Gershwin, George - Rhapsody in Blue - Greilsammer, David (piano)

---

---

David Greilsammer, piano
Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France
Steven Sloane, conductor

- Polish-born Alexandre Tansman started his career of pianist and composer in Paris in the 1920s. He worked with Debussy, Ravel, Stravinsky, Prokofiev, Milhaud and... Gershwin.

- In 1927, Tansman did a tour in the USA with Ravel. On December 28th, in Boston, his second Piano concerto was performed for the first time, by himself. The work, full of colors and built on several major musical influences (including jazz!) got an impressive acclaim, including by Gershwin.

- Yet, this recording of the Piano Concerto no.2 is the first one ever released on disc!

- On that time, Gershwin was one of the most popular composers. His "Jazz Concerto" commissioned by Paul Whitman in 1924, Rhapsody in Blue, had already experienced a worldwide success.

- To complete this program based on the links between Europe and America, David Greilsammer chose to record a work recently discovered: Nadia Boulanger's Fantaisie pour piano et orchestre. An internationally renowned pedagogue, Boulanger taught young composers from all over the world in Paris. She met with Tansman in 1919 and with Gershwin in 1925 and 1928.