Over the next fourteen years, Ira continued to write the lyrics for many film scores and a few Broadway shows. But the failure of Park Avenue in 1946, a 'smart' show about divorce, co-written with composer Arthur Schwartz, was his farewell to Broadway [1]. Arthur Schwartz ( November 25, 1900 - September 3, 1984) was an American Composer. As he wrote at the time, "Am reading a couple of stories for possible musicalization (if there is such a word) but I hope I don't like them as I think I deserve a long rest. " [1]
Ira died on August 17, 1983, and is now interred in the Westchester Hills Cemetery, Hastings-on-Hudson, New York. Events 986 - A Byzantine army was destroyed in the pass of Trajan's Gate by the Bulgarians under the Comitopuli Year 1983 ( MCMLXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar) The Westchester Hills Cemetery, approximately 20 miles north of New York City, was established at 400 Saw Mill River Road in Hastings-on-Hudson, Westchester Hastings-on-Hudson is a village in Westchester County New York, United States. Together, the Gershwin siblings left behind a legacy that would help shape American Musical Theatre. Solely, Ira played a huge part in bringing about a new type of song lyric: a smart, witty, vernacular style that the common man could relate to and enjoy.
American singer, pianist, musical historian Michael Feinstein worked for Ira in the lyricist's latter years, helping him with his archive. Michael Feinstein (born September 7, 1956) is an American Singer, a Pianist, music revivalist, and an interpreter of and Several lost musical treasures were unearthed during this period and Feinstein performed some of the material!
Legacy
The music of George and Ira Gershwin runs deep in the American consciousness. The opening clarinet glissando from Rhapsody in Blue, the taxi horn theme from An American in Paris and the songs – "I Got Rhythm", "Embraceable You", "The Man I Love", "Someone to Watch Over Me", "Fascinating Rhythm", and many others – are instantly recognizable. Rhapsody in Blue is a musical composition by George Gershwin for solo piano and jazz band written in 1924 which combines elements of classical music with This article is about the Gershwin composition For the 1951 musical starring Gene Kelly see An American in Paris (film.
Ira Gershwin was a joyous listener to the sounds of the modern world. He noted in a diary: "Heard in a day: An elevator's purr, telephone's ring, telephone's buzz, a baby's moans, a shout of delight, a screech from a 'flat wheel', hoarse honks, a hoarse voice, a tinkle, a match scratch on sandpaper, a deep resounding boom of dynamiting in the impending subway, iron hooks on the gutter. "
In 1987, Ira's widow, Lenore Gershwin, established the Ira Gershwin Literacy Center. Year 1987 ( MCMLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar) Lenore Gershwin provided $10,000 to establish this literacy center for primarily Hispanic and Chinese Americans at University Settlement, a century-old institution at 185 Eldridge Street on the Lower East Side, where the Pulitzer Prize-winning lyricist and his younger brother George, the composer, spent many after-school hours.
In 2007, The Library of Congress named their Prize for Popular Song after him and his brother George. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. The Library of Congress is the De facto National library of the United States and the research arm of the United States Congress The Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song is an award given annually to a composer or performer for their lifetime contributions to Popular music. Recognizing the profound and positive effect of popular music on the world’s culture, the prize will be given annually to a composer or performer whose lifetime contributions exemplify the standard of excellence associated with the Gershwins. On March 1, 2007, Paul Simon, one of America’s most respected songwriters and musicians, was announced to be the recipient of the first annual Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. Events 86 BC - Lucius Cornelius Sulla, at the head of a Roman Republic army enters in Athens, removing the Tyrant Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13 1941 is an American Songwriter, Musician, and member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song is an award given annually to a composer or performer for their lifetime contributions to Popular music.
Further reading
- Lyrics on Several Occasions: a selection of stage and screen lyrics written for sundry situations and now arranged in arbitrary categories, to which have been added many informative annotations and disquistions on their why and wherefore, their whom-for, their how, and matters associative, by Ira Gershwin, Gent. (1959); UK edition Elm Tree Books/Hamish Hamilton, London (1977) ISBN 0241896347
- The Complete Lyrics of Ira Gershwin (edited by Robert Kimball) Alfred A Knopf, New York (1993) ISBN 039455618
- Ira Gershwin: The Art of the Lyricist, by Philip Furia (1996)
References
- Rosenberg, Deena (1991). Philip George Furia (b November 15, 1943) is an American Author and English literature Professor Fascinating Rhythm: The Collaboration of George and Ira Gershwin. Penguin Books USA. ISBN 0-525-93356-5.
- ^ Ira Gershwin quoted by Edward Jablonski in Gershwin: A Biography, Simon & Schuster (1988) ISBN 0671699318
External links
- Gershwin fan site
- Library of Congress Gershwin collection
- Ira Gershwin Collection at the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas at Austin
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