By Sarah Sisk Ira Gershwin, Pulitzer-prize-winning lyricist and supplier of words to some of the most iconic songs in American musical history, may often be referred to as “the other Gershwin”, overshadowed by the popularity of his younger brother George. But while Ira may not always get the attention he deserves, the disparity in the Gershwin brothers’ respective notorieties has led to a sixty-year-running Gershwin joke—and of course poor Ira is the butt of it. The story goes that in the 1950s, a radio disk jockey, when playing a piece written by the Gershwin brothers, attributed the song to “George […]

Just a quick note from me (Kristen) today to share with you some of the reasons my colleagues and I love working here at the Gershwin Initiative and to tell you about the University of Michigan’s Giving Blue Day campaign. Giving Blue Day is the U-M version of Giving Tuesday—Go Blue! Our ability to make rapid progress on our editions (this year we’ve completed drafts of An American in Paris, Concerto in F, the Whiteman-band Rhapsody in Blue, and Porgy and Bess has finally been fully engraved into the music software) depends on donations to support our army of assistants, research travel, and much more.  You can donate […]

In today’s post, Frances traces some of the various transformations (or potential misprints) of the Gershwin family name. George and Ira’s father arrived in New York in 1890 still accompanied by his Russian Jewish name: Moishe Gershovitz. Moishe soon changed his name to the much more Americanized Morris Greshevin, as was frequently the custom with immigrants’ names upon arriving in America. Morris’s wife, Roza Bruskin, similarly became known as simply Rose. By the time of their union in 1895, their marriage license read “Gershvin.” In the 1900 US census, two years after George’s birth, Morris was back to using the […]

As word spread about a new Porgy production with George Gershwin, popular American entertainer Al Jolson inquired about the pending “musical.”  Four letters between DuBose Heyward and George Gershwin detail the matter.  Letters used with kind permission of the South Carolina Historical Society. By Frances Sobolak After George Gershwin and DuBose Heyward secured the operatic rights for Porgy in May of 1932, one of their next labors was to determine who would star in an operatic production. Though the theater production written by DuBose and his wife Dorothy featured an all-black cast, the same wasn’t an initial guarantee for an operatic […]

“ Love is Here to Stay” has been a celebrated jazz standard for more than six decades, and it is most often treated as a straightforward love ballad. However, the lack of gendered language in its lyrics opens up the possibility for alternative interpretations, as well as creative and political performances. By Megan Hill, Ph.D. The presence of gendered language (he/she/him/her, man/woman, etc.) in song lyrics provides the opportunity for people concerned with gender and sexuality politics to perform the song in order to make political statements, regardless of whether or not the song’s composer and/or lyricist had such politics […]

  George Gershwin is well-known for his mixed use of popular and traditional idioms. But what was his personal attitude towards contemporary composers, and how did this influence his approach towards composition? Take a look at how An American in Paris, situated at a critical point in George’s career, reflects both his developing tastes and shifting musical ambitions. By Cassidy Goldblatt George Gershwin began his career in the streets of Tin Pan Alley and Broadway, writing songs inspired by his love of jazz. Yet popular genres could only capture his attention for so long, and he soon felt the itch […]

Hello everyone! Just a quick note today for our blog followers to let you know we have some special things going on this week as we lead up to Friday’s test performances. We are taking over the U-M School of Music, Theater, and Dance instagram account! We will be posting behind-the-scenes looks at what we do here at the initiative and a few sneak peeks at George’s manuscripts we get to work with each day.  Follow along on instagram @UMichSMTD We also have some amazing new videos and interviews we are releasing on our Facebook page, be sure to check […]

  George and Ira Gershwin’s song “I’ve Got a Crush on You” is arguably one of their most famous creations. However, few people know that what made the song a hit was a change from a fast-tempo, Broadway dance piece into a leisurely, sentimental ballad. By: Rachel Fernandes “I’ve Got a Crush on You” I’ve got a crush on you, sweetie pie All the day and night time give me sigh I never had the least notion that I could fall with so much emotion Could you coo, could you care? For a cunning cottage we could share The world […]

  After George Gershwin’s death, Ira writes a letter to DuBose Heyward passing along his and George’s respect and affection for the author.  Take a look at Ira’s letter of August 2, 1937, to DuBose, held at the South Carolina Historical Society. By Frances Sobolak By the middle of 1937, just shy of two years after the premiere of Porgy and Bess, George Gershwin’s growing brain tumor, undetected at the time, was causing him severe headaches and fainting spells. On July 11, after having fallen into a coma two days before, George underwent extensive brain surgery—but the 38-year-old composer passed […]

By Sarah Sisk The startling news was emblazoned on the front page of the New York Times on Monday, July 12, 1937. George Gershwin had died that Sunday despite an emergency operation to remove a brain tumor and save the 38-year-old composer’s life. The news came as a complete shock: while he had suffered from what was deemed a “nervous breakdown” in the weeks preceding, the real source of his ailment was discovered in his final hours, and far too late. In the days and weeks to follow, obituaries cropped up in newspapers across the country, as reporters and columnists […]